Slinging.org Forum - Bull whips

NooneOfConsequence

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Bull whips
Jul 14^th, 2019 at 11:30pm

Any bull whip makers in this crowd? I’ve been considering trying my hand at one. Any of you Aussies know of a good source for kangaroo leather? I’ve seen a few whole hides on Etsy and EBay, but I don’t know what would be a good price or if there are any things to look for quality-wise.

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“My final hour is at hand. We face an enemy more numerous and cunning than the world has yet seen. Remember your training, and do not fear the hordes of Judas. I, without sin, shall cast the first stone. That will be your sign to attack! But you shall not fight this unholy enemy with stones. No! RAZOR GLANDES! Aim for the eyes! May the Lord have mercy, for we shall show none!“ -Jesus the Noodler

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Kick past-moderator Offline Posts: 4451 Finland	Re: Bull whips Reply #1 - Jul 15^th, 2019 at 4:01am I've made some very simple whips, one with just lengths of cord covered in hockey tape and the other a paracord snakewhip that came out... ok. I would kill for an actual leather bullwhip, particularly a kangaroo one.
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Frondeur

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Re: Bull whips
Reply #2 - Jul 15^th, 2019 at 7:58am

I bought a pair of cheap bullwhips several months ago, just to get the feeling, and immediately started to braid one, out of PP cordage. It turned out pretty OK, despite a lot of nistakes in the conception. I also made a quick one, just to test some things.
Now I'm ready to braid another one, learning from previous experience... But no leather braiding for me. cords will do.

My first experiences with whipmaking has definely changed my way of braiding realese cords on slings...

I'll send photos as soon as I can. Wink

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NooneOfConsequence

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Re: Bull whips
Reply #3 - Jul 15^th, 2019 at 9:16am

I found a few small tanneries in Australia using google.com.au:
These two seem to have the best prices on veg tanned roo leather:

https://www.birdsall-leather.com.au/9LSDS/Drummed-stuffed-kangaroo-skin/pd.php

http://www.vacel.com.au/shop.html

Some of the other sites are charging 4x for what looks like a comparable hide, but it’s hard to know when so much can depend on the tanning process.

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“My final hour is at hand. We face an enemy more numerous and cunning than the world has yet seen. Remember your training, and do not fear the hordes of Judas. I, without sin, shall cast the first stone. That will be your sign to attack! But you shall not fight this unholy enemy with stones. No! RAZOR GLANDES! Aim for the eyes! May the Lord have mercy, for we shall show none!“ -Jesus the Noodler

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joe_meadmaker Slinging.org Administrator Offline Slinging Ice is Cool! Posts: 3272 PA, USA	Re: Bull whips Reply #4 - Jul 15^th, 2019 at 10:22am A whip is something I'd like to try at some point too. Leather would be awesome, but for the first one I'll probably use paracord. It's long, but if anyone hasn't seen this tutorial, you should check it out. It goes in to great detail, and the whip looks fantastic too. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cXuBs_wYsnI
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Rat Man Slinging.org Administrator Offline Slinging Rocks! Posts: 13915 New Jersey, USA Gender:	Re: Bull whips Reply #5 - Jul 17^th, 2019 at 6:27pm There was a good tutorial here a long time ago about making a bull whip out of duct tape. I wish I could remember who posted it. Does anyone recall?
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NooneOfConsequence

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Re: Bull whips
Reply #6 - Jul 18^th, 2019 at 9:30am

Duct tape? It probably looks good, but that sounds awful! Why put in all that effort for something that won’t last long? The tape gets brittle after a few years if it doesn’t wear out first.

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“My final hour is at hand. We face an enemy more numerous and cunning than the world has yet seen. Remember your training, and do not fear the hordes of Judas. I, without sin, shall cast the first stone. That will be your sign to attack! But you shall not fight this unholy enemy with stones. No! RAZOR GLANDES! Aim for the eyes! May the Lord have mercy, for we shall show none!“ -Jesus the Noodler

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JudoP

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Re: Bull whips
Reply #7 - Jul 20^th, 2019 at 8:44pm

I've just ordered a bunch of paracord and other stuff to make a bullwhip. It's something that I've always fancied trying actually, even as a kid I remember having a go with a heap of cladded wire I found, but it ended up pretty messy.

I'll probably be following a combination of youtube guidance and (slightly) my own instinct, but mostly the video linked above from NicksWhipShop.

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JudoP

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Re: Bull whips
Reply #8 - Jul 29^th, 2019 at 4:46pm

Finished the whip! It took a solid weekend and came out about 6ft + a 2ft fall + 8 inch cracker.

I'm pretty pleased with it overall, although I think the cord lengths given in the video were pretty low for me, I had to use 50% longer on the top layer to get it over the whole whip, and the lack of filling out from the inner layers means I have a nearly non-existent taper over the last 2ft of the whip, so if you are planning on following Nick's videos bear that in mind.

Went out to the park to try it this evening, it's surprisingly technical to crack, but when the timing is on it requires basically no effort for good loud bangs. Lasted about 10 mins before I got a noise complaint from a nearby house and decided to vacate Grin

Pics will arrive when I'm in and have decent lighting as my phone camera sucks in half light.

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joe_meadmaker Slinging.org Administrator Offline Slinging Ice is Cool! Posts: 3272 PA, USA	Re: Bull whips Reply #9 - Jul 29^th, 2019 at 5:07pm That's great! Looking forward to seeing it.
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Kick past-moderator Offline Posts: 4451 Finland	Re: Bull whips Reply #10 - Jul 30^th, 2019 at 3:37am Awesome! I would love to see pics too.
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Morphy Slinging.org Moderator Offline Checkmate Posts: 8221	Re: Bull whips Reply #11 - Jul 30^th, 2019 at 2:59pm Nice!
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JudoP

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Re: Bull whips
Reply #12 - Jul 30^th, 2019 at 3:59pm

Here it is.

Shot loaded core about halfway down, 6mm steel handle base, two bellies + overlay of braided paracord. Binding is a combination of hockey tape and artificial sinew, I would recommend this instead of electrical tape as it seems electrical tape degrades.

I may add a heel knot at some point, but probably gonna try make an improved version first. As you can see the cracker is already green from contact with the grassy floor Tongue

All in all not bad for a first whip, used about 150ft of paracord, a lot less than the 400ft I bought...

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whip_resized.jpg (615 KB | 74 )

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joe_meadmaker Slinging.org Administrator Offline Slinging Ice is Cool! Posts: 3272 PA, USA	Re: Bull whips Reply #13 - Jul 30^th, 2019 at 10:01pm Wow! That looks great! I definitely have to give that a try at some point.
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Kick past-moderator Offline Posts: 4451 Finland	Re: Bull whips Reply #14 - Jul 31^st, 2019 at 5:29am Beautiful work!
Back to top	You are a great guy Kick but also slightly scary at times. - Morphy "Nothing matters, but it’s perhaps more comfortable to keep calm and not interfere with other people." - H.P. Lovecraft, in a letter to Frank Belknap Long, 7 October, 1923 IP Logged