Finished my Flat Buffalo horn

[oldwood]

we will be waiting to see.

 

[Omahkapi'si]

I used historically correct wooden pins.....hardware store toothpicks

 

[FishDFly]

I'll have to look for that one, I've been doing a bit of research and it seems to be somewhere between 295-310 degree f. oil depending on the horn... I'm always looking to learn new tricks...

Flat horns are my favorite, have a weakness for them.

If you ever want to make one from Buffalo for sale, I would be interested.

 

[Capnball]

So I finished my latest project of a powder horn, I had only planned to make one horn for the new Flintlock but couldn't leave well enough alone... Saw a flat horn and thought that would be pretty cool so I decided to give it a go, went to youtube saw some different styles of flat horns being made but they were all cow horns and I had Buffalo... Had the horn all prepped and could've just gone ahead and made a standard round horn but really wanted to see if I could make it work so I dug out the old vise and tried boiling water... Nope not hot enough for Buff, squished some but sprang back trying to re-heat for more squish... Folk said to heat it in oil as it gets much hotter than water but the Boss for some reason would not care for me using the turkey fryer to heat up the horn... So while hunting the thrift shops and such for a fry daddy I tried using a heat gun which actually worked fairly well but the horn started to get dry and crackly so I didn't push it any further though it was finally holding its shape somewhat... Finally found a small fryer and got it to the shape I wanted then got to work on the final shaping and such, fitted the butt plate from some Black walnut I had laying around for the last 30 years or so and made the front plug from the same chunk, a bit of walnut stain to seal it up and a few tacks just because I can and Ta-dah... Done... Figure I probably have about 20 hours or so into it with all the trial and error but learning what works and what don't is half the fun... Next up I think I may try something similar with some smaller cow horns and get a priming horn or 2 ready for Rendezvous trading...




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Nicely done! Tell me about the hot oil process. Type of oil? Temperature of oil? Did you dip the whole horn? Or just to big end? Clean up? As you might have guessed, I'm about to start a horn project. The big end is not round on my horn so I'd like to make that right before I go any further.
Any help would be appreciated.

 

[French Colonial]

My method.
Any clear oil (vegetable etc.) I have used water on thinner horns but it takes a long time boiling.
Whole horn in the pot.
I usually have a piece of wood to put in the center when I clamp it in the vise so it flattens evenly (Vise jaws protected so there are no marks left on the horn).
Let set for as long as it takes to fully cool.
Alcohol wipe when done so oil is gone before plugging.

Alexitt may have a different method and do not mean to take over his thread, his method may be better.

 

[Cherrybow]

Really like your horn, nice work and thanks for the inspiration by sharing with us. Question: Do y’all thin the horn walls to make it flatten evenly or just go with it as is?

 

[Hatman/2nd line]

Here are three original horns and one, the paneled one is contemporary all the pins are either iron or wood finished flat.

Again nothing wrong with yours, I respect the work to flatten, but something to consider for your next one.

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Very nice horns, I like the scrimshaw and tried it myself but I'm older and have a sugar problem and found my finger was numb for 2 days!

 

[Rifleman1776]

Came out very nice. Your hard work made it worthwhile. Enjoy.

 

[MSW]

great looking horn! I use the oil system to get cow horn to go round so that the plug will fit properly. I tried boiling them, but all i got was a bunch of really clean horns and a smelly kitchen. So i went out and bought a small fry-daddy type oil cooker at the local big box store ... a gallon of el-cheap-o brand veggie oil and you're all set. Just let it come up to about 300 degrees (F) and you should be OK. Be sure to drill the hole in the tip of the horn (where the powder will come out) before you plonk it in the hot oil. Any bubble or trapped air might create a splash, and you don't want hot oil anywhere other than the fry-daddy. These burns are very painful and can be permanently debilitating. The horn will get soft as it comes up to temperature. (I use a pair of heavy leather work glove to handle it, and run a piece of coat hanger wire through the horn so it's easier to handle.

Don't know about buffalo horn, but with cow horn, i usually get a milky white bunch of super tiny bubbles, at which time it's ready to come out of the oil. Leaving it in longer will start delamination - very bad. Then i press the forming plug in, clamp it down, and wait for the whole mess to cool off (usually, i let this go overnight. Let the pot cool, put the oil away, and you're all set.

 

[BozoMiller]

Good looking horn, nice job.

 

[Alexitt]

Flat horns are my favorite, have a weakness for them.

If you ever want to make one from Buffalo for sale, I would be interested.

I enjoyed making this one, and I really like the Buffalo though its a fair bit more work than a polished steer horn... Need to find some more horns at a reasonable price and get to work... I really like the looks of a flat horn too and that's what prompted me to give it a shot... The top horn is the flattened one the way it came to me...

 

[Alexitt]

great looking horn! I use the oil system to get cow horn to go round so that the plug will fit properly. I tried boiling them, but all i got was a bunch of really clean horns and a smelly kitchen. So i went out and bought a small fry-daddy type oil cooker at the local big box store ... a gallon of el-cheap-o brand veggie oil and you're all set. Just let it come up to about 300 degrees (F) and you should be OK. Be sure to drill the hole in the tip of the horn (where the powder will come out) before you plonk it in the hot oil. Any bubble or trapped air might create a splash, and you don't want hot oil anywhere other than the fry-daddy. These burns are very painful and can be permanently debilitating. The horn will get soft as it comes up to temperature. (I use a pair of heavy leather work glove to handle it, and run a piece of coat hanger wire through the horn so it's easier to handle.

