Astonishing facts about Big Horn
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To pump up the air in Big Horn we decided to use a Sullair rotary screw compressor driven off the front of the engine that puts out 164 cubic feet per minute. Two air tanks holding 200 gallons of air at 140 pounds per square inch are fed through air regulators to reduce the pressure to 30-40 pounds per square inch prior to being delivered to “All the Bells and Whistles”. We also have an auxiliary compressor to operate accessories driven by air cylinders, such as the cockpit door mechanism. It is Dayton heavy-duty three stage compressor driven by a two horse power electric motor. It fills a 20-gallon tank at 5 cubic feet per minute to 175 psi.
In 2014, Big Horn had an appraised value of over $10 million dollars. In today’s market, numerous experts have estimated Big Horn’s current market value to be in the $20-25 million dollar range.
Technically, they measure 143 decibels and can be heard 25 miles on water and 12 miles on land. However, Big Horn uses much less pressure than a ship, and yet our ship’s horns still can be heard 3 or more miles away.
To pump up the air in Big Horn we decided to use a Sullair rotary screw compressor driven off the front of the engine that puts out 164 cubic feet per minute. Two air tanks holding 200 gallons of air at 140 pounds per square inch are fed through air regulators to reduce the pressure to 30-40 pounds per square inch prior to being delivered to “All the Bells and Whistles”. We also have an auxiliary compressor to operate accessories driven by air cylinders, such as the cockpit door mechanism. It is Dayton heavy-duty three stage compressor driven by a two horse power electric motor. It fills a 20-gallon tank at 5 cubic feet per minute to 175 psi.
Absolutely - there is a Calliope that plays all types of music using whistles and a Carillon that makes music using bells. Big Horn’s Calliope was specially-built by Miner Manufacturing in Donnellson, Iowa. And the Carillon is a complex system of bell-technology that combines in perfect tune to create the wonderful music you hear when the Big Horn goes rolling by.
Absolutely - there is a Calliope that plays all types of music using whistles and a Carillon that makes music using bells. Big Horn’s Calliope was specially-built by Miner Manufacturing in Donnellson, Iowa. And the Carillon is a complex system of bell-technology that combines in perfect tune to create the wonderful music you hear when the Big Horn goes rolling by.
The Kahlenberg S-6 on the Big Horn is the largest air horn ever built. It weighs 267 pounds, is 7 feet long, has a 17” diaphragm and a 36” mouth. At 72 hertz it shakes the ground. In 1985, at the Maritime Museum in Philadelphia, PA, it WON the last great horn honk among all builders of ship’s horns. It was secretly designed by Kahlenberg and circuitously shipped under wraps to Philadelphia. After winning this auspicious event it was determined not to be commercially feasible to mass produce this super colossal horn, so Kahlenberg agreed to allow this one prototype to be mounted on Big Horn.
With the collection having started in 1991, Big Horn’s inventor (Hyler Bracey), first joined a national horn and whistle club to help find all the best ‘instruments’ for Big Horn. The members of this club often helped each other to locate and purchase rare, hard-to-find whistles, horns and bells. Eventually Bracey’s main source fo the hardware became antique tractor and engine shows in the Midwest, (plus old factories and warehouses throghout the country). In addition, some of foreign whistles came from collectors overseas, and one came directly from a steam engine builder in Asia.
We have a professional polisher and detailer that buffs all the brass and coat it with the same polyurethane as is put on band instruments. That way it’s always sparkle shiny and ready to be seen!
In 2014, Big Horn had an appraised value of over $10 million dollars. In today’s market, numerous experts have estimated Big Horn’s current market value to be in the $20-25 million dollar range.