fluting a Clovis point with direct percussion

In this video, I demonstrate direct percussion fluting. Most people use a jig made from wood or steel, and nuts and bolts. There are MANY ways to do this, and those other folks can do it better than I can. But this is the most primitive way possible. Difficulty level = 10.

[@JGraye5]

It’s nice to see people doing this without a jig!

[@gabrielramos4179]

I have been practically splitting my arrow shafts trying to fit "chubby" arrowhead ends- this video has been very helpful in correcting this problem.

[@redriver6541]

That is exceptional. Thank you for sharing that. Beautiful work.

[@reidturing9208]

Watching this video for Dr. Jodie O'Gorman's North American Archaeology class at Michigan State University. Thanks for the awesome demonstration!

[@bobbyhempel1513]

I found a small clovis point in the asphalt of the road in front of my house.

[@velerina2017]

Maybe another contemporary tool maker as interested as you, or even luckier, a relic

[@xINVISIGOTHx]

What country?

[@093090bks]

Really?!

[@093090bks]

I used to work with some guys that did asphalt work and they would find points every now and then but no Clovis

[@kittendiotima4212]

Thanx, this video helped me understand the whole concept of fluting much better

[@CliKnight]

Thank you again for taking the time to teach this..

[@csluau5913]

Obsidian, flint, and some kinds of chert are exceptionally good to flake. Here’s a curve ball for you… Try doing this with quartzite, banded chert or rhyolite… even harder…milky or veined quartz. I recently was walking around the area where I live which I know to have been occupied by Native Americans for a considerable period of time, and I found what I believe are rough outs for spear or dart points that could have been turned into long points. It looked like they had made them out of milky and veined quartz. They must have used a bipolar technique to break a long diamond profile piece of quartz off of a larger block. I wondered how in the world they would have removed those hard sharp corners without breaking the whole piece to make a spear point. It’s got me thinking and now I’m wondering how much of what we actually think we know about how ancient people made tools is correct and how much is just guessing. This particular place where I live is an amazing location between two creeks that feed into a river with rolling terrain and several springs that feed in between the hills down to the creek or river. About 10 miles away is an Indian reservation and I know for a fact this land belong to them for a very long time. I have found stone tools from the archaic and Woodland period already But a few weeks ago found something I believe to be transitional Paliolithic. I’m waiting to hear back from an archaeologist about it. I keep finding scatters of waste flakes and Deb Ataage most of it is quartz.

[@aaronengland5622]

vein quarts would be difficult to flake at all unless you get lucky. shock collects in the veins and breaks it into blocks like 90% of the time. Honestly, quartzite would probably be easier to flute. I'd definitely recomend heat treatng though and looking for peices with finer grains if possible.

[@csluau5913]

@@aaronengland5622 I agree with you to a certain point. Yet people used veined quartz and crystal quartz, and milky quartz. I have artifacts made from these types of stone, and I am marble at how they were able to work it. It truly shows the expertise and knowledge that they had to be able to work with this material. One particular artifact I found was a type of handaxe 11 inches long. I’ve never seen anything like it. I like quartzite it is tough and durable, but still holds a good edge. Another type of material that I found at the same place was silt stone, which is a lot like quartzite in its sharpness and durability.

[@aaronengland5622]

@@csluau5913 All quartz is good if it's solid and not too impure. Vein quartz just usually isn't either of those things lol. then again, it sounds like what you're talking about might be coming from a source. might be better quality. Our folks used tons of it but most of it came from washouts in the rivers and were usually not the best of quality. Best point I've ever seen out here was made from a type of fine grained mudstone that's unique to the area. Sort of a blue-grey (sometimes greenish grey) mottled stone. it flakes surprisingly well for mudstone. speaking of Siltstone I have some large flakes in a box around here somewhere that ring like a bell. great stuff. Never got around to finishing them.

