Slinging.org Forum - MODERN MAQUAHUITL

Dan

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MODERN MAQUAHUITL
Sep 21^st, 2010 at 12:08pm

So I was thinking that if you couldn't get your hands on obsidian on making a modern maquahuitl. I have 2 smaller decorative type boat oars that are about 1/2in thick and 3ft long that I was thinking of what kind of weapons I could make from them. So my idea was to make some cuts on the side all the way around and then insert some razor blades using super glue.
Ideas?

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Paleoarts Interfector Viris Spurii Offline it don't mean a thing if you aint got that sling! Posts: 1993 oceanside, CA Gender:	Re: MODERN MAQUAHUITL Reply #1 - Sep 21^st, 2010 at 12:15pm i've seen it done, Dan, and it looked pretty cool. i'd use a tougher glue, though. maybe titebond II or something like it.
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Dutchy

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Re: MODERN MAQUAHUITL
Reply #2 - Sep 21^st, 2010 at 12:49pm

And what a great weapon this is.
However.. using razorblades, in my personal opinion, might not be the best option.
Razorblades to me are a bit too thin or at least most are and even old razorblades are still much sharper then obsidian.
There's a big chance of cutting yourself when pushing the razorblades in the wood or when handeling the weapon.

I would prefer to use another type of stone.. I presume that the Maquahuitl is just for decoration.. in that case have you thought about Soapstone? this is great material and i've used it many times before.
You can shape and cut this stone with just a kitchenknife.

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aztec Funditor Offline Slinging Rocks! Posts: 858 Gender:	Re: MODERN MAQUAHUITL Reply #3 - Sep 21^st, 2010 at 3:33pm i made one using flat steel stock from home depot..i cut them into 3 inch sections and sharped them
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xxkid123

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Re: MODERN MAQUAHUITL
Reply #4 - Sep 21^st, 2010 at 6:57pm

Dutchy wrote on Sep 21^st, 2010 at 12:49pm:

And what a great weapon this is.
However.. using razorblades, in my personal opinion, might not be the best option.
Razorblades to me are a bit too thin or at least most are and even old razorblades are still much sharper then obsidian.
There's a big chance of cutting yourself when pushing the razorblades in the wood or when handeling the weapon.

I would prefer to use another type of stone.. I presume that the Maquahuitl is just for decoration.. in that case have you thought about Soapstone? this is great material and i've used it many times before.
You can shape and cut this stone with just a kitchenknife.

actually the maquahuitl was something used more regularly though since it's so intricate and yet still slightly delicate i guess maybe the spear was used first, and then when the spear breaks, gets stuck in your enemy, etc, the maquahuitl, club, etc comes out. obsidian is much more sharper than any modern steel actually. obsidian is the sharpest thing on earth, but since these would be special flakes with durability in mind i guess they wouldn't be at their sharpest potential. still sharper than razor blades i would think.

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Donnerschlag Interfector Viris Spurii Offline I put the 'K' in "Kwality" Posts: 1045 USA Gender:	Re: MODERN MAQUAHUITL Reply #5 - Sep 21^st, 2010 at 7:17pm @Kid: I think he's talking about Dan's Maquahuitl, not historical/all Maquahuitls in general.
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Morphy

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Re: MODERN MAQUAHUITL
Reply #6 - Sep 21^st, 2010 at 7:50pm

"Razorblades to me are a bit too thin or at least most are and even old razorblades are still much sharper then obsidian. "

I've always heard the opposite. Guess it depends if they are knapped or not?

"i made one using flat steel stock from home depot..i cut them into 3 inch sections and sharped them"

That is just crazy. Good zombie weapon though.

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Paleoarts

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Re: MODERN MAQUAHUITL
Reply #7 - Sep 21^st, 2010 at 9:16pm

Dutchy wrote on Sep 21^st, 2010 at 12:49pm:

And what a great weapon this is.
However.. using razorblades, in my personal opinion, might not be the best option.
Razorblades to me are a bit too thin or at least most are and even old razorblades are still much sharper then obsidian.
There's a big chance of cutting yourself when pushing the razorblades in the wood or when handeling the weapon.

actually, Dan, fresh obsidian blades like the ones i used for my Maq are 5 to 10 times sharper than razor blades. as long as you are careful they are no more dangerous than a sharp sword. this is a terror weapon used exclusively for combat. it utilizes both cutting and blunt force trauma and as long as it did its job i'm sure they didn't mind breaking a few blades. besides, it's easy to replace them. just heat up the PPG, pull the broken ones out, and replace with fresh.

