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Evolution of Wade's Bipolar Percussion Technique

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Mechslasher:
steve, wade, and i got together this past weekend to do some hunting on my farm.  steve and wade did some knapping and made some fine looking points.  steve walked wade through bipolar percussion.  wade didn't trust the technique on the first hit but got better as he went along.  he finally used a bamboo branch to hold the stone.  i love to watch people learn!! ;D

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Otoe Bow:
Man, I have no idea what I'm looking at.   ???  Details, man, details.   ;D

Thanks

Mike

Mechslasher:
i'll let hillbilly explain the technique in detail.  wade is trying to split a round rock by inducing a fracture across the center is about all i know.  it was fun watching the process.

n2everythg:
Had a good time down at your place this weekend chris. thanks for having us.

We didnt see any deer but that didnt stop us from having a good time.

As to explainations on Evolution.........
Well There was a small round cobble of calcidney. Hillbilly told me about bipolar cracking of round rocks to get a spall... I didnt know what he was talking about and for any else who are in my shoes... its taking the round rock. putting it on a anvil stone then smashing the top of it with a big  hammer stone.....

well this thing is about the size of a marble and I'm running on about 2 hrs of sleep and not to swift sometimes anyway....
So I proceed to try to hammer this marble with this big flippin hammer stone while trying to get my fingers out of the way.....
steve and chris had a good laugh watching me try to whip my fingers out of the way before the hammer stone crashed down.....

then they let me in on the secret technique of using something else to hold the rock in place so your fingers dont become hamburger.....
first couple pics are me whipping my hand out of the way... last one is the 'evolution' of bipolar technique when I am holding the marble with a piece of boo.
think a monkey could have figured it out quicker... but I was working on prob about 2 brain cells that morning...

Its all fun and games til someone looses an eye :)

was a good weekend to spend sitting in the woods.... and I even 'evolved' a bit.

thanks again chris. have to do it again sometime.
later
wade

Hillbilly:
Those turned out good, Chris- I realized after I got home that I didn't take any pics. Bipolar percussion is using a hammerstone and an anvil stone to induce a fracture at both ends of a round cobble at once, hopefully splitting it neatly in half; or either someone who's bipolar doing percussion. I think we were all a little bipolar after sleeping two hours a night and running off of bacon and scotch.  ;D That was a nice little cobble of chalcendony, but a little too small and round to thin down the traditional way.

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