At the end of an old post about re-working a really, really cheap horn, I said I would start another post to ask about refurbishing another cheap old (but historically insignificant) horn. (Here is the original post)
http://americanlongrifles.org/forum/index.php?topic=21886.0The picture below is of a very inexpensive Spanish made percussion pistol my Dad bought for me when I was 9. As those things go, it was not very long before I wanted to shoot it, so we went back to the local gun store to get black powder and percussion caps. Now my Dad was a great shooter but he had never been involved with any black powder / muzzle loading weapons. So John Barkley, a friend of my Dad's and the gun store owner, set us up with powder, caps, and ball and showed us both how to load and shoot the pistol. As we were leaving the store, Mr. Barkley took a $2 or $3 powder horn (this is 1962 now) down off the wall and handed it to me saying, "Here you'll need one of these."
When Mr. Barkley gave me the horn, it only had a turned wood base plug, a single leather thong for a strap, and a wood stopper. Some time a year or two later, I added the leather and tacks around the base plug. A couple of years after that, I got my first Dixie Gun Works catalog and in it found the brass powder valve / measure. At the time, I had no idea how to thread the end of the horn to attach the brass valve. So I filed the end of the horn round and small enough to fit into the valve body. Then I lubricated the threads with a Q-tip and Vaseline, mixed up some two part epoxy, filled the threads with the epoxy and shoved the valve on the end of the horn. Not long thereafter, fearing that bugs would eat my horn, I coated it with polyurethane, which has since yellowed. I have kept and used the horn for 56 years. The threads for the valve are still fine, the single leather thong is still sound, and the bugs have never taken a bite out of the horn.
But as I noted at the end of the older post, I have had the urge lately to re-work the horn. It has no historical significance and no one will give it a second look when I am gone. For all purposes, as it is, it would be worthless to anyone but me. So.....I'm trying to decide if I should take it down to parade rest and start over.....or just leave it alone.
