jerryrwm

Try putting a couple drops of eucalyptus oil in the mix.

Here's a post of some of my whips and other items. Aggiebraider - maybe you might look at that maroon whip I posted and see what you think. http://leatherworker.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=17757 Jerry

Yanno... it's work like this that keeps the rest of us motivated and inspired. Not to be better than the other guy so much, but to improve what we have done in the past. My wife tells me that my best whip is always the next one I make. I forget where I read the quote, but when someone asked a 70 year old braider how long it took him to make a particular piece, he leaned back in his chair, tilted his hat back and after as moment of reflection he replied, "it took me 70 years to produce that piece." We are our most critical eye when it comes to our work. We know where we dropped a strand when making a whip, and we know where that thin strand that stretched a little too juch is, and we can always find where we started and finished a knot. They just jump out at us and we are surprised that others can't see it. So we either redo, or we make another and add the experiences and learning to the next best piece. With all the above long-windedness above, I just wanted to say Great job. I'm looking forward to the next item you post. Jerry

First, thanks to all for the kind words. I had a good time putting that one together although it took a good while to complete. The other knife that grandad made is destined for a rawhide handle. Need to work on getting the strings cut and in order. Mike, As I see it, "fid work" is braiding. It differs from what we term as traditional plaiting/braiding due to the fact that usually the foundation strands are put on first. These strands usually spiral in one direction around the project. The next set of strands that will complete the project are then braided/woven into the foundation. Since the foundation strands should be fairly tight, the use of a fid makes the weaving easier. Hence the term "fid work" One could braid/plait the same project in the traditional under/over sequence making the patterns as he goes, but since it is usaully many, many narrow strings it gets quite tedious and at times downright confusing and tedious. Of course I could be way off on the explaination and totally mis-informed. But that's my story and I'm stickin' to it for the time being. Jerry

Just a couple shots of a knife that I redid the handle on. It was made by my grandfather in the 40s and as long as I could remember it had a deer foot handle. When my Dad gave it to me, the original handle was broken and in really bad shape. I fitted it with an oak handle and then did a little 48 strand fid work using natural roo. Dad was pretty pleased when he saw it. Jerry (Tape on the blade to prevent severe bleeding)

Sounds like it was maybe glycerine soap. If you would shave it down and dissolve it in some water and add some kidney fat or lard if you can't find the fat, then after it is all emulsified, use an electric mixer and whip it until you have the consitency of pudding, you'll have a good plaiting soap.

You could make the core like the making of an Australian style stock whip. They use Tohiti cane and then insert a spring steel rod. This allows the handle to flex without too much added weight. One source of these rods is from cloth or canvas golf bags. One source of cane is polo mallet shaft. The whipmakers secure the cane in a vise or clamp, then use a drill and insert the spring steel rod that way. Or you could make the core of split bamboo around a spring steel shaft. Then dress it up and plait over it Anything much heavier than the steel rod and the finished item gets to be a bit burdensome when having to ride a horse and carry this crop in the proper position. The braiding over it would probably be a simple 12 plait cowstail braid. Basically U3O3 pattern.

Roll the knots on a hard surface. The strings must be of proper moisture like you would have for braiding. The firmness of the surface will cause the strands to 'set' in place. I use a piece of polished oak and my marble slab. Makes a smooth knot when rolled properly. You can use the mallet to help keep it's shape. Jerry

Calvin, I usually start the building of a knot foundation by tying a turk's head that is inserted into the strands. This forms an anchor point. Then build up from there. Add a little tape, add another turk's head, maybe more tape. Then the final knot over all that. Florist tape works well. Cloth type electrican's tape is also good. Not an expert at bosals so I'll leave that alone. Welcome to the list. Hullabaloo Caneck Caneck! Amen Jerry TAMU '76

Grant's Books are a must have. Tom Hall's are right there also Robert Woolery has some good info Gail Hought's books have some excellent resources. David Morgan has excellent tips and hints on basics. Ron Edwards books on Whips and Turks Heads and handle coverings are loaded with info Also editions of "The Australian Whipmaker" available through the Australian Plaiters & Whipmakers Assn. published originally by the late Ron Edwards. Dennis Bush has a good primer on whipmaking. Do searches and you can find some of these books out there.

Depends on what you're making. Might need to split it down a bit for some of the items that are made. Where did you find a 'roo hide that thick? Birdsalls? You can make a decent whip with hide that thick. But don't try to make the overlay strands too narrow.

