It's called an atlatl, used to make them in my backyard, they give surprising power and accuracy. Interested to see if he expands on it with a bannerstone. Supposedly attaching a shaped stone to the end of it gives more oomph and silences it. Only ever seen them in history museums though.
never knew there was a tool involved with spear throwing, i assumed it was people plainly throwing spears
[QUOTE=DrMonumbo;51168004]It's called an atlatl, used to make them in my backyard, they give surprising power and accuracy. Interested to see if he expands on it with a bannerstone. Supposedly attaching a shaped stone to the end of it gives more oomph and silences it. Only ever seen them in history museums though.[/QUOTE]
atlatl usually refers to the americas considering it's an aztec word.
woomera is the australian equivalent, hence why he just called it "spear thrower"
Always found it weird that burning the tip of a pointy wooden weapon makes it harder.
I always assumed it makes it weaker.
[QUOTE=_Maverick_;51169012]Always found it weird that burning the tip of a pointy wooden weapon makes it harder.
I always assumed it makes it weaker.[/QUOTE]
Fire-hardened wood is very brittle and weak, but is far easier to shape into a spearpoint.
[QUOTE=ZombieWaffle;51169037]Fire-hardened wood is very brittle and weak, but is far easier to shape into a spearpoint.[/QUOTE]
But.. then why is it called fire "hardening" ??
[QUOTE=_Maverick_;51169088]But.. then why is it called fire "hardening" ??[/QUOTE]
Hard and brittle aren't exclusive, diamonds are hard and brittle.
[QUOTE=Crimor;51169201]Hard and brittle aren't exclusive, diamonds are hard and brittle.[/QUOTE]
What about the "weak" part of "brittle and weak"?
[QUOTE=_Maverick_;51169088]But.. then why is it called fire "hardening" ??[/QUOTE]
The wood becomes hard.
[QUOTE=_Maverick_;51169088]But.. then why is it called fire "hardening" ??[/QUOTE]
the point of fire hardening is so that you drain moisture out of the part, so you can shape it into a sharp point/edge. it's a relatively fast technique compared to having to dry out the wood in other ways, but the tradeoff is that it's brittle, while also having a point that's hard.
if you've ever had peanutbutter brittle or peppermint bark, it's sort of the same concept. it's hard as fuck on the teeth, but also brittle.
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