Horn is intermittent...electrial help!!

[Yamaha Bandit]

Ok, this is the last hurdle for this bike and I'm in the clear. I need her to pass inspection but my horn is not working properly. I bought a brand new 12v horn and that didn't solve my problem so I assume its either my horn switch or some wiring issue. The horn gets proper voltage. So that checked out. But what I did find out is that my ground wire is showing resistance and my ohms are all over the place. So from the little bit of reading and research. My ground wire should be showing nearly zero ohms. That isn't the case. So instead of having the dealer rip me off I figure I can sort this out myself but I do not know where to begin. The wiring diagrams are a pain to read. Can anyone can steer me in the right direction. Is there a place where the ground wire is attached to the frame to ground it?

[reelrazor]

My horn is intermittent too;

It only works when I take it out of the junk box, mount it to my bike and press the horn button.

Seriously, just run a ground directly to the triple tree where the horn actually mounts-it never hurts to have redundant grounds.

IIRC, the current ground path is back through the harness to the main chassis ground buss which will be on the inside of the frame below the battery compartment. That's some bearing grease and a couple dissimilar metals removed from your horn mounting...splice in a hoop terminal with about two inches of wire to the ground wire and terminate it at the horn mount bolt.

[Yamaha Bandit]

I'm a total noob here and will devote all of tomorrow in getting this thing done. But I have no clue what a triple tree is. And your last statement has me at a total loss. "the current ground path is back through the harness to the main chassis ground buss which will be on the inside of the frame below the battery compartment." I understand this and think I may have found will post pic later.

"That's some bearing grease and a couple dissimilar metals removed from your horn mounting...splice in a hoop terminal with about two inches of wire to the ground wire and terminate it at the horn mount bolt." Could you also explain this statement a little better??

[goosefartfan]

1. make sure you know which wire attached to the horn is "hot" =12V, and which one is ground.
2. find a bolt connected to the bike close to the horn (usually the horn mounting bracket) that has a good connection to ground. That's usually any part of the frame/engine.
3. After you choose the bolt, take it to the auto parts store, and buy a round wire terminal and a lock washer. Make sure the bolt fits into the round wire terminal and lock washer.
4. Cut the ground wire coming off the horn, long enough plus some extra to reach where the bolt attaches to the frame.
5. Attach this wire to the round wire terminal.
6. Attach the bolt and the wire with the round wire terminal and lock washer to the bike.

you've just made a new ground for the wire, and it should work now.

[reelrazor]

I'm a total noob here and will devote all of tomorrow in getting this thing done. But I have no clue what a triple tree is.

It's the lower of two pieces that hold your fork legs on the bike...(the upper is the one with your ignition switch-that you see while riding and is called the 'crown'.

And your last statement has me at a total loss. "the current ground path is back through the harness to the main chassis ground buss which will be on the inside of the frame below the battery compartment." I understand this and think I may have found will post pic later.

"That's some bearing grease and a couple dissimilar metals removed from your horn mounting...splice in a hoop terminal with about two inches of wire to the ground wire and terminate it at the horn mount bolt." Could you also explain this statement a little better??

A 'buss' is a point where multiple electrical connections are tied together. Every wire that acts as a ground leads there-the main chassis ground buss. It is mounted on the inside of the bike's frame-under the battery box.

One wire at the horn is 'hot' when the horn button is pressed. the other will be tied to ground...back thru the harness and to the 'buss'. This is a long and possibly suspect path-especially with intermittent readings like you are seeing. if you add a wire to teh ground terminal at the horn and directly ground it to the triple tree, you will have a better ground path.

But, that ground path does depend on bearings(with grease) contained within the headstock (the part of the frame the triple tree passes thru).

It may clear you up enough to pass inspection.

Another very likely culprit may be the handlebar switch for the horn. You imply that you have a multimeter.....see if the 12v side wire to the horn is consistently 'hot' when the button is pushed. Electrical contact cleaner will do wonders for that switch assembly (can see it's guts if you open up the handlebar switch housing-phillips head screws underneath).

[Yamaha Bandit]

Thanks guys!! This is a ton of useful information!! I'm going to try and use my volt meter to make sure I have 12v coming from the switch and will prob open it up to inspect the guts. Then will create a new ground wire, which should solve my issues. I will repost tomorrow with my results.

[Yamaha Bandit]

Created a new ground and the horn works!! BUT....it now sounds when I turn my ignition to "on." As if the switch is being constantly pushed in. Now I'm stumped. I don't think my switch is stuck. I opened it up and everything looks good. Could it be a faulty relay?? HELP!!!!

[goosefartfan]

it probably isn't good!

was there a spring in the switch when you took it apart? Is it still there?

If, after taking apart the switch and electrical cleaner, scrubbie pad, and WD-40-ing everything, it should work OK

good luck!

P.S. Hmmmmmmmmm......

Without having the wiring in front of me, I wonder if a previous owner had the constant on problem, and just disconnected the ground farther down in order to disable the horn. The "no horn" problem for you was probably a solution for him!!

Are you sure you need to have a working horn to pass inspection?

[Yamaha Bandit]

Hey guys!! I just went out and bought a horn switch and rigged it up with my new horn and attached it to my battery. Mounted the switch to my bike. It honks!!! Took it to the dealer and I passed inspection!! Removed the hardware and wires and I'm back to normal. I currently do not have a horn but for now I'm happy. Thanks for all the help!!!

[goosefartfan]

Congrats!
but I'm confused....why don't you have a horn now?

[Yamaha Bandit]

I decided to remove my "rigged" horn because it was just a temporary fixed. I plan on doing the right right when I have time. In addition it was ugly. The switch's terminals were exposed and could pose a issue with rain. I didn't have a fuse incorporated into the circuit.