Almost there!

[mlawson]

I almost got this one perfect! I'll probably be selling it in the next month or so, but I want to hang on to it until I make another, for comparison purposes. I'll keep you posted.

Mike

[Mountaineer]

Wow!
VERY nice looking whip.

[Nexus6]

I agree, it's awesome.

But you say it's "almost perfect"; what's wrong with it?

[mlawson]

There's just a few minor cosmetic things, the strand drop from 8-6 is not as clean as I would like. I also had to drop a strand that broke, and pull one from the core; it's a clean drop but not invisible. Otherwise it's good I think.

I agree, it's awesome.

But you say it's "almost perfect"; what's wrong with it?

[Noah]

Great job on the whip!

[Marhala]

It's got some vintage look to it, that I really like.

Very good job! Congrats!

Aldo.

[thefish]

Now, I'm a big believer in not judging the quality of a whip until I've handled it, because I've seen a good number that the overlay looks quite nice, but they didn't handle well because the maker either screwed up the belly, or didn't take his time on it.

That said, it looks great! And if it handles great, I wouldn't worry about those cosmetic imperfections. You've crafted a hand-cut, hand plaited, hand rolled, hand-finished item out of all-natural materials.

I can find small cosmetic imperfections in ALL of my whips, (I can show you exactly where the dropped strands are on my old Strain, on my Nolan Indy, and you should SEE some of the gapping in the overlay on my Jacka!) But they handle beautifully and are accurate as can be.

A true artisan will always know EVERY flaw in his own work, and it will stand out in glaring detail to them. Others won't even notice, and if they do, it won't matter.

Just saying you've made a beautiful whip here. "Perfect" is ellusive, and a rare thing indeed. You could probably ask every whipmaker worth his salt on here if they've ever made a "perfect" whip, and the answer would be no, (ask their customers, and you might hear a different story though.) It is a worthy pursuit, however.

Keep up the great work! There are too few good whipmakers left in the world!

All the best,

-Dan

[mlawson]

Thanks for the words of encouragement Dan. I've already figured out that I will always be chasing "perfection". What I really meant, is that I almost got it "perfect" to my expectations of what I wanted it to be, I can always accept the eccentricities of a hand-crafted product and indeed celebrate them. I imagine that every maker has a threshhold of acceptable flaws, and I was striving for something just a little bit more. Having said all that, I'm really pleased with it and I think it looks great. It's a great performer too

Mike

Now, I'm a big believer in not judging the quality of a whip until I've handled it, because I've seen a good number that the overlay looks quite nice, but they didn't handle well because the maker either screwed up the belly, or didn't take his time on it.

That said, it looks great! And if it handles great, I wouldn't worry about those cosmetic imperfections. You've crafted a hand-cut, hand plaited, hand rolled, hand-finished item out of all-natural materials.

I can find small cosmetic imperfections in ALL of my whips, (I can show you exactly where the dropped strands are on my old Strain, on my Nolan Indy, and you should SEE some of the gapping in the overlay on my Jacka!) But they handle beautifully and are accurate as can be.

A true artisan will always know EVERY flaw in his own work, and it will stand out in glaring detail to them. Others won't even notice, and if they do, it won't matter.

Just saying you've made a beautiful whip here. "Perfect" is ellusive, and a rare thing indeed. You could probably ask every whipmaker worth his salt on here if they've ever made a "perfect" whip, and the answer would be no, (ask their customers, and you might hear a different story though.) It is a worthy pursuit, however.

Keep up the great work! There are too few good whipmakers left in the world!

All the best,

-Dan

[kwad]

Mlawson,
Very nice color on that one (Amber shellac?).

I agree with thefish, how it handles is the most important thing.

Just remember, perfectionists never achieve perfection. They just end up with alot of satisfied customers.

[mlawson]

Haha! It's actually a clear shellac on this one.

Mlawson,
Very nice color on that one (Amber shellac?).

I agree with thefish, how it handles is the most important thing.

Just remember, perfectionists never achieve perfection. They just end up with alot of satisfied customers.