Thread: Anyone intested in 6" buffalo horn scales?

Hey guys,

I may have found a potential source for 6" long natural horn scales and am trying to get a rough idea of just how many people would be interested in having these available when they need them...

While thinking about trying my hand at a scale restoration on old Jos. Elliot a couple of weeks ago I was looking for horn scales but couldn't turn up any over 5".

In other threads I also noticed several other people asking where to find longer horn scales as well.

Well, last night I posted a review on a really nice horn brush from KimSon (www.handicraft-vn.com/shop/) I ordered about six weeks ago. And just after doing the review it dawned on me that the guy who made them might be a source for 6" scales...

I checked his site but none of the knife scales, slabs, etc. he had listed were over 5". So, just for the heck of it I decided to email him and ask if any 6" long we're available.

His response back this morning was 'I think I can meet this requirement. Do you think a lot of people would want this?'

He went on to say that since his shop is small, it wouldn't take very many people to show frequent interest in 6" long scales to make it worth his effort to make them a regularly available item on his site... but, at the same time, he didn't want to go through the effort if it would only be one or two.

Well, I don't really know how many people might be interested so I thought, why not ask.

I don't know what they'd be priced at but I do know that he sells 5" x 1 1/8" x 1/4+" black buffalo horn scales $13.95 pair... and 4.5" x 1" x 0.24" blond horn scales for $8.20 a piece. So, I'd guess their price would be somewhere in that area, maybe a little more since they'll be longer.

When I bought my brush, postage from Vietnam was about $8 on it and took 10 days to reach Virginia.

Anyhow, I'm not looking to form a group buy or get any kind of horn scale purchase commitments or anything like that.

I'm just curious as to how many people might be interested in these if he made them available as a regular item. That way, when I ask him to provide me a little more detail on what it would run me for a set or two, I can also give him an idea of how much interest there is in them being regularly available in hopes of making this a permanent horn source for razor restores.

So, if this is something you would consider purchasing IF it were available and you'd like this to become a potential, regular source for 6" natural horn scales, how about giving a shout out via quick reply or PM.

Thanks.

Masecraft has Translucent, Blonde, and Black horn, in 1.5" x 6" x 1/8" sizes, and they are cheap, and located in USA--

$18.00 / pair of blonde
$18.00 / pair of translucent
$10.00 / per 1/2" x 1.5" x 6" black (which can be cut down into a pair of 3/16" thick slabs)

I find that each slab is enough for one razor, so, I usually only use 1 slab per razor, yielding $5 for a black horn or $9 for a blonde/translucent (not including shipping charges, which from masecraft are UPS and are usually about $10/order)

Masecraft has quality stuff, and, unless this guys stuff is really good, I'll stick with them

Masecraft Supply for knife making supplies, inlay materials, pool cue and pen making supplies.

Heres my recent order from masecraft:

Thanks for the heads up on a US source for 6" Undream. One of the reasons I had contacted this guy about 6" slabs is that the the six to eight CONUS sources (knife suppliers mostly) my searching had turned up didn't go beyond 5".

Good to know there is a US source for 6"

Much appreciated.

Originally Posted by Undream

Heres my recent order from masecraft...

SWEET. I'm a real sucker for black horn with white streaks. Just love the way it looks.

There's a British guy on the bay that sells small slabs. Enough for four sets of scales for £10. Strangely enough I bought some on Saturday.
If anyone this side of the pond's interested I'll post him up. He only had black, but he might well get whatever we want. You never know!

I hear that the stuff you get from Vietnam is a hit or miss in terms of quality.

Mine arrived today, so really quick delivery on them.

I'll post the source, as it shouldn't step on anyone's toes. They won't be cost effective for you guys in the States.

I got two slabs at 6" x 2" x 1/2". (150mm x 50mm x 12.5mm) They weigh in at around 5 Oz each, so they seem nice & dense. Quality looks great. £10.00 + £2.70 delivery.

The guy seems like a good source for the British contingent!

Here he is, if anyone else want any.