Been at it again... Horning

[Ames]

the past few weeks. Work slows down and finds me at the horn bench. Time to catch up with the custom horn orders.
I only get the winter to do this. Once the farm wakes up I have to stop. Seeds, fruit trees, bees all command attention.
These have been shipped out and more are in the works. Thank you to our members who patiently waited for me to catch up.

 

[user 48679]

Those are great-looking horns - very nice !

 

[deerstalkert]

beautiful horns, and them long sticks of wood and steel in the last picture are kinda nice too!

 

[oldwood]

Those are some artful horns. I'm a m/l rifle mechanic and sometimes for a break , build a few just simple utilitarian horns. It's just fun . Each horn is unique as to coloration , size , and shape. I like to go and shoot at the range , and especially like the simple horns with an automatic spring closure to keep powder waste to a minimum . Safety is paramount for a 75 yr. old fart like me , and the powder horn spring closure provides me with that , All the POWDER,PATCH, BALL stuff should be drill for me , sadly , not so , I occasionally forget. Hopefully ,I'll get to enjoy shooting 'till the last go round..............oldwood

 

[DuncNZ]

Lovely horns , is the two tone horn actually two tone or is the black the result of dyeing , I have had two tone horns which are white on the outside and black underneath but the thickness difference is not enough to cut "teeth " into the material or are they not as thick as they appear

I like to go and shoot at the range , and especially like the simple horns with an automatic spring closure to keep powder waste to a minimum . Safety is paramount for a 75 yr. old fart like me , and the powder horn spring closure provides me with that , All the

I have replaced all the plugs on my horns with valve closures because I tend to spill powder as I get older . I sometimes forget the plug

 

[Omahkapi'si]

Very nice work. If mine holds powder when completed and doesn’t fall apart I’ll be happy.

 

[oldwood]

Don't want to hijack this post based on a fellows amazing horns , but I just can't not mention this. When we started shooting muzzleloaders in 1970 , nobody had knowledge of the guns or the sport in general. Once we got a few guns that would fire reliably enough to hold a competition , we needed powder horns , flasks , ball molds , etc. The whole thing was like a monkey business fire drill . guns from CWar , back to 1750 , and a few guys showed up with the correct stuff , like a long rifle or two. I was shooting a Brown Bess kit I had assembled , and needed a powder horn to carry powder for it. The local Pennies Dept. store had a display of black powder stuff for sale. Belgian Africa percussion muskets , and Hopkins and Allen under hammer rifles. Also , there were accouterments , they had some round balls , and real powder horns , made in India. I saved my lunch money for a couple days and bought a real Powder Horn , complete with this spring loaded sheet metal closure , with a leather seal on it covering the hole in the small end of the horn. The horn was so novel , wish I would have kept it. I figured it was made in a country , India , that still might have a not-so-long -ago history of still using Muzzloading guns. I guessed right , according to Kit Ravenshear , some folks in India used m/l guns well into the 19th century. I used that India powder horn until I found out 18th century powder horns had plugs , and I made another horn , I thought was more Historically Correct. ............Sorry guys.......I went deep into the weeds , again ...............oldwood.........

 

[Ames]

Lovely horns, is the two tone horn actually two tone or is the black the result of dyeing

Actually, both. I try to use horns with a fair amount of natural colors at the tip. Not because its needed before a dye bath, but because its a waste to use a very very white top of the line scrimshaw horn and watch it swim in dye for an hour. It would be a waste of resources.
Never made a metal spouted horn with a spring closure. I've made small flat priming horns with Treso tips for the pan though. Those are fun.
And you can always tie the plug to the neck so you don't loose it, but that may not help you to remember to replug the spout.
I'm not to the point of forgetting yet, but I past the point of arthritis in my hands a few train stations ago.

 

[zerosprk]

The two horns in @Ames' second picture above were done for me and they are both EXCEPTIONAL!!!