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Experiences of Hornit DB140 or similar?

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  • December 14, 2023 at 10:25 am #32757
    bob_c

    When commuting in the dark/wet I’m a lot more cautious, partly due to the conditions themselves but also because it is a lot harder to make eye contact with drivers to confirm that they have seen me. I’ve been thinking about whether a loud horn could possibly be useful on certain roundabouts, or when passing junctions.

    Does anyone use one like this i.e. a quick blast just to alert drivers who might be looking “through” you, or not looking?

    I’ve no interest in using it to make pedestrians leap out of the way, or to assert my right of way etc… Just to try and improve safety in a small way when commuting.

    Does anyone have a Hornit DB140 or similar, and any comments about real-world use?

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  • December 23, 2023 at 7:32 am #1019329
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    baggiero

    I used to commute across

    I used to commute across London (W4 to E1) and found my hornit very very effective at preempting pedestrian step-offs, moped erratics and potentially car-dooring when filtering. But as others note, in non-urban settings it’s probably too loud and brash. It has two settings (one slightly less loud), mind, but neither is car horn-like. 

    December 21, 2023 at 3:54 pm #1019327
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    bob_c

    Thanks all – much appreciated

    Thanks all – much appreciated! Based on the comments I’ll probably pass. It seems like it’s much too loud to alert pedestrians (I’d use a bell anyway), and too odd-sounding to reliably alert drivers!

    December 21, 2023 at 3:41 pm #1019325
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    andystow

    I was tempted to buy one from

    I was tempted to buy one from my LBS, but wanted to hear it. Luckily they were okay with unboxing it and installing the battery to test it. It was loud, but sounded so unlike a car horn that I doubted any driver would know what to make of it. It went back on the shelf.

    December 20, 2023 at 7:55 pm #1019323
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    mtbtomo

    I have a hornit also (not
    I have a hornit also (not sure if it’s the 140 – mine takes 2xAA batteries and has a thumb remote button), they are VERY piercing and I think would scare the life out of pedestrians. That said, it’s possibly what’s needed for drivers to take note. I’ve not actually used it for any length of time as I found I wasn’t used to using it when I really needed to and much preferred to opt for my usual choice use of the King’s English đŸ˜‰

    December 17, 2023 at 7:30 pm #1019321
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    chrisainsworth1967

    I bought the Hornet off

    I bought the Hornet off Amazon but have since disgarded it. Far too loud for cyclist use – scared the life out of the first person I used it on and would hate to think what a horse would make of it. Might be fine in a busy city but for quiet country lanes it’s too loud

    December 16, 2023 at 9:05 pm #1019319
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    ktache

    Airzound II, don’t use it

    Airzound II, don’t use it much, bracket is only on the good bike, and it takes up a bottle cage space. But you can communicate with drivers in the language of cars.

    Sounds like a proper horn. Had a night-sun siren before, but that was a high pitched squeal, so didn’t attract the attention.

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