1st attempt at a horn

[Wayne/Al]

I thought I would take a stab at doing a simple horn . I going to order the book from TOW but havent got it yet. I have been working with a horn and have found that there is a lot of work involved. I have a few questions that mabe some folks with lots of experence could help me with.

How do you polish down inside a groove? I cut a groove in this horn about 1/8" wide and 1/16" deep and when I started polishing I couldnt get to the bottom very well.

If you use staples to attach the strap whats the trick to get inside to bend the staple over when you install them?

What about useing a Dremal tool for some of the detail work ?

Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks in advance.

Wayne/Al

 

[omarick1948]

I thought I would take a stab at doing a simple horn . I going to order the book from TOW but havent got it yet. I have been working with a horn and have found that there is a lot of work involved. I have a few questions that mabe some folks with lots of experence could help me with.

How do you polish down inside a groove? I cut a groove in this horn about 1/8" wide and 1/16" deep and when I started polishing I couldnt get to the bottom very well.

If you use staples to attach the strap whats the trick to get inside to bend the staple over when you install them?

What about useing a Dremal tool for some of the detail work ?

Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks in advance.

Wayne/Al

Wayne, To tell you the truth!...I do not polish the narrower strap groove past sanding and using #0000 steel wool. I don't think most Horners let that bother them, as the strap will cover the groove anyway!

As far as the bending of the staple. I anneal the ends of my staple and file slightly thinner on the end(s) I want to bend. I drill my holes slightly undersize and put a tiny dab of epoxy on those tip/ends and tap it into the horn, so a little passes through. I made a bending tool from an old turn screw that has a slight bow in in and reach inside and bend exposed or unexposed ends over!

The problem with using Dremel or other power tools is lack of possitive control! Use your files and other handtools and take your time. Remember! Your making something from a time when speed realy had no need and workmanship took time!

Good Luck,
Rick

 

[blacksmithman64]

What Rick said! I file my grooves in and maybe smooth it up a little with some 220 wrapped around the file.
I very rarely use a staple in the tip, but if I do, I use horner75's method, on account thats who told me how to do it! :haha: :thumbsup:

 

[AeroncaTAL]

Wayne, like the others I don't bother with polishing down in a groove. I haven't used staples in the neck of a horn, but I did read a treatise on how staples were inserted on originals. The staples were tapered, then heated and burned through the side of the horn. The tips were then bent over from the inside. A lot of horns with side staples were screw tips so it would have been fairly easy to bend the tips over as the hole would be larger than a typical spout. The taper on the staples would keep it from going farther into the horn and of course it could not back out with the tips bent over.

Scott