For what’s in use today, I would go with the DMIR five-chime ones. They sound great in the distance on a quiet night.
I grew up next to the Minneapolis Northfield and Southern that used Hancock air whistles. I have never really gotten used to the Soo / Milwaukee / CP Rail etc. airhorns run on the engines on that line since it was taken over in 1982. Current operator of that line, Progressive Rail engines have BOTH airhorns and Hancock air whistles by the way. They occassionally used the air whistles when they first took over, I hadn’t heard about any regulations saying you couldn’t use them but I guess that’s possible, I thought they just quit using them because they figured people had gotten used to 20 years of the blat blat blat airhorns.
I’d love to hear those ex-BN S3K air horns [^] they make my heart race![8D][^][:)] K5LA’s kind of bore me because I hear them all the time (No offence). RS3L’s are also my fav’s cause it reminds me of the Conrail Days.[:)][:(] K5HL from CSX GEVO’s have this low “BLAT” sound as they pass.
The New Haven Hancocks were manufactured by Manning Maxwell and Moore and had their chords tuned by the USCG Academy Band. I believe I had the tuning once. The standard NH Hancock was the Model 4700 with the deflector plate…
The only unit to have 2 on the front was DL-109 – Cranberry unit 0722. All the others had a 4700 forward and a unit without the deflector plate on the back OR a 4700 on each end (like the SW1200’s, or Budd’s, etc…) THe FCD’s and 4400’s had the main ones without the deflectors…
Confused yet? Could go on into detail if interested… I love the sound too…
However – this is a thread about HORNS and it BLASPHEMY to call those wonderful air whistles horns… LOL [;)]
The 8107 was an ex-L&N unit and still retains its L&N horn, as with most of the others. Trivia: this train also had the infamous “runaway” unit, the 8888 (thankfully trailing!) .
I’ve yet to hear a K5HL horn here in Sacramento, CA. Maybe UP hasn’t assigned any of their new ES44AC and GEVO locomotives to service in California yet?
The K3LA is definitely commonly heard here mostly because many UP locomotives use the horn.
The P3 used on many UP SD70M’s have been heard here quite a lot. However, I wonder did UP switch to the K3LA on their newer SD70M’s?
I’ve heard the K3L on the BNSF 960-series Dash 9-44CW’s. That horn is ugly sounding. [V]
I’ve heard the S-3L a number of times. That horn can sometimes be drown out in city noise, though.