The core is usually a 6" - 8" length of latigo that is tapered from about 3 mm to a point. After I cut it to tapered length, I roll it to try and make it as round and symetrical as possible. I attach it to the bag, by placing about an inch or so inside the bag before loading the shot. Then using artificial sinew, I wrap it with a whipping of the sinew. It doesn't take much, and you don't want to much that would make a stiff spot in the whip. Tie it enough so that you can pack the heck out of the shot. Once you put the bolster and belly on over the shot bag, there won't be much space for the core to come out of the bag. Then when you plait the overlay everything should be firm and tight and straight. Hope that helps, Jerry

When rolling I use a piece of lumber - that is wrapped with brown wrapping paper and roll the piece on a marble slab. I have a 24" x 30" x 1" marble slab that I got from a construction site dumpster. They had cut it out of a marble counter top for a sink. I followed them down to the dumpster because they were not allowed to give it to anyone - it had to officially become garbage before anyone could take it. Roll your braiding by holding the board at an angle rather than perpendicular to the braiding. This will prevent rolling a groove into the finished work. Also, if you use a finish on the braiding such as shellac or something similar, roll the work between coats of shellac. It does really help smooth it out. Jerry

When I am doing any kind of plaiting with kangaroo I go through the same steps every time. Cut the strands to desired width plus about a mm wider. When making a set for a whip, they are tapered as I cut. (Use a D Williams cutter.) When making tack, hatbands, lanyards, dog leads, etc. they are all cut same width the full length. Then the strands are stretched. Tie them off and stretch them between the fingers while walking backwards. (No more tension than I use when plaiting.) This step reduces broken strands when plaiting. And breaking a 25' strand when making a whip is a real pain. Really dislike having to plait in and hide a broken strand. It can be done and if done correctly, it is nearly impossible to find. Then I run the laces through the splitter. Usually to the thinnest part of the hide. To thin and you end up with paper thin laces that won't stand up to much use. Especially on whips that are used frequently. Then skive (bevel) the edges. Plaiting tack and leads, etc. I use a beveler. Can't remember who made it. Had it for about 15 yrs. Still works fine. Skiving a whip overlay is a little bigger pain in the butt with the beveler because the strands are tapered . So I use a scalpel and a leather wrap on the finger. Then just walk backwards and keep a steady pressure on the blade and don't let the lace 'chatter' across the finger wrap. For up to 16 plait whips I skive flesh side only. For 16 and above it's all four corners. Makes the final product feel like glass. I use a lard, glycerine soap, water, and beeswax mixture for plaiting soap. Makes it easier to get a tight plait which is critical when making whips. Then what ever the plaited item is, it gets rolled on the marble slab. As my old Aussie mentor said, "Mate, ya hafta rawl the pisss outta 'er ta make 'er smooth." Another hint - if you stop plaiting and tie off the laces when taking a break - smoke or bathroom - take the project out of the vice and roll it on the slab. This sets the plaiting that you just finished and helps keep it tight. Give it a go and good luck. Jerry

You'll have to adapt the pattern for 18 but it might get a little dicey since you are working with odd numbers on each side. You might consider going to 20 plat. Most of the patterns in handles seem to work better in multiples of four. -8, 12, 16, 20, 24, etc. Give it a go and see what happens

You sure you didn't get that mixed up with "brats" ?? I mean what does Steven's Point know 'bout tamales? No where but Wisconsin does McDonald's have Johnsonville Brats.. To answer the other tamales question, I use sandwich bags with a rubber band. Helps keep them from unraveling too quickly and makes the untangling a lot easier. I also keep them at different lengths so they are less likely to tangle. Doesn't always work out that way but it started out with good intentions. Jerry (Making sure the plow is on the truck for the next couple days, as they are looking for as much as 12" before Friday. We'll see.)

"Let me know what you think." I think I would like one of those for my Dad. It would look good on that new Akubra he'll be sporting soon. Very nice work as always. Jerry R.

