A Masterpiece of Sound, Engineering and Imagination
Intro
Nothing else in the world could possibly lay claim to an invention like Big Horn. Big Horn is 27 feet long, 19,000 pounds and covered in lights and every imaginable bell and whistle. And horn. If Willy Wonka and Dr. Seuss collaborated on a rolling tribute to the Industrial Revolution, it would probably look like this. From all the ironwork to the whistles and bells, Big Horn is a mechanical masterpiece: a ‘moving museum’ of horns and other noisemakers - massive and tiny - collected from battleships, cars, factories and trains from the 20th century.
With 55 antique steam whistles, 46 air whistles, 18 train, boat, submarine and truck horns, 4 ship’s horns including the world’s largest air horn, two US Navy destroyer steam sirens, and one diaphone fog horn—Big horn is the most acoustical vehicle on the planet and amazes every single soul who sees and hears it. Over the years, Big Horn has been featured in countless newspaper and magazine articles, as well as the Guinness World Book of Records. As a result of having been highlighted on the popular television show Monster Nation, an off shoot of Monster Garage, Big Horn has even flown over to Australia for the Melbourne Auto Show.
The Beginnings of Big Horn
Big Horn was created by American inventor and businessman
Hyler Bracey, Ph.D.
With his early beginnings of doing everything from working on a tugboat and racing stock cars to owning a pair of cotton gins, Bracey eventually received his PhD from Louisiana State University in 1969 in management, marketing, and finance. Prior to that, he earned an MBA from the sameinstitution in 1965 and a bachelor of business administration/marketing from Lamar University in 1964. Bracey eventually became the president of The Atlanta Consulting Group, and Hyler has also co-authored three top selling books and has spoken before many of the companies listed in the Fortune 500.Growing up in the industrial town of Port Arthur, Texas — the distinctive sounds of boat horns and train whistles were a constant but pleasant part of Hyler Bracey’s workday, and over time he even became an avid collector of horns and whistles. And as Hyler Bracey increased in passion for his work, that resulted in being a successful businessman and achieving many goals and accolades, his lifelong dream of creating Big Horn finally began to come into focus.With all the beautiful horns, bells and whistles rapidly disappearing from today’s society, Hyler Bracey visualized what it was he needed to build: the new Big Horn was to be a preservation vehicle, a rolling tribute to the sounds of the Industrial Revolution. By 1998, Hyler Bracey set out to create the magnificent Big Horn that you see today. All he needed now was a plan, and a “how”....and that’s where the University of Cincinnati came into play.
Big Horn’s Award-Winning Design from the University of Cincinnati
Big Horn was created by American inventor and businessman Hyler Bracey, Ph.D.
With his early beginnings of doing everything from working on a tugboat and racing stock cars to owning a pair of cotton gins, Bracey eventually received his PhD from Louisiana State University in 1969 in management, marketing, and finance. Prior to that, he earned an MBA from the sameinstitution in 1965 and a bachelor of business administration/marketing from Lamar University in 1964. Bracey eventually became the president of The Atlanta Consulting Group, and Hyler has also co-authored three top selling books and has spoken before many of the companies listed in the Fortune 500.Growing up in the industrial town of Port Arthur, Texas — the distinctive sounds of boat horns and train whistles were a constant but pleasant part of Hyler Bracey’s workday, and over time he even became an avid collector of horns and whistles. And as Hyler Bracey increased in passion for his work, that resulted in being a successful businessman and achieving many goals and accolades, his lifelong dream of creating Big Horn finally began to come into focus.With all the beautiful horns, bells and whistles rapidly disappearing from today’s society, Hyler Bracey visualized what it was he needed to build: the new Big Horn was to be a preservation vehicle, a rolling tribute to the sounds of the Industrial Revolution. By 1998, Hyler Bracey set out to create the magnificent Big Horn that you see today. All he needed now was a plan, and a “how”....and that’s where the University of Cincinnati came into play.
Building Big Horn to be an Engineering Masterpiece
Nothing else in the world could possibly lay claim to an invention like Big Horn. Big Horn is 27 feet long, 19,000 pounds and covered in lights and every imaginable bell and whistle. And horn. If Willy Wonka and Dr. Seuss collaborated on a rolling tribute to the Industrial Revolution, it would probably look like this. From all the ironwork to the whistles and bells, Big Horn is a mechanical masterpiece: a ‘moving museum’ of horns and other noisemakers - massive and tiny - collected from battleships, cars, factories and trains from the 20th century. With 55 antique steam whistles, 46 air whistles, 18 train, boat, submarine and truck horns, 4 ship’s horns including the world’s largest air horn, two US Navy destroyer steam sirens, and one diaphone fog horn—Big horn is the most acoustical vehicle on the planet and amazes every single soul who sees and hears it. Over the years, Big Horn has been featured in countless newspaper and magazine articles, as well as the Guinness World Book of Records. As a result of having been highlighted on the popular television show Monster Nation, an off shoot of Monster Garage, Big Horn has even flown over to Australia for the Melbourne Auto Show.
All the Horns, Bells and Whistles of Big Horn
Big Horn is the world’s only bell, whistle and horn museum on wheels—and it amazes all who see and hear it.Among other accolades, the Big Horn’s one-of-a-kind Kahlenberg S-6 is the world’s largest air horn. This giant masterpiece is undoubtedly the crown jewel of the Big Horn’s collection—And thus it is utterly fitting that the official name for the vehicle would be “Big Horn.”Other assets on Big Horn’s roster of horns, bells and whistles include: a Verdin Bell carillon, a Tangley Circus Calliope, 55 antique steam whistles, 46 air whistles, 18 train, boat, submarine and truck horns, 4 ship’s horns (including the world’s largest air horn, mentioned above) 21 fire alarms, emergency, railroad trolley, fire truck and train bells, two US Navy destroyer steam sirens, one diaphone fog horn, 175 feet of multi functioned neon lights in red, white, blue, green and purple, 22 high- powered strobe lights, accessory compressor and an air-operated cockpit door, 164 cfm rotary screw compressor with 200 gallons of air storage capacity, billowing smoke machines, 300 amps of audio power, wireless PA system, remote control for audience participation, 66 electronic and mechanical gauges, 7500-watt Onan generator, a 2500-watt Heart inverter and seven 1450-amp batteries as used in the space shuttle.When it is all said and done, the final creation of Big Horn is literally a rolling masterpiece, ready to dazzle the mind and intrigue the imagination.
The Four Legendary owners of Big Horn
Nothing else in the world could possibly lay claim to an invention like Big Horn. Big Horn is 27 feet long, 19,000 pounds and covered in lights and every imaginable bell and whistle. And horn. If Willy Wonka and Dr. Seuss collaborated on a rolling tribute to the Industrial Revolution, it would probably look like this. From all the ironwork to the whistles and bells, Big Horn is a mechanical masterpiece: a ‘moving museum’ of horns and other noisemakers - massive and tiny - collected from battleships, cars, factories and trains from the 20th century.
