A spear is a hand-thrust or board-thrown weapon and has little flexibility. A dart is very flexible and is used with a flexible-shaft atlatl system. Regardless of what style of atlatl you make, the darts must match the style of atlatl you intend to use. A light dart used on a rigid atlatl shaft will overpower the dart and cause it to bend too far and snap. A harpoon used on a flexible shaft atlatl will probably force the shaft to bend too far and break as well.
A dart is surprisingly light and flexible, but the weight of the dart is much greater than any arrow and imparts more knock-down power (kinetic energy) than even the most sophisticated primitive bows. Most primitive darts vary widely in design, material and craftsmanship. But modern research shows that the laws of wave motions and aerodynamics can be applied to design extreme-precision components with primitive materials (Perkins & Leininger).
Darts must be a consistent length (specimens range from 4 to 10 feet) that fits your throwing style. They must be flexible yet made of a durable material (willow, lodgepole pine, canary reedgrass, giant river cane, elderberry, red osier dogwood, cedar, hickory, etc.).
After cutting the material, remove the bark and slowly heat the shaft over a fire until it becomes pliable (do not char it). Heating and straightening may take parts of three days for the wood to gain a memory of its new form. Even after seasoning and greasing, you may have to slightly re-bend the darts by hand before each use. As you heat and bend the shaft, scrape (don’t whittle) it with a knife or glass to evenly reduce its size to match the set (at least three darts).
Proper flex may be checked by loosely holding one end in your hand near your shoulder and letting the other end rest on the ground. With your free hand, pluck the shaft like you would the string on a bass fiddle. The shaft should bend towards you and then fly into the air with a quivering rebound. As it comes down and hits the ground, it should bounce two or three times and still feel springy, but dampen quickly. Don’t take off too much wood or your dart will snap in two from lack of strength.
Fletching on the butt end can be left off or comprised of two to four feathers. If you want the dart to rotate rather than plane, you can put a slight spiral in the fletch. Some people do not split the feather vane as on an arrow, but simply lay a full feather on either side of the dart and lash them in place with sinew.
The spear point may be a simple fire-hardened tip, or a foreshaft may be inserted into a small hole in the tip of the dart. A foreshaft adds strength to the tip, carries a replaceable point or blunt and adds weight (about 6 grams) to the front of the dart. This is important as it slows the motion of the front of the dart in the throwing sequence, thus requiring the dart to store more energy in the shaft until the flex in the dart and atlatl meet, cancel one another and propel the dart away from the thrower at a greater velocity (Perkins and Leininger). It also works as a shock absorber in the front of the dart to reduce the stress on the shaft from impact (Harwood).
Grasp the dart with the grip hand, between the loop/hole finger tips as far forward as possible (the fingers used to hold the dart are determined by the type of grip used on the atlatl). This grip will cause the butt of the dart to press securely against the spur and reduce the chance of misfires.
The throw should be smooth, with a gentle increase in force until the last snap of the wrist. The motion is most like the wind-up and release of a baseball pitcher. The wrist snap at the end of the throw lends a controlling motion to the dart’s flight.
For long distance, the wind-up and approach is like that of a javelin thrower. The release is at a much higher angle (41°) for maximum distance.
For accuracy, a subtle lunge seems to give you better follow-through. Some believe this is due to the fact that the lowering of the body keeps the pivot point at the spur on an even plane with the original starting point (see illustration).
The release of the dart becomes almost imperceptible, as is the aim. If you can throw a ball well, you can refine your ability with the atlatl.
Modern substitutes can be used for faster results until you refine your work with native materials. This substitute may fly in the face of aesthetics, but until one first knows what to do, how to do it, and can do it habitually (Callahan), you save a lot of time, and waste of good native materials. Simply join two XX 2317 Easton Arrow shafts together by cutting and gluing a short piece of 2117 shaft into the junction. If you glue only one end, you have a breakdown shaft. Fletch and add a field tip just as you would any arrow. (Never throw this near people. To add safety, substitute a rubber blunt for the field tip.)
Glue a regular tip insert into the butt end, and ream it out with a counter-sink bit. This gives you a solid and well-shaped cup that will rest securely against the spur. You can make a dozen of these practice darts in one evening for about $35.
Making the Atlatl
The atlatl and dart must be tuned to match each other. The ancient Basketmaker atlatls described below provide a good model to start with, and work well with the darts from the Easton “tribe”. Rigid models work well with heavy harpoons and long abo-spears, but the atlatl and dart must be designed with some flex to it if you expect distances to increase. Just about any wood will do (mahogany, oak, ash, birch, cedar, cottonwood, alder, etc.), and the design and size are as limitless as the number of people making them, although most share the same common components.
Handles—The handle allows you to control the atlatl during the throw without casting it down-range with the dart. It must be long enough to extend across the palm of the hand and allow full leverage on the wrist snap.
Finger loop or holes—These may or may not be used. The size of the loop is determined by the type of grip you choose to use. Many atlatls provide notches, finger holes or a narrowed waist that improves grip.
Shaft—The length of the shaft may range from 6 inches to 3 feet. An average length of 60.2 centimeters (24 inches) found on ten Basketmaker atlatls is a good size.
Flute—Many atlatls have no center groove (male). The groove in the atlatl may be a short one or run the entire length of the shaft. Its function is to hold the dart in line with the atlatl (long flute and flush spur-female) or to simply allow the butt cup to line up with a raised spur when the spur is part of a short flute (mixed).
Spur—The spur is a blunt nipple that allows the butt cup to pivot as the atlatl completes the throwing arc. It should be blunt so that it doesn’t hook the dart upon release. It may be inlaid into the flute, carved into the flute (integral) or added to the flat surface of the shaft (attached). It may be made of bone, antler, wood, metal, etc.
Weight—Artifact weights average about 40-60 grams. Their function is to slow the bend of the atlatl, concentrate force and time its recoil to that of the dart. It should be placed at the point of flex on the atlatl shaft, and can be moved up and down the shaft until it is properly tuned to the dart. Multiple weights can be added.