Deer horn stabilization questions?

C

countrystrong

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Jun 28, 2013
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I was wonderin on the subject of the result of deer horn after the stabilization process?Such as. Will stabilizing prevent cracking and shrinkage and warping? Also will blood stain horn? I am going to get a mule deer horn professionally stabilized that my Dad killed bout 40 years ago the horn is in very good condition. Will the effects of stabilizing it still work well even though the horn is really old?
 
First off welcome to BF and Shoptalk.

May seem trivial but you are technically referring to antler rather than horn. Antlers are generally shed annually by male cervids where horns are lifetime headgear (except for Pronghorn - as far as I know).

They are roughly similar though and both can be stabilized. Whether it's worth it is another question. You noted yourself that after over 40 years the thing is still in good shape. That should tell you something. The only stabilized antler I have handled still stained as badly as non-stabilized antler. Blood is really good at that after it dries.

Most folks who use antler will just polish up through the grits to P800 or better and buff with clean cotton. Powered buffing is not needed but can speed things up if you know what you're doing. I use old T-shirt material and serious elbow grease after P1500. Then Ren wax or Johnson's floor wax from the 1960s.

What's your intended application?
 
What Don said - no need and FWIW - antler is bone while horn is keratin - like your fingernails
 
The outer shell won't need stabilizing but you may need to do something with the inside if it is very porous. Won't know until you cut into it. Some are fairly solid inside. If porous I use epoxy or superglue to fill the porous area.
 
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