Hand cut scales

[jerryjmm]

Has anyone cut their own scales from a real rams horn?

[gmusic]

I have made spacers for stacked handles from Sheep Horn, no scales. I have lots of material. Reason for question?

[Elvis]

Yeah, and it's kind of a pain to work with. Once you've cut the slab as flat and straight as you can, gently heating it and pressing it between two pieces of wood in a vise will help to flatten it. Just be sure to put it in the vise while it's still warm and don't crank it down too much at once or it will crack. More than one application of this method may be necessary to get the slab perfectly flat, but it works. Oh yeah, be careful not to burn it. It stinks BAD!

After you're done, you can torch it like stag with nice results. Good luck!

[orvet]

I haven't cut ram horn, but I have worked with antler.
Antler is probably easier, but any of them are a pain to get flat.
Old stag that has curled is a real pain. I have kept some of that clamped for a year or more.

[Elvis]

Ram's horn and antler act differently. The horn reminds me more of really thick fingernail whereas the antler is kind of fiberous. It stays once shaped, but it's still a pain. And stinks if burnt (I know I mentioned that. Just trying to spare someone the stench).

[gmusic]

Elvis is right on the money......................the stuff does stink!

Ed Fowler taught me the dryer the better. He dries his stuff for years as he rotates it into the shop from a shed outdoors. It has completely "settled down" after a few years of curing.

The stuff is harder than nails! I took a small piece about 3/4" square and struck it with a 3 pound hammer several times on the anvil before it chipped. Scales of course aren't that thick, but it's durable as heck!

[gringo]

The stuff is harder than nails! I took a small piece about 3/4" square and struck it with a 3 pound hammer several times on the anvil before it chipped.

done that with my thumb...

[orvet]

Have any of you worked with Musk Ox horn?
I picked some pieces from a custom maker last year, several odds and ends, but no matched sets.
It has been stabilized, so I don't anticipate any serious problems, but it is very interesting stuff.
Parts of it have a crystalline look to it. Very pretty.
The hard thing for me is deciding what kind of knife to put it on, because it looks so different than anything else I have seen. It would probably look right on a knife that had originally had something like waterfall celluloid on it.

Here is a scan of several pieces I got.
The hardest part will be getting it flat & that is probably best done by sanding it flat then finishing up on a lapping block with 220 sandpaper.

[gmusic]

Pretty cool! Once it's polished up I'll bet it's handsome!

[conslade]

I've had good luck flattening rams horn by cutting it as flat as possible, and then putting it in boiling water for a while (maybe 5 or 10 minutes, depends on how thick it is) and then clamping it between 2 1X6's and letting it dry and cool overnight. You might have to repeat, but it's better than smelling burnt horn.

[Elvis]

I've had good luck flattening rams horn by cutting it as flat as possible, and then putting it in boiling water for a while (maybe 5 or 10 minutes, depends on how thick it is) and then clamping it between 2 1X6's and letting it dry and cool overnight. You might have to repeat, but it's better than smelling burnt horn.

Same principle as the torch as long as you don't over heat. I think I like the hot water though. Thanks!

[jerryjmm]

I havn't cut the horn yet but I think I am going to try the boiling water first. I don't even have a planned use for it .

[coffeecup]

Summer of '84, I converted a half-pickup load of sheep horn into blanks for scales. A knifemaker-friend had acquired it in some sort of trade (with him it was best not to ask). Anyhow, I wound up doing the actual work.

I cut it into rough blanks on the bandsaw, borrowed every C-clamp I could get my hands on, and had a friend's grandmother show me how to use a pressure cooker. As I recall, I ran the stuff for 30 minutes at 15 psi (but check these times/pressure with some scrap before doing the actual blanks). I clamped the future scales between 1" oak boards, etc. When it comes out of the cooker is is rather like undercooked pasta: all bendy-flexy, but not really "mush."

Let it cool for a day or two, take it out of the clamps (or leave it in the clamps if you don't need it right away) and let it cure for a while--a summer in a barn loft worked well. From there you can flatten it the rest of the way with your grinder just like usual.

This works for horns from sheep, goat (but pre-shape it a little more to even the thickness, or cook longer), buffalo/bison, and cattle. It should work for musk-ox (they are classified as being sort of between sheep/goats and bovine-type cattle), but I've never tried it.

Jim

[wlf]

Summer of '84, I converted a half-pickup load of sheep horn into blanks for scales. A knifemaker-friend had acquired it in some sort of trade (with him it was best not to ask). Anyhow, I wound up doing the actual work.

I cut it into rough blanks on the bandsaw, borrowed every C-clamp I could get my hands on, and had a friend's grandmother show me how to use a pressure cooker. As I recall, I ran the stuff for 30 minutes at 15 psi (but check these times/pressure with some scrap before doing the actual blanks). I clamped the future scales between 1" oak boards, etc. When it comes out of the cooker is is rather like undercooked pasta: all bendy-flexy, but not really "mush."

Let it cool for a day or two, take it out of the clamps (or leave it in the clamps if you don't need it right away) and let it cure for a while--a summer in a barn loft worked well. From there you can flatten it the rest of the way with your grinder just like usual.

This works for horns from sheep, goat (but pre-shape it a little more to even the thickness, or cook longer), buffalo/bison, and cattle. It should work for musk-ox (they are classified as being sort of between sheep/goats and bovine-type cattle), but I've never tried it.

Jim

How thick did you cut the blanks? Do you cut with the grain or against it? I'm sorry if this is stupid or redundant,I've only read this far into this forum.

Extremely insightful and interesting threads.

[coffeecup]

All of the horn (not antler) I've processed like this, I cut to size/shape, then flattened it--I was making blanks. Once the blank is done, the stock can be flattened on one side and then either attached to the knife and worked down, or reduced in thickness from the flat side.

I hope that makes sense, but I'm not sure I explained it right.