Don't know about buffalo horn, but with cow horn, i usually get a milky white bunch of super tiny bubbles, at which time it's ready to come out of the oil. Leaving it in longer will start delamination - very bad. Then i press the forming plug in, clamp it down, and wait for the whole mess to cool off (usually, i let this go overnight. Let the pot cool, put the oil away, and you're all set.

Pretty much the exact same process for me including the search for a small fryer, leftover peanut oil...

 

[Alexitt]

Really like your horn, nice work and thanks for the inspiration by sharing with us. Question: Do y’all thin the horn walls to make it flatten evenly or just go with it as is?

Thanks, basically I had the horn rough polished so all it really needed was some steel wool to finish it... The walls were down to about 1/8" thick for most of the body and it would've been fine for a round(ish) horn if flattening didn't work as planned... Once I got the little fryer I heated the whole horn to around 300 then took it out and stuck a piece of 3/4" pine shaped roughly in a long triangle inside, placed it in my vise between 2 pieces of plywood and slowly cranked it down until the pine board was good -n- stuck in there... Then just basically let it cool overnight and to my surprise it actually worked... It would seem that you need to get it hot enough that the horn loses its memory and doesn't go back to its original shape (kinda like me, my original shape was taller and thinner) After that it was just a matter of making and fitting the plugs... Buffalo takes a lot more prep work than steer horn... Next time around I'll have to take more pictures...

 

[Alexitt]

My method.
Any clear oil (vegetable etc.) I have used water on thinner horns but it takes a long time boiling.
Whole horn in the pot.
I usually have a piece of wood to put in the center when I clamp it in the vise so it flattens evenly (Vise jaws protected so there are no marks left on the horn).
Let set for as long as it takes to fully cool.
Alcohol wipe when done so oil is gone before plugging.

Alexitt may have a different method and do not mean to take over his thread, his method may be better.

Pretty much nailed it though I didn't think of the alcohol wipe, just wiped really well... I think the oil conditions the horn as well especially after using the heat gun on it before trying oil...

 

[Alexitt]

Nicely done! Tell me about the hot oil process. Type of oil? Temperature of oil? Did you dip the whole horn? Or just to big end? Clean up? As you might have guessed, I'm about to start a horn project. The big end is not round on my horn so I'd like to make that right before I go any further.
Any help would be appreciated.

French Colonial and MSW said it... I used peanut oil I had for my turkey fryer at about 300 +/-, dipped the whole horn because I was going to flatten it but to just fit a butt plug probably just submerge 1/2 or so... I've used boiling water in the past for just the plug end, just make sure your spout hole is drilled so there isn't any air trapped inside... Good luck and keep us posted...

 

[Capnball]

French Colonial and MSW said it... I used peanut oil I had for my turkey fryer at about 300 +/-, dipped the whole horn because I was going to flatten it but to just fit a butt plug probably just submerge 1/2 or so... I've used boiling water in the past for just the plug end, just make sure your spout hole is drilled so there isn't any air trapped inside... Good luck and keep us posted...

Many thanks. About how long would you keep the horn in the water to soften it up?

 

[French Colonial]

Many thanks. About how long would you keep the horn in the water to soften it up?

I have sometimes had to leave them for two to three hours (Yes it stinks) there are some "experts" that say water does not work but it has for me. I think that it takes time for the horn to loosen its shape, that probably does not describe it well.

I usually take the horn out with some good leather gloves on and you can push on the sides and determine if it is soft enough to form, If not, throw it back in the pot for awhile.

 

[Crown_Pointer]

...snip...Don't know about buffalo horn, but with cow horn, i usually get a milky white bunch of super tiny bubbles, at which time it's ready to come out of the oil. Leaving it in longer will start delamination - very bad. Then i press the forming plug in, clamp it down, and wait for the whole mess to cool off (usually, i let this go overnight. Let the pot cool, put the oil away, and you're all set.

I'm picturing the forming plug as a flat 1/2" or 3/4" board but how do you go about sizing the plug or is getting it to fit in when round good enough (letting the outsides "find themselves" under the press)? Some day I hope to do this. I even built myself a horn press for that eventuality.

 

[Capnball]

I have sometimes had to leave them for two to three hours (Yes it stinks) there are some "experts" that say water does not work but it has for me. I think that it takes time for the horn to loosen its shape, that probably does not describe it well.

I usually take the horn out with some good leather gloves on and you can push on the sides and determine if it is soft enough to form, If not, throw it back in the pot for awhile.

I'll probably do this outside on the grill. I argued long and hard to get a work bench "IN" the house. I'm not doing anything to screw that up, lol.

 

[Alexitt]

I'm picturing the forming plug as a flat 1/2" or 3/4" board but how do you go about sizing the plug or is getting it to fit in when round good enough (letting the outsides "find themselves" under the press)? Some day I hope to do this. I even built myself a horn press for that eventuality.

My forming plug was just a 5/8 flat board cut in a long triangle so it would go in as far as it could, as far as the butt cap goes I did that last and the final fitting was mostly done with a sander and a file...