loud battery powered horn wanted

[Davidc]

Can anyone recommend one?

Needs to be loud enough to get through to dozy peds using earphones before they try to off me.

 

[orienteer]

Airzound - not battery but compressed air, you pump it up through a Schrader valve. Weight: 100 gm.

 

[Theseus]

+1

 

[rusky]

Another Airzound fan here. They are loud too!

 

[bad boy]

Ive got one and its brilliant dont bother with a battery horn

 

[bad boy]

Do bother with a battery powered horn if you want (it was you asked for in the first place, especially as airzounds are not as good in the cold). There are some really good horns on Evans website that are battery powered, gives off a 110db balst when you want.

Yes point taken Lee, do bother if you really want although IMHO the Airzound is a better option unless you have specific reasons why you would prefer a battery horn + they sound like an electronic fire alarm, the air horn is a more gutsy sound.

 

[semislickstick]

Do bother with a battery powered horn if you want (it was you asked for in the first place, especially as airzounds are not as good in the cold). There are some really good horns on Evans website that are battery powered, gives off a 110db balst when you want.

Which ones are they Lee? Just had a quick look and could only see the megahorn, I tried that before the button switch was handy but it makes an electronic bird chirpy noise, which doesn't make drivers look around. If only it made airzound type sound or the air zound was smaller and worked in the cold.

 

[Theseus]

THe advantage of a battery horn, other than that an Airzound is complete overkill for pedestrians, is that it'll always be ready to go. Airzounds lose pressure and if you don't keep it pumped up and haven't used it for a while you might end up with a feeble fart.

You must have a leak in your Airzound. I find keeping the pressure up much more reliable and cheaper to run than a couple of AA batteries that will also lose their charge over time and produce a feeble warble at the wrong time. The performance of batteries also changes with temperature, I have not experienced any drop in the Airzound performance on cold days despite what other posters have written. As I carry a pump, it only takes a few seconds to get fully operational.

 

[Theseus]

No leak. It was just that, unless encouraged by the fact that it was there, I very rarely needed to use it. So when I did it wasn't at full power.

Which is why it's sitting on a shelf in the shed.

I'll repeat my earlier, more important comment though -an Airzound isn't appropriate for pedestrians with headphones on.

I tend to use my Airzound for motorists. If I need to get the attention of a pedestrian I prefer to shout. This would only be if they were stepping into the road without looking. If on a shared facility I ride expecting everyone to stop and make immediate random direction changes. There are very few places I actually do not use the road.

 

[Davidc]

Thanks everyone.

The Evans option looks worth investigating, so I'll folow that up.

I've heard an Airzound working, and think it might be a bit ferocious for what I want. I've also had bad experiences with compresed air devices going flat on me.

The best horn I had was decades ago, it had a gas cannister to power it and was seriously loud. Don't think those are made any more and again would be OTT. (They'd probably break 287 different health and safety regulations plus 402 assorted European directives now)

 

[GrumpyGregry]

I'll repeat my earlier, more important comment though -an Airzound isn't appropriate for pedestrians with headphones on.

why not and what is your strategy then?

 

[semislickstick]

Thanks everyone.

The Evans option looks worth investigating, so I'll folow that up.

I've heard an Airzound working, and think it might be a bit ferocious for what I want. I've also had bad experiences with compresed air devices going flat on me.

The best horn I had was decades ago, it had a gas cannister to power it and was seriously loud. Don't think those are made any more and again would be OTT. (They'd probably break 287 different health and safety regulations plus 402 assorted European directives now)

Do you want to see a video of it working first?
Seriously, peds and drivers didn't know what to make of it or the direction it was coming from, going on my experience in town.

 

[bad boy]

It's too loud, and is just as likely to result in a panicking person jumping unpredictably in front of you.

I just shout if the bell isn't loud enough. It's more controllable, and not a completely unexpected noise.

Ive got to say I have found this to be true so I dont tend to use it too close to peds.

 

[GrumpyGregry]

It's too loud, and is just as likely to result in a panicking person jumping unpredictably in front of you.

I just shout if the bell isn't loud enough. It's more controllable, and not a completely unexpected noise.

good strategy, I think.

as far as pedestrians are concerned if I want to sound a horn I reckon I should probably be on the brakes instead. But I learned this the hard way.

 

[thomas]

PM Hackbike...he's got an obsession with battery powered horns

AirZound is good...it'll only really go flat if you use it too much and then don't pump it up. Seemed to last find on my 30mile commute...normally lasted a couple, depending on how awake people were.