goat horn scales

Hengelo_77

Hengelo_77

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Mar 2, 2006
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Every now and then pics of white(ish) goat horn scaled knives are shown.
But I never found material like this for sale. Does anybody know wher to get some? How is it to work with?

A knife by Tom Ploppert as an example

goat-horn.jpg
 
That photo looks like bone, not horn.
The horn used on knives is usually referred to as ram horn or sheep horn. Do a search under that and you will find lots of it. It varies in color. Also, the look varies depending on how much it is sanded.
As far as actual goat horn, I have not seen much beyond the smaller black tips that look like small kudu horn.
 
I'm in agreement with Stacy.

From what I've seen, horn is usually hollow so you need something with a big horn to be able to get usable material out of it. Water Buffalo, large rams, musk ox, antelope with impressive horns and the like. Probably some mountain goats get big horns, but that appears to be bone.
 
Hmm, I guess it is the bony core of the horn. The covering is what we normally see, which is karatin. I searched for info but besides a few phptos of a completed knife I find nothing on African Goat Horn. Could it be a term similar to "German Silver", which is not silver at all.

Can you post a link to a supplier for African goat horn?
 
Going forward in this tangent..... With possibility of being bone.

Are there any good sources for large pieces of bone?
Enough for Camp knives/Bowies/etc?

I normally just see small pieces, and mostly camel.
Idk why but I want American beef, American processing........ Venders.


I may be ignorant, but id think with our US beef industry, we'd have a Lot available, I could be wrong.

*I've been casually stealing my dogs used ones after she's turned them into more usable shapes for me..... But it's taking awhile, and I'm still not getting the size I want.


Thanks.
 
Crag the Brewer said:
Going forward in this tangent..... With possibility of being bone.

Are there any good sources for large pieces of bone?
Enough for Camp knives/Bowies/etc?

I normally just see small pieces, and mostly camel.
Idk why but I want American beef, American processing........ Venders.


I may be ignorant, but id think with our US beef industry, we'd have a Lot available, I could be wrong.

*I've been casually stealing my dogs used ones after she's turned them into more usable shapes for me..... But it's taking awhile, and I'm still not getting the size I want.


Thanks.
Click to expand...
Buy the big dog beef shin bone treats from your local fleet farm. They are already bleached and dyed. They usually stuff them with some processed crap that you need to clean out but once you clean them up and process them into flats they can be pretty substantial pieces.

shopping.jpeg
 
Signalprick said:
Buy the big dog beef shin bone treats from your local fleet farm. They are already bleached and dyed. They usually stuff them with some processed crap that you need to clean out but once you clean them up and process them into flats they can be pretty substantial pieces.

View attachment 2300826
Click to expand...
That's kind of what I've been thinking/doing?

About how often have you done this?
Thanks
 
Crag the Brewer said:
Going forward in this tangent..... With possibility of being bone.

Are there any good sources for large pieces of bone?
Enough for Camp knives/Bowies/etc?

I normally just see small pieces, and mostly camel.
Idk why but I want American beef, American processing........ Venders.


I may be ignorant, but id think with our US beef industry, we'd have a Lot available, I could be wrong.

*I've been casually stealing my dogs used ones after she's turned them into more usable shapes for me..... But it's taking awhile, and I'm still not getting the size I want.


Thanks.
Click to expand...
I have sourced some larger sets of bone scales from Culpepper in the past.

4gAgDxP.jpg


This is a Sonoran Camp Knife the largest standard knife model I make.

Anyhoo to answer your question on the bone supply and its the same with the hides. Its not worth the effort on a commercial scale. Most hides and most bones are simply destroyed or thrown away after slaughter. IF you wanted to process your own ya could contact a local slaughter company, a guy that travels around and puts down animals folks are raising, processing them into quarters for ya if a steer and then delivers the quarters to a butcher for ya. In all likely hood they'd just give ya some shin bones. Takes time to age and dry them and then process them into scales. I have done this on buffalo bones for special customers that have killed a buff and wanted a knife with a handle from their buff. Even when I receive the bone and it has been dried and you are working with a cured bone it is still a lot of work for very little return.

Here's a Buffalo:

md30pub.jpg


I recently did a batch of knives for the same customer with antelope bones (shin bones btw are what is used). This too was a lot of work for a little result but like I said a special customer. He wanted one for each grandkid:

ilGAZG7.jpg


uHNAB8I.jpg


Again I was working with bones already dried and processed I was just cutting them up.

I have worked with a lot of goat horn in the past. Had access to quite a few horns from a local animal trader auctioneer. Its very much like sheephorn and again looking back and with the wisdom of age, probably not worth the effort.
 
Culpepper is the source for bone, or the dog treats. Cattle shin bone was used on most US pocket knives.
Camel bone is available.
Cow horn was sawn into spirals, heated, and pressed flat for knife handles in Sheffield.
Goat and sheep horn shrinks drastically for quite some time-years, maybe decades.
 
Crag the Brewer said:
That's kind of what I've been thinking/doing?

About how often have you done this?
Thanks
Click to expand...
I've got some but haven't done it yet. I'm sharing and following the advise of Ken Coats. I feel like at this point I'm reasonably competent at making a slip joint pocket knife. I have on good account this and Ken's dying process are used by a few renowned makers. I mean at worst what are you out trying it vs. spending $15 for a single set of bleached bone that is too small for your needs from the mentioned supplier? ;)
 
Crag the Brewer said:
Going forward in this tangent..... With possibility of being bone.

Are there any good sources for large pieces of bone?
Enough for Camp knives/Bowies/etc?
Click to expand...
Depending where you are there might be someone who operates an independent slaughtering operation. That will give you more info about the bone rather than mystery cow, but you'll probably get it in a grosser state
 
Alex Topfer said:
Depending where you are there might be someone who operates an independent slaughtering operation. That will give you more info about the bone rather than mystery cow, but you'll probably get it in a grosser state
Click to expand...
Absolutely! I'm a big proponent for supporting your local meat locker!
 
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