Want to make an ishi stick

[david w.]

I am about to make an ishi stick and should the copper point be pointed or flat?   My little pressure flaker has a flat tip it seems to grip the rock well.  If it was pointed it seems to me that it would slip off hte edge.

[Hillbilly]

You want it pointed. Beat the tip on all four sides with a hammer to make a sharp, four-sided tip.

[david w.]

So should my normal pressure flaker also be pointed?

[D. Tiller]

I like galvanized nails and iron nails for fine work with obsidian. I hate having to resharpen copper all the times.

[Hillbilly]

David, most people like them pointy. The sharper it is, the less pressure it takes to detatch a good flake (within reason-you want the point strong enough to not bend when you load it up). I like antler pressure flakers to be more rounded. Some people use spatulate tips for some things, or a screwdriver-shaped tip for notching, but plain ol' pointy seems to work best for most work. I usually keep a few different sizes-I like a tiny, really sharp pointed one to finish edges.

[david w.]

Thanks for the input.  I hammered my pressure flaker to a sharp point when i wa working on a quartsite point. WOW!  There was a huge difference this point came out really nice(at least for me).