Aging a new horn

[Big_Gobbler]

I'm new at horn making what is the best way of aging the horn when finished ?
                         Big_Gobbler

[Nate McKenzie]

This book shows it all.    https://www.trackofthewolf.com/Categories/PartDetail.aspx/267/4/BOOK-R18CPH

[Clark Badgett]

I'm new at horn making what is the best way of aging the horn when finished ?
                         Big_Gobbler

Honest usage.

[Joey R]

I think Scott Sibley once said he tied the horn on a section of rope and drug it up and down the road and pasture behind the 4 wheeler.

[Tim Crosby]

I think Scott Sibley once said he tied the horn on a section of rope and drug it up and down the road and pasture behind the 4 wheeler.

 I have done just that, before it was aged. Puts nice dents and scratches in it.
 The directions in Scotts book, the one Nate mentioned, are probably the best you will find in print. After awhile you may try other methods.

  Tim C.

[Tink]

Best way I've found is by going hunting as much or more than possible! Mine take a real beating and age real nice.

[Horner75]

Scott's book is a good start, but every horner has his or hers little tricks that they seem to keep to themselves.  I just throw it out in the backyard and let my dog chew and play with it for a few days!

[Mikecooper]

Rit dye,  some orange and a bit of brown,  maybe a little shoe polish,   top it off with some potassium permanganate (sold as 'old bones') but cheaper if you buy it by the pound as a powder.   It's not light fast though.

 Why does everyone want to antique them?  2 or 3 hundred years ago when they were in use, they were new, not antiqued. 

[J Henry]

  Use it alot ,,, then alot more,,,

[Tim Crosby]

Why does everyone want to antique them?  2 or 3 hundred years ago when they were in use, they were new, not antiqued.  

 FWIW From Making Powder Horns Book II 1996 By Robert D. Byerly page 6;

 "Many a Horn maker of the Colonial days boiled their horns in an Iron kettle in a solution of Red Potash. This solution gave a reddish color to the horn as well as provided an insect repellent and a preservative. Who know what remnants might been in those Iron kettles. A Yellow dye was then boiled and the horn placed into that solution for a period of time. The combination of the two colors gave the soft Golden color. Butternut or Walnut hulls were made into stains and the horn was dipped into hot solutions. When removed, the horn dried and the stain enhanced the grain (growth lines) in the horn."
 The use of Polychrome is pretty much a given in the coloring of horns, the Tansel family comes to mind.
 If one dyed their clothes Green or Brown as a means of camouflage I doubt they would want a stark White horn shining form there side. From reading and looking at many old horns it looks to me that many left the shop with color.
 As a maker I have left horns natural, they sit for a long time. Once I age/color it they are gone. Could be it just didn't "Speak" to someone but I am convinced the lack of color was the problem.

  Tim C  
 

[Horner75]

I'm with you 100% in your thinking Tim.  Natural or un-dyed horns move slow.

[Marcruger]

The dyed horns look a lot better Big Gobbler, and there are some folks on here that do some amazing work.  Hopefully they will share some of their modern day secrets with you.   :-)  Marc

[rich pierce]

Boiling in onion skins gives a nice yellow brown color.

[Tim Crosby]

Why does everyone want to antique them?  2 or 3 hundred years ago when they were in use, they were new, not antiqued.  

 FWIW From Making Powder Horns Book II 1996 By Robert D. Byerly page 6;

 "Many a Horn maker of the Colonial days boiled their horns in an Iron kettle in a solution of Red Potash. 

  After finding out that "Red Potash" was not available until the mid 1800's and the fact that it will make a horn brittle , to the point of shattering. I think what the author meant was that the horns were colored in kettles that had been used to boil down Red Potash.

  Tim C.

[Rick Sheets]

Sometimes I think some of the "natural" patina we enjoy seeing on antique horns is multiple years of tobacco smoke exposure. Have you ever cleaned up an estate of an extreme smoker? Lots of patina.

Rick

[Gun Butcher]

I would place my vote in the onion skin camp. Just started doing that and I am really liking the results.

Ron

[skillman]

I have made this point for years Rick. Certainly not the only way they got colored but Wood, tobacco, and lamp/candle smoke will certainly add to it.

Steve

[Elnathan]

I would place my vote in the onion skin camp. Just started doing that and I am really liking the results.

Ron

When using onion skin, do you polish, engrave, and color the horn before putting the plug in? I usually put the plug in about halfway through the shaping process, and then do the final shaping of both plug and horn together. I can't figure out how one would age a horn with the plug already in it, though.

[Tim Crosby]

 In my experiments with Onion skin it seemed to take a lot of onions, started with a 5# bag and went from there. Never got a color I was happy with, maybe I did it wrong. Would like to hear amounts and procedure. I have tried the process in Sibley's Recreating The 18th Century Powder Horn but still did not get what I was looking for, His explanation on the use of Dye gives exultant results, as does the use of Aquafortis. Kind of depends on what you are looking for or trying to reproduce. 
 You can put a horn with base in a pot of liquid but you will have to put a weight on it to hold it down, filling the horn with liquid helps. Also the spot where the weight touches the horn may not color as well as the rest of it. You also run thee risk of the wood expanding and cracking the horn.
 To answer the above question, for me anyway, putting the base in is the last thing I do, I find it hard to hold/work on with the base in. If there is any touch up to do to the color it is easily done. If I did carve horns I would carve, color the carving then age the horn, kind of the natural procedure.
 To each his own.

  Tim C.

   

[Hungry Horse]

 Onion skins simmered in hot white vinegar produce a great color. It takes a lot of onion skins, and quite some time. It also makes the horn brittle.
 I prefer wiping down the finished horn with Lincoln's medium brown shoe dye, and then immediately wiping the horn with a wet rag. You can build a nice color with a couple of treatments, depending on how dark you want it. It doesn't seem to work with Feibing's brand for some reason. This process works well for aging rawhide. You can make gun repairs look pretty convincing with this process.

  Hungry Horse

[Mark Elliott]

I primarily use aqua fortis (ferric nitrate) applied with lots of heat.   At least two applications to a clean surface is required.   It gives a nice authentic orange color.   Then I wipe on and wipe off walnut oil stain and add powdered charcoal.