Local Salvage Yard Safari (and vintage horn scrounging)

I went to my local salvage yard to hunt up a new horn for the Zetor (more on that later) and they are clearing out their vintage inventory. Here are some pics of the more interesting things still there...

maybe the oldest piece in the yard..
maybe the oldest piece in the yard..
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why yes, it IS a steam engine.
why yes, it IS a steam engine.
Old Morris?
Old Morris?
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Old Fiat...1100 I think...
Old Fiat...1100 I think...
Another Fiat 1100, this later one yielded a functional dual-tone horn!
Another Fiat 1100, this later one yielded a functional dual-tone horn!
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sure, it’s Vermont, seeing ski lifts scrapped here isn’t that surprising... what is surprising? All that Aluminum. This is one of THREE piles like this.
sure, it’s Vermont, seeing ski lifts scrapped here isn’t that surprising... what is surprising? All that Aluminum. This is one of THREE piles like this.
sad and lonely Opel GT...
sad and lonely Opel GT...
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FC. How this hasn’t been rescued, restored and sold for a bajillion dollars yet I don’t know...
FC. How this hasn’t been rescued, restored and sold for a bajillion dollars yet I don’t know...

well I’ll be damned...
well I’ll be damned...
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Yup, it IS! An Allis-Chalmers Roto-Baler! The first commercial round baler. Introduced in 1947, production ended in 1960. This looks restorable...
Yup, it IS! An Allis-Chalmers Roto-Baler! The first commercial round baler. Introduced in 1947, production ended in 1960. This looks restorable...
the aluminium is still good, right? Pulled a lovely AutoLite horn off the Rover sedan hidden in the bushes behind it.
the aluminium is still good, right? Pulled a lovely AutoLite horn off the Rover sedan hidden in the bushes behind it.
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UPS package cars
UPS package cars
They have trailers full of old american v8s...
They have trailers full of old american v8s...
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Sadly, this early Sunbeam Imp is well beyond help.
Sadly, this early Sunbeam Imp is well beyond help.

I pulled three horns: An early ‘70s Mercedes W109 mega disk, a dual-tone from a late Fiat 1100 (complete with French Mixo un-sealed relay and mega-tough bracket) and a Made In USA AutoLite from a Rover P4. Of the three, shockingly the Benz horn does not work.

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Giant Bosch disk no worky.
Giant Bosch disk no worky.

The Fiat horn set is a BEAST, and I’m actually thinking about putting it in the FieSTa... loud as fuck with a completely un-ignorable tone. It looks like it might be a Stebel unit... but whoever made it, MIXO was apparently absorbed by VALEO, and this assembly is still manufactured (and quite expensive, over $100), though made with plastic horns instead of aluminum. The old ones sound better and are apparently in high demand. It means BUSINESS.

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this assembly weighs about 7 pounds. and these horns are no joke.
this assembly weighs about 7 pounds. and these horns are no joke.
check out the MIXO relay...
check out the MIXO relay...
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totally serviceable.
totally serviceable.

The old AutoLite is going to need to need a relay for use in the Zetor, but it’ll fit and has a nice, deep, authoritative tone without being over the top.

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PARDON ME, BUT WILL YOU MOVE PLEASE? THANKYOU. GOD SAVE THE QUEEN!
PARDON ME, BUT WILL YOU MOVE PLEASE? THANKYOU. GOD SAVE THE QUEEN!

^ the one I got is a 12v version, but it’s the same size and has a similar, but louder and smoother tone.