California Knappers

Monthly Flintknapping Get-Together

The California Knappers is a knapping get-together of flintknappers who like to flake stones, learn from each other, trade for materials and meet fellow lithic knappers. The get-together is open to beginners, intermediate and advanced knappers. Anyone who is interested in learning the skill of making stone tools is more than welcome. We will meet one day in every month. Check this webpage for monthly dates.

Flintknapping:
Knapping is the shaping of flint, chert, obsidian or other conchoidal fracturing stone through the process of lithic reduction to manufacture Stone Age tools.

"The word knap means 'to snap or break by a smart blow'. The word flintknapping was coined to describe the manufacturing of gun flints. Not all stones that can be worked into tools are flints, but the label stuck. In present day, the term is commonly and broadly used to describe the prehistoric skill and ancient craft of making flaked stone points, arrowheads and tools."
Definition by Grog Verbeck

Knapping tip of the month:
Step fractures are the result of the flake snapping off rather than feathering out completely. A number of things can cause this: 1) Holding the piece too tightly against a hard pad will sometimes interrupt the detachment of the flake. Hold your piece against the pad at an angle so that there a gap between the pad and the area where the flake will come off. When using a hard pad, a slot can be cut into the pad where the flake will fall. 2) If your pressure angle is too steep, this can cause the flake to dive in. 3) Pressure flaking into a large mass.

Update on the March 12 knapping get-together:
It was a nice sunny day at Karl Nordvik Park. Only three people attended the monthly knapping get-together. Mike, who is new to flintknapping, got the opportunity to make two copper billets of different sizes. We melted pieces of lead in the rounded copper caps and allowed the lead to solidify. Then, we bonded the copper caps with 5-minute epoxy to a wooden handle. Mike was able to use his copper billets immediately after the adhesive hardened. Unfortunately, no one brought a digital camera, so there are no photos to share this time.

Information for the NEXT California Knappers Get-together

Date: April 17, 2011 (Sunday)
Time: 10:00 am to 3:00 pm
Location: Karl Nordvik Park, 5850 Commerce Drive, Fremont, CA 94555
The park is on the corner of Commerce Dr. and Ardenwood Blvd. We will be located across the restrooms, on the far end of the park, near a small pine tree. Look towards the children's playground. Parking is free.
Information: Contact Dino Labiste via e-mail for any questions at kahikoarts@yahoo.com
Check this webpage the night before the get-together for any last minute changes.

DIRECTIONS TO KARL NORDVIK PARK:
Heading I-880 south, take the Decoto/Dumbarton Bridge/84 exit near Fremont. Turn right onto Highway 84 headed west. Take the Ardenwood Blvd./Newark Blvd. exit. Turn right at the end of the exit. When you get to the cross street called Commerce Dr., turn right (the park is on the corner). Park in the parking lot closest to the restrooms. Parking is also available along the street. Look toward the restrooms and past the children's playground at the far end of the park. We will be located near a small pine tree.
Heading I-880 north, take the Decoto Rd. exit near Fremont. Turn left, headed west. Take the Ardenwood Blvd./Newark Blvd. exit. Turn right at the end of the exit. When you get to the cross street called Commerce Dr., turn right (the park is on the corner). Park in the parking lot closest to the restrooms. Parking is also available along the street. Look toward the restrooms and past the children's playground at the far end of the park. We will be located near a small pine tree.
Coming from the Dumbarton Bridge, headed towards Fremont, take the Newark Blvd./Ardenwood Blvd. exit. Turn left at the end of the exit. When you get to the cross street called Commerce Dr., turn right (the park is on the corner). Park in the parking lot closest to the restrooms. Parking is also available along the street. Look toward the restrooms and past the children's playground at the far end of the park. We will be located near a small pine tree.