For Decatur-area flintknapper Don Smith, who sells the stone arrow points to hunters, the interest is picking up in business. Orders for his products have tripled since last year, he says. But if I can keep that growth going for the next few years, I'll actually be able to make some money off them. Stone arrow points are even sold on the Internet now, he says. In rural places especially.
Primitive archers say it's a combination of anti-technology mixed with a desire to preserve hunting.
But in a way, that's part of the allure of it, getting more back to nature, doing things the way things used to be done. There is one drawback, Smith advises. But it makes it so much more exciting to actually have that animal where you can practically reach out and touch it. Last week, Reese bagged a 4-point buck using his longbow, homemade arrows and one of Smith's stone points. It wasn't the biggest buck of his life.