THE APACHE THROWING STAR
by Dude McLean
Apache Throwing Star…what a great name. It seems to conjure up images of war, bows and arrows and tomahawks, of stealthy hunting, and practicing the art of the “throw”. For those of you who may not have heard of the “Apache Throwing Star”: imagine the four points of the compass, a cross, and you have the “star”. I have made many of them and they are an easy project to put together. As a weapon, they are very effective. As a hunting tool, you will, with practice, find them capable of taking good-sized game for the cooking pot.
CONSTRUCTION
The components are two straight sticks (thumb-size works well). The length can vary; the shortest I have made is about 10 inches and the longest about 22 inches. Anything in-between will work just fine.
For ease of construction, you might want to make your first star out of willow. Willow is easy to work with. However the best woods would be the harder woods, like oak or scrub oak. Any hard, dense wood is perfect.
The two sticks should be the same length and the diameter should be the same as well. This isn’t rocket science, so they don’t have to be perfect. Sharpen all four ends; they do not have to be really sharp but shape them into a point. You then cut a notch in the middle of one of the sticks about a quarter of the way deep--this will be about as wide as the other stick or at this point, just a bit smaller. Cut a notch in the other stick at about the same size of the first stick. Fit them together. This will take a little shaving and extra fitting, so make the “fit” as tight as you can.
SECURING WITH CORDAGE
Once you have the fit good and tight, you need some cordage to secure the “fit”. I have used jute twine but my favorite cordage is yucca. Rawhide is excellent because it shrinks tight, holding your star firm. Any natural cordage should work very well. Wrap it several times to keep the star tight. One other option in securing the star is to pin it in the middle. Drill a hole where the two sticks cross, insert a wooden pin or a length of rawhide and tie it off. When you throw it and it hits any target, the star absorbs a great amount of shock, so you want to keep it all in one piece.
SHARPENING AND HARDENING
The next step is to sharpen the points. Taper these down to a fine point. Once you are satisfied with your points, you can fire harden them. I like this as it helps hold the points longer and makes them stronger. Remember, do not burn the points--what you want is to “bake” them in the ashes but do not let them catch on fire. They may have a slight charred look. Just carefully scrape it away.
Check your cordage to make sure it is tight. Sometimes you will have to redo the cordage after a few days because the wood shrank a bit.
You are ready to throw!
PRACTICE AND REWARDS
With a little practice and armed with three or four of these primitive tools, you are ready to harvest some game. You can throw them like you would a knife or a tomahawk, or you can throw them sidearm, kind of like a rabbit stick. I practice throwing at a hay bale on the archery range. Set up a stuffed toy bunny; that’s a good incentive and gives you the real size you are dealing with. You will be surprised at how fast you can get pretty good at throwing the “star”. You will wonder why you haven’t done it before.
CLOSING THOUGHTS
Apache Throwing Stars are just one more tool for your ever-growing primitive kit collection. They are easy and fast to make. Be careful--they are not a toy-- as with all tools and weapons, the Apache Throwing Star, must be treated with respect. Always know your target.
You can paint your Apache Throwing Star with traditional colors and symbols. Birds are a popular theme: after all, it is a flying object.