Rally 'Round the Ram Horn!

[bozack]

 

[Old Engineer]

Taylor's Eye Witness Barlow in Rams Horn from 2014






Harry

 

[stezann]

Hi Will

Thanks for the compliments, very kind of you.
Rams horn can be a problem if you get hot whilst sanding it to the right thickness. I grind a bit, then put it on my steel surface plate to take any heat out, grind the other scale and keep repeating the process. Dont rush is always the answer, like most things.
I then leave them overnight held together with elastic bands in case they have warped a little. Oh and it stinks a bit!!

Cheers

Paul

Working cool is indeed madatory if you don't want to scorch it or having surprises later in terms of movements. That is when you have almost finished scales, but one of the thing is nice to know however is that the horn is pliable and if you carefully get it 160-170 °C you can bend it like gum and it'll take the new set as it cools.
That's how the rams are straightened to cut out scales stock.

One thing i always wonder is why are there fibrous scales and "compact" solid looking ones? I don't mean the bark, the full meat. The horn is fibrous by nature, but some of the specimens have loose fiber vs. so tight you can't resolve looking as solid translucent matter.
Do you think it has something to do with the variabiles in the straightening process or is it inherently related to the very specific animal (diet, breed, age...)?

 

[r redden]

Great thread and some gorgeous knives. :thumbup:

 

[bozack]

 

[HWS]

A fixed blade in ATS-34 with Bighorn sheep scales that I ordered from Ron Gaston 20+ years ago as my hunting carry knife. Once I received it, I just couldn't take it out into the bush. So it sits in my den where it gets lovingly fondled from time to time.

 

[herisson]

An old "Bouledogue" made by M. Issard with mountain sheep ram horn scales for the cutlery Daniel in St. Brieuc. One side is very barky, both are a deep brown with some lighter streaks. The mismatched scales make it quite unique. The pictures don't do it justice, alas. It's fascinating to look at and pleasant to handle : warm, grippy with a very firm hold.

 

[bozack]

 

[black mamba]

Some great additions lately, thanks to all!

 

[black mamba]

Neal70 showed some appreciation for my ram's horn railsplitter, so I thought I'd resurrect this thread of my favorite handle material, with some updates. Unfortunately we've lost a few of the pics, but it's still a great thread.

Marbles Sowbelly

RAT Railsplitter

Doug Campbell Custom Hunter

Group Shot

Robert Klaas Stockman

 

[5K Qs]

How did I miss this thread for 4 years?? Wish I could have seen it before so many pics disappeared. Thanks for initiating such a first-rate thread, Jeff!

I have some Marbles ram's horn pieced that I'll post here eventually, and I plan to pick up some Klaas ram's horn one of these days. For now, I'll post my version of the Marbles sowbelly stockman that Jeff posted above:

- GT

 

[knowtracks]

Man!! Dug this thread up from the depths!!





Kinda heavy Ren wax!!
Dave

 

[black mamba]

Thanks for the additions, GT and Dave! I love the big S&M.

 

[Ramrodmb]

Always love the Ramshorn!

 

[Rookie82]

Such a shame about Photobucket going bonkers. There were a ton of awesome photos in the thread.

 

[Horsewright]

My Tapadero:

 

[Pàdruig]

Neal70 showed some appreciation for my ram's horn railsplitter, so I thought I'd resurrect this thread of my favorite handle material, with some updates. Unfortunately we've lost a few of the pics, but it's still a great thread.

Marbles Sowbelly

RAT Railsplitter

Doug Campbell Custom Hunter

Group Shot

Robert Klaas Stockman

Wow, Jeff! You have some stunning knives! I really appreciate you bringing this thread back to the top. I do not have any knives in Ram's Horn (yet), but I have always enjoyed looking at it and have often wondered why it wasn't more popular. It is such an attractive and photogenic material with countless variations! Some of the folks who landed some of those amazing Euro Barlows with Ram's Horn should contribute to your thread. I recall seeing some rather striking examples that varied from the rippled black to the smooth blonde.

Man!! Dug this thread up from the depths!!
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View attachment 771157
Kinda heavy Ren wax!!
Dave

That S&M is most excellent! Is that a more recent production? Recent as in the last few years?

Always love the Ramshorn!

That is a gorgeous knife, looks supremely effective.

My Tapadero:

I could be mistaken, but I seem to recall you displaying a knife awhile back that had some rather translucent horn and it made for a rather beautiful effect. Was that Ram's Horn or something else?

 

[black mamba]

Thank you, Dylan, and great stuff everybody, thanks for posting. Keep 'em comin'!

 

[5K Qs]

Here's a Marbles ram's horn canoe with an interesting pile side:

- GT

 

[Horsewright]

Yes sir Dylan here it is. Ramshorn with a blue liner on one of my Rodeos:

Matching set of Rancheros with red liners:

I've got 5 or 6 on the workbench right now with black, blue and green liners.