Club Obi Wan

For those of you who may already know about a month ago BullWhipBorton (Dan) posted a comment saying that he has never run into a nylon whip that he liked. I commented back saying nylon whips are like every other whip it depends on the whip maker that you are getting it from. Sooooo I put out kind of a challenge, I told him I would send him one of my nylon bullwhips that I make free of charge to try out and tell me and all here what he thought of it. I also said in one of my posts it has been my goal to try and make my nylon whips handle and look as close to a higher priced kangaroo whip as I can. So here are a few pictures of the finished whip that I am sending to Dan to try out, so what do you guys think.




Keep Cracking

James
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Tis a very nice looking whip!
16plait?
I too am a fan of nylon!
Ron

It looks fine, but it is still NYLON.
Sorry, but I am very old school.
But, once I said I'd never get a cell phone, now I can't be without one.
So, who knows? Maybe there will be a NYLON whip in my future.

Hey it looks great! I've never seen a nylon whip like this one before. Excellent work and i'm pretty sure that he'll like it. At least i really like it.

Can you post a picture next to a "famous maker" roo whip?
Curious about the dimentional comparison.
Also what does it weigh?
Ron

Here is a shot of my nylon whip compared next to one of Bernardo del Carpio beautiful kangaroo raider style whips. (hope it is all right Bernardo that i'm using one of your pictures for comparison) I feel that Bernardo has mastered that raiders look that we all want and love. Also I feel that the whip has a good weight to it, does not feel light compared to other nylons that i have handled closer to the weight of leather.






Keep Cracking

James

Thanks James,

My exact quote can be found here viewtopic.php?p=416435 and it was

I have a hard time recommending nylon whips, as I’ve never come across one that really wowed me and won me over.

I’ve tried many nylon bullwhips, from many different whip makers, so this wasn’t just a blind comment. I won’t say that all of the nylon whips I have had experience with where bad or poor quality, because they weren’t, they are just different.

I’m used to working with primarily good to excellent quality leather whips and I’ve been doing so for along time. While I think that nylon bullwhips have come along way in recent years, I think they still have room for improvement. To me the overall weight, density and internal “looseness” of the plaited nylon just didn’t seem to translate well. They seem to lack the tightness and progressive flexibility in the thong, which you are more apt to get in a well-made leather whip. I dont want to make this this about leather vs nylon though, because so much of whip cracking is about personal preference. I know others who disagree with me and swear by nylon whips, which is fine. But to me, they don't feel quite right; especially for a what I think a high performance bullwhip should be.

Now I know from taking with James that he has attempted to make this whip perform more like a higher end leather Indy style bullwhip, or as close to as he can get, So I am looking forward to getting it and trying it out and working with it. I am very anxious to see if he has been able to accomplish his goal, which I hope he has.

My first impression upon seeing these pictures of the bullwhip is that it looks very well made. The plaiting seems pretty straight and even and the whip has a nice shape and taper to it. Of course I’ll know more after getting it, inspecting it first hand and using it. While I don’t plan on being overly abusive to it, I do plan to use it and test it under less desirable conditions where I wouldn’t use my Kangaroo or even my cowhide whips. If there are any areas that I think may need improving, I’ll let James know so that he can work on those if he so chooses. I’ll also post some photos and video of my own of the whip, as well as some with my other Indy bullwhips for those who would like to see the comparisons. It will be interesting to see if it meets my personal expectations on how a whip should perform though, as well as how well it breaks in and holds up it use under many conditions, stay tuned.

Dan

Don't forget to swing on it.

I'm kind of impressed with how that nylon whip turned out. It looks pretty good. Can you make it more of a Raiders color? Is there natural tan colored nylon out there?

Do you mean more of a color like this.



Keep Cracking

James

Yes!

Looks great, do you sell whips like this?

Yes I do, my website is www.classicbullwhips.com I sell nylon, cowhide and kangaroo indy style bullwhips.

Keep Cracking

James

Hello, do you ship to Mexico City? Thanks.

I can ship to Mexico City the shipping will be a little more then it is advertised on my site.

Keep Crackin

James

Hi James,

A very nice looking whip. I've been considering trying nylon. I checked out your website and noticed you only picture bullwhips. Do you also do aussie style stock whips?

Regards,

Charles

bump

At this current time I only make bullwhips in any material that I offer. I am however working on adding them into my line of products but it will not be for some time. I know there are a few whipmakers that offer nylon stock whips but in all honesty I have heard bad things about them. Sorry that I could not help you out better then that.

Keep Cracking

James

nice whip!
is there anyone who have made a Young Indy whip out of nylon? i would love to see one!




regards


CJ

Dan just let me know that he got the demo whip I made for him today, he try it out for only about an hour or so today. He sounded very happy and surprised on how well it looked and handled . So look for his comments and a full review from him coming soon

Keep Cracking

James

The nylon demo Indiana Jones style bullwhip James made arrived yesterday.

It has very Raiders of the Lost Ark feel, being a bit thinner then most other Indy bullwhips. Weight wise it’s not too heavