Primitive Archer
Main Discussion Area => Flintknapping => Topic started by: 65x55 swedis on August 27, 2008, 08:14:05 pm
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what kind of rocks are good for flintnapping? i know of flint and heard of glass but that is it any ideas?
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glass will be a good teacher for you - as it is easy to find and knap. I'm not sure where you are but europe is supposed to have the best flint around - wish I could get some :).
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Sorry, 65x55. Just noticed you were in Idaho. Not sure exactly what's up there but imagine you could find some obsidian. Free glass would be better to learn with though, a lot cheaper anyway :).
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Someone likes Swedish Mausers! Me too! Wonderful calibre and so under utilized here in the states.
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ya and i have one build off a mouser 94 action. and thank you cowboy for the information
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Most types of chert, agate, jasper, obsidian, dacite, some petrified wood, some rhyolite, some quartzites, fine grained basalt, and a slew of other wierd stuff will knap. Some of the cherts , jaspers, and agates may need heat treating to work well. From a quick google search, looks like Idaho has a good bit of obsidian, rhyolite, and chert.
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Idaho does have a lot of obsisidian. My uncle lives there and is going to send me some. You'll just have to find it, but it's there. And obsidian points and blades are some of the sharpest and most highly prized.
~~Papa Matt
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You live in some good country for jaspers and obsidian. Keep your eye out for mom and pop rock shops as there are a lot of them in Idaho. You can get some quality rocks from them at a good price. Also look for petrified wood as it makes for some beautiful points. Try to find some local knapper and he will help with the technique and stones! Watcher
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JUST BEWARE of obsidian knock-offs, where people will sell you something else that may or MAY NOT be knappable and is not real obsidian. If it seems real cheap, be suspicious. Only buy one rock at a time and see if you can knap the first one. If it doesn't knap or is very hard to knap or does wierd things and doesn't want to flake well, it may be tempered glass. I got took a while back on some black tempered glass that was real cheap. But I'd never messed with real obsidian so I didn't know any better. Don't buy a whole bunch of rocks the first time until you try one and make sure it's the real deal. And if it's not, be sure to go back and throw it at the person who sold it to you and tell em to take their tempered glass and shove it ***********.
~~Papa Matt
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Papa Matt, what do you know about Montana? I haven't seen anything that looked remotely knappable. I will be in Thompson falls, about 11 miles from the border of Idaho. I went down in some dry washes, and creek beds, and nothing worth a hoot.
Stick Bender
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I couldn't really say anything about Montana, and I only know about Idaho because my uncle is a wildlife biologist there. He is in Idaho Falls, I don't know how far that is from the Montana border, but I would have to believe that if there is obsidian in Idaho, there's be something surely knappable in neighboring states. When you are down there, just ask somebody. Probably anybody would know if they've ever seen black, shiny rocks. The thing with flint, chert, obsidian, etc. is that a state in general may have a boatload, but it could vary from county to county or even from one mile to the next. The creek bed you looked in might not have a single one, but a creek a half mile down the road might be loaded. I'd just ask around. Farmers or ranchers would be ideal people to ask because they know every rock on their land, from having seen them a million times. Try to find one of them.
~~Papa Matt
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Montana is famous for its agates. They are mostly found in the Forsyth/Rosebud area. Also lots of jaspers and some poor quality obsidian in Yellowstone. Opals in the Bitterroots. You can find jaspers in the Clark Fork close to where you will be. Most ranchers know more about the arrowheads they have found than what rocks can be knapped. That could be misleading as spalls were brought in from a long ways off and jaspers can change colors when heated so the rocks you see don't necessarily look like the arrowheads you find. There are rocks shops along the freeway and they will have native stones so you can find out from them what types of stones are native. The you have to get lucky with the Montana moss agates as they almost always have hidden fractures. Good luck! Watcher
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Papa Matt, thanks, I will keep looking. Wolf Watcher thanks also. I am located in the Bitter Root Valley. I have the Bitter Roots behind me, and the Cabinets in front of me. I didn't know they had opals in Mt. I will definitely be on the look out for them the next time I go back out there. Also the Clark Fork runs right by my property. I am about a little over a 1/4 mi from it. As for the Jasper, is it covered in an outer skin, or is it plain? In other words do I have to take a rock hammer with me to check for them?
Dang, now when I am hunting, I will be constantly wondering what that particular rock is, and wether or not to start smacking it......
Thompson Falls is about 11 miles from the boarder of Idaho, and the town of Murray.
Thanks guys, this is definitely the place to find answers to your questions.
Stick Bender