Chris

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LukeWebb

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Re: MODERN MAQUAHUITL
Reply #8 - Sep 21^st, 2010 at 11:16pm

Obsidian blades are sometimes used for scalpels for eye surgery as they can be sharper than surgical steel.

That said a razor blade one could be cool, but have you considered making some blades out of glass? If you can get some bottle bases and any bottles that are rectangular, (at an older bottle dump you may find oldish bottles that are like that that have no value, I find them on the the beach,) and just take a small hammer stone and perhaps a nail in the end of dowel for a pressure flaker and a leather or other tough pad like many layers of folded cloth to protect your hand from the nail and you could knap some cool very obsidian like blades from bottle glass.

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Dutchy Ex Member Slinging Rocks!	Re: MODERN MAQUAHUITL Reply #9 - Sep 22^nd, 2010 at 3:15am Wow, guess i was way off then in my opinion on obsidian another lesson learned. I have seen items like Obsidian knives before and they never seemed that sharp to me but if they made scalpels out of it..
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Kjev

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Re: MODERN MAQUAHUITL
Reply #10 - Sep 22^nd, 2010 at 7:38am

Not much obsidian where I live, either, so I chose a different approach:

The handle is a hickory sledge hammer handle, about 3 feet long. The blades are called "knife sections" and come from a swather (for those who don't know it's a piece of farm equipment used for cutting hay in a field).

They are triangular shaped, so I cut the tips off with a surface grinder. I also notched the sides of the handle with the grinder, inserted the blades, and used Liquid Nails glue to hold them in. It's pretty stout. I've buried it the entire width of the blades in a stump before.

The blades are fairly easy to find at a farm implement store, if you can find one in your area. They are about 3 inches to a side.

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Paleoarts

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Re: MODERN MAQUAHUITL
Reply #11 - Sep 22^nd, 2010 at 11:52am

awesome, kjev! that is too cool! Wink

Dan, just to clarify, the blades used on a traditional maquahuitl do not have worked (knapped) edges like those you'd see on a knife or point. they are fresh flake edges created when the blade itself is struck from a core. this is a difficult procedure requiring skill and careful preparation, but the result is an edge like none other on earth. the scalloped edges you see on stone knives and points are decptive in their sharpness. the outer edges, or peaks, of the scallops tend to be somewhat blunted but the inner edges, or valleys, are as sharp as anything can get. so it might seem dull to the touch, but apply a little pressure and those blades will go through your fingers like a hot laser through butter! i have the scars to prove it Wink

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Dan

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Re: MODERN MAQUAHUITL
Reply #12 - Sep 23^rd, 2010 at 5:48pm

Thanks for all the tips guys I really wanted to use modern (non-knapped) materials for this and what kjev showed pretty much met my needs , allthough I probably wouldn't use on a regular basis I wanted a practical club more than a decorative one. I might even paint it black and wrap the handle with some kind of camo to give it a tactical look.

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I was pretty good at slinging like 10 years ago.

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Kjev

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Re: MODERN MAQUAHUITL
Reply #13 - Sep 24^th, 2010 at 12:37am

I'm actually braiding flat parachute cord over the handle on mine. It'll be black with a couple of red zig zags through it. If I ever get it finished I'll post some pictures. It's taking a lot more cord than I expected, though, and the only place I can find the cord I want is 2 hours away. Long ways to drive for string.

You could cover it just about any way you wanted. Leather or rawhide wrapped, braided, duct tape (I'm kidding, but it gets used for everything else.)

Just out of curiosity, where do you live? I might be able to help you find some blades.

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Dan Interfector Viris Spurii SlingingGuide Moderator Offline Slinging Rocks! Posts: 3974 Gender:	Re: MODERN MAQUAHUITL Reply #14 - Sep 24^th, 2010 at 3:35pm I live in the North East U.S. and I have a tractor supply locally so I will check and let you know.
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