Horn problem with Painless harness

I just installed a new Painless wiring harness and connected a new horn. When I first connected the horn, it was working fine. We had a few issues getting the Jeep to start ('69 CJ5), so we were moving the wires around on the back of the ignition switch a bit (I say this because I'm wondering if I messed something up). When I finally got the Jeep to start, I pulled out of the driveway and noticed the horn wasn't working.

The horn fuse is good to go, and the test light shows both sides of the horn fuse socket hot (without the fuse in). Weird. I have no voltage at the horn wire now when I press the horn switch. The horn uses a horn relay inside the fuse box, and there is a horn wire going to the wire out of the bottom of the steering column (which I crimped well and heat-shrunk, then covered in braided wire loom, so I think my connection is solid there), and a horn wire from the fuse box (the one that has no voltage). My ground is solid.

Any advice on troubleshooting?

 

Can't answer you problem without knowing what type of horn you have. Some horns have a single (+=positive) terminal for power applied and has the internal ground to the case. Others have two terminals marked + and - and the internals are insulated above ground. Now if you have the original 69 horn then it would be the 2 terminal marked + and - but now you are using a relay so some wiring changes will have to be made. What do you have?

 

I have a horn wired like stock: 2 terminals marked +/-, - grounded to body, + coming from the fuse block. I verified the horn works by connecting it directly to the battery. It's just not gettin voltage, and I'm running out of guesses.

Also, just for sh*ts and gigs I probed both sides of the horn fuse receptacle on the fuse box while hitting the horn switch; both stayed hot the entire time. I'm still trying to figure out how both sides are constantly hot...

Here's a better question: does anyone know on these typical fuse blocks if the horn gets power from accessory circuits, or is it supposed to work even when the key is off? That might help my troubleshooting a bit.

 

A normal circuit for a horn using a relay is dependant on how the wiring manufacture designed if for power in as to switched or always on. AS to your statement of power on both sides of the fuse holder when the button is pushed, indicates a wiring problem or a relay melted closed.

 

Man; it's a new fuse box, too, which is where the relay is. Both sides of the fuse receptacle are hot with OR without the button pressed, btw.

 

Is it possible the switch is supposed to go on the ground side? I know that's bad wiring, but there's more than one way to break a circuit.

 

I was reading back on your first post, and got confused. Do you have power wired to the horn directly from the fuse box (I'm assuming the relay is built into the fusebox) or did you wire it through your ignition switch??

 

I'm pretty positive the horn is wired correctly. It was working, then after a couple starts it stopped. I just remembered that my buddy accidentally fried the Maxifuse by grounding out a contact on the ignition switch; would that have fried the horn relay even if it was open since the horn button wasn't depressed? Obviously we replaced the fuse.

 

And no it isn't wired through the ignition switch; both wires (to the switch and horn) come directly from the fuse box.

 

Pull the horn relay out of the fuse block and re-check the wires at both ends of the fuse. If you still have power at both then you have some wires melted together when your friend was helping you.

 

Weird talk with Painless...as it turns out, they route circuitry for the lights through the horn switch as well as a safety feature that allows the head lights or tail lights to blow a fuse without causing the others to go off. That's what caused two hot contacts on the horn fuse receptacle.

Disconnected the wire; touching the wire (from the fuse box that connects to the horn switch) to ground energizes the horn, but touching it to the wire coming from the horn switch and pressing the horn button doesn't. Looks like I have a bad horn switch as far as I can tell...

Just how hard is that to get to on a '69 CJ-5? I can't even tell how to remove the cover for the switch on the steering wheel.

 

Worst comes to wurst, you could do like my dad and reroute the wires to a large push button switch on the dash. The result is somewhat inelegant, but entirely functional and much easier to repair.

Also makes it harder to road rage at someone.

 

This is what I did. Much easier.

 

Actually exactly what I tried to do last night. I had an old start button switch in the dash, but that thing is too unreliable (as I found out when I wired the horn to it...and pushing the button caused the horn to blare for 4 seconds). It's not that inelegant considering the inelegant "Aoooogah" horn I installed.

 

Did your neighbors all turtle up thinking there was an air raid?

 

Lol; no, but my dogs sure did.