Primitive Archer
Main Discussion Area => Flintknapping => Topic started by: Tracker0721 on August 22, 2015, 11:31:00 am
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So let's hear your guy's stories from when you were knapping and all the sudden everything worked right! Something you changed or tried that just works. And if your still waiting for your moment, maybe someone else's "ah ha!" Moment will help you.
Mine came with percussion flaking yesterday. I always sucked at it, always. Couldn't hit the right spot, too deep, missing the piece, etc. so then I tried a finish hammer hold. Holding tight to the end with my thumb extended down the handle with my thump just about touching the copper. Now I make great flakes, where I want them, and have minimal crunchy, cruddy, hinged, flakes. I made about 4 points last night all with percussion. It was amazing.
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An ahah moment for sure, something finally clicked and you moved to a new level. Congrats there will be more of them.
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I'm still having those moments almost every time I knap
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Like us all Im sure I have had many, recently though I had one while trying to figure out punch notching. I decided to take my hands out of the equation when holding the biface. Now both of my hands are free to hold the punch and bopper. I don't have to try to hold the biface still, hold a punch, not flex the pad, and hit the spot I am aiming.
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One of my best aha moments was after following somebodys advice about "Hit it hard " Like everyone that just starts I got really PO at a stack that I kept making , got mad and really popped it and suprize flake went way passed halfway. My knapping improved greatly after learning when to hit stuff hard. Also after joining the secret OOGA BOOGA clan my knapping really improved ;D Bob
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Yeah all of the sudden many years ago...It all amounted to more swift and inward strikes on well prepared platforms and knowing the angle of sttrike for a ggiven result instead of laying the biface flat and hoping for the best. Still working on it. I'll never finish.
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When I successfully heated my first batch of rock in turkey roaster. Suddenly, a thousand pounds of crap stone looked like treasure instead of landscaping.
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Mine came a few years ago when I was doing percussion. Like everybody else, I was having all those same problems and nothing I would try improved the results. Finally I rested the biface hard on my thick lap pad, got a death grip on it, turned it to an angle of my choosing and waylaid it. The flake came off almost like a miracle. It was when I relaxed enough to try something that went against most of what I had read and seen.
WA
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Mine came twice once with copper with help from flint walker at twin Oaks when I learned to run flakes by staying below the center line and then once ABO when I learned to run flakes across the stone by starting above the centerline.
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Tracker could you show a picture of the hold you discribed
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In the fall of 2010, I came to the conclusion that prehistoric American knappers had used some sort of unknown indirect percussion, in flintknapping. I came to this conclusion after reviewing hundreds of archaeological publications, that span about a century. When I mentioned the idea on a big flintknapping forum, some crowed "There is no proof. There is no proof", while others crowed, "You have to prove it. You have to prove it."
After four years of research, and constant experimentation, it seemed that nothing was working, at least with regard to some of the best forms of authentic flaking. Then, in January of 2015, I had an epiphany about some information that I had tried to get the flintknapping community to look at, between 2010 and 2011. It actually was a double epiphany, because the first epiphany pertained to something that I could see happened, over 10,000 years ago. And, the second epiphany pertained to something that happened about a century and a half ago.
As soon as I had this epiphany, I picked up a deer tine flaker, and a rock, ran outside, and proceeded to produce this type of flaking, on the first try:
(http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv135/benjamineble/Holy%20Grail%20Outre%20Passe/Test%2022/048.jpg) (http://s677.photobucket.com/user/benjamineble/media/Holy%20Grail%20Outre%20Passe/Test%2022/048.jpg.html)
(http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv135/benjamineble/Holy%20Grail%20Outre%20Passe/Test%2022/053.jpg) (http://s677.photobucket.com/user/benjamineble/media/Holy%20Grail%20Outre%20Passe/Test%2022/053.jpg.html)
(http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv135/benjamineble/Holy%20Grail%20Outre%20Passe/Test%2022/054.jpg) (http://s677.photobucket.com/user/benjamineble/media/Holy%20Grail%20Outre%20Passe/Test%2022/054.jpg.html)
(http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv135/benjamineble/Holy%20Grail%20Outre%20Passe/Test%2022/055.jpg) (http://s677.photobucket.com/user/benjamineble/media/Holy%20Grail%20Outre%20Passe/Test%2022/055.jpg.html)
(http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv135/benjamineble/Holy%20Grail%20Outre%20Passe/Test%2022/057.jpg) (http://s677.photobucket.com/user/benjamineble/media/Holy%20Grail%20Outre%20Passe/Test%2022/057.jpg.html)
(http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv135/benjamineble/Holy%20Grail%20Outre%20Passe/Test%2022/058.jpg) (http://s677.photobucket.com/user/benjamineble/media/Holy%20Grail%20Outre%20Passe/Test%2022/058.jpg.html)
(http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv135/benjamineble/Holy%20Grail%20Outre%20Passe/Test%2022/059.jpg) (http://s677.photobucket.com/user/benjamineble/media/Holy%20Grail%20Outre%20Passe/Test%2022/059.jpg.html)
(http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv135/benjamineble/Holy%20Grail%20Outre%20Passe/Test%2022/061.jpg) (http://s677.photobucket.com/user/benjamineble/media/Holy%20Grail%20Outre%20Passe/Test%2022/061.jpg.html)
(http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv135/benjamineble/Holy%20Grail%20Outre%20Passe/Test%2022/062.jpg) (http://s677.photobucket.com/user/benjamineble/media/Holy%20Grail%20Outre%20Passe/Test%2022/062.jpg.html)
(http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv135/benjamineble/Holy%20Grail%20Outre%20Passe/Test%2022/063.jpg) (http://s677.photobucket.com/user/benjamineble/media/Holy%20Grail%20Outre%20Passe/Test%2022/063.jpg.html)
(http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv135/benjamineble/Holy%20Grail%20Outre%20Passe/Test%2022/065.jpg) (http://s677.photobucket.com/user/benjamineble/media/Holy%20Grail%20Outre%20Passe/Test%2022/065.jpg.html)
(http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv135/benjamineble/Holy%20Grail%20Outre%20Passe/Test%2022/066.jpg) (http://s677.photobucket.com/user/benjamineble/media/Holy%20Grail%20Outre%20Passe/Test%2022/066.jpg.html)
(http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/vv135/benjamineble/Holy%20Grail%20Outre%20Passe/Test%2022/067.jpg) (http://s677.photobucket.com/user/benjamineble/media/Holy%20Grail%20Outre%20Passe/Test%2022/067.jpg.html)
So, this proves that A there is proof, and that B it is proveable. And, this was all done with information that I had tried to get the flintknapping community to look at between 2010, and 2011. The moral of the story is don't give up, so long as there is evidence in sight. Every sacrifice made was worth it.
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Soon as I learn how to post photos from my iphone I will!
How did you do it? I get that with normal percussion and a proper platform