Buffalo Horns

[Chuck Thom]

for me the best scraper is a utility knife with changable blades

 

I use a four way rasp and hold it in my lap with a piece of scrap leather under it. For the real rough bark I use a # 50 Nicholson pattern makers rasp. Otherwise ya have a lot a scraping to do. :shocked2:

 

[paulvallandigham]

If you have an old rusted out file, of any size you like, you can grind off the side of the file where there are costomarily teeth, and then use the side of the file or rasp to scrape the large scales off the horn. Scrape from the tip to the base of the horn, and you won't mess it up. If you create a post to hold the horn, made of wood, wrapped in rags, for instance, you can jam the raw horn on this post, and then the action of scraping from the tip to the base will help keep the horn on the post. I have a coarse draw file, that is very old and was rusted before it came to me. It makes an excellent scraper for this coarse work. On a rare occasion- less than I thought when I first chose it to use as a scraper- I have resorted to useing the teeth of the file to remove some difficult spot of scaling.

 

[Brasilikilt]

WOW! It seems as though I directed my questions to the right people!

Just from what I've seen, I know that native people throughout the world have an immense fondness for trinkets such as brass and copper wire/ flat stock, pins, nails, tacks, paint, beads etc etc So it makes sense to me that brass tacks would have brought in quantity for trade

 

us "bloods" like/em too.......

I've been carrying this one since 1973.......