Stebel Horn Installation

[Guest Pete McCrary]

Finally got my Stebel Compact Nautilus installation on my 6th Gen finished and tested last night. Wow! I am more than pleased with the sound.

I did my installation a little differently and am very happy with the results.

1. I seperated the compressor from the megaphone/horn body with a good whack on the bottom of the compressor with a rubber mallet. I then mounted the compressor on to left frame right under the bracket the left fairing bolts to. I drilled a couple of 6 mm holes through the frame and then used the rubber cushioned "C" clamps Anchor makes (availabe at any West Marine or Boater's World). This keeps the compressor under the fairing bodywork and also allows it to be mounted vertically as they recommend.

2. I mounted a 40 amp relay (not the crappy one that comes with their kit, but a good one from Jim Davis) right in front of the R/R on the right side of the bike. This allowed the stock horn wires to plug right in and act as both the trigger wire and ground wire for the relay.

3. The tough part - I fabricated/welded up a bracket that bolts to the location of the stock horn. I used a half round section of 1½" muffler pipe along with some other metal straps to weld all of this together. It allowed me to place the horn facing forward (as it should) but it really snuggled it up out of the way of the exhaust pipes, front fender, etc. You really have to look hard to see it.

4. I installed a brass barbed fitting into the hole in the megaphone body and then ran a 15-18" piece of 5/16" I.D. hose from the compressor to the megaphone horn unit. Hose clamps at each end of course.

Thing works great and you really have to look up under the front of the bike to even know it's there. It was a lot of work but it isn't hidden behind any body work or pointed sideways. Used stainless steel hardware all the way and 10 ga wire for the compressor. Power comes from a Tightwad 4 gang relay under the seat. Running a 20 amp fuse.

The sound goes out in front of the bike unobstructed so it's full effect can be "experienced".

Pics to follow soon.

[Tightwad]

I look forward to pics! I wondered if they were seperateable. Sounds like a nice installation for sure....possible to duplicate the bracket for those who don't weld?

[Knife]

Very clever. Sounds like you found the magic formula for a fully acceptable installation. I would like to see some pics, and also get a better understanding of how you wired it all up. :fing02:

[Darth Bling]

Obligatory....

[SEBSPEED]

Did you say you drilled into the frame of your bike?!? :fing02:

[Beck]

Very clever. Sounds like you found the magic formula for a fully acceptable installation. I would like to see some pics, and also get a better understanding of how you wired it all up. :fing02:

Interesting, you kinda undid what they designed the compact unit for in the first place, but it actually worked better in the end!

Can't wait to see the results. could be more options for many of us considering the air horns.

BTW, just wondering, is there any "lag" with the horns after you added in those hoses? I seem to remember some slight lag on the older. separate air horn design with the hoses that my dad had in his 1955 MGA 1500.

Beck

95 VFR

[Guest]

Did you say you drilled into the frame of your bike?!? :schla15:

Yeah, if you know structural dynamics (I'm an engineer) you have a pretty good idea of where it's cool to drill holes and areas that should be left untouched. If you familiar with structural dynamics, I drilled in what is referred to as the neutral zone of a beam.

[Guest]

Very clever. Sounds like you found the magic formula for a fully acceptable installation. I would like to see some pics, and also get a better understanding of how you wired it all up. :schla15:

Interesting, you kinda undid what they designed the compact unit for in the first place, but it actually worked better in the end!

Can't wait to see the results. could be more options for many of us considering the air horns.

BTW, just wondering, is there any "lag" with the horns after you added in those hoses? I seem to remember some slight lag on the older. separate air horn design with the hoses that my dad had in his 1955 MGA 1500.

Beck

95 VFR

No lag at all. One thing that was interesting is I did a test blow before the final air line hook up. You'd be surprised how much noise the compressor itself makes. Once it's all hooked up the sound of the horn drowns it out.

Let me get some pics made.

[JZH]

Hmm. Didn't know you could even do that!. However, if you can remote the compressor, you could probably use the "non-compact" Nautilus and get even more projected sound?

Ciao,

[Guest]

OK, here are the pics (I think). Just got a new camera (Olympus Stylus 1010) and these are some of my first shots.

This is where/how I mounted Tightwad's relay that comes with his four place fuse panel:

This shows how I mounted Tightwad's fuse panel using a piece of aluminum right angle and drilling a couple of 5 mm holes in the box section of the steel portion of the frame. I have the Stebel and my Garmin wired through it currently.

This is where I mounted the 40 amp horn relay I got from Jim Davis at Eastern Beaver. The horn wires plug right into it for a trigger wire and ground.

This is how I mounted the compressor on the left side of the bike.

This is a pic of the megaphone/horn itself snuggled way up under the lower triple tree. I made a bracket (sorry - I didn't make any pics of it) that bolt into the standard Honda horn bracket holes. That is a section of 1½" muffler pipe inside the cylindical portion of the horn. Thoroughly secured with JB Weld and a couple of 5 mm bolts. The bracket actually is welded to this section and then bolts to the frame. To give you some perspective in this photo, the hose in the upper portion of the photo is the connecting hose between the left and right radiators. You can see the bottom of the steering stem in the upper left of the photo. I have the horn pointed forward (that's where the deer and the idiot's usually reside that I blow my horn at) and angled it down slightly so it would always have positive water drainage.

