Jean B. wrote:
> Doug Freyburger wrote:
>
>> I drink wine or whatever from crystal on rare occasions. I have some
>> but use my glass and plastic far more often. Heck, I use my drinking
>> horns more often than my entire set of crystal. It's fun having an ale
>> or mead from a drinking horn.
>
> Cool! I sometimes think about getting horn sups.

I had some email discussion about horns recently. Here are parts abut
sources ...

For hobby tools for leather working that will also work for horn working -
http://www.tandyleatherfactory.com/ They also have a limited selection of
cow horns which are the standard for drinking, sounding, powder horns and
great for all occasions. My original drinking horn that is still my standard is
from when they still had a few walk up stores open. They've long since
switched all of their walk up stores to Radio Shack. They have probably
been separate companies for years.

For the horns themselves - http://www.hideandfur.com/ They even have bison
and goat horns, all sorts of antlers, all sorts of fur and bones and such. It
is extremely cool to make a horn holder out of antler.

Any local hobby/craft store will have the tools you want. I have a Dremel that
I used to whittle the wooden stand that I've used for many years now with my
original drinking horn. A board about the same size as the horn. Open and
taper an oval hole in the center. Slant one side of the bottom edge to
establish a front and back to the board. Round all other edges. Etch
in pre-runic symbols, runes, whatever. On mine I even have "alu mead
kafi beer" in runes on the front as a sort of menu and the whole elder
futhark on the back as a reference tool. Put the horn in the hole. If
you slanted the bottom edge and sized the hole correctly they will
lock together to make an X shape from the side. Pour in that ale. Well
received every time I have ever taken it to a pub.

This week I'm curing new drinking horn. The main task is to draw out the
nasty bits that a Dremel could not reach. Some coat their horns some don't -
I don't so I can have coffee in mine. Some scrimshaw their horns some don't -
I etched my wooden stand instead.

Somewhere I still have a water buffalo horn that I never did finishing cleaning
out the nasty bits. A few years of drying in storage should make that easier
now.