Ron Edwards - "How To Make Whips" is a good primer. Simon Martin -Martin Whips and Bernie W. - EM Brand Whips each have some pretty good tutorials and CDs available. Encyclopaedia of Rawhide and Leather Braiding by Bruce Grant will keep you busy with knots and braiding. His whip example leaves a lot to be desired. David Morgans books "Braiding Fine Leather" will give you some nice projects and good tips that can be applied to whip making. His "Whips and Whipmaking" is not really a how-to book. Gail Hought has some excellent books on braiding that have some of the best illustrations going. Mike Murphy and Peter Jack also have some good tutorials. If he is serious, in addition to the books make sure he gets good equipment and tools. Don't 'half-step' when it comes to tools. Sure you can make a fine whip with nothing more than a sharp pocket knife, but you better have some idea of what you want to accomplish and a darn steady hand. Whipmaking differs from other plaiting mainly because the strands are tapered and they are of different lengths and need to be 'dropped' into the plaiting to give the whip the proper taper and balance. It is definately a little more involved than making a 4 strand dog leash. So get him the right tools and the books and then practice. Good luck, Jerry

Dave, It depends on the type of whip you want to make as to what type of leather you will use. If you are working on a 4 plait stock whip, then get a strip of latigo or veg-tanned cowhide in 6-7 oz. You can then bevel the edgeds and taper the strings down to their points. You can use this thickness to make a 6 plait whip if you wish. You can use the same thickness to make a serviciable American or Indy style whip of 6 plait. Adam Winrich makes a very fine whip that he calls his Indy On A Budget whip. It is cowhide and 4 plait. It is 6-7 oz cowhide I think. If you are looking at making a finer plait 12-16-24 etc. then you will probably want to use kangaroo. 'Roo makes finer strands of stronger tensile strength, but it is not as forgiving to the novice whipmaker. If you are really adventurous, then venture into the world of rawhide. Some mighty fine whips have been made using rawhide. For the cowhide, stay with veg tanned or alum tanned hides. Stay away from chrome tanned or garment leather. Good luck, and remember to "pull tight - plait loose" and keep your seams straight. Jerry R

Thanks for the kind words. Knots on whips are the show piece. A well constructed knot adds that little extra to a whip, so I take particular care when tying them on. As for the 3' mini - I usually make them as signal whips and they are constructed of a shot bag and core, a 4 strand belly, a bolster, and a 16 plait overlay. I did make a true 48" snake whip with a 32 plait overlay for a customer, but my eyes are not up to it anymore, and most people don't want to spend $500.00 for a 4' whip. The finish I use is clear Shellac, and I usually dilute it 1 part shellac to 2 part denatured alcohol. Then apply one coat, let it dry, roll the whip on by marble slab, and then one more coat of the Shellac mix.

I just came across a couple of pictures of a project that I did a couple years ago. It is a wooden chest that is covered with rawhide. The rawhide is joined at the seams with a Spanish edge braid, while the darker insets are 5 strand appliques. It is all done in elk rawhide. There are over 5000 holes puched in the hide so that the lace could be applied in the various patterns. I hand cut all the laces, dyed the applique laces and then put the whole thing together. The second picture shows what the box looked like after they had attached the hardware and antiqued the whole thing. It was antiqued using some sort of wood stain that was sprayed on. The chest was made to be used as a prop in the movie "Alamo" that was filmed in Central Texas a number of years ago. It didn't make it into the movie, but I did catch a glimpse of it on the DVD. It was behind Dennis Quaid in one scene that was an out-take. After the movie was filmed I don't know what became of the chest. Hope someone made good use of it.

No you're not missing anything. A 6 plait is always going to look like it does because of the odd number of strands on each side. If you want it to look symetrical then you will need to plait O1U1O1. That's it. Bernie W of EM Brand Whips in Tasmania used to plait the end of his thong in O1U1O1 for a 6 plait finish. He felt it gave the tail end of the whip a little better liveliness plus a sysmetrical finish. An easier solution would be to start using 8 strands. Cut the laces a little narrower or increase the size of the core and you can plait U2O2 all the way to the end. Your choice. Plaiting is a mathematical function and the laws of mathematics cannot be changed. (Dang that almost sounded philosophical. Naaa - not from this old mossy head.) G' Luck Jerry

Well you are getting closer. His name is David Morgan. The other guy's name is Ron Edwards who wrote "How To Make Whips". Also check out David's other book Braiding Fine Leather. Jerry

You can use the silver duct tape - the metallic duct tape, not the grey duck tape. It won't add much weight, but then again you don't usually need much to help balance a whip. If you are using the wooden handle, drill a pilot hole and you can secure a piece of steel sprike in place. Cut it off flush with your handle and then tie a pineapple knot on the butt end to cover it.

Arno, Very good looking bracelets. Nice tight work. Jerry