Horn Detailing

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tyang
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Horn Detailing

Post by tyang »

Hi Everyone,

I'm in the process of detailing the horns in 3553 and I've got some questions.
horn17.jpg
horn17.jpg (88.82 KiB) Viewed 26472 times
The horn compressor on the left is what I feel is correct for FIAMM horn. Its body is black wrinkle, and the bracket is a nickel or white cad plate. The bottom of the compressor is painted semigloss black.

The compressor on the right came off of 3553, and is basically painted all in hammertone gray. Whomever restored this car liked hammertone, as it in painted on many surfaces where it shouldn't be, but I wanted to make sure no one has seen this finish before on a FIAMM horn compressor. I've seen gray finishes on Stridor horns, but not FIAMM
horn18.jpg
horn18.jpg (87.41 KiB) Viewed 26461 times
The tops of both of these horns show MC/1 as the model number, but notice the different position of the oil filler cap. The black cap (correct one) came from a Lusso, so its age was probably about 1964, while the gray cap (green oil fill) is from 3553, which dates from about 1962. Anybody have similar pieces on their compressor? I know on my 330 America, it looks like the Lusso pump.
horn19.jpg
horn19.jpg (80.71 KiB) Viewed 26466 times
The horns on 3553 were painted in all hammertone. I know the housings are supposed to be hammertone, but the trumpets are supposed to be a candied red. does anyone have a GTE with gray trumpets?

I'd love to get a consensus before I start stripping paint. Thanks!

Tom
'63 330 America #5053
kare
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Re: Horn Detailing

Post by kare »

My compressor and trumpets are both grey hammertone. They may have been replaced in 1967, but I am not sure.

If those horns are (also?) later replacements, repainting them would turn them into mongrels as they are still from different time (the model is different). I think somebody said that the later compressors - like the ones used on Fiat 130 - are taller.

Best wishes, Kare
250 GT 2+2 3197/GT
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tyang
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Re: Horn Detailing

Post by tyang »

HI Kare,

What about the bracket? Is it painted in hammer tone as well?

If I can find other cars with similar details built around 3553, I will keep it the way it is.

Tom
'63 330 America #5053
kare
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Re: Horn Detailing

Post by kare »

My bracket is a black painted piece of scrap metal. Looks very Italian.
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Rudy van Daalen Wetters
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Re: Horn Detailing

Post by Rudy van Daalen Wetters »

Tom,

I have to believe that the hammertone unit and horns is from
a later car. It resembles, very closely, the unit I have on my 1968
Maserati Mexico which is original to the car. The black compressor
with red candied trumpets is what I have on my GTE, s/n 4001.

Rudy van Daalen Wetters
1963 GTE s/n 4001
1966 330 GT s/n 8705
rshim1
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Re: Horn Detailing

Post by rshim1 »

The compressor with the green fill cap is the early design of the Roadmaster compressor. I base this on the serial number of the cars I have seen with these horns on them. The compressors with the red oil fill caps I have noticed on Lussos, 275s and 330s. All of the green oil fill cap design compressors that I have seen (10 examples) were painted in black wrinkle finish. Yours is the first one for me in grey hammertone finish. All of the horns that were with these early compressors had red trumpets and grey ends.
250 PF Cab. SN 3783
Chris Coios

Re: Horn Detailing

Post by Chris Coios »

Tom, The base cap of the compressor is not painted, it is naturally black. Depending on the date of maufacture, if the compressor is black wrinkle, the bracket is clear cadmium. By the time of later 275's, the bracket is zinc plated. I would not be surprised to see a bracket painted originally hammertone as in the photo, given that the horn base was typically painted hammertone including the fitting for the air hose. Chris
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Tom Wilson
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Re: Horn Detailing

Post by Tom Wilson »

Mine looks just like the left unit in Tom's photo. Black base cap, wrinkle finish middle, what is probably clear cad for the strap (with FIAMM stamped on the Front), black on the top and a red fill cap.

As for the trumpets, they should probably look something like this:
Riamm_Horns.jpg
Riamm_Horns.jpg (115.91 KiB) Viewed 26402 times
(Fiamm Factory, from Quattroruote, June 1963)
Tom Wilson - Series III 250 GTE, SN 4247 GT
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Rudy van Daalen Wetters
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Re: Horn Detailing

Post by Rudy van Daalen Wetters »

"Hey Luigi, let's paint this one hammertone, just to make everybody crazy!"

Rudy van Daalen Wetters
1963 GTE s/n 4001
1966 330 GT s/n 8705
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tyang
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Re: Horn Detailing

Post by tyang »

Hey Tom W.

I love that picture!

Tom
'63 330 America #5053
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TOMKIZER
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Re: Horn Detailing

Post by TOMKIZER »

Hey Guys,
There they are - down there at the far end.
Tom Kizer
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Fiamm_Horns up close.jpg
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So many sidewalk cafés - so little time left.
1969 365 GT 2+2 S/N 12293 (Gone but not forgotten)
1967 230 SL 4-spd (Currently on CPR)
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Tom Wilson
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Re: Horn Detailing

Post by Tom Wilson »

Funny....I never noticed that before....
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Tom Wilson
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Re: Horn Detailing

Post by Tom Wilson »

I assumed that the horns on the right were unpainted, but now that I look again, it appears that the table contains finished sets. Note the middle grouping that has short and long horns. Different horns for different cars I guess.

The first row of men and women appear to be assembling the horn compressors and they are all silver. May be unpainted at this stage. And what about the guy in the middle? He looks like he has a brake booster. The article appears to say they made horns and batteries here, but I don't know about brake boosters. Probably some sort of tool.

Regardless, I still think red is the way to go on the trumpets. If nothing else, that is what the judges will expect and you will have to have pretty good evidence to prove to them otherwise.
Tom Wilson - Series III 250 GTE, SN 4247 GT
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tyang
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Re: Horn Detailing

Post by tyang »

The different horn lengths are for different tones. I've never measured the lengths of our horns, but I assume they're slightly different in length for a high and low tone. The ones in the picture, however, look a lot shorter than the ones next to them.

Still collating data. Still undecided on the finishes.

Tom
'63 330 America #5053
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Re: Horn Detailing

Post by TOMKIZER »

Here are the horns on my Queen. The color was apparently original. Nothing else on the car had been stripped to the bare metal before painting, so I assume the horns were blue from the factory. When I stripped off the black overspray where things behind the grill had been repainted after a fender bender sometime before 1984, I found this color blue. I documented my restoration so if a judge complains, I can show him the photos. Note the different lengths to provide a nice harmony.
Tom Kizer
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Horns Installed 1.jpg
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So many sidewalk cafés - so little time left.
1969 365 GT 2+2 S/N 12293 (Gone but not forgotten)
1967 230 SL 4-spd (Currently on CPR)
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