Hand Forged Trade Points

[JayDee Flohr]

While probably noy very traditional, I've got some forged damascus heads that a friend made for me that I use on fancier arrows.

Haven't taken anything with them yet and as in an above post, they are heavy. Around 300 grains.
For my normal go to bamboo arrows, I use barrel hoop steel. It is supprisingly hard and takes an edge well.

 

[fatboy]

Nice points they are a eye catcher ,the barrel hoop ones are great to

 

[blacksmithman64]

Those damascus points are sweeeeeet! :bow:

 

[Old Sarge]

Thanks for the pics...Beautiful work!!!!! Thanks again guys! Tom

 

[shooyer_250]

Fossil, those are some of the best looking arrows i've ever seen...you did yourself proud sir...Lee

 

[Twice boom]

I'm wondering if an arrow head can not be made out of a binding band of the appropriate size in the forge by wrapping a strip of banding material over a mandrel in to a shape of a cone.

Leave the open end loose enough where you can beat a fin on each end .

As a Kid Living in Greece my city slicker older cousin use to visit us durring summer. This one summer he showed up with a bow and arrows with tips similar to those I described above less the fins.. He was a poor shot to say the least.One day I happen to be standing about ten feet from a watermelon in a field .My not so bright and not so hot shot of cousin decided to shoot at the watermelon, missed it and shot me on the shine missing the bone.....Ouch! still hurts when I think about it....

Probably wont be historically correct but might be worth making for own use..

 

[ameling]

Simple "cone" arrowheads have a long history of manufacture and use by Indians in North America. Almost from first European contact times.

It was a simple method to made an arrowhead that the Indians could do themselves with very few or no tools.

Common ones were made from material cut from brass and copper kettles. They were just wrapped into a tight-ended/pointed cone, and sized to push onto the end of their arrows. Friction fit, with maybe a little pine tar or hide glue to help hold them in place. But most any metal could have been used. And the metal bands from wood barrels would have been a convenient source for such a project.

Many times "cone" arrowheads get mistaken as simple decorative "tinkler" cones. Outward signs of use or how tight the point is tend to be the deciding issues between an arrowhead or a decorative cone.

The could almost be considered the arrow Field Points of their day.

Mikey - that grumpy ol' German blacksmith out in the Hinterlands

p.s. Examples of original cone arrowheads can be seen in the books Indian Handcrafts, Indian Trade Relics, Where Two Worlds Meet, A Toast to the Fur Trade, and Firearms Traps and Tools of the Mountain Men.

 

[brubincam]

-----when we were kids my brother found a metal cone arrowhead-----

 

[PaulN/KS]

Some other very good reference books are The Encyclopedia of Native American Bows, Arrows and Quivers Volumes I and II by Steve Ally and Jim Hamm.
Excellent drawings and discriptions of museum pieces that the authors examined.

 

[pichou]

Looked at some nice original stemmed iron trade points today. Much daintier than they look in books.

 

[PaulN/KS]

I had a chance to examine a bow and some arrows at the museum at Fort Leavenworth. The set is believed to be Lenape and was in the family of a trader from Lawrence. A very simple hickory bow and the arrows and points are pretty small. They looked like they were made from thin steel. Maybe barrel hoops.
There was also the buckskin quiver and bowcase with them. Nothing fancy but VERY cool to see... :grin: