Small Powder Gourd

[Tim Crosby]

 It is about nine inchs long and two at the widest. The spout is horn and is pinned in. Something different.

 Tim C.

[David Rase]

Great looking gourd flask.  I really like the color of the tip as it relates to the gourd.  Nice job Tim!
DMR

[eseabee1]

very nice Tim

[Larry Pletcher]

That's pretty sharp!  I like the idea.  I like the color match too.
Regards,
Pletch

[Trkdriver99]

Man you guys think so fast on this place. That is really beautiful. Such skill here, I just am proud to look at this stuff. Next get together I want to come and get a close up look at the production from here.

Ronnie

[A.Merrill]

     That looks great, really diffrent. Keep up the good work.   AL

[Gun Butcher]

That looks really sharp Tim.  Are they strong enough to hold up?
Ron

[LynnC]

Very cool gourd-horn!  Where can I find some photos of similar originals?  Great inspiration.  A bit fancier than the deep south examples I've seen - something I'd like to try making...................Lynn

[LynnC]

Are they strong enough?

I carry powder in one and balls for a 36 cal. in another, but I must say I've never dropped the ball gourd   Might not survive with out some damage  

[Pvt. Lon Grifle]

Intrestingly enough I just finished a book on Kentucky history that contained a direct quote from the patriarch of a pioneer family coming across the Cumberland River with all their goods and possessions in the years before the Wilderness road was even roughed out.  He was speaking of a week of very bad  late winter rainy, windy weather where there was much flooding, the stock scatteted one night in one extra violent storm, and three of their "powder supply gourds" were destroyed leaving them with only a small amount of powder.

The thrust of the quote appeared to be that the loss of their powder supply put them in peril as the gourds were used for bulk storage.    Lon

[skillman]

There is a woman who Rondy's with us who uses gourds to make really neat priming horns and canteens. I have several gourds she gave me to try my hand with. Your work is inspiration for me to try it. Really great work Tim.
Steve

[Tim Crosby]

   Thanks for the complements. As to the strength, after cutting and cleaning one out I tried squeezing it as hard as I could and it did not break. Now if you fill one with balls and drop it on a concrete floor that may be  different.  I don’t know that I would beat one on a table like I do with a horn in my horn making classes to demonstrate the strength of horn but within the realm of reasonable use I think they would be fine.  
 As to historically correctness, I have heard of gourds being used for powder but I have never seen one and the horn tip idea is probably way off the chart.

 Tim C.

[LynnC]

"Horn tip off the chart" - but its a good look.  I've got a good crop of bottle gourds drying.  Plenty to experiment with.  Think I'll try turning out some tips from cherry or horn.
As to HC (Mississippi) - the few I've seen were simple with with a cork or wooden stopper fitted to the neck.  But I've only seen a few.......Lynn

[FL-Flintlock]

Strength and wall thickness vary greatly by species and growing conditions.

[Hungry Horse]

 Gourds have a long growing season, so planting as early as possible is important. They rely on a good hard frost to harden them as well. Most people who grow gourds for the first time harvest them too early. You can manipulated their shape by growing them in a confined space, but they do need sunlight, so it cant be a solid box.
 Usually the smaller the gourd, the thinner, and more fragile it will be. The weight of lead, either shot, or round balls, creat a problem, since the smaller impact can shatter the gourd when its full of something as heavy as lead.

  Hungry Horse

[old george]

This was an interesting thread esp. the verification of use that Pvt.Lon furnished. Thanks to everyone's inputs.

george

[Panzerschwein]

I enjoy that powder gourd.

It looks fat and sassy!