Chalcolithic Tools

[Robson Valley]

More an exploration of picture file sizes. Cannot post 170kb. Is that true?

I had the local farrier forge a couple of 1/4" thick copper adze blades for me.
My regular steel D adze has a Kestrel Tool blade to shave 1/32, if I have to.
All the wood carving is mine (birch, #18 tarred nylon seine cord) with the cord bobbin in front.

 

[Janne]

Nice.
Which woods are those tools comfortable shaving/ forming?

 

[Robson Valley]

Pacific Northwest tools and PacNW woods. My primary wood is western red cedar (Thuja plicata).
I carve other conifers and some birch (Betula papyrifera). Yellow cedar (Chamycyparis nootkatensis)
is good but it stinks like old garbage.

The D adze is magnificent = you can push it like a plane instead of striking cuts. It weighs 400g.
I began too late and my striking accuracy is very poor so my efforts at surface texturing are very primitive.
It's a little finer control than an elbow adze.

What's the max limit to posting picture sizes? I get told that the files are too big.
What's the limit? 150kB? I don't care, I'll fit it in. What is it?

 

[crosslandkelly]

Nice looking tools. How well does the copper hold an edge?

 

[Robson Valley]

I work-hardened the cpopper edges with the hammer as best I could after the blades were hafted.
I got the sense that copper is not a metal that can be sharpened to a fine edge, even like iron.

I plan to make a really nice handle and haft the copper blade that I hammered out.
It's equally poor for cutting anything = I tried to use it for food prep one night.
Got so pi$$ed off with it that I went back to "first strike" flint blades (happiness restored)

I'll bet that sharpening problem is what drove the smelting research to come up with bronze.
British tin was exported all across the Roman Empire.

I'll give you a Bic butane lighter. Go out in the back yard and make a bronze axe head.
I wonder who figured that out?

 

[saxonaxe]

Bic Lighter.. I watched someone making bronze arrow heads last summer, but he had a little stone forge burning charcoal and bellows made from a leather bag. He was pouring molten bronze into moulds and had a display of his works, from rough cast, right through to finished after hours of polishing. The arrow heads were sold on leather thongs as Pendants




The axes were superb and there was also a selection of bronze chisels, knives and gouges that he had produced.





I could have easily spent all day just standing watching him unhurriedly work the little forge and leather bag bellows.

 

[Robson Valley]

Bronze? I love it. I would have bought one of everything. Bronze blades. About time for a second look.

 

[Janne]

I would love to own a bronze knife blade and ax head, preferably unfinished.
If you remember that crsftsmsn’s details I ( and Robson V? ) would love to know them!

 

[saxonaxe]

It was months ago that I saw him and other craftsmen, and women, at a summer gathering Janne, but I'll be attending this Summer although I'm unsure of the exact date yet. I will remember to get some details for you. I won't forget because I look forward to watching them work again.
Another man was making pre-historic type weapons from flint and other stone. Seeing the arrows shot from a sinew backed bow was interesting too. The arrows flew straight and accurate and were more than capable of providing meat for a Stone Age family.






I'll get some contact details for you in the Summer.

 

[Janne]

Thank you. I had a flint blade made by the famous Norwegian artisan, but I lost / mislaid both the blade and his details, so I have not even been able to pay him.

I need to look hard for it when I go to our house in Norway next week. Could be some customs officer nicked it from the luggage.

I am so goddamn embarrased about the whole situation I just do not know what to say to him....

 

[Robson Valley]

When you go looking, there are small groups of paleo people all over Canada.
Paleo never stopped here. It was 100% just a few short centuries ago here.
Membership normally involves making a bow and arrows, bartering with the knappers for points
and killing and butchering a deer.

This winter, I have the greatest of pleasures to do all the meat prep in my kitchen with "first strike" flint blades.
Sharper than any possible steel equivalent. You have got to try cutting meat with flint. Amazing experience.
Volcanic glass obsidian is also common, when you ask the right people.

Saxonaxe: I can get all the Neolithic things I could ever want. It's the early bronze implements that interest me.
You would earn a commission, of course.

 

[Robson Valley]

How big a picture (kB) can I post? Has this been restricted, recently?

 

[Robson Valley]

Here. Come help me whack a couple of my neighbors.

 

[Janne]

Skinny this time of year.
Ok for burgers and meatloaf though.

 

[Robson Valley]

Funny = out of my computer, the file was 175kB and inspection of this is about 74kB.
I want to know max file size for pictures out of my computer.

The mule deer: that's Mom on the right and one of her 2+ yr kids on the left.
She usually has twins. They are all quite habituated to people.
**** in your yards, block the streets, you'd think that they owned the place or something.
You can see the green grass where they bedded, this is November, I think.

Maple syrup marinade. 3 hrs with some apple wood smoke at 275F. Maybe a mop with apple cider & spices.
I'll make some fry bread with raisins in it to remind you of deer kaka while we eat.

Each of the fence posts has 2 wood carvings attached. Also a young grape vine in each fence panel.
The fence is 2" stucco wire grid for minimum wind loading, wood just gets broken off and flung around the neighborhood.

 

[Robson Valley]

Every one of these beasts, the Big Eight, could be knocked down with a bronze-tipped arrow or maybe a bronze tipped spear.
I want to butcher game with bronze. I want to know how it compares with flint. Then we have to eat it all.

 

[Robson Valley]

These are all within maybe 30 miles of my house. Some in the village!
The long faces are western red cedar, 17" tall x 5.5" wide. Two are aspen (Populus tremuloides)

OK. Match them up:
Mule Deer
Mountain Goat
White tail Deer
Bison (Woodland or Plains, I can't remember what we have here.)
Moose (aka Swamp donkey)
Elk
Mountain Caribou
Mountain Sheep

I had a grand plan to do the Grizz/Black bears & the wolf/coyote doggie things, then the cougar/lynx/bobcats
but I got distracted by other carvings.

How is bronze for wood carving tools?