It was a lot of trial and error. Took me two attempts to get the bracket right. I did this in conjunction with installing a set of All Balls tapered bearings, new headlight bulbs, and replacing a cracked front cowling. Not a job to be tackled by itself.

[Q-Dawg]

Oooohh....... Those ABS 6th gen owners are going to LOVE you!

Cool mod that I might just try myself even though I'm not ABS. i have no idea if I can shoehorn the Stebel, cruise control, auxilliary fuesbox, PCIII, HID ballasts and tools all under my seat and behind the bodywork.

But your idea might make the difference!

[Guest]

Hmm. Didn't know you could even do that!. However, if you can remote the compressor, you could probably use the "non-compact" Nautilus and get even more projected sound?

Ciao,

Quite possibily. I had already bought the Compact Nautilus. I had a hard time finding the seperate unit model. No matter how "compact" anything is, there just isn't a lot of room to add things to the VFR. For instance, I could not have done my fuse panel the way I did if I had an ABS model.

I talked to the guys at Twisted Throttle where I bought the horn. They said seperating the compressor and megaphone is quite a common trick. The thing that pushed me most to do this is that they were adamant about the compressor being mounted vertical. Apparently there are some bearings inside of it that will be oil starved is mounted horizontally.

[Beck]

Fantastically clean install you did there. I have a 4th gen, but now, I'm interested too....... Now you say that the compressor just comes off with a whack??! I'll look at one closely next time. We have the "Wolo" brand version in auto parts stores in our area. I think that they really are re-branded Stebels.

Beck

95 VFR

[Tightwad]

Nice pictures of the fuse panel install as well. For the record that is also a 40 amp fuse that comes with it!

[Guest]

Fantastically clean install you did there. I have a 4th gen, but now, I'm interested too....... Now you say that the compressor just comes off with a whack??! I'll look at one closely next time. We have the "Wolo" brand version in auto parts stores in our area. I think that they really are re-branded Stebels.

Beck

95 VFR

All that holds the metal compressor to the plastice horn/megaphone body is the little plastic tab at the top where the "exhaust" from the compressor goes into the horn body and a little plastic tab on the side of the "sleeve" area of the horn body. Cut off the plastic tab over the exhaust from the compressor, gently pry the sleeve portion of the horn up with a screw driver and the compressor will slide out of the sleeve with a minimum amount of force.

I got frustrated with mine and just whacked it one good time with a rubber mallet which in turn led to my discovery of the two plastic tabs I'm referring to. Once you seperate the horn from the compressor, go to Manny, Moe, & Jacks or AutoZone, etc, and find a 12" long or so piece of muffler pipe (I believe it is 1½" ID). It will fit perfectly inside the sleeve portion of the horn. From there it's up to your imagination and fabricating skills.

[Guest]

Oooohh....... Those ABS 6th gen owners are going to LOVE you!

Cool mod that I might just try myself even though I'm not ABS. i have no idea if I can shoehorn the Stebel, cruise control, auxilliary fuesbox, PCIII, HID ballasts and tools all under my seat and behind the bodywork.

But your idea might make the difference!

IF you're running a Sargent seat, this is a good place to mount the PC III. You have to remove the door to the worthless little storage comparment of course and you might have to trim some of the gray plastic, but the PC III fits perfectly in that storage area. Frees up the area on each side of the rear frame member.

Mounting it here makes it very easy to be accessed by a DynoJet tuner or to download maps to. I mounted mine using a piece of 1/8" thick by 4" wide aluminum plate that has four rivets securing it to the black box section of the frame. Cover it with female Velcro, covered the bottom of the PC III with male Velcro and there you have it.

[Guest]

Forgot to add one important detail to my Stebel horn installation:

You will have to install the PAIR valves block off plates to gain the room necessary to snuggle the Stebel way up there.

[Corbeau]

Thanks Pete.

I've had a Stebel Nautilus in my hands for about a year now, every now and again kneeling in front of my 6th gen, trying to figure out how to mount it without having the new horn smashing into the fender...

You've given me (us?) the perfect incentive to tackle the job.

OK, now, you've lost me at "install the PAIR valves block off plates"... :fing02:

[Tightwad]

Thanks Pete.

I've had a Stebel Nautilus in my hands for about a year now, every now and again kneeling in front of my 6th gen, trying to figure out how to mount it without having the new horn smashing into the fender...

You've given me (us?) the perfect incentive to tackle the job.

OK, now, you've lost me at "install the PAIR valves block off plates"... :fing02:

I am not sure who all makes them, but I believe one maker is the inventer of the Torocharger (can't recall his username).

[BrittC]

Nice job on the install! When I put a Stebel on my old bike I thought about separating the compressor from the horn, but was afraid I would ruin it. When I get one for the VFR, I may very well copy your installation method.

Love the Stebel Nautilus!!

