Is this 2343 Horn Original?

My opinion I think the one is a replacement horn. I do not think with this diesel at the time it was made they would of been looking for ways to cut costs yet. Late fifties when they started to mold the ladders and  grab irons to the body. That is when I would think the horns might be like that........Paul

Yes, the one horn just missed the last process of hollowing out the bell. They were probably in a box of thousands and workers just grabbed a couple of them to install. Just overlooked and the installer probably didn't notice or care.

Chuck Sartor posted:

Yes, the one horn just missed the last process of hollowing out the bell. They were probably in a box of thousands and workers just grabbed a couple of them to install. Just overlooked and the installer probably didn't notice or care.

Thanks Chuck! Glad to know it is original!

after looking at its worm gear I noticed one decorative horn on the shell is not drilled out. The patina on both horns are the same, and looking underneath there seems to be no evidence of tampering so I have no reason to believe it was replaced. Was this a flaw overlooked at the factory?

Sorry, but to me, the tabs  do not look like they were bent over in the factory. When those tabs are spread out to hold them onto the cab, they bent over fairly evenly.  Each of the horns on your shell have one tab that is bent over quite a bit, and the other tab is barely bent at all.

C W Burfle posted:

after looking at its worm gear I noticed one decorative horn on the shell is not drilled out. The patina on both horns are the same, and looking underneath there seems to be no evidence of tampering so I have no reason to believe it was replaced. Was this a flaw overlooked at the factory?

Sorry, but to me, the tabs  do not look like they were bent over in the factory. When those tabs are spread out to hold them onto the cab, they bent over fairly evenly.  Each of the horns on your shell have one tab that is bent over quite a bit, and the other tab is barely bent at all.

CW, it does appear that way from the angle I took the photo. I've taken another looking down the middle and the tabs appear to be roughly the same angle.

Look at the backs of the horns, where they attach to the sheet metal bracket. does it look like a rolled clinch, or does it look like a solid piece of metal that was upset with a punch to make it stay in the hole?

The original horns that I just checked have the rolled clinch, the reproductions have the punch mark.

C W Burfle posted:

Look at the backs of the horns, where they attach to the sheet metal bracket. does it look like a rolled clinch, or does it look like a solid piece of metal that was upset with a punch to make it stay in the hole?

The original horns that I just checked have the rolled clinch, the reproductions have the punch mark.

CW, it looks rolled to me. I've attached a photo with horns from the 2343 in question (upper left) compared to a 2332, 2023, and a '52 2343 in my collection. They all appear the same, in my opinion.

Really, I don't see much of a problem the part being repro or not, just enjoy it.......

One sure tell-tail sign if the horn has been replaced is the mounting pad inside the body. If it has and scrapes or scratches from the tabs being bent over. The bracket the horn mounts on is heavy metal and impossible to bend with needle nose pliers without scraping or gouging the plastic. Lionel used a special die and jig to bend the bracket tabs. Zach's is unblemished.