Primitive Archer
Main Discussion Area => Flintknapping => Topic started by: Swamp Bow on November 02, 2009, 12:48:40 pm
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How do the folks that own dogs deal with making piles of razor sharp stone/glass chips?
Swamp
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Do all your knapping on a tarp so you can carry all the small sharp stuff away.
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Here is another thing to keep in mind. I got in trouble with the other half on this one. I use a tarp in my work area. What I forgot was the flakes that had fallen in the sides of my shoes. I would take my shoes off inside the door and flakes that were stuck on the sides of my socks and bottom of the socks fell off in the house. After the second time the wife got a glass cut, it was almost the end of my knapping days and I had to figure out how. Now I make sure I take my shoes and socks off outside and that they are free of flakes. Pants with cuffs are a trap for flakes also.
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It keeps their feet tough for hunting. ;)
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StevenT, that's why I knap with Flip-Flops on.
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I have gotten in the habbit of knappin Japes Parker style.
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I am a tender foot.
If I tried to knapp James Parker style I would be worse off than Swamps wife ever was. James " beat " all I ever saw when it came to knapping.
David
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If you mean you knap bare footed..... yikes. I have too much of a tendency to drop things. I could just see dropping a big ol piece of obsidian on my foot. I could just hear it now from the other half..... "You big dumb A$%. Why weren't you wearing shoes." Thanks, but I think I will keep my shoes on and just be carefull to clean them out. Actually, what I am going to do is just use an old pair of dock siders that I have and just use them when knapping.
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I'm a barefooted knapper, too. As for the dog, after he runs through it a few times and gets cut all up, he'll learn not to (unless he's really stupid. :) )
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I'm a barefooted knapper, too. As for the dog, after he runs through it a few times and gets cut all up, he'll learn not to (unless he's really stupid. :) )
What he said, both times.
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I also knapp bare footed,when I'm handling bigger chuncks I just throw a towel or something over the top of my foot.flakes in shoes are a big pain
Bone pile
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I always wear boots, no matter what I'm doin. As for the dogs, they walk all over my debitage piles - I haven't noticed any blood yet cept what's coming outa my fingers ;D.
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I like knappin bare footed. Kinda seems like the natural way to do it ;D
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I've been over at Claude's house when his kids were real young. His whole yard is debutage. His daughter when she was around 4 or 5 would walk all over that stuff barefooted. And the down side of flip- flops is when a flake gets stuck in the bottom and works it way through to your foot.
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I like flip flops in the summer. When I was knapping in shorts and boots, all the flake would end up down the boots. With flip flops I can just dust off my feet and go.
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Thanks everyone. I'll probably use the tarp method. I'm not as paranoid about glass and such as my family. If they see broken glass they just about call in a medivac chopper to haul their dog 50 miles away just to be sure. I just don't want a large pile of really sharp flakes for the dog to run through because the ball just bounced through it. The universe goes away for that dog when the tennis ball is being thrown.
I'm a jeans and boots guy. Between the fire ants, cows, chickens, barbed wire, and my clumsiness it's just self preservation. Be careful with the docksiders. Those were all I used to wear when I lived in town. I'd forget to put something else on and fire up the welder. I have burn scares all over the tops and bottoms of my feet. Once docksiders get nice and broken in the sides flare, great for catching slag that then rolls to the bottom of the shoe. Kinda interesting to try and curl your foot up to keep the molten metal away from you and keep welding because "you're almost done". ::)
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I hear ya on the welding. The biggest burn scars I have are on the top of my feet also. When the slag burns through your jeans and drops down in your boot you just can't curl that foot up small enough or get the boot off quick enough. I've got several on my arms of the "almost done type" too ;D youch!
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Dogs are a lot tougher than you'd think. I've actually seen my dog curl up in my debitage pile and go to sleep. :)
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Cowboy heard you on the foot burns I got one that is healing now it's really interesting when a ball of slag goes down your overall bib and finds captain winky. Had to go after that one immedietly.Ron
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I guess doing it barefooted is keeping it primitive! ;D
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Several years ago I was at the Glass Butte knappin and there was a bush man and his wife there that were the most primitive couple that I've ever seen. They wore complete buckskin outfits all year and no shoes all year Their feet looked like gorilla feet. Lulyn and I watched in shock as the guy stood up from knapping by the big pile of shards and strolled right through the middle of it. He wasn't doing it to show off he just didn't even give it a thought or concern. Witnessing that, I have come to the conclusion that the Native's feet were allot tougher then we can imagine. ::)