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ishi stick & pressure flaker construction (Read 4492 times)
jutebox
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ishi stick & pressure flaker construction
Sep 1st, 2011 at 5:16pm
 
hello all,
recently ive been interested in flintknapping so today i set out to make a bopper and ishi stick

ive got everything for the bopper and im only missing one component of the pressure flaker
im having alot of trouble finding copper nails and thin copper rods localy

i have a box of assorted nails but cant even tell what kind they are  Undecided
is it safe to use any type ?

or is copper that much better ? mabye the softness has something to do with it ?
mabye ill order it from here if its highly recommended
http://flintknappingtools.com/misc.html

also id rather not use bone or antler

id prefer to start working with glass bottle bottoms
can i make the tiniest of points on copper for supper small notching (for when i am ready & able)
or would a steel horseshoe nail be used in those instances ?

sorry if the post is unclear ,
my main question is ,"is copper really that much better than any old nail i find laying around the house ?"



thanks for your time everyone and please feel free to show your pictures of anything flintknapping related in this thread
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David Morningstar
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Re: ishi stick & pressure flaker construction
Reply #1 - Sep 1st, 2011 at 5:48pm
 

Copper is used because it has the right softness. The downside is that it sometimes leaves a bright smear of copper on the flint when it scrapes across the surface after a flake pops off.

Steel is too hard and doesnt grip the surface of your platform, it skids off to easily. Ishi's iron nail was a soft iron horseshoe nail, you are unlikely to find a nail that soft in a hardware store today.

Antler is pretty much perfect but you have to resharpen the tip more often.
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Bill Skinner
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Re: ishi stick & pressure flaker construction
Reply #2 - Sep 2nd, 2011 at 12:05am
 
You need to get #4 or #6 copper ground wire from a building supply.  Put one end in a vice and clamp a set of vice grips on the other end and start twisting.  The wire will get straighter and it will work harden.  You will need a handle that you can drill a deep hole in and it needs to be tough enough to take a set screw by the tip.  You will need the set screw because the copper will wear down as you use it, you loosen the set screw, pull out some more wire and retighten.  Lots of stress on that set screw.  Most woods are too soft but some of the realy dense hardwoods work.  Bill
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Re: ishi stick & pressure flaker construction
Reply #3 - Sep 13th, 2011 at 7:02pm
 
  On the contrary I have tried a copper tipped pressure flaker and I hate it, while nails are too hard a mild steel rod is what I use.  I go to the hardware store and I get a 1/8 or 1/4in. steel rod from the section where they have the steel strips, rods and bars.  This steel is very mild and not near as hard as the steel in a nail.  I use a finishing nail for my notching tool.  It is true that you have to abrade the edge more using mild steel than using copper so that it won't crush but it also means you can build up more pressure before the flake detaches and I find I get longer pressure flakes with the mild steel than with the copper.
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Re: ishi stick & pressure flaker construction
Reply #4 - Sep 13th, 2011 at 7:03pm
 
  Oh, and for a bopper get a 1in. copper cap and put it on a 4-6in. wooden handle, don't weight the end and that is good for glass and obsidian.  Weight the end if you are using it on stone.
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