My Flintknapping On Youtube

[JEB]

Patrick, great video.  while watching it my wife came over to watch it also.  She was amazed at your work.  She also noticed that your hands and my hands look the same.  I will have to try your method.  We are in an RV Park at 281 and 46.  will have to try and locate some rock around here to give it a try with.

[jonathan creason]

Very cool technique.  I'm going to have to give that a try.

[JackCrafty]

OK Jamie, I won't mess with the sound.

JEB, I've taught my wife this technique and she likes it.  She's not into the whole primitive thing but she can now sit with me and participate! 

Jonathan, I've been told I make it look easy.  Some of the guys at my flintknapping group have tried it and can't get the hang of it.  All I can say is that it takes a while to get used to.  You'll break a lot of blades and ding your fingertips quite a bit in the beginning. 

[jonathan creason]

That's ok, Patrick, I'm used to breaking stuff and cutting my fingers.  I've got a bunch of odd and end pieces like the one you worked on that I've never figured out how to attack.  I think this will help me get more out of my rock with some practice.

[JackCrafty]

Cool.

[jamie]

to the guys that are going to try indirect percussion. dont get frustrated if it doesnt work. its like any other aspect of knapping. you have to get used to the angles  first. my method is somewhat different from pats but same principal. ive found what works best for me is to hold the biface and punch in the same position every time. what i change is the angle of my striking billet. have fun

[jonathan creason]

Tinkered with this technique a little this morning and managed to snap an antler tine.  Gonna have to come up with something different.

[Marc St Louis]

That is a great vid Patrick.  I like it and that method.  I will be trying it as well

[JustinNC]

Tinkered with this technique a little this morning and managed to snap an antler tine.  Gonna have to come up with something different.

Heavier tine and lighter platforms. You know I'm about as far from an expert as you can get, but I chipped the tip of a tine lastnight. Have to match and have your platforms just right. Also found that it helped hitting it as close to the platform as possible.


I tried this technique lastnight and found it to work extremely well for a guy that has trouble hammering a nail in to a board straight. I went through and played with a couple pieces Id put in the debitage pile and found that there might be a point hidden in them yet.

Patrick, have you used wooden billets such as dogwood or persimmon? I tinkered a little lastnight with a wooden bullet and it took a small platform to make it work but took nice thin flakes.

[jonathan creason]

This was a little scrub forkhorn I had salvaged off a road kill.  I cut one of the tips off, which I think made it weak, and that's where it broke.  Might try an elk tine when I get time, just got to figure out where the heck I put it.

[jamie]

the tips of tines are week. once they break flatten the tip and use the edge of the flat area. the flat has more strength and is still utilizing the enamel of the tine rather than the pith that would be left on the broken tip. also like marc said platform prep is very important. i dont abrade the edge when working with tines. i set the platform up with the tine and just knock the glassy edge off. antlers dont like heavy platforms the way copper and stone do.

[JackCrafty]

Justin, yes I use a wooden billet sometimes.  Mine is made from Texas ebony:  a very hard wood from south Texas and Mexico.  I use it remove thin flakes from hard stone cores like agate.  I haven't used it recently, though.

[jonathan creason]

Tinkered a little more at lunch today.  Managed to work a piece down pretty well, but snapped it trying to thin the base.  Some of ya'll that have been doing those cool tiny points could probably still work with what's left, but I'm setting it aside for a little while.  So far the hardest part seems to be trying to keep the tine clamped under my knee, and still have enough left sticking out that I don't keep bashing my leg.

[JustinNC]

I tried with a notch and without. I seemed to do better without. Probably because my platforms weren't perfect, however my thinning was leaps and bounds over free handed or bracing the rock with my knee.

[JackCrafty]

Great input guys!

Johnathan, one of the guys I know tried wrapping the indirect tool with leather to help keep it under his knee.  It didn't work too well.  It seems the best way to keep it there is to sit on a low seat and elevate your foot so your knee makes more of a sharp angle and, therefore, you can get a better grip behind the knee.

Justin, I've tried notches on the end of the percussion tool and I tend to snap off large pieces off the blades.  It almost looks like I've taken a bite out of the arrowhead.  The tool will sometimes slide around without the notch but you don't need too much inward pressure... just change the angle of the strike a little so that more of the force goes into the blade.