Another dilemma for the electrical gurus...

unclehoser

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Oh yeah. Working around the airbag. Lol

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Then maybe I'll take it out to East BF in the desert and shoot at it with the AR-15 from about 100 yards...Party time!!! (Just kidding...I would never do that...)
 

79jasper

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Shooting it may not set it off. But a 12v battery will. Jyst search the YouTube's, many videos of stuff being launched. Lol

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madpogue

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How did you determine it was the switch, and not a sticking relay?

For, er, alternative airbag deployment, visit Davidsfarm on youtube.
 

unclehoser

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How did you determine it was the switch, and not a sticking relay?

For, er, alternative airbag deployment, visit Davidsfarm on youtube.

I was able to "trick" the horn into sticking & unsticking by manually manipulating the switch at the airbag. It felt completely worn out, with no tactile "feel" or spring-back, like other Ford trucks of that vintage that I have owned.

From what I've been able to find during research, the horn relay is embedded permanently in the main fuse panel, and is an item that rarely fails. I'll try the airbag module first, as opposed to replacing the entire fuse panel!
 

madpogue

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I was able to "trick" the horn into sticking & unsticking by manually manipulating the switch at the airbag. It felt completely worn out, with no tactile "feel" or spring-back, like other Ford trucks of that vintage that I have owned.
Yeah, sounds like something inside the pad that provides spring tension has gone flat. Sounds $$$$-y....

From what I've been able to find during research, the horn relay is embedded permanently in the main fuse panel...
Eek, thanks for the reminder of why I hope never to own a motor vehicle made in this century.....
 
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unclehoser

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And that, gentlemen, is exactly why I'm trying the $50 used airbag assembly before anything else! Those dollar signs have a tendency to add up, not to mention **** me off!!!

Cheers!
Dave
 

unclehoser

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Update...
All is well! Everything works as it should. The $50 used part had a LOT more 'springiness' in the horn pad.

In a moment of malt-barley-beverage-fueled madness, I decided to risk opening the old one up...curiosity killed the cat, right??? Fortunately, there were no explosions, and I discovered what actually makes the horn work! There's a membrane switch in there about the same shape as a football, and about half the size. It was completely flat, no tactile response, no 'spring-back' as there should be (I've dealt with plenty of equipment that uses membrane switches, and they're like pushing on a stiff bubble that wants to be a bubble!).

Factory part was $830. Saved a buck or two...now, it's just about finding a flat spot in the desert to 'dispose' of the old one...maybe see how high I can launch (insert object here!).

Cheers!
 

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