Primitive Archer
Main Discussion Area => Flintknapping => Topic started by: cowboy on April 04, 2008, 10:21:53 pm
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Had time to sit down and hit some rocks today. Here's a point from your Alibates yankee. I got into that one and so far so good :). Here's a atlatl point from your obsidian DTilller - was just bopping on rocks and came up with these today :).
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sweet!!!!!!!!
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Way to go Paul! They are beuties. Just hope I can get as good as you some day.
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Good lookin' points.
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Very Cool. Those are some real beaut's
Ok, Paul I have a question. I had the chance to beat on a few rocks today too. I seem to alway get the main part of the point fairly thin, but the base always starts taking on a profile of a football, and an over inflated football at that. :'( What am I doing wrong?
Mike
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You are an amazing knapper brother. I hope to be that good someday.... thanks for the inspiration ;D Hawk a/ho
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You do some pretty impressive work Paul. Justin
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Good stuff Cowboy, wish i could Bop em that nice.
Bishop
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Awesome points Paul :)
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Thanks guys :).
Otoe, I know exactly how you feel. I had the same problem a few years ago - the more you work on it the fatter it gets ;D. With percussion and pressure flaking both you have to hold the peice at the proper angle and then strike through the stone with follow through like golf, boxing, swinging a basball bat - follow through. With the Ishi stick I get the copper on the platform (right on the edge) while holding the edge up so I can see it clearly, then push in to build up pressure as I start to squeeze with my legs i kinda roll the point over flat and "pop" the flakes go at least to center, after awhile you can start running them from edge to edge almost. Clear as mud huh? I'll show you what I'm talking about at Pappy's, be a lot easier :).
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Cowboy: Took me years to learn what you just described about pressure flaking. Am going to Canada this fall for moose and bear and would really love to have a couple of your points to use on them. I have lots of hard drawn copper rod for the Ishi stick, elk and white tail horns. I have some young cow buffalo skulls. They are pretty fragile and cost lots to ship. Anyway, you make beautiful points out of ugly rocks. Watcher
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Thanks Paul. Looking forward to the school'n ;D. I think I also figured out part of my problem. I wasn't using an Ishi stick but just a short handled pressure flaker, and I wasn't putting it between my legs for extra leverage. I was holding it up where I could see it and I don't think I'm getting enough force to pop off the long flakes. I quit using my home-made Ishi because the wire was too soft and kept bending. I think I'll make me one with an antler tip and see how that works. None the less I got a couple of crude preforms ready to bring with me to the Classic. Maybe, just maybe I'll also get some of your rock you sent me cooked and bring that too. Our Church has an old roaster oven that goes up to 600 degrees. I'm going to see if they'll take a trade for a brand new one. Everyone wins. ;)
Keep up the good work. I use them as inspiration.
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Mighty fine points. Frank
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Use a hammer to pound the copper to shape. It will work harden.
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Thanks D. I hammered the point, but I need to take it out of the handle and do the whole thing. It keeps bending right at the point where the wood meets the copper. :( I also found an old utility pole with the ground wire still attached. I'm going to try that one as well.
Mike
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very nice points. one day mabey i can be that skilled. Thanks for posting gives me inspiration. ;)
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Thanks fellers again! Your compliments inspire me :).
Otoe: Can't wait to sit with you in TN. If your trying to run flakes with a short hand flaker, your gonna love the Ishi stick - I'll have ya popping long flakes in no time flat ;D. Looking forward to it..
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Paul, can you give me some pointers too???? I tried making a thin biface today and got it down pretty thin then snapped it. I think the problem was I did not isolate the platform near the end of the process. It was looking so nice too. I was aiming for a Dalton point but alas it was not to be! :'(
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Paul: Me too, brother.
No knapping for me today though. Spent most of the afternoon working on my daughter's car and other Honey-Do's. Can't be Primitive all the time you know. ;) Taking my stuff with me tomorrow to work and hopefully I get some quiet time at lunch. :D
Mike
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dang...those are nice!
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gittin close - I'll show anybody that wants to watch D. I'm going to be heading up there on Wednesday, so if your going to be there early too we should be able to break some rocks before the big crowd arrives.
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I'll be in on Sunday the 27th. Sounds great! Looking forward to it.
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Very nice cowboy as usually and I like you taste in cold beverages also.If that is what you like ,no need to bring any I have about 20 cases laid back. :)
Pappy
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Paul, I may need to make some new tools for rock breaking since I think all my stuff is geared toward breaking obsidian. Think ya can give me a hand there too? Be neat to see what other knappers have in their kits and give them a try.
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You bet D! I don't have that much copper rod left - have given most away to some select individuals, but can show ya what I use.
That sounds like a deal I can't refuse Pappy - gonna have to pace myself ;D.