[@csluau5913]

@@aaronengland5622 yep. I hear you. I actually sat down in the yard a few months ago when it was summer time and took a piece of siltstone, which could also technically be called mudstone, and I knocked away the looser Granier bit around the outside of it, and I got to the heart of it, which was very hard and sharp almost like chert. I made a really nice small chopping tool out of it that was wedge shaped. I just called him, wedge choppers, and it flaked really well and I was even able to put a square corner notch on the edge of it. I have seen that notch show up and tools made of lesser quality stone , both in North America and in Britain. I found this one simple detail to be a remarkable similarity between tools made by ancient people on two different continents. That kind of stuff is really interesting. Similar thought process as I guess. The way the human mind works is remarkable. No matter where you go in the world you will find tools that are shaped similarly used for similar purposes. The mudstone or siltstone makes really good choppers, scrapers, and Cleavers. That being said, Quartzsite and quartz also make excellent, cutting tools because of those razor sharp edges. They are not as durable as other types of stone, but I would say out of all of them quartzite is probably the best overall stone because it has a balance of sharpness and hard wearing durability. The crystal structure is what does it the best. I have also found stones in the area where I have located. These other tools that rang like a bell which was amazing. Beautiful good quality stuff. I found that the best stuff, just like Flint was the stone that was formed deeper under the ground, and was not damaged by frost or weather, and had a chance to totally cure and solidify over thousands of years. The flint that I used to find in England was usually low-grade medium grade and high grade. The low-grade stuff was usually used for a single or temporary use. They were called tools of convenience. The trade stuff was used for things like basic choppers and scrapers. The higher grade stuffed was used for projectile points, scraper, knives, spear points, cleavers, good quality, choppers, and, of course, hand axes. That was usually a solid, dark gray or Jeff black color. Almost like obsidian, but not so translucent much more cloudy in appearance, the medium grade, but usually light to dark gray, and sometimes would have inclusions or fossils in it, but not that many. The low-grade was a less dense stone, and had much more inclusions in it. Still, if it was fire hardened, you could take a low quality stone tool, and make it a better quality stone, to which was very hard and enduring. I found a primary flake that came from the outside of a flint nodule, did you could clearly see all of the chalk, inclusions and fossil in it, but it had clearly been hardened in fire, which I changed the color to a burnt orange. I got some really high-quality Flint and did a comparison. I made a rough shopping tool out of the good quality flint and put it next to the other one that had been hardened, and the hardened tool was more durable and did not break or flake the way that the black flint did. So lesson learned. The site where I have found all the things I am finding now is a major site, so I don’t want to reveal its location, but I’m in the process of trying to get people to recognize this place in order to protect it if they can because it’s located on private property and a large residential development. I’m very concerned about the encroachment of the houses and other things they have plans for the future on this site. There is a lot to be learned about this place and it also contains a lot of burials.

[@aaronengland5622]

@@csluau5913 Northern Europe actually has some surprising links to older populations of the Americas. We share some DNA and Even some cultural similarites. Oh and I think I meant to say mudrock. One of those is considered it's own specific rock type. though, that said, depending on the clay to silt ratio it usually either end up being a slightly gritty claystone or a slightly less gritty siltstone so yeah, you're right lol. Quartzites toughness come from the grain in it. it absorbs shock. Makes it more difficult to break but also makes it just as hard to flake for tools. finer grained quartzites like siltstones and chert (basically a claystone made from quartz particles) are more brittle and run flakes better and longer. Only thing better than that is stones with no grain. that's where obsidian comes in.That thing about the grades of stone definitely makes sense though. use the finer more fragile stuff that flakes better for tools that need more precise shapeing and sharper edge work. Save the grittier shock resistant stones for impact tools like hammers and axes so you don't shatter them from impact. But eh, burial sites right? I try to avoid stuff like that. I got enough problems with spirits already lol.

[@WOMPITUS]

Beautiful dog

[@chopdiggity5404]

Yeah dude, I was nervous! Great vid. Great explanation. Keep up the good work!

[@bracoop2]

Thanks for the video!

[@thewayidoit6312]

Good stuff 👏. Nice to see this being done without a jig.

[@draven3838]

You did pretty darn good just using the bopper

[@dannyharrington978]

Love your videos! You explain your technique very well. I've learned a lot since I started watching. Thanks for taking the time to share your skills! The deer was a nice touch!😂

[@dalecross1155]

Nice job

[@josefizquierdo6139]

I've found lots of stuff in my own backyard, which used to be a pond. I also live near the Rio Grande in South Texas. The nicest artifacts that I've found were by accident, as if the rocks were telling me, HERE I AM !!! 🗿

[@wtr7]

Excellent vid. You're very skillful.

