Well guys I've been out for the last eight days really remote up near Pakistan again and didnt have the space in my ruck to pack some stone and tools so I had to wait to get back to do some knapping. I have been wanting to make a knife for my kit and carry it on my plate carrier (with the hopes of burrying it in some Talibans throat)...So I sat down this afternoon and bopped out this nova blade, its just shy of seven inches and I got her pretty thin.
I gotta say all the guys on my team have never seen flintknapping done before and as you can imagine they have the personality types to really appreciate it and want to learn. Its all they have been talking about lately and I must have helped them learn for about 4-5 hours today. Needless to say I saw some good stone turned into gravel but the satisfaction of passing on the skill to people who are legitimately interested is rewarding to me! Its funny we'll be out on a mission and they will pick up a rock and bring it over "hey man will this work?" usually followed by "nope!"
I have been looking for some kind of carnivore jawbone to make a handle out of but no luck yet
most likely going to have to carve the handle out of eucalyptus or pomegranate wood.
Enjoy yall !