Run out of glue in the wilderness?

So many things are taken for granted in our consumer society. If you need something, simply buy a product (or app) for that.

So what about glue?

I was making a prop for my book’s cover and found myself needing an adhesive. The prop? A obsidian studded war club (see the first chapter of my forthcoming novel).

The club is a scrap 4×4. The obsidian I had laying around (from my knapping days). But how to attach the obsidian to/into the wood? I could go to the hardware store. Or I could do it the (real) old-fashion way.

I looked up my Primitive Skills notes from an Earthwalk Northwest class I took (a long time ago in a world far, far away). Here’s the recipe/process:

1. Take tree sap…some nice sticky sap from an evergreen.
2. Powder up so charcoal…found in our fireplace.
3. Mix together…maybe 4 parts sap to 3 parts powdered charcoal.
4. Heat (here I cheated…heated in a old cat food can on a backpacking stove…my wife wouldn’t let me do so on our kitchen stove).
5. Once heated, a coated the two pieces you want to join and press together.
6. Note: it’s heat sensitive…to “disassemble,” just heat.

Here’s some images:

Making the club (I cheated…used a viking type ax):

Carving a club

Chiseling the slot (cheated again):

Carving slots for the obsidian flakes

Preparing the sap and charcoal:

Preparing the sap and the charcoal

Gluing the obsidian edge into the club:

Gluing the obsidian chips into the slots

Finished product:

Obsidian studded club

So are you ready to make a batch of glue while lost in the wilderness?