Gourd Shot carrier

[Leatherbark]

Found me one of them little Gourds a Wally world a few weeks ago and am going to make me a shot flask..........I cut off the end and used a screwdriver to clean out the guts.......There are still hairy lookin stuff in there....Whats the best way to get it out? How long should I let it dry before I finish it?..........When its dry should I put some molten Beeswax inside and swirl it around? Or use something else to preserve it?................Thanks...........Bob

 

[renovato]

Try putting some shot in it and swirling it around for a while. That usually breaks off the crud inside and kinda smooths it out a bit.

 

[BadHeart]

Try a handful of small rocks with sharp edges and put them in and give it a good shake and then dump it out and start over. do it a few times until just the rocks come out. Then finish the inside with the finish of your choice. for shot I wouldn't put anything on the inside.

 

[Seamus]

You could put some polyurethane on the outside to give the gourd some strength. You can make your own varnish by dissolving some pine resin in alcohol (denatured, not drinking) until it reaches the consistency of varnish, apply and allow to dry. I would suggest experimenting on something other than your gourd until you get the right mixture.

 

[Berk]

The thing about gourds is that they are fragile. If they are full of shot and dropped on a hard surface you would be sweeping up shot I think.

I have been thinking about making priming horn out of a small gourd though. It would be for a spare in case I left my regular horn at the house.

Berk

 

[JAFO]

The best way to clean out a gourd is to take a wooden dowel that will fit into the gourd neck, drill two or three small holes thru one end and run some large monofiliment fishing line thru the holes. Chuck the dowel into an electric drill, run the end of the dowel with the fishing line thru it down into the gourd and presto! You have a mini weed-wacker that will pretty much powder all the dried stuff inside the gourd. As for coating. Try 'brewers pitch' rather than beeswax. Brewere pitch is nothing more than pine sap that has become old, yellow and brittle but can be melted and used to make a gourd, keg, cantten, etc watertight. If you use beeswax and go out on a hot day to hunt or stand too close to a fire before leaving camp. Your shot will have a tendency to stick to the wax inside the gourd. Brewers pitch can be ordered off the web. Be careful when using this stuff. It will stick like melted sugar once its melted and will burn the manure out of you. Wear gloves when using. And yes you can burn all ten fingers at one time. :redface:

 

[Leatherbark]

Thanks everyone for the tips..............Bob

 

[BillinOregon]

Bob: If I were using a gourd for this purpose, I'd probably not worry about the smaller chaff inside, as it would do no harm to your gun and load(might even buffer it a bit!) and the softer interior would be a bit quieter while carrying.