[JZH]

I had a look at my extra Nautilus Compact the other day and got it apart quite easily. And back again. For the record, it is only held together with a little plastic tab: gently move it aside with a screwdriver and the unit can be separated. Break the plastic tab by, for example, hitting things with heavier things, and your modification is going to be a bit more permanent...

(I wonder if ePay allows deep-linking?) Anyway, the pics should be of the regular Nautilus, with the big-ass plastic horn. These appear to be exactly the same as the Compact, but with a different plastic bit, so they should come apart exactly the same way. Basically, once you've got the thing apart, you can then trim the plastic even more to eliminate the curved part that wraps around the metal compressor. Still looks quite big, but I think I might be able to find someplace to fit one...or maybe two Compacts? The mind boggles!

(However, at 18A ea., that might be a little too much horsepower...)

[Or, how about using one compressor and, using a tee-fitting, two horns? If one were a Nautilus, and the other a Compact, they might even yield a sort of two-tone effect? Methinks a small electrical project lurks on my horizon!]

Ciao,

[Guest]

I had a look at my extra Nautilus Compact the other day and got it apart quite easily. And back again. For the record, it is only held together with a little plastic tab: gently move it aside with a screwdriver and the unit can be separated. Break the plastic tab by, for example, hitting things with heavier things, and your modification is going to be a bit more permanent...

(I wonder if ePay allows deep-linking?) Anyway, the pics should be of the regular Nautilus, with the big-ass plastic horn. These appear to be exactly the same as the Compact, but with a different plastic bit, so they should come apart exactly the same way. Basically, once you've got the thing apart, you can then trim the plastic even more to eliminate the curved part that wraps around the metal compressor. Still looks quite big, but I think I might be able to find someplace to fit one...or maybe two Compacts? The mind boggles!

(However, at 18A ea., that might be a little too much horsepower...)

[Or, how about using one compressor and, using a tee-fitting, two horns? If one were a Nautilus, and the other a Compact, they might even yield a sort of two-tone effect? Methinks a small electrical project lurks on my horizon!]

Ciao,

Don't get rid of all of the curved plastic piece when you seperate it. I kept about half of mine. It wraps perfectly around the outside of a section of 1½" muffler pipe. You use the section of the muffler pipe to weld a tab to which in turn bolts to a "T" shaped section that bolts into the two holes formerly occupied by the original horn. By joining the "T" bracket and the piece that winds up being shaped like )-, you can do some fine tuning on the positing of the horn megaphone to get it to clear everything.

The Pair Valves block off plates were supplied by someone else on the board a while back. It gives you a lot more clearance to get the horn way up there. The fact that the pair valve covers must be done away with gives you an idea of how high and in close I got my horn mounted.

I've not noticed any difference what so ever in the horn's performance with my method. No lag, no decrease in volume. This allow the opening of the megaphone to point straight ahead and is not shielded by an body work.

(It sure is good to be able to post again ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !)

[mello dude]

Pete - how did you route the plastic tube for the compressor to the horn? BTW - I really

like your install - I going to attack it on my 5th gen.

MD

[Guest]

Pete - how did you route the plastic tube for the compressor to the horn? BTW - I really

like your install - I going to attack it on my 5th gen.

MD

Thanks for the compliment.

Look at my last two pics. Hose comes down from the compressor, behind the left fork leg (seems like there's a little gap between the wiring and the frame in that area), put one of those marine type stainless steel clamps on one of the spark plug caps, and then looped it back up on the right side of the bike. The hose from start to finish does a 270° loop.

You will need to get a 5/16" brass double barbed hose connection (Ace Hardware) to fit into the plastic body. Put an "O" ring around the top of it before you push it in. It may need to be shortened by about a quarter of an inch but you will still have 3 or 4 barbs catching the plastic body. It's a good tight, snug fit into the horn body just like you want.

[Bikerholic]

I did something similar:

This is how i did mine

First the horn was separated.

Horn mounts on the right side

Hose route through the top of frame and using the brake line to hold them in.

Then route over to the left

Notice there isn't a single kinks through out the entire path of the hose.

The compressor is held on with Velcro; a strip of Velcro's hooks side afixed to the compressor spanning the entire contact surface and a larger (3X > Hook strip) lint side afixed to the frame and zip ties acting as safety wire

Wiring layout

Fuse box with support

Fuse box support ($0.99 3 rings binder from Staple)

Notice the Folds

Left head lights relay hook

Fuse box on relay hook with relay installed

Fuse box support relaxed

Reason for the folds

Top view

Top view with fairing

The center cap have a zip tie temporary holding on to the pre-route wiring for PowerLet

Top view close up right side

Hose barely noticeable

Getting to the fuse box, all i need is to remove "1" single covering.

I've try mounting them (Both compressor and horn) under the triple, but upon full compression, i heard some knocking noise. Later founded the bend brake line below.

The compressor was mounted horizontally, the horn zip was tie to the radiator hose.

Inspiration for this was a combination of my previous FZ6 forum and Someone from this forum. But his fuse box support require some fastener, where my don't.