My Flint Knapping Kit

I am by no means an expert knapper, but I can usually turn a beer bottle into something that would put a decent sized hole in a critter.  This post is about the kit I use, why I use it, and how (or if) I made it.

As you all probably know, there are two types of knapping tools.  Percussion and pressure.  I have very few of the former, as I don't use them much on the beer bottle bottoms that I usually work with.  This is why you won't see very many pics of antler billets and hammer stones.

Lets start with safety gear.  This is the leather pad I use.  I got it with a flint knapping kit I got as a gift many years ago.  I use it flat on my leg for percussion flaking, and folded up several times for pressure flaking, particularly with the Ishi Stick.

The percussion flakers that I do use consist off a medium sized antler billet, and a tennis ball sized hammer stone.

I tend to use the antler billet more than the rock.  I find I can hit harder and more accurately with it.  

The three pressure flaking tools I use are (from top to bottom): My notching tool, my pressure flaker, and my Ishi Stick.

The notching tool is made from a dowel and a nail, the pressure flaker came with the kit I spoke of earlier, and the Ishi Stick is made from a nail and a broom handle.  When I make these tools i just drill as straight a hole as I can, then hammer the nail in.  When I sharpen them I tend to hammer them to a point, the pressure seems to harden the metal and keep it sharper longer than if I used a file.

I use the Ishi Stick the most.  I find  it's easier to control because of the long handle, not to mention the extra power that really helps when I don't set up a very good platform.  I dunno how long the handle actually is, but you can get a sense of the size from my foot in the next picture.

The last of my tools is my humble yet essential abrading stone.  It came with the kit, and works great.

As far as materials go, I tend to stick with every ones favourite practice material, namely glass.  I always try to get coloured glass because it's easier to see the platforms than with the clear stuff.  This typically means I work with the bottom of beer bottles.

The reason I knap glass is three fold.
The primary reason is price and availability.  Glass is free, and everywhere.  I usually just pick up the bottoms of bottles that I find when I'm hiking or fishing.
The second reason is practicality.  I figure if I get into a survival situation where I need to make my own cutting tools I will likely be somewhere that has bottles and other garbage around it.  My reasoning behind this belief is its darn hard to get me in deep wilderness without a knife.
The third reason I knap glass is kind of embarrassing.  I work with it because its easy, and tends to turn out well despite my shortcomings as a knapper.

My standard knapping material

If you ever need to remove the bottom of a bottle cleanly just drop a big nail in, cover the mouth with you thumb, and shake vigorously until the bottom falls off.  Make sure to have something for it to land on, its a waste to pop out a nice piece of raw material only to have it shatter on the pavement.

Some of the other materials that I have worked with include heat-treated novaculite, dacite, obsidian, and a mystery chert from around my area.  I like the dacite the best.  The novaculite seemed too tough, and the obsidian was a little brittle feeling.  The obsidian also left slivers in the leather pad, which led to many cut fingers.

Mystery stone flakes

Dacite

Obsidian

Novaculite 

At this point some of you are probably wondering where the pics of things I have knapped are.  There will be none in this post.  The reason for that is I don't have any points that I am proud enough of to post.  I don't have any because I tend to give them away, or play hide the arrowhead with my old English teacher.  There will be another post soon, in which I will document the steps to making a beer bottle arrowhead.