[@brabanthallen]

I hate when the deer interrupt me when I am trying to make deer hunting weapons.

[@senatorjosephmccarthy2720]

I was spring turkey hunting, sitting on my aluminum fold-up seat. A yearling moved from behind me to ahead of me, getting 4 y close. He stopped at about 6 y and looked at me. He knew what he was doing, playing with me. See ya later buddy.

[@artichoke890]

Cool stuff. Thanks for sharing

[@frankparrish5657]

"Complicated", the way changing a tire is complicated without a tire iron and a Jack. Your bifaces are too thick, as mine also once were! Make them thinner. Cut two pieces of oak 15cm long, shaped like they are from a yardstick and use pitch to attach two small buttons or broken twigs to one end of each (four total). Wrap the tip of the Clovis blank in a strip of buckskin, then sandwich it between the wood slats and tie around with a piece of string, then flute. I don't break Clovis anymore, and they are long and delicate. Created this hold thing in Jan 2022. Love the video, spread the word, it changed how I thought about Clovis forever. Best of luck.

[@bserer]

I've always kept my eyes peeled for a fluting flake on my Arch Projects. I was hoping to see the flake from the antler as I was curious for recognition purposes. Was there a noticeable difference as compared to the fluting flakes made by the boppers? How do you like using the antler for this purpose? This data can help, swear...

[@chadklaren9537]

Probably won't find any real Clovis points always have good fluting and that flake would have made a nice blade that they most likely would have used for skinning animals. The Clovis people were master knappers and didn't waste anything unlike the different people thousands of years later whatever killed 75% of life on earth 11,000-13,000 years ago killed off the Clovis and there amazing craftsmanship shortly after

[@TermiteUSA]

Question what does the jig look like and is there something the original knappers might have used that is similar? And .. Great work. Years of picking late archaic and woodland period points, flakes and scrappers in corn fields led me to try whacking at some decent river pebbles with the results you would expect. The flakes would cut like a razor but the main thing is always how this gives you respect for the people who survived this way.

[@srl2634]

Awesome skill thank u. 4 THE INSIGHT.

[@hiimwaynko-4987]

Your videos are so easy to follow along. You’re a great teacher. Can you try to teach your viewers glass knapping?

[@genegorringe7395]

Damn. Your good. Ok back to practice 😅Gene Gorringe Michigan 👋✌️🇺🇲🇬🇧

[@angelblanco1984]

Thank you

[@johnbsys1846]

Great video ive learned allot from your videos this one has helped me i love the clovis points i wish i had excess to flint i hafta use allot of glass i dont know where to get good flint im disabled and build bows and homade arrows i need points to complete my hunting gear rock points are my only way ill hunt deer turkeys

[@duanehopland7506]

Kool deer ! I had a pet fox for years

[@billskinner623]

Swoosh figured out the way to flute to the tip (like Cumberlands and Redstones) with just a forked stick and a piece of antler.

[@MrArys1]

Very impressive. Nice job 👍🏻 man.

[@chadwaldron6329]

I found a Clovis spear point where they mine phosphate in Polk County. It was probably about 6 to 8 thousand years old. I was offered 5OO for it but declined. Several years later my whole collection disappeared from my mother's house. I had left it there for safekeeping. Oy veh!

[@Dougarrowhead]

If it was a clovis it was much older

[@rdaugherty52]

That's just cool dude thanks for showing now how did primitive man fasten that on a stick so it wouldn't move around ?

[@KeegoonBarnacle]

Tar or sap, some sticky glue-like substance.

[@matthewsandoval7122]

That Waz great instructions teacher

[@cronkthecrunk]

Can't wait to get on a clovis point level

[@jamesbaker7062]

"ROCK-ON" BUDDY

[@steveclark5357]

explained very well, thank you

[@johnwestbrook8117]

Awesome 👍👍👍👍😎

[@DonKiehn-kp9bh]

Yesss!👍

[@jrhamilton4448]

Awesome, and not easy to do!

[@springbloom5940]

Perhaps the fluting was done at an earlier stage and the rest of the piece built around the flute?

[@sef2273]

I questioned the same thing

[@grumpygrumpgrump136]

Great video. You know you love the deer, so stop complaining.

