Learning Flintknapping

Learning to make stone tools takes practice and patience. Skilled flintknappers make it look easy, so don't be discouraged when you can't make a projectile point on your first try. You will likely gain a great appreciation for what our ancestors accomplished with stone tool technology.

Safety First

Be forewarned: Flintknapping extracts a sacrifice of blood. At the same time, you can reduce your blood tribute with some basic precautions:

Wear long pants and closed-toed shoes. You don't want sharp objects getting into your shoes.
Protect your eyes with safety glasses.
Wear leather gloves or otherwise hold a piece of leather around your workpiece.

Resources

Whittaker's handbook explains the process of flintknapping and the principles of fracture mechanics.

Whittaker, John C. 1994. Flintknapping: Making and Understanding Stone Tools. Austin, Texas: University of Texas Press.

While a handbook is important, there is no substitute for hands-on practice. Get some toolstone, a hammer stone and/or soft hammer, a sandstone abrader, and a pressure flaker. The videos on this website will help you learn flintknapping techniques and diagnose problems.

Starter flintknapping kits are available online through companies such as GoKnapping.com. (Note that I am providing this website as an example without endorsing this specific company.)

Tips

Keep your body compact and hold the nucleus steady by bracing your arm on your leg.
During percussive flaking, adjust the orientation of the nucleus rather than the direction in which you strike the hammer.
Think about what you are trying to accomplish with each flake you want to remove and figure out the best way to do it. Patience pays off. This includes taking the time to abrade platforms.