THE PLATFORM
-a publication of the Minnesota Knappers Guild-
Editor: Gene Altiere
4329 Peabody Ln.
Duluth, MN 55804
VOLUME 2, NO. 4
November, 1990
DUES
SORRY,
BUT THIS IS THE LAST FREE ISSUE. MKG DUES, INCLUDING A SUBSCRIPTION TO THE NEWS-LETTER,
"THE PLATFORM",
(4 ISSUES) WILL BE $5.00 FOR 1991. MANY OF YOU HAVE ALREADY SENT IN YOUR PAYMENT
FOR 1991. IF YOU HAVE PAID YOUR DUES, THE NUMBER "91" WILL APPEAR
ON YOUR MAILING LABEL. IF YOUR LABEL DOES NOT HAVE A "91" ON IT,
THIS IS THE LAST NEWSLETTER YOU WILL RECEIVE UNTIL YOUR DUES ARE PAID. PLEASE
MAKE ALL CHECKS PAYABLE TO "GENE ALTIERE, EDITOR, "THE PLATFORM".
LOGO
CONTEST
The design contest for the official logo
of the Minnesota Knappers Guild
is over and we have a winner. Logo #2, which was submitted by Jim Regan of Bethel,
MN, received an overwhelming majority of the votes. The logo will now appear
on all official MKG publications. There have been some suggestions made
that we have patches or pins made with the logo on them. Is everyone in favor
of doing something like this? We currently have 54 members and are still growing
so we could conceivably put in an order for about six dozen. If anyone has
any comments or is willing to check
into the costs of this type of project, please contact the editor.
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LETTERS
TO THE EDITOR
[The following letter is printed just as it was
received by the Editor]
Dear Editor,
I would like to join the MKG. I
hear you guys can bust through stone with deer antlers. I want to know more.
Yours in lithics,
Flake E. "Hammerstone"
Spall, 01427533
Federal
Correctional Facility - "Club Fed"
Duluth, Minn
Dear Flake: Thanks for your interest. Flintknapping
can be a great hobby if you have "time" on your hands. However,
you must be careful when knapping in a "confined" place - it could
be injurious to your health. Since you live so close, stop by and see me when
you have some "free"
time. - Ed.
NEW MEMBERS
Many of our members put on knapping demonstrations
and it is a perfect time to spread interest in the MKG. In July, the
editor and Tony Romano were doing a demonstration for the Forest Service archaeologist
at a dig site on McDougal Lake near Isabella, MN. Colleen Betts, 2239
Livingston Ave., Duluth, MN 55803 was one of the archaeology students working
at the dig site. She has decided to join the MKG as a means of furthering her
studies in lithic technologies.
Nice to have you with us, Colleen.
Two new members from Minnesota are
Tom Murphy, 701 3RD ST., Farmington, MN 55024 and Jim O'Brien, RT. 1, Box 255,
Byron, MN 55920. Welcome you all! It sure is nice to see the group growing.
Mike Blake, Southwest Decor Bldg., 610A S. Main St., St. Charles, MO
63301 is originally from Cloquet, MN. Mike has been knapping only three years
but his work is quite nice and would be the envy of many of us who have been
at it a lot longer. We met Mike
at the pow-wow held in Duluth last August and chatted for a while about the activities
of the MKG. We added his name to the members roster and hope to see
him up here next year at our knap-in. Like most of the good knappers we talk to,
Mike encourages all of you to take the time to attend one of the big knap-ins.
He says that in one weekend you may learn what two years of crushing rock on
your own can teach you. Anyone out there interested in a caravan heading south?
Oh, if you need any Harvester
chert from MO., Mike is the guy to call. His prices are reasonable and the
material is very nice.
The letter from the guy who had heard about us from
a fellow in
Missouri surprised me. The phone call from the guy in
California caught me by surprise. But, after the letter that arrived last month,
this editor is ready for anything! Would you believe a request for membership
from ARGENTINA !?! Well, it is true and we would like to welcome Hugo G. Nami,
Larrea 2033, Lomas del Mirador
(1752), Buenos Aires, Argentina to the MKG. Hugo is a doctoral candidate at
Buenos Aires University and specializes in lithic analysis and the replication
of stone tools. He recently spent four months in the U.S. studying and visiting
various knappers around the country. Hopefully we can get him to write an article
for us.
It certainly is fascinating how word of the newsletter is
growing. Some of the growth comes through word of mouth but a lot of it is due
to the positive publicity we're
getting in "CHIPS". The following new members all come to us via
that source:
Michael L. Ash, Ancient Mariner Art Studio, 9175 S. Ceder Creek
Rd. DeSoto, Kansas 66018
Jack D. Hutchinson, 2024 Denver St, Muskogee,
OK 74401
Tom Lightsey, 2340 Cypress Cove Drive, Tallahassee, FL 32310
Brian
McCullough, P.O. Box 321 Moab, Utah 84532.
