Just about to leave Mexico, and I don't have enough money to go back to Coyoacan and buy a Mahuaquitl. So I've resigned myself to making one myself. I've already purchased a significant amount of obsidian through e-bay, so there's no point in trying to talk me out of it. Essentially, it's a large, flat wooden sword with three inch long pieces of obsidian set lengthwise up the two edges, to create a very sharp "glass" edge. This requires knapping obsidian. I know next to nothing about stonecarving, and I need someone to help me figure stuff out. The obsidian pieces don't need to be pretty, just uniform and roughly the same size. I've already figured out how I'm going to set them in the wood, that's taken care of. There is nearly no information on the web about knapping obsidian and I'm about at my wit's end. I know it to be extremely dangerous due to the molecule-thick, lung-bound flakes that fly everywhere. Essentially, I need a list of inexpensive tools that I can use (preferably primitive tools, chisels, that sort of thing.) My wife won't let me spend more that $150 on this little pet-project. If this first one works out well I might do others. From my experience, banging on solid glass with sharp objects usually doesn't yield the desired results. Thanks a ton.
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I'm gonna do it, I swear.
I've already purchased a significant amount of obsidian through e-bay, so there's no point in trying to talk me out of it.
Essentially, it's a large, flat wooden sword with three inch long pieces of obsidian set lengthwise up the two edges, to create a very sharp "glass" edge.
This requires knapping obsidian.
I know next to nothing about stonecarving, and I need someone to help me figure stuff out.
The obsidian pieces don't need to be pretty, just uniform and roughly the same size.
I've already figured out how I'm going to set them in the wood, that's taken care of. There is nearly no information on the web about knapping obsidian and I'm about at my wit's end. I know it to be extremely dangerous due to the molecule-thick, lung-bound flakes that fly everywhere.
Essentially, I need a list of inexpensive tools that I can use (preferably primitive tools, chisels, that sort of thing.) My wife won't let me spend more that $150 on this little pet-project. If this first one works out well I might do others.
From my experience, banging on solid glass with sharp objects usually doesn't yield the desired results.
Thanks a ton.