1971 Horn button assembly

[jlindquist]

I can't get my horn to work properly. The circuit is good and any time one of the 3 screws that holds the assembly to the column touches the horn button retainer, it properly activates the horn relay. However when I push the button it can't seem to make proper contact for it to work. Please take a look at the pictures and let me know if I am doing something wrong.
The horn contact disc with spring and silver contact point are new and installed correctly (so i think). after that the flying saucer disc is installed in a convex manner (high side facing driver) after that is the horn retaining ring then the pink insulator ring and lastly the 3 screws. What am I missing??

[68c10airstream]

Fixed a few for that problem in the last 40 years, take the saucer piece out and shine up the area of contact by the cup piece and clean the saucer piece outer rim edge. Obviously the spring loaded contact is bringing the voltage up to the saucer piece. The saucer piece is supposed to bridge the contact to ground. On the saucer piece you will see witness marks in the area of a circle about the diameter of the pink ring, shine it up to make it look like new. I do this to my horn saucer piece about every 3 years. Good luck, Brian F.

[jlindquist]

I will do this. For what its worth, all of the pieces are new. As far as the way i have assembled it (as best you can tell), is it correct?

[68c10airstream]

Sounds correct!!

[kingstrider]

This was just what I needed to fix my horn today, thanks!

[jlindquist]

I still have nothing. I imagine it is something simple that I am missing. Frustrating!

[GMC-YA68]

so how you have it in the pictures it works correctly, but as soon as you push the horn button onto the wheel it won't work?

[jlindquist]

It does not work correct with or without the horn button on. However, if i short 1 of the 3 screws to the horn cap retainer the horn works. Additionally, if i short the horn retainer to the center nut that holds wheel on the horn works.
Does the outer edge of the saucer need to make contact to the metal base of the steering wheel? I have a new stock wheel and there is some plastic molding that keeps the outer edge of the saucer from sitting directly on the actual metal of the wheel. I imagine it shouldn't touch because it would cause the horn to be active all the time??

[68c10airstream]

Absolutely the saucer piece must touch ground on it's outer edge!

[jlindquist]

Originally Posted by 68c10airstream

Absolutely the saucer piece must touch ground on it's outer edge!

I'll clean the plastic off the edges of if steering wheel base tomorrow. Thank you.
Posted via Mobile Device

[jlindquist]

Now that I have cleared the excess plastic from the steering wheel base, the outer edge of the saucer is in constant contact with ground and the horn is always on. This has to be the simplest circuit to work on and for some reason I feel like I am missing something.. Does the pink insulator get installed before the saucer?

[GMC-YA68]

Try this...cut up a bud light box, cut the cardboard in the shape of the same size circle and make holes for the three screws and the horn contact hole. Put the cardboard cut out between the saucer and what you have shown in the last pic you just posted. Then re-install everything as you normally would. Then try it....

[jlindquist]

Originally Posted by GMC-YA68

Try this...cut up a bud light box, cut the cardboard in the shape of the same size circle and make holes for the three screws and the horn contact hole. Put the cardboard cut out between the saucer and what you have shown in the last pic you just posted. Then re-install everything as you normally would. Then try it....

Now I'm back to where I was before which is no horn operation at all. Does having tilt steering make a difference in any of this?
Posted via Mobile Device

[68c10airstream]

Well my truck to look at for your steering wheel question was being used by a friend and I wasn't able to look till today and I was wrong! The plastic you removed should be there. I would use the bottom of a plastic disposable container and cut a washer from the bottom and install it. To recap it's function is the metal saucer makes contact with the spring loaded plunger all the time so it's 12+ needing to go to ground to make the horn blow.

The saucer piece is loaded with the center dished up at you as you look at it.

The cup that the horn button gets pushed into simply takes the force from being pushed on (to make the horn blow) and makes the saucer piece turn inside out, forcing the back side of the saucer piece touch the bare metal steering wheel center.

Look at it this way, if they could make the cup that holds the horn button sturdy enough out of plastic it would make no difference, the horn would still blow.

The reason for the pink plastic insulator is needed is because the cup is metal and without it the horn would blow all the time.

So the horn button, the metal cup, and the pink insulators job it to turn the saucer's dished surface inside out (more or less) and not ground out the signal in the process.

Remember the electrical circuit is going from the plunger to the saucer piece all the time, and when pushed the backside of the saucer piece touches the center hub area of the steering wheel as it's turned inside out and is then grounded at that moment. So the only thing that has to be good and shiny is the backside of the saucer and where it touches the center hub. Sometimes an eraser works very well for this.

[jlindquist]

Everything seems to be working fine now. Thank you for all your help on this!