ablang

After having watched many videos on upRIDE it's obvious that there's a lot of drivers out there that don't have any consideration for sharing space w/ cyclists on the roadway.

So many videos of cyclists getting cut off by right turners or drivers coming out of driveways or side streets.

Has anyone found a good loud horn that can be mounted on a bike to let unpleasant drivers be reminded that they did something bad?

10 Wheels

Small Marine Air Horn has worked for me. Blast a dog when it gets close.
Held on With a Rubber Band Easy to Remove to Blast a Driver with a Rolled Down Window.

Shoreline Marine Mini Eco Air Horn, 1.4 oz - Walmart.com

Blue One on the Right.

CAT7RDR

I yell, "Bike!" if I think I am not going to be seen by drivers.
I also employ front white flashers and red rear flashers.

Drivers are lazy for the most part and only use small mirrors that might not show cyclists.
They will not turn their heads to see if a lane is clear.

The 10% that hate cyclists are not going to be deterred by a horn.

pdlamb

I think Air Zound is the horn that fits on your handle bars, with a reserve tank in a water bottle holder. But while I think it looks neat, I haven't bothered with one. I've got a loud mouth already on the bike.

indyfabz

Same here. One thing I like to do is honk at people using my voice. Like when the light turns green and someone is busy staring at their phone. Just this morning I pulled along side a woman and told her to "Hang up and drive!" when the light changed.

unterhausen

Airzound is really effective. But I have always wanted one of the loudbicycle horns, sounds like a car.
they are working on a horn that sounds like a truck

10 Wheels

Try a Boat Horn. $6.00

Shoreline Marine Mini Eco Air Horn, 1.4 oz - Walmart.com

kahn

There must be a new truck in the neighborhood since I've heard it twice - incredibly loud Train Whistle! I mean it sounds like a train at a railroad crossing.

10 Wheels Are those also hand grenades on the bars?

BobbyG

I bike commuted daily for 28 years. I have an AirZound airhorn on each bike. It sounds like a handheld boat horn, but you pump it up with your bike pump.

I know it works even when car windows are rolled up, because you can see the heads turn...and the occasional finger.

On MUPS I can announce my presence way in advance so others aren't surprised.

I also use a bell for close in, polite alerting.

Daniel4

The 40db Hornit sounds loud when you're testing it in the store or your home but it's really feeble when you're outside. And the chirping/ squeeling option just reminds others of that annoying car alarm which everybody now ignores.

The Airzounds is really loud but I also had oblivious pedestrians ignore it while standing in the middle of the bike lane. And I've had drivers ignore it too. One turned to look at me and proceeded anyways.

Now I'm using the Loudbike horn. It sounds like a car horn (except that I think it should be a slightly lower frequency). The theory is that people including drivers have developed an instinctual recognition to respond to a car horn. With so many more bike lanes around, I've rarely had to use it in traffic. But it sure wakes up pedestrians in the park trails when they don't respond to my bike bell.

The Chemist

Yes, that's the one. I've been using one for years, and I really like it. I tend not to use it on pedestrians or other cyclists - I have a bell for that - but it works well for cars and motor scooters.

I don't bother wasting one of my bottle cages for the tank, though - I managed to install it between the seat stays on my rear rack, so it's nicely out of the way.

drlogik 

A blood-curdling, "EEeeAAAAHHHH!!", should work well, and the advantage over a horn is that it is virtually instantaneous,

Kat12

Can I use Robert Plant?

drlogik 

I think that would work rather well. It might make a catchy ringtone for somebody you aren't fond of too.

Calsun

I like the Falcon mini pocket size air horn to stop dogs in their tracks and for the pedestrian groups walking along and blocking the bike path as they chat. For motorists the best approach is to expect them to be inattentive or distracted and about to do something stupid like opening a car door into my path or making a turn in front of me. People on cell phones are more of a hazard than drunk drivers and this is borne out by the statistics on bike fatalities. And the motorist who survives the incident will blame the bicyclist and the cops are too lazy to investigate and cite the driver.

I hate bike lanes as they put bicyclists in harms way and right up against parked cars. Much safer on a regular street for a bicyclist.

Ogsarg

Reminds me of the "Loud pipes save lives" argument that the Harley riders use an excuse to be obnoxious.

If you have enough time to honk the horn, you have enough time to evade getting hit and it's the much safer choice in my opinion. Even the loudest horn will not be heard by the deaf person.

Daniel4

Your own voice is effective but you'll get tired of it quickly. I remember a ride I did around the park trails in Anchorage. It was a rental bike with no bell. So with every pedestrian I was approaching, I had to yell "BIKE!".

At home on my regular trail, ringing the bell is a lot easier and doesn't sound as antagonistic.

downhillmaster

That’s quite the Road Warrior setup mate

10 Wheels

Single LED Head Lights that Strobe.

Amazon.com: Night Eyes- 2400 Lumens(1200LMx2) Mountain Bike Headlight Bike Light -Rechargeable 8.4V 8800mA Dual Port ABS Waterproof Battey-Free USB BikeTaillight Bonus -NO Tool Required (2PACK Light)

Kabuki12

Go ahead and I’ll use Roger Daltry like at the end of Won’t Get Fooled Again! Best rock and roll scream I have heard.

Kat12

Oh, that's a good one, too.

ablang

You guys misunderstand me. The blast horn isn't to alert people of my approach. It's to punish drivers of their stupidity or idiocy.

himespau 

When I commuted regularly in Boston, I used a Delta Air Zound. Super loud and it drew everyone's attention. In the heat of the moment, I found myself more often yelling at the drivers (or once or twice banging on the side of their vehicle as they pushed me into a curb) more than thinking to hit the horn.

Reflector Guy

Youtube is full of all sorts of "train horn" videos, where people drive around scaring pedestrians with ridiculous loud horns which ironically don't sound at all like actual railroad horns. Maybe get one of those for your bike?

With a big enough air compressor, maybe you can get an actual Nathan K5LA locomotive horn and use that instead. Put all those "train horn" videos to shame.

Daniel4

The pipe would probably need to be the size of a bassoon to get the same frequency of a train horn.