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Cool,By the way I have several pieces of copper rod a friend from the dept. of elect. gave me .
It was some old stuff they had dug up.I may see if he can get somemore,but with the price of copper I don't know now.I will see what I can do. :)
Pappy
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I love the work you guys do with all these other kinds of stone. Nice work.
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hell yea lookin good ;)
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Fine work !! I hope I get a chance to meet and visit with you fellars over at Mr.Pappys Good Lord Willin n The Creek Don't Rise {at least not too high ;D} I will see yaw there! Buck
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Dang Cowboy....I just found this Post....hey they look great....does it nap any different thant other texas Flint??? Did you have to heat it?? They are really nice.....you could alwys send me one to try to get a Hog with..... be good fer Business!!!! :P
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I was a little surprised Yankee - it napped good raw, I did cook some of the thinner spalls but haven't had time ta work em yet - sure they'll be nice and shiny. So ya need one for hog huntin huh? I'm sure we could work out another rock trade ;D.
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Hey Paul, I just saw this too. Motels suck, guess you know that ;) Great looking points ,man. I might get up there Wendseday too. I'm trieing to round up some "candy" to bring with me.
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Cowboy, those are some great looking points! 8) Your skills are incredible! Are you sure you're "Cowboy" and not "Indian"? ;D Joe H
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Naw Joe, I never was a cowboy in the true sense of the word. I did do the hat, boots, big buckle, horse ridin thing for awhile when I was younger. I came up with the handle while I was making what I called cowboy art - making little stick figure's out of shoeing nails on a horseshoe and selling em. I do have some indian lineage though, think this is more my calling :).
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Me too Cowboy ;D Joe H
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If you use a 2 0r 4 pound hammer depending on the size of the copper. Make the copper round into a 4 sides, then file the head. the it is work hardened and wont bend easy.
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hey cowboy, whats the best method for removing arrowhead sized flakes off of a core of that alibates? i got some today. about 10 lbs. worth. ranges from a brown with maroon and orange swirl to a yellowish grey and some dark blue.
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carpenter: That can be a little hard to explain without showing. It's pretty much the same method from knocking spalls off the core all the way to pressure flaking a finished point. You hear ALWAYS hit below center, but I don't always - sometime you have to knock the whole end off of a cobble to create a flat edge to get started on. Once that's accomplished then you do want to set your platform up below center to knock off good thin long spalls.
For the big spalling work - I'll use a large hammer stone, large copper bopper 1 1/2", or the copper hammer I made. Good stiff platform below center, right weight bopper, rare back and hit it like you mean it - acuracy counts ;D.
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thanks cowboy ive got a bigger bopper in the works. i have the cap but im havin trouble finding a big enough dowell so im gonna have to make one.
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thanks cowboy ive got a bigger bopper in the works. i have the cap but im havin trouble finding a big enough dowell so im gonna have to make one.
Use the Wifes Broom Handle!!
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i dont have a broom handle quite that big either. the cap has an inside diameter right at 1 3/4 in. besides i dont think chinese aluminum broom handles could quite handle the stress:-> i used a peice of maple from a tree in my yard. filled the cap half full of no. 8 shot. took 4 1/2 oz. epoxied the cap to a 6 in peice of maple. then ran a couple screws into it to be sure. the epoxy had a 1 hour cure time. i took some flakes off with it it works superbly. i took a good flake off one cobble that had a hole in it that looked like a worm had eaten into it. some kinda gas pocket. the resulting flake had a lil hole right thru the middle of it. should make a nifty arrowhead.
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Come on Carpenter, it's time to show and tell. ;D. We need pictures. Where'd you get the rock? It sounds cool.
Mike
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mike, pics pending. cowboy, how did you make your copper hammer?
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Carpenter: Kinda hard to describe, maybe I can find a picture. I took a peice of copper rod about 1 1/4" in diameter X about 2 1/2" long. I cut a groove around the center of it the size of a 1/8" welding rod. I then brazed a 1/8" welding rod into the metal sheet iron that wraps around the copper rod, which is brazed to the tubing handle.
All that just so the copper can be turned or can spin around inside it's housing - you can use both ends of it all the way around. Reason for that is the copper rolls over around the edge and you want to be able to use it 360 degrees to keep the roll consistant all around - in other words, as the copper wears a little you can keep turning it around and use all sides of it :-\, make sense?
See that hammer in the background? - that's the one I just described.
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yeah i get it. where do you get copper rod?
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I got mine in at a metal mart in El Paso - I'm sure there's plenty of metal marts that carry it. I walked in to pick something up for the job and noticed all these different sized rods on a shelf - they called em copper rems "remnants" - I bought em by the pound @ market value. These days their worth about their weight in gold - almost :-X.