Tinder horn

[tombear]

Hi folks
in between de rusting stuff I've been fiddling with a "Present from Switzerland" type horn that i got for a quid in a charity shop.

Between where the hanging hooks were there was enough to make a tinder horn, something I'd actully use to store spare charcloth for my tinder box.
Anyroad rather than turn the ends and boil the horn to fit on them I carved the two end caps from bits of a really old table leg that was on the wood pile.

Its about 5 inches long.

After I have sanded and polished the horn i will glue on the smaller plug with resin and a little ground up charcoal and pin it in place with some of the ancient copper tacks I once found, like I did the salt horn. I've still to drill the holes in the plugs for the thong and probably fit a peg to the lid plug so the cord can be looped on that.
I'm thinking of doing some scrimshaw on this one, anyone know any good cheats/tricks?

ATB

Tom

PS finally put up the £1-off-a-car-boot-as-the-reformed-Goth-didn't-want-to-take-it-home-chandelier that was hanging around my shed as the youngest had flown a model helicopter into a light bulb so we had to drag a ladder into it anyway. Thinking of turning something a bit prettier, copied from a 18th C Colonial design, just a wooden hub with s shaped tin or copper tube arms... OK it will take another 2 years to get around to....

 

[Hugo]

Looks good Tom, I like the tinder horn a lot.
I've seen loads of the present from Switzerland type stuff before and wondered that to do with it.
Now I know.

 

[tombear]

Finished it and pretty happy with it It will do the job anyway. Now to wind my courage up to do some scrimshaw on it!

Woods linseed oiled and then wax polished, horn bits buffed up with brass compound on a new cotton wheel.

ATB

Tom

 

[Mesquite]

Very nice Tom

 

[RonW]

Looks very good, Tom!
I have a horn sitting here to be transformed into something similar and your work helps me with getting that one done.
I intend to use the whole horn without the wooden lid at the bottom.

Don't you think the dark and light pattern of your horn might make the scrimshaw difficult to see?
I like it as it is anyway....

 

[R.Lewis]

That is really lovely, like it a lot, well done!

 

[tombear]

Cheers folks!

If the end of the horn hadn't been ruined with a mock mouth piece and threaded hole for a hanging eye ring I'd have done a full lenght one myself, mainly so I could carry thin kindling I pick up. I'm not sure what to do with the end I cut off. May do a ink horn with the pointy one.

After doing innumerable models as a kid its a lot like working plastic, certainly the tools if not the glues for one work well on the other.

Yeah the two rings I scraped in with a wood marking guage then went over lightly with a bone saw do not stand out very well so i think your right and I will leave this one free of my attempt at scrimshaw. Even if i inked it it wouldn't turn out very clear.

ATB
and thanks for the encouragement

Tom
T

 

[leaf man]

really nice work there, more inspiration for projects i want to do but....

gonna have to look for scrimshaw though, never heard of it

 

[tombear]

http://www.scrimshaw.com/howto1.html

It would help if I had any artistic talent at all! I hope carbon paper works on horn!

ATB

Tom

PS next time I will use a lot more tape to protect the horn from scratches when cutting and scribing. I think I spent more time undoing my mistakes than actually making it!

 

[Hugo]

Resurrect an old thread. I picked this up from a boot market earlier today, looks too good to cut up, might just put a bung in the end and a lanyard to sling it over the shoulder. It is made in India and is 23 cm long colours are nice, better close up.

 

[tombear]

Yup, thats too nice to chop up. I've a similar one, highly polished thats been set up as a drinking horn, not something I'd use, and I can't bring myself to chop it up! Top one in this pic of bits got on carboots or charity shops.

Middle sons into Anglo Saxons so may sterrilise it and give it to him.

ATB

tom