How can we have a ‘real’ emergency vehicle if we don’t have genuine Grover air horns. Remember the TV show Emergency? Now that is the classic fire truck air horn sound. Electronic sirens do their best to imitate the sound but only the real thing commands such attention. We were elated when Grover stepped up to bat with a set of Emergency 1510 Stuttertone Air Horns.
The irony is that these Stuttertone Air Horns were among some of the very first items sponsored for our truck and they are among some of the last accessories to be installed. But they have been worth the wait. These horns are incredibly loud!!! There is no doubt that motorists two states away will hear these (well, that may be a slight exaggeration).
#images#
The horns were very easy to install once we figure out where they were going to go and how we mount them. It was decided to exit the trumpets trough the lower part of the bumper and mount the pedestals to the ORU reverse shackle cross member. We had the brackets custom made at a local fabrication shop. After determining the mounting location, we drilled the holes for the mounting screws and the air fittings. Next, they were put in place and holes drilled and tapped into the ORU cross member. Then they were fastened with stainless steel screws and painted gloss black to match the rest of the chassis. For the bumper, the trick was creating an opening that when facing head on, would be circular, but because of the angle of the bumper, would actually be oval. After some fancy math and some Photoshop work, we were able to print a couple of templates which we used to mark the location of the holes. Using a plasma cutter, we carefully followed our outlines. The openings were dressed, first with a grinder, then with a dremel to smooth and debur the edges. Then the fresh cut metal was painted with a dark blue paint to prevent rust and finally, Trim-Lock supplied the rubber trim to cover and protect the openings.
Now it was time to actually install the air horns. We began by disassembling the air horns and passing the trumpets through the openings and then replacing the sound units. The trick was getting them back in just the right spot so the horns would sound properly. It took several tries but we finally nailed it. Next, the pedestals were mounted to the custom brackets with stainless steel bolts. Once in place, the air lines were able to be installed. Using the Grover supplied pneumatic relay, the air lines were coupled and the relay was installed into the custom manifold at the top of the bumper. For the moment of truth. We charged the air system with our shop compressor and pressed on the horn button. Holy cow, the blast almost blew us away (nopun intended). The surpassed our wildest expectations and we can’t wait to let loose on the first emergency run. There is no doubt that a real emergency vehicle has to have a set of air horns, and the only true emgergeny vehicle air horns are the Stuttertone horns from Grover Products!