Shaping Horn Base

[JBird]

Alright guys. im about to start working on my 2nd horn...

1st one was just trimmed and squared up and i fitted a plug.. after all the hours of trial and error to get it to fit, pinning it in place. and carving the plug into a dome shape, and staining it.. my dog got a hold of it and did some damage to the plug. it could be fixed but it wont be pretty

now im gonna start on my 2nd one.. luckily i saved the pretty horn for my 2nd attempt. i'd like to round the base of the 2nd horn but i dont know how to shape it. On the horners bench it seemed everybody owned lathes and made their own Cones to form the horn around. what is something cheap or free/around the house that i can use to make the base round. its not horribly misshaped but id like to make the next plug easy as possible since im doing it all by hand

 

[Rev_William]

Well good luck on your endeavor. Personally I'd be adding a new dog hide hunting bag to the list of new projects lol.

 

[Brasilikilt]

Hey


I got the idea to use the base plug as a form.

boil the end of the horn (OUTSIDE, or at least in a well-ventilated garage or shed)
Measure the large opening of your horn
Use a compass to draw out a circle of approximate size on a piece of softwood.
(Pine and CVG Fir that you get at Home Depot is pretty close to what they used back in the day.)

You need a coping saw (or band saw) to cut out the circle
If you have a little belt sander they work great and save tons of time, but a wood rasp does just fine to smooth out the sawing marks.

Put on some gloves or use a thick towel to get the horn out of the boiling water and check to see how well it fits into the horn.
More than likely it is too large to fit

Bevel the sides of your plug with your rasp so that one side is small enough to start squeezing into the horn.
Rotate your plug in the still hot and flexible opening of the horn, and any high points will be easier to see.
Rasp and sand those off as needed while staying as close to round as possible.

Be sure to keep your horn in the hot water while shaping your base plug so that it stays pliable.

Keep shaping, keep checking for fit and repeat until the plug stays in the horn on it's own.
Once that is done, make sure the plug is level and even with the end of the horn and let it cool.

What happens is the horn shrinks around the plug as it cools resulting more often than not an air tight fit.

I certainly hope this helps, because it took me a while to type this all out

 

[Capt. Jas.]

Go to the good willy or salvation army thrift and look for a bedpost where part of it can serve as a form. Should be able to get a couple of sizes out of the right post.

 

[crockett]

You need to make a lathe. For the job at hand you can buy rod, bushings, make a wood box and use chisels. MuzzleBlasts had an article a few years back "The Powder Horn lathe" and you can probably call them and buy a back isse. You use a hand held eletric drill to turn the rod.
IAE you make several sizes of cones to make the end of the horn perfectly round. On buffalo you can boil in water and get the horn soft enough to fit on a cone- just don't drive the cone in very tight and check periodically as the buff horn dries- keep snug but not tight. On Cow horn- it is tougher and most folks use an old fry baby/fry daddy etc and oil to briefly soften the horn and then stick the cone in. If you just boil in water it is tough to soften cow horn if it is thick and the horn will retain some memory. The fry daddy works great for flat horns or just creating flat pieces of horn for knife scales, etc.
On the plugs, you use calipers to mike the spot on the cone that the horn ends and then turn the plug to that measurement.

 

[Claude Mathis]

You might find something close in size that can be modified?
http://www.webstaurantstore.com/am...d-cone-roller/124FCR13.html?utm_source=Amazon
http://www.foodservicedirect.com/product.cfm/p/229418/Cone-Shape-Wooden-Pestle.htm

 

[JBird]

thanks for the help guys. i would build a lathe but i have no where to keep it or use it. im 22, my bedroom is where my work benches are.. and is my "leather/wood/gunsmithing/reloading/ everything shop" no garage or shed. so ill try to find something i can modify and use

thanks again

 

[gus13]

ok, I can tell you that the shaping cone I have is double sided and fits just about anything up to 3 1/2" in diameter. since most horns only average about 2 -2 1/2" it works just fine for me and cost $35 a sound investment IMO. But after seeing claudes links either of those would work perfect for you! just cut 'em back a bit so your not hitting the walls with the small end and causing a "bulge" in the curve of the horn!

as for making your own? you could take something like a scrap 2x4, cut it like Brasilkilt says, and cut/rasp it down - making sure to angle it gradually though. I can't remember the exact degree of taper, but most folks use different shapers for different horns :idunno: either way I prefer dry heat, although hot oil works. set it on snugly, not so tight you can't get it back off! and let sit for a few hours, reheat and shape again as necessary.

 

[Sperit de bois]

Try this,,,take a ;large radiator hose clamp,on that adjusts with a screwdriver or socket,,,,one of the stainless steel type.Heat the horn as you always do,,then while the horn is hot/soft put the clamp around the outside of the butt and tighten ..I think the clamp will put pressure on the high side ,,push it around and the tightening of the clamp will round out the horn...In my mine,,, it just might work.... in the words or Red Green,,"If it ain't broke,,,you just ain't trying hard enough".

 

[Black Hand]

what is something cheap or free/around the house that i can use to make the base round. its not horribly misshaped but id like to make the next plug easy as possible since im doing it all by hand

I've used a large shot-glass, but what works very well are small unglazed red clay flower-pots from the garden store (very cheap, too). I heat my horns in the oven, then wearing gloves, gently push the horn onto the small end of the flower-pot to shape the end. Quick-cool with a wet rag and you should be good to go.

Shape the wood plug to the same dimensions as the pot (You did mark a line where the horn ended and the pot began, didn't you?), heat the horn in the oven again, smear the edge with beeswax and push the plug into place. Drill, pin and allow to cool. Trim the pins and scrape the excess beeswax from the horn.

Alternately, you can use the now rounded end as a pattern to make the plug by tracing around the outside and shaping to fit. It helps if the plug has a slight draft that mimics the angle of the flower-pot side.

 

[omarick1948]

OK!.....When you get done doing everything listed above, just get yourself an old wooden baseball bat at a second hand or thrift store. Take home and cut off a section(s) of the bat and use as a rounding form. __ You can also use a red clay planting pot in the appropriate size for forming your heated horn.

By the way, unless the walls of your horn are very thin. Boiling water doesn't get hot enough to take the memory out of the horn fibers. Horner use a hot air gun or hot lard or cooking oil heated to at least 325 degree's!

Be careful and good luck!

Rick

 

[Rifleman1776]

Put on some gloves or use a thick towel to get the horn out of the boiling water

Or, go to Wal-Mart or another big box store and look for some of those silicone gloves for cooking use. Weird looking things but have miraculous insulating qualities. You can dunk your hand into the boiling water wearing them. Not real expensive either.

 

[crockett]

If you have limited room I would get that second cone Claude posted- it looks like the taper is a little more gradual. If it is too long you can trim off some of the end. On the plug a lot of different woods were used but pine is pc. We all like the fancy Lancaster type carved plugs but a lot of plugs were flat to the edge of the horn and instead of a finial had a thin staple. There is another thread going with the idea of pressing the horn into a styrafoam plate- man- what a good idea. In your situation I think that ought to work out very well.
We all make jigs of various sorts- some creativity is needed. I am thinking maybe set up something where you first do an inside plug with the styrafoam plate method and then for the outside part of the plug - drill a hole through the plug and then make sort of a potter's wheel/jig containing an upright post- that you can hand rotate/turn and sand the outer plug to a perfectly round shape.
Lamp fixtures sometimes can be used for finials or Dixie sells some. Some finials fit into a bushing in the outer plug and are removable for re-filling the horn with powder.