General discussion > Contemporary Accoutrements

Old Buffalo horn

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A.Merrill:
   A friend of mine gave me a old buffalo horn that had been past down in his family from as far back as anyone could remember. Probably from around 1900, he still has the buffalo robe coat that was with the horn. it has several bug holes in it but they don't go all the way through. I'm building my son a Hawken rifle and thought the buffalo horn would go good with the rifle. I have never made a powder horn out of a buffalo horn and several of you on here has more experience than I do with horns.
This buffalo horn is 16 1/2in on outside curve and 3 5/8in wide. What should I do with it? Should the bug holes be filled or left as is to look old? What kind of plug should it have that would fit that time period? Give me some ideas and show me some pictures. I would like to decorate it some but keep it realistic.
   Thanks.   Al

Jeff Murray:
Depending on the condition of the horn (natural rough or cleaned up) you might try scraping it down to see how deep the bug holes are.  You may be able to clean some of them up enough so they don't show that bad.  Maple, beech, walnut and pine were common woods used for plugs.  Pine is likely more traditional for a buffalo horn since that is what they had out west.  Most of the original buffalo horns I have seen were very simple, even crude by today's standards.  Some were decorated with brass tacks around the base and sometimes on the base plug itself.  Buffalo can be a little tough to clean up if it is in the natural rough state, but it also looks nice when finished.  PM me if you would like some ideas on how to clean and finish the horn.  I also have pictures of an original in the Buffalo Bill Museum as well as some I have done.   Pretty cool find.  Good luck. 

A.Merrill:
This horn has been polished a long time ago. I was thinking about leaving it just like it is but adding the plug and eather carving the tip or adding a screw tip. There is three bug holes I would like to fill if there's a filler that won't show. I would like to see your pictures. Thank you.    Al

Bull Shannon:
I think the one you have is great as far as time period and authenticity. Scrape, sand and fill the holes. Personally, I'd rather have a hardwood plug and love black walnut, cherry, apple or pear wood.
I had Powderhorns and More make me a buffalo horn to specifically pair with my Hawken reproduction, it's my second buffler horn and I think it looks great.

My Hawken:



My bag and horn.

Robert Wolfe:
Here is one I did from a vintage horn I picked up somewhere. It looked like a ragged mess but cleaned up nicely with lots of rasping and scraping.



I took the copper band from this original horn. I think the site I got the pics from called it a buffalo but am not 100% sure.

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