bullwhips

Stoneman

Stoneman

Active Member
I'm more of a lurker than a poster on these forums, but someone suggested I put up some pics over here. Not really knife related but I know a lot of you guys like playin with paracord.

I make them using methods very similar to those used in leather whips. The handles are 8mm steel spikes, the thongs are made from either 550 or 650 gutted paracord , steel shot for weight, and some artificial sinew to bind the transition. This helps stiffen the point where the handle meets the thong. I make the poppers out of the inner strands from the paracord, polypropylene twine, or kevlar thread.

Nylon whips are weatherproof, won't rot, don't require dressing to be rubbed on or any other maintenance, can be washed with soapy water, and are much less expensive than a cow or roo hide whip.

For those who don't already know, the *crack* of a whip is a result of the cracker/popper (little white fluffy bit on the end) breaking the sound barrier. The whip is man's first supersonic tool.


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As someone who spent every penny of my allowance on Raiders of the Lost Ark movie tickets and comic books when it first came out, all I can say is WOW!! Those are cool!

As someone who just likes craftsmanship, all I can say is WOW!! Those are cool!

Thanks for sharing 2thumbs
 
Mate, that's fantastic.

I've thought about trying some whip braiding but the leather cost has put me off.

Where are you putting the bb weights?
 
The BBs are used as a weighted core (runs approx. 1/2 the length of the finished whip) 2 bellies and an overlay are plaited on top of this core.

At first I was filling emtpty strands of paracord, but I've found some 3/8 sinker cord to use now. It does the same job, but being a little larger makes feeding the BBs in so much easier.
 
Stoneman has very patiently answered questions for me on several occasions. I will vouch for his good character if anyone is thinking of ordering from him.
 
Nice! Wish I had me one. That, a knife and a slingshot would make for a very fun day.

Pat
 
thanks to everyone for the kind words, it put a big smile on my face this morning:D.
I don't want to get in trouble and have this turn into a "for sale" type thread, so I've responded to some folks in PMs or emails instead of posting prices in here.
 
That is some great work. I've done a little braiding on much smaller items and it made my hands cramp up and hurt very much bad. I can't imagine being able to braid those whips.
 
once you get past the blisters and work up some callous it's not too bad. When I first started I did get some finger cramping as well, but that also goes away with time.
 
I've got 3 or 4 more finished up and ready for knots. Just tied the Turk's heads on this one this morning. It's 5 feet long and has a shorter handle than I usually make, about 5" between the knots.

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When I was in high school I braided several from 12' to 16' from the Tandy Catalog. I really enjoyed them. This was back in the late '50s and before the Raider's rage.
BTW Welcome to KD and don't worry about quoting prices. Folks are interested.
 
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Wayne Coe said:
When I was in high school I braided several from 12' to 16' from the Tandy Catalog. I really enjoyed them. This was back in the late '50s and before the Raider's rage.
BTW Welcome to KD and don't worry about quoting prices. Folks are interested.
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Yeah I agree also if you just throw up general prices I dont see a problem.
Its when you are actually making a for sale thread, thats when it needs to be in the correct section.

Awesome whips by the way!!
 
thanks guys:D

as long as I'm not breaking any rules I don't mind posting the price. I just recently changed the way I price them, it was a little confusing before.

I don't make them shorter than 5 feet, but can go up to pretty much any length

They are $15 per foot, up to around 10 feet. After that I will have to charge a little bit more (case by case, depends on the finished length). The time it takes to plait them starts to get crazy in the really long ones.

the way they are measured is the braided length, from the butt end to the fall knots. I don't include the fall or cracker in the length.
 
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