• Welcome to The Bushcraft Forum

    You are currently viewing the site as a guest and some content may not be available to you.

    Registration is quick and easy and will give you full access to the site and allow you to ask questions or make comments and join in on the conversation. If you would like to join then please Register

Knapping Glass Arrow heads.

Ive heard of someone knaping thick lumps of foundry glass into blades and arrow heads before now but I was so impressed by the level of skill shown in that YouTube clip. It goes beyond anything I've seen before. This guy obviously knows what he's talking about and since hunting broadheads are single use anyway it wouldn't matter that it broke on impact. The time and effort to create an arrow head shows the value of the life that you intend to take with it.
 
Glass can be treated in the same way as Flint & Osidian when knapping, in my experience Flint is a tad tougher, but they'll all break if you are unlucky enough to hit something hard. I prefer Bone as a point material.
 
I don't fancy trying to knap glass for an arrow head, knowing me i'd get cut to ribbons!:lol:
 
Kublai said:
Glass can be treated in the same way as Flint & Osidian when knapping, in my experience Flint is a tad tougher, but they'll all break if you are unlucky enough to hit something hard. I prefer Bone as a point material.
Click to expand...
Me too, bone makes an excellent arrow head & easy to work. When out on walks I always keep my eyes open for anything of any use.
Keith.
 
Is there a particular type of bone to use for arrowhwads? We are always digging up bones around here (and glass, baler twine, cutlery, bits of shoe, farm gates(!), toilet and cistern etc etc. l just discovered yesterday that OH has a bow lying around somewhere. We've been married over 20 years and moved house 6 times and l've never seen it.
 
Barbara said:
Is there a particular type of bone to use for arrowhwads? We are always digging up bones around here (and glass, baler twine, cutlery, bits of shoe, farm gates(!), toilet and cistern etc etc. l just discovered yesterday that OH has a bow lying around somewhere. We've been married over 20 years and moved house 6 times and l've never seen it.
Click to expand...
As long as you can get a flattish section you can use any type of Bone, but the preffered types are from the Leg bones, they have a long flat area that runs along the outside face. I use those Dog bone treats that are filled, I buy them from pet shops, and they tend to be made from sections of Cattle bone (perfect). You need Dremell or some other sort of tool and cut a "blank" out of the Bone, then shape it using grinding attatchment. The shaping really stinks so do this in a shed or outside. If you want to make a bone point the old fashioned way then you need a few flint tools. You will need to fashion a blade with which you will cut the outline of the "Blank" into the bone. This takes time and patience. Once you have cut out your desired size and shape of blank you reduce it further by grinding on Sandstone to final shape. You can also use Antler (very common).
Here's a couple of video's showing the modern way and the Palaeolithic method.

He uses same type of bone as I do, at 3-37 he uses Dremell which is exactly how I make my points.
 
Oops, my proofreading went awry there and l missed a typo which should have said arrowheads. Thanks for those informative videos. Just need to go and find some bones now.
 
Barbara said:
Is there a particular type of bone to use for arrowhwads? We are always digging up bones around here (and glass, baler twine, cutlery, bits of shoe, farm gates(!), toilet and cistern etc etc. l just discovered yesterday that OH has a bow lying around somewhere. We've been married over 20 years and moved house 6 times and l've never seen it.
Click to expand...
Haha he's a closet prepper and you never knew it ;)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top