Boiling Horns to get the center out?

[Ohio Joe]

Okay guys - I need the expert advice of boiling horns to get the center core (or whatever it's called) out...

Q: How long to boil - approximately - and will the center slide out on its own, or what? What is the proceedure?

While cleaning out my metal shed this morning I found a bucket of cow horns someone gave some time ago... Anyway, if you don't mind - throw me some info on the above.

Thanks! 

[Bigsmoke]

Joe,
Although I have processed thousands of cow horns into powderhorns and other things, I have never had the dubious pleasure of removing the core.  I think a long flexible, narrow knife would be a big help.  As would a 4 x 1/2" lag bolt to screw into the core.  A 1/4" bolt might work easier.  And it could be longer as well.
I am thinking someone posted a video here a few months ago showing how it was done.
I would guess boiling it maybe 10 minutes should be adequate.  As you say, you have had these horns some time, so the membrane could even be non-existent by now.
Hope these few thoughts help maybe even a little bit.

John (Bigsmoke)

P. S.  Would love to come visit you, but would not walk across the street to help you with this project.  Sorry, but I have managed to avoid boiling horns to remove cores for over 35 years.  Don't really want to start now.   It was bad enough rough and fine sanding them all.

[PetahW]

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Here's the skinny, Joe:

http://www.personal.utulsa.edu/~marc-carlson/horn/horng.html

.

[Ohio Joe]

Thanks guys!  Good info for sure.

John, we start tomorrow if you can make it???    (if it's not raining of course)... Thank you for the info. 

PetahW, thank you - great information!

Guys, I did find one video on youtube that showed a guy boiling a horn then (I think it was after 10 minutes of boiling the horn - he took it out of the water and with his knife cut just above the base (all the way round) and pulled the core out...

I'll see if I can find that video again and posted here.

Thanks again, all good information from our good folks at the TMA!!! 

Here's the video I watched;

[Bigsmoke]

Yessir, Joe.  That's the one I was thinking of.  Glad you found it.
Enjoy, and don't forget, the soup you have left over is not the soup you bring in for lunch.

[Ohio Joe]

Yessir, Joe.  That's the one I was thinking of.  Glad you found it.
Enjoy, and don't forget, the soup you have left over is not the soup you bring in for lunch.

Well dang!    You go to the trouble of making horn soup and ye kain't even et' it... 

[Bigsmoke]

You can - I won't.
When I used to boil horns to soften them for rounding, I brought a bucket of "soup" into the shop at lunch time and set it on the cutting table that we used to dine around.  I couldn't convince any of the gals that it would be really good.  They did make me take it away, though.

John (Bigsmoke)

[Ohio Joe]

 

That be some wise gals!!! 

[Winter Hawk]

Be glad they made you take it away, and not force you to demonstrate how tasty it was!

~Kees~