eski Sep 11, 2008:

Thanks for the compliment, Patricia-you flatter me; I'm glad the link helped you.

Patricia Rosas (asker) Sep 11, 2008:

Eski: You may not be an "expert atlatlist" but you are a fantastic researcher. That document (the link is broken above, but I found it anyway) is fabulous. I've searched 3 times, and only gotten very poorly written or short explanations and terrible drawings and few photos. So, thanks again! Just give me some time and I'll eventually post what I put in the finalized translation... Best, Patricia

eski Sep 11, 2008:

NOTE TO PATRICIA: As I said, I'm no expert on the subject, but from what I've researched , the following link may help you to identify the element you seek:

I've found that atlatl dart shafts do not need to be perfectly straight. ... We'll be making a fore-shaft that will have a taper to it that will mirror the ...
photos.imageevent.com/paleoaleo/atlatls/Making%20a%20Rivercane%20Atlatl%20Dart.doc - Páginas similares

Patricia Rosas (asker) Sep 11, 2008:

I may have made a terrible mistake ... Deborah and Eski: I think I've really gotten confused and I want to try to set the record straight. I read your answers and looked at various links. Most of what I saw described 3 parts, the dart, the handle (or what I though was the fore-shaft), and the knocking point (or maybe nock, as Deborah had it). But now I realize that this paragraph is describing just the dart (that is, the part that flies through the air). When I went back to proofread today, I realized that the next paragraph says: que sería arrojado por el átlatl o tiradera. Este consta de una larga pieza de madera, de 55 cm de largo por un ancho de 3.5, con un canal en el centro y un gancho en uno de sus extremos. Sobre el canal colocaban el dardo, recargado sobre el gancho, mientras que en el otro extremo dos escotaduras servían para apoyar los dedos; el conjunto era impulsado con gran fuerza sobre el blanco.

I am so rattled and short on time that I'm going to have to wait until tomorrow to do more research, but I'll be back and make another posting with anything I might come up with ...

eski Sep 11, 2008:

Muchas gracias Patricia, y gracias por la informacion!