Question about Powder Horns

It is the same horn one can get at Bass Pro (made in India).

How do you apply the wax? I know it is melted first but what is the best way to apply it?
 
Although they have changed materials to rubber and silicon over the years, you can still get beeswax toilet seals at Home Depot/Lowes. Or if you don't need that much, look for jars of honey that have the honeycone (beeswax) included in the jar. Take out the honeycone (beeswax), break it up and chew it to get the honey out. Chew it until it is nothing but a wax blob in your mouth. (I used to do this as a kid). Similar to those colored and flavored wax lips sold in the candy stores that we used to put on and hold in our teeth to look like we had huge lips that as a kid I also used to chew until all the "goodie" was chewed out of them and they were then nothing but wax too. Then simply melt that wax and use it.

Both the jar of honey with the honeycone in it and the wax lips will be cheaper to buy than a wax toilet seal if you don't need that much wax. But with the honeycone you are getting REAL beeswax without any additives. So if you want to use real natural beeswax, just get a jar of honey with the honeycone in it.

You could also just buy a block of paraffin at the grocery store and use it like wax. Back in the days when I used to surf on surfboards I would sometimes melt paraffin onto my surfboards to increase my foot grip and keep the water off the top of the board. Course regular surfboard wax worked much better cause I could rub that on whereas I couldn't rub on paraffin but had to melt it on, otherwise it broke up into tiny giblets if I tried to rub the paraffin on the board.

Or even easier, just get a candle and melt it in a cup, remove its wick and use that wax. But if you want to use your horn for hunting, don't use scented candle wax. The animals would smell it.


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beeswax toilet rings are not pure beeswax - they have additives. The last one I purchased, I had "sticker shock" as well. :D As Bill says, parafin will work as well. This really isn't "rocket science" or a "major job". As statded, if it's an antique or a fancy, carved, expensive horn - then I would think you'd want to use a "traditional" way of sealing it such as beeswax or brewer's pitch. If it's a cheapy, starter horn - then use a product that will seal it, won't be really "blaring" to look at and that will make it watertight/airtight. If the end plug is stained or even natural, a "putty stick" will work like you use in finish carpentry to cover nailholes. For no more beeswax than you'll need, you probably can go to a Joanne's Fabric or similar and pick up a small amount of it that is commonly used to wax thread in sewing. It is usually in a small "cake" within a plastic holder that has slots in it for running thread across before sewing such things as buttons on a garment. You can buy parafin at a grocery store or hardward store usually - if they sell "canning supplies". I at one time had over thirty original horns in my collection - dating from the early 1800s to the late 1800s. Some had turned end plugs that swere forced into the horns after they were boiled and the horn conformed to the plug shape. This method was pretty foolproof for making it watertight although over the years, the end plug might dry out and shrink. Others had end plugs that were cut to fit the horn's contour. It was very common to find these types of horns "sealed" with beeswax or pitch. Some of the horns I had were made for straps to carry them and others were "Day Horns" - smaller horns that were designed to carry enough powder for a day's hunt and they could be carried in a pocket or inside of a pouch. I'll also make the comment that "powder flasks" - metal flasks - are not necessarily "air tight" due to the "cut off" mechanism. A lot of the originals I've owned over the years had a tight fit at the cut off as the quality was much higher than the Italian flasks that are commonly sold today. I use a repro metal flask when I target shoot as it fits in my pouch well and I just like it. If I was going to be hunting or trapsing around in wet weather, I would use one of my horns that is airtight. A lot of shooters like the flasks and don't have any problems keeping their powder in them though even if the cut off is not 100% airtight. It's just a matter of personal preference. Good luck in getting your horn sealed up - seal it, forget about it, and enjoy your shooting. :)
 
You are way overthinking this matter.
Re-read bedbugbilly's post and take his excellent advice.
Sealing the butt plug/cap isn't rocket science. At events look at other folks horns and get some ideas. You can permanently fasten it in with a lot of things. I have used brass nails, locus thorns, toothpicks.
A big part of muzzle loading involves being inventive and doing for yourself.
 
Locust thorns? I learned something new today.

I've used toothpicks (like on the Ron Ehlert video) and they look great when stained.

BTW, there's one master horner who made a horn for a master gunsmith. We were at the range when the plug fell out and the powder spilled all over the grass. Apparently the master horner only used wax and didn't use anything to pin the plug in. I wasn't there for the razzing that followed.
 
I feel it is important for me to keep in practice the old ways even if it is on cheapies. I want to keep these things alive and pass them down to my children.
 
Yeppers, locust thorns make great nails. Drive in and cut off. Look nice.
Of course, the funnest part is harvesting them. :eek:
Use side cutters.
 
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