Old Powder Horn Repair

[Majorjoel]

I have an old horn that has what I believe to be a pewter repair. Pewter or perhaps lead was poured somehow to form a hole patch. Does anyone know how this would be accomplished, mainly to keep the molton metal from running into the cavity? I can only quess that the plug would have to be removed to contain the repair?? I also feel that this work was done long ago, judgeing by the patina surrounding the area. If hot pewter were to be poured recently, wouldn't the old build-up be burned off? Has anyone ever run across similar repairs? http://i445.photobucket.com/albums/qq171/joelhall452/P1000059.jpg[/img]]   http://i445.photobucket.com/albums/qq171/joelhall452/P1000058.jpg[/img]]

[Scott Brush]

Joel,

It's possible that the "hole" didn't completely penetrate the horn, in which case, as some have suggested before, perhaps a screw was started in the cavity to act as an anchor for the pewter to adhere to.  This might explain why it stands tall of the horn.

Here's a picture of a pewter repair I made on the neck of a horn after filing too aggressively and exposing a crack in the horn.  Because my pour surrounded the horn I had no need for an anchor.  My "crack" was sort of on an angle and very slight so I also didn't worry about the pewter running in to the horn.

Scott

[Randy Hedden]

Joel,

Although I have never made a repair to a horn with lead, I have seen many old horns with such a repair. I have been told that such a repair can be made by packing the empty horn with sand, making a cavity in the sand through the hole and then pouring the lead into the hole. While I have never done this, it may be a solution to repairing a hole in a horn. I just don't know how you keep the molten lead from burning right through the horn? Perhaps someone will have more information about how this type of repair was made?

I had one horn that had a small hole through the body of the horn down by the spout where there was sufficient thickness. I drilled the hole to a standard size and tapped and chamfered the hole. Then I made a threaded length of horn with a matching chamfer on the head end, coated it with glue, threaded it into the hole and then filed the horn material screw flush with the horn. I believe a repair such as this should last for many years of use.

Randy Hedden

www.harddogrifles.com

 

[T*O*F]

I have seen a couple of lead repairs but they were across cracks, not to fill holes.  They were shaped like a bow-tie and keyed into the horn.

I think using one of the low temp solders that melts below 300 degrees would probably work OK.  Pour the repair and have a water soaked cloth standing by to wipe the joint and cool the pour before it melted the horn.

[Levy]

I haven't heard anyone mention a lead rivet yet.  Maybe the rivet could've had a head set on one end and then pushed through the horn/hole from the inside and a head lightly hammered on to it from the outside.  This would've required some sort of anvil being placed inside the horn and against the rivet head.  Lead being relatively soft, it seems possible.  The plug would've been removed first of course and then replaced.

James Levy

[Tim Crosby]

Ok bare with me here. When I first looked at that patch a thought came to me that maybe it was done from the inside with the butt plug in. Sooo I decided to try an experiment. I took a horn that the tip drilled out to 1/4" put a plug of pine in it, melted a piece of pewter about the size of a good sized marble, hot just like if I would pouring a knife bolster of nose cap, poured down the 1/4" hole and it flowed right down to the plug, it did not burn or scorch the horn, it solidified in now time. So I think Randy was right about using sand to fix the hole only the sand would be on the out side. If the hole was located like the one in the post we would take a pan of semi packed damp, not wet, make an indentations with your finger making a little pit. Take the horn press it gently into the sand with the hole over the pit and the tip up. Melt some pewter pour it in the tip, it runs down out the hole into the pit and some of it stays inside to form a head to lock it in place. It make take a little playing around with but I think it would work but of course only if the hole was on the outside curve of the horn.   

Tim C.

PS: If I had a horn with hole in it I would try to repair it like this. Let me say a new horn.

PSS: Ya might want to make sure ALL the powder was out of the horn.

[mdtnhunter]

Filling the horn with lead sounds like a feasable option.