Author Topic: Silver Mounted Horn - Sort of an Update (Read 16274 times)

davec2 · « **on:** May 06, 2016, 11:20:57 PM »

A year ago, in between work and rifles, I had a couple of horns that I was fooling around with. I posted my method of turning the tip round and then threading quickly: (http://americanlongrifles.org/forum/index.php?topic=36346.0) At any rate, I have been up to my eyeballs with work and I don't like to work the difficult parts of gun projects when my mind is preoccupied. So, to fill in the time blanks, I have been working on one of the horns mentioned in that previous post. I tried staining the horn with aqua fortis / iron nitrate and heat.....came out a little yellow but not bad. I turned the tip and butt out of ebony. The cascabel unscrews for filling. It looked a little plain, so I made sterling silver mounts for both the tip and the butt.

I don't know if it is finished yet because I haven't decided if I will engrave the silver, scrimshaw the body, make a new tip plug (that is not a fiddle peg).....all of the above.....none of the above ?? But I will probably pair it with the nice beaded horn strap that I had Gary Bertelsen make for me. The silver work looks like a chrome trailer hitch right now, but it will tarnish soon enough to the type of patina I prefer.......

Doc · « **Reply #1 on:** May 07, 2016, 12:00:58 AM »

Holy moly!! Wish I could hang out with you for a while and learn some of those skills!!

Great work so far.

Can't wait to see it if you continue, but looks great now.

Doc

Tim Crosby · « **Reply #2 on:** May 07, 2016, 01:17:02 AM »

Another Beauty Dave. Right now I am trying to figure out how I missed the link when it was original posted.
May think about a courser thread.

Tim C.

davec2 · « **Reply #3 on:** May 07, 2016, 04:12:47 AM »

Doc and Tim. thanks.....Tim, I have used both coarse and finer threads. Both seem to work well. (I don't think I'll live long enough to wear either out). The finer threads are easier to do in the mating ebony parts, although I like the look of the coarser threads better (they look more traditional).

WKevinD · « **Reply #4 on:** May 07, 2016, 04:13:30 AM »

Gotta ask, not that I think I'll attempt it. Howd you do the beading on the silver bands?
Just a beautiful horn.

davec2 · « **Reply #5 on:** May 07, 2016, 04:50:41 AM »

Burnt,

The bands themselves are cut out of silver sheet using a paper pattern:

The ends are then silver soldered together and the beads are soldered on by using lengths of beaded silver wire. Not too hard, but a little tricky to not get solder all over the beads or melt the thin sheet you are soldering the beaded wire to.

KC · « **Reply #6 on:** May 07, 2016, 04:51:21 AM »

That is one classy horn and strap. I like that a lot.

oldfireguy · « **Reply #7 on:** May 07, 2016, 04:58:11 AM »

That is a beautiful horn and craftsmanship.

Ed Wenger · « **Reply #8 on:** May 07, 2016, 05:14:33 AM »

Dave, THAT is a beautiful horn. Personally, I'd like to see you do some of your magic with a little scrim shaw work... Very nice!

Ed

BOB HILL · « **Reply #9 on:** May 07, 2016, 05:26:02 AM »

Dave, a joy to see. Thanks for sharing this with us.
Bob

draken · « **Reply #10 on:** May 07, 2016, 08:54:04 AM »

Nice horn, Dave, really nice.

Rolf · « **Reply #11 on:** May 07, 2016, 10:51:00 AM »

Beautiful clean silver work!!

Best regards
Rolf

David Rase · « **Reply #12 on:** May 07, 2016, 09:11:40 PM »

Beautiful horn Dave!
The colors of the horn, ebony and silver work very well together.
David

Spinner · « **Reply #13 on:** May 08, 2016, 12:35:59 AM »

That's a great looking horn. I like everything about it.

PPatch · « **Reply #14 on:** May 08, 2016, 05:31:12 AM »

Beautiful work Dave, very well coordinated for form and color. That strap matches perfectly.

dave

D. Taylor Sapergia · « **Reply #15 on:** May 09, 2016, 06:49:35 PM »

Lovely horn Dave! Good luck keeping the silver bright...should have used gold!!!!

James Rogers · « **Reply #16 on:** May 09, 2016, 10:14:41 PM »

Excellence! The proofs and maker marks are little things that make a difference for me.

davec2 · « **Reply #17 on:** May 10, 2016, 03:31:03 AM »

Thank you all for your kind comments.

Taylor, I really don't want the silver bright. I need it tarnished some and then rubbed bright in spots from use. Like this horn I did with silver a while back:

s

I almost did use gold, but the horn isn't even close to being really worth what the gold would cost ! Maybe when it was $35 an ounce, but not at $1200. I use a lot of gold for other things (including brazing rocket engines together) and it hurts to pay the gold bill when it comes due these days.

James, yes, as long as the parts are made out of a metal worth hallmarking, I like to do that as well.

PPatch - the match between the color of the horn and the yellow in the strap was just a happy accident....I'll take it, but it certainly was not planned.

Ed Wenger · « **Reply #18 on:** May 10, 2016, 01:41:30 PM »

Dave, that's beautiful work...,wow is all I can say.

Ed

David R. Pennington · « **Reply #19 on:** May 10, 2016, 03:50:54 PM »

Kary · « **Reply #20 on:** May 10, 2016, 11:30:59 PM »

Man I thought the first horn was really nice.... Then I see the second and am completely speechless! I too thought that the silver on the 1st horn needed tarnished to match the aged look of the horn body... Do you make to sell? I normally make my own horns.... But my skill level isn't nearly as advanced as yours.

eseabee1 · « **Reply #21 on:** May 11, 2016, 09:04:42 PM »

very nice work

EricEwing · « **Reply #22 on:** May 11, 2016, 09:30:58 PM »

yeah that's wild! skill and creativity at the same time and level....

Marcruger · « **Reply #23 on:** May 11, 2016, 10:29:08 PM »

It has a Nordic feel to my eye. I like it. If you scrim that one, how about some northern European flavor? Beautiful work. Marc

Tim Crosby · « **Reply #24 on:** May 12, 2016, 12:29:36 AM »

WOW! May not be a very big word but I'm not sure of another that would cover that horn.

Tim C.

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Author Topic: Silver Mounted Horn - Sort of an Update (Read 16274 times)

Doc

oldfireguy

Spinner

eseabee1