[@richardwiley5933]

I'd like a pest like that - beautiful! ❤️

[@leesenger3094]

Love it!

[@ggsmith099]

Nice and nice deer!

[@davidfishferrell]

I want to learn how to make a point. What’s the best beginner how to video? TIA

[@wolfking9044]

*401 LIKE* *LOVE you’re video by the way*

[@The09po0]

Very informative

[@Nubenhoofer]

I read somewhere that the flutes on the clovis spear points gave them better performance, in that it facilitates shock absorption thus mitigating stress and lessening the chance of snapping off after making contact. Can anyone confirm this?

[@TheKoyotetracker]

Thanks man. Love it.

[@richardthomas1566]

I really think the dead end of the flute creates a shelf to stop the point from splitting the shaft on impact

[@christianarcheologyarrowhe2200]

Awesome 👍

[@Wilders53]

Nice

[@jimajello1028]

Did Paleo man have access to copper percussion tools? Is this reconstructive Lithic Technically. Can you explain what organic materials were used for Lithic industries during the Clovis time period? Tks for sharing your knowledge.👍

[@tylermanning4321]

Greag stuff man

[@TJackSurvival]

I wonder how indirect percussion would work on this

[@paleotrekker402]

A piece that size would be more like a knife than a dart point. The points that were embedded in the mastodon carcass from the Kimmswick bone bed were no more than four inches long.

[@gabrielpottebaum5249]

Like #100!

[@franslangendonk6510]

Hello Gregory, I've watched this excellent video many times and successfully fluted a Clovis. It was very fulfilling. Your 3 vid series Making a Spear Point from a rock is another I've watched many times. They've helped me refine my techniques immensely. I have some questions about your boppers. I've tried to gauge their sizes. It seems your smallest is a 3/4" Solid Head and the largest is 1 1/2". Am I correct? I have a 1 1/4" but I think I need a bit more "Oomph".😁 Beste

[@richardwiley5933]

A good, heavy bopper for spalling is a 6" X 3/4"dia piece of black iron pipe with steel caps on both ends. Good weight and handling characteristics for its size.

[@bradenmyler7080]

Hey Greg, where do you get your rocks?

[@gregpryorhomestead]

Braden Myler neolithics.com

[@johnr.8723]

What is the black pad made of that protects your hand? I like it! 👍🏻

[@TJackSurvival]

How was it done anciently?

[@willbruner6885]

Very clear. I want to try that but with indirect percussion. I'm not that accurate on the strike !

[@richardwiley5933]

That's a good plan; learning with indirect gives you a better understanding of the material, and increases your confidence when using direct percussion. 👍

[@cronkthecrunk]

Where do Danish daggers land on your scale?

[@cronkthecrunk]

Is that keokuk?

[@ctripps1224]

How much would you sell a fluted clovis for that you worked?

[@velerina2017]

Could you do the blade/punch technique?

[@mikereynolds3294]

Want to learn. But all we have in florida is chert. No flint

[@sandaysanday3319]

If a nuclear war erupts ... humans must study this.

[@reyalPRON]

hope u have gotten that tremor checked out sir. that looks bad..

[@brucebanner8397]

Why is it not sharp?

[@gregpryorhomestead]

I keep sanding/abrading the edges until the piece is almost finished, then it gets the final sharp edge. It's to protect my fingers and also to make a sturdy platform on the edges while hitting it.

[@SoggySandwich80]

How does that help it mount on a shafr

[@jacobwhite8204]

By making the base thinner like he said

[@signaturerush]

6:46 IS THAT A DEER!?!?

[@seeharvester]

I don't know why you would waste time making points. The game are literally coming to you. 😀

[@Tarzantravelsbyriver]

Haft onto a shaft

[@michaelscofield2685]

Anthropology upsc aspirants present

[@josefizquierdo6139]

That's beautiful craftsmanship, but I'd rather find real, authentic Native American artifacts.🗿

[@gabrielramos4179]

I have been practically splitting my arrow shafts trying to fit "chubby" arrowhead ends- this video has been very helpful in correcting this problem.

[@HelpingGuy123]

Nice

[@gabrielramos4179]

I have been practically splitting my arrow shafts trying to fit "chubby" arrowhead ends- this video has been very helpful in correcting this problem.