Club Obi Wan

I received this whip as a gift from a friend of mine who used to live in Hungary. He still has family there and one of his cousins brought this over for me. It takes quite a bit of power to get it cracking, but that could be the user not the whip. The cracker is made out of Weeping Willow, but I will change that out to nylon when the time comes.

Let me know what you think.

Blue

That is one nifty-looking Hungarian whip! A similar one graces the cover of the new edition of David Morgan's "Whips and Whip Making."

Don't feel bad about having to really work to get a good crack out of it. I think most of us on this forum who are used to bulls and stocks would take a good 3-5 minutes to figure out how that little beast preferred to roll out!

In his book, Dave Morgan, (and this is one of the things I LOVE about the new edition,) discusses what he classifies as the two major whip-making styles. The Mongol whip and the Australian whip. The Hungarian whip is based heavily on Mongol influence, (from when they spread across Russia.) The physics are the same, but the design makes you approach it just a LITTLE differently.

Another part of the problem with getting it cracking is the length. Short whips are hard to learn on. Anything below a 5.5 or 6 foot thong is going to be a little harder to work with, (primarily because there's less distance to mass drop to get the whip to accelerate,) and also that stockwhip-like transition has to be a little hard to get used to as well.

If you're new to whip cracking, you might be better off to get a longer Australian-style whip to learn on, (I'd recommend 6 foot. Many people here would recommend 8. Bullwhip or stockwhip would be fine as well. Stockwhip might help out more with that Hungarian whip, but if you're an Indy fan...otherwise, why come here...you might want a bull to start your collection. There's no wrong answer, just preference.) Something simple in 4 or 8 plait will do.

Check out Adam Winrich's Indy-On-A-Budget, (where's my finders fee, Adam?) or check out what Mark Allen has to offer at Western Stage Props, (don't bother with those swivel handle or whip starter kits. Get something with an Australian style fall. You'll be a lot happier.)

Welcome aboard!

Dan

Fish,


Thanks for the warm welcome. It does not seem like it in the picture, but the whip is 6 feet in length, without the handle. I can make with whip crack without any problems, but it takes a lot more oopmh, than my friends indy style whip. Plus this whip is much heaver than than my friends whip.

I also like to learn from the harder things, then going to something like a indy whip will be easier to control.

Plus I use the whip to help with my martial arts training. Heaving around a heavy whip and using every muscle from the fingers down to my hips, and legs, really helps.

I do love the indy style whips, and hope to get one in the near future. I really want a 10 foot whip to practice with. I tried a 6 foot indy whip, and it was way to light for my liking. I like to know that the whip is out there...

Hmm..Must be all that decorative leather stuff that makes the thong look shorter. ;-)

Understand about the "Use something heavier so that the normal stuff comes easier." Do that often myself.

Anyhow, if you haven't seen it already, as a martial artist, you might want to check out Tom Meadows' book "The Filipino Fighting Whip." There's some really nifty stuff in there as far as how to utilize the bullwhip in the martial arts. Lots of stuff in there to apply to escrima and kali. It should help as it approaches whip from a perspective you're already familiar with.

All the best, welcome aboard, and happy cracking!

-Dan

Get that Hungarian Ca Ca out of here!!! Just messin' with ya. What's up T.M. Imagine my suprise to see you post here?

I think that whip is a 4 footer BTW. Handle, fall and cracker don't count in the length, just the thong in a stock whip. See ya Sunday.
Joe

Joe,


My mistake. I did not know that the length was for just the thong.

Hmmm, looks like I need a longer whip.......Too bad Christmas has already passed.

See ya Sunday.