bones for arrowheads

[tex-archer]

I am interested in making some bone arrowheads. What bones would be the best for this and can someone give me some hi9nts on how to and maybe some pictures? Thanks in advance.

[smokin feathers]

me and bob sarrels were talking about that this weekend at the chester shoot. He had made some out of cowbone years ago and said they were really easy to shape and got super sharp. dont think they are legal to hunt with in TX though.

[Tater John]

The other day I read that the plains indians used bison rib bones but there wasn't any information about the methods used to produce them. Doublecut mill bastard file and sandpaper will get it done.

Rusty

[Dave Bulla]

Don't know for certain but I'm ALMOST certain that the leg bones are the hardest in the body.  Buffalo leg bone is super strong and almost completely non porous which is why it's considered the best material for guitar nuts.  FYI, that's the little raised bar at the top of the neck that has tiny grooves for the strings to rest in to set the spacing.  It has to be very hard and slick to not be cut by the wire strings and to not bind which would cause tuning problems.

I recall a great uncle of mine telling stories about his younger days going moose hunting in Canada and one of the guys tried to chop the lower leg bone of a moose while quartering it up and he said it put a dent in the edge of the hatchet.  Probably a cheap hatchet but still, that's a HARD bone!  The femur is supposed to be the strongest bone in the human body besides the teeth if I recall my biology properly.  I'd think any large animals leg bones would work for some sort of bone point.

Ribs to my mind would be porous and weak by comparison unless you got into really big critters like buff and rhino.

[JEFF B]

yup beef bones work well  

[tippit]

I think Doug Campbell made up some one time...Doc

[Ray Hammond]

you could send the bone off to be stabilized as well, like wood, to insure consistency if that is a worry.

Check the knife crafters forum for info on "stabilizing wood" and it will come up..or you can purchase GIRAFFE LEG BONE- the densest bone in the world, off the web.

[Bill Skinner]

I have made bone points.  I used the leg bones from cows.  I used a hack saw to rough shape and a belt sander and files for final shaping and sharpening.  Boil the bone before you start working it, it has some nasty bacteria that can thrive in your lungs.  Do the work outside, I also used the dust bag on my sander.  I could get it very sharp, it would not hold an edge.  Next time, I will try a bevel on the edges.  It is also very light.  Bill