Eric Simomson, 230 N. Stewart
ST., North Liberty, IA. 52317
Harry L. Walter, 337 Ridge Avenue, MC
Sherrystown, PA 17344
Welcome
all of you to the "Platform" and MKG. Thanks again to D.C. and
Val Waldorf for making the effort to publish "CHIPS". If anyone of
you out there are not subscribers to that publication, you are missing out on
what is going on in the modern flintknappers world. "CHIPS" is available
at PO Box 702, Branson, MO. 65616 and costs $9.00 for four issues (one year).
The
"Shot-Shell" Tickler
All knappers develop a
"feel" for certain knapping
implements. If these tools are of the type that are eventually "spent"
(antlers, small hammerstones etc.), we have to start all over and develop
our "feel" again. There is a renewable billet that the editor
has used for final percussion work on small obsidian pieces. The necessary materials
are inexpensive and easy to find and it is easy to make. Simply stated,
the tool is a dowel rod with an empty (spent primer!) twelve gauge shot shell
placed over the end..
A
small bevel should be created on one area of the brass rim of the shot shell
before use. This will help maintain the proper striking angles and mars the
smooth brass enough to give the slight "grab" that is needed when using
percussion. Eventually, with use, the whole rim will take on a slightly roughened
bevel. The dowel can easily be lead weighted by drilling out a portion
of the end of the dowel and adding the amount of lead desired.
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If the dowel is chosen slightly oversized (3/4 in.), it will have
to be sanded down to fit into the shot shell. However, the fit will be snug and
not require using a nail or screw to hold the shot shell in place. If the shot
shell starts slipping off, a small 1/4 inch brass screw placed away from the
striking end will hold it quite well. The length of the dowel should be whatever
the knapper finds comfortable
and accurate in swinging. A dowel about nine inches long seems to work well.
A
shot shell can be placed on each end so that you never have to stop
and replace the tool in the middle of a knapping session (attention all you fellow
procrastinators; remember to replace the worn end before the new end wears
out!)
This tool is obviously not "traditional" but for those of
you who like to tinker and experiment, try it. A tip of the hat to Tony Romano
for sharing this with us. If
any of you have "different" tools that you would share with us, please
take the time to write and tell the editor about them.
CHANGE OF
ADDRESS
We received a note from Dan Gadd advising us that he has moved
to 831 Edgewater, Covalville, IA, 52241. If anyone is interested in checking
out southeastern Iowa for flint sources, send Dan a note. We also found a new
address for Roy Jackson. Anyone looking for Roy can contact him at 701 "A"
AVE., Eveleth, MN 55734.
ARTICLES WE WOULD LIKE TO SEE
Would anyone out there be interested
in doing a synopsis article on the most common Minnesota knapping materials?
How do you identify them? Where do they come from? When were they used
and what type of points were produced? Compared to some areas of the country,
there is not a lot of published information that is specific to Minnesota. Maybe
we could get something started. If anyone is interested let the editor know.
MORE
ON AGATES
We
received a note from Chuck Kramer in which he mentioned working with Lake
Superior agate. He also sent a photo of some very attractive "dime-size"
miniature points made from this material. Chuck's comments were the same
as most of you that we heard from. Sometime the material works and sometimes
it doesn't. He said that he was going to try heat treated material. The editor
knows this works well on Brazilian agate slabs but we'll have to wait for
Chuck's report on our local material.
Frank Bera also sent us a note saying that he had just received some agate
and would let us know how it works for him. We'll be waiting.
MKG
KNAP-IN
The official date for the 3rd Annual Minnesota Knappers Guild
Knap-in has been set. Once again it will be held at the historic North West Company
Fur Post in Pine City, Minnesota. July 6 & 7, 1991 are the dates that
have been reserved at the Post. Many of you have expressed your disappointment
at not being able to attend
last year. Well mark your calendar NOW!
EDITOR'S NOTES
Thanks
to all of you for the many positive comments about the newsletter and the Minnesota
Knappers Guild. As stated earlier, I have committed to another year (1991)
and another four issues of "The Platform". It does take up the
time that I might normally have for knapping so please don't poke fun at my lack
of progress with knapping skills. Your help is needed with "The Platform".
While we greatly appreciate
the interest and input from around the country, the newsletter is designed
to be more regional as to events, archaeology, and news. So, I'm asking that
the Minnesota members be particularly helpful in contributing articles and ideas
because it is your newsletter. Thanks for letting me write it and thanks for
supporting it.
Keep the chips flying,
Gene Altiere,
Editor
"The Platform"
4329 Peabody Lane
Duluth,
MN 55804