Ever Talk to the Stone?

[Ron Kelley]

Today I made a 3 3/4 inch blade. At a crucial point in the process I took off two flakes that ended in a step fracture right in the middle of the blade. I was tempted to try and remove the step. After talking to the stone I decided to not risk breaking the piece. With a little more practice I might have decided differently. I haven't figured out why I occasionally remove a flake that ends in a step. Can anyone tell me how to reduce the step fractures?

[sneakygroundbuzzard]

nice looking blade
and yes i can tell you what cause them
improper striking angle or not hitting it hard enough are usually the causes of them
along with a poor platform(one that crushes when struck)
now a little advise
when you get a step fracture like those,dont go chasing them to try and get rid of them
that will only make it worse
move on to a differnt part of the rock and try to get them out later in the process
usually you will find that when you ignore them and move on to a different area of the rock
you will be setting your self up to get them out easier because other flakes that are removed will set up a ridge that will run in to the edge of the step fracture
then when you set up a platform to follow that ridge you try and run a flake at an angle to get under the step
it takes practice,but at the rate your skills are increasing you will figure it out in no time at all
just take your time,analyze each platform and try and predict where the flake is going to go,then put the flake back in place and reanalyze why it did what it did
i know this will slow you down some,but its good for learning
not to mention slowing down will help you from making to many mistakes
good luck and keep on chipping

[sneakygroundbuzzard]

or you can just blame it on the rock  :rolf:  :rolf:  :rolf:  :rolf:

[Ron Kelley]

Hey Tim, Thanks for the advise and explanations.  :laugh:  :rolf: I prefer learning over blaming the stone.  :laugh:  :rolf:

[sneakygroundbuzzard]

ya but sometimes,especially if some one is watching you knapp, you have to blame the stone  :rolf: