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Train Whistle Doorbell
"It's unique. People can't believe their ears when they ring our doorbell and they hear a train whistle," says Charley Sommerfeld, Lajunta, Colo., who made his first train whistle doorbell 10 years ago and now sells them at antique farm machinery shows.
The train whistle sound is made by four metal pipe chimes mounted in a 5/1/2 by 5 1/2 by 8 1/2 in. wooden box. Inside is a small 110-volt vacuum cleaner motor that creates the air flow through the pipes.
"When I first got the idea I tried all kinds of fans but nothing worked as good as a small vacuum motor," says Sommerfeld.
You can mount the doorbell anywhere - on a wall, table, in the attic, etc. All you do is replace the standard doorbell button with a heavy-duty button wired to household 110-volt circuit. A press of the button instantly activates the whistle. "You can adjust the sound from a gentle far-off sounding whistle to a window-rattling wail that's loud enough to let the neighbors know you've got company," says Sommerfeld.
Sells for $73. Sommerfeld also makes a model with wood chimes that sells for $53.
Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Charley Sommerfeld, 702 Lincoln, LaJunta, Colo. 81050 (ph 719 384-2959).


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1993 - Volume #17, Issue #3