Rock ID, knappable?

[Jodocus]

I've wanted to give knapping a try a while now. I was told that there was chert around where I live that was knappable, there are also some old mining sites in the area. But I'm all new to rocks.
So I found this stuff, it's actually as good as everywhere. I'ts fine grained, the breaking lines look clean, but there is nothing glassy about it, it's more like some fine limestone.

So: is this what I'm looking for?

[JeremiahVires]

Looks alot like novaculite.

[Jodocus]

I did some more research. It is jurassic chert and the finest grades should be knappable.

[JackCrafty]

Looks painful. 

[Jodocus]

why?

[mullet]

Sometimes that stuff will get a lot better after it's heat treated. It looks pretty tough right now.

[Sparrow]

Looks like a heat treat might make it great stone.

[Ncsnipe]

Looks like too many freeze cracks to work.

[Jodocus]

I knocked around on it with a boulder. I have never flintknapped before, so I have no reverence. When I hit it the right way, nice clean flakes come off.

Ncsnipe, you're right, the stuff in the picture was too freeze cracked and did not hold up. Also, to produce the break you see in the pic, I just smashed it onto a rock repeatedly.

But I have gotten some larger slabs of recently exposed material. It has some lovely colorations in grey and rose as well. I had never considered this stuff because it is common around here. And because it isn't glossy.

Meanwhile I've also found pics of local neolithic artefacts that are doubtlessly made from exactly this stuff, two conic bladecores.

So I'll read up on how to heat treat this and get some kind of antler billet. How about a bone or cow horn or maybe some firehardened dogwood? We don't have any large Deer here.

[Ncsnipe]

If it turns out to be good stuff after cooking, then you can try using some river or small landscaping stones on it. You can also do like I do and go down to the hardware store for some wood dowels, copper caps, glue, and stop and get a few lead sinkers from the fishing department at Wally world and make a few copper boppers. Hope it turns out to be the good stuff.

[Tower]

True that.  In my opinion the only reason our ancient forefathers didnt use copper caps is because they didn't have them. Otherwise they would have! Them being a resourceful people & such.

[TRACY]

Looks like dolomite which will spall and flake. Not sure how it is for anything other than crude tools like hand axes and such. I've never heated it, might turn out to real good that way. Good luck!


Tracy

[Jodocus]

thanks everyone. Tracy, dolomite was good hint. I did the test, It wont scratch glass and it doesn't hit sparks on steel. In fact, I can abbrade it with a steel file. That makes a point against chert, right?
But the pics I find of the chert I'm looking for, the stuff looks exactly the same. I guess I'll have to go back to the quarries... 

I wasn't really successful in knapping it either, but I don't know, maybe it's just that I'll have to get it right. flakes are all pretty short and hinge or breakhalfway down the core. I'll get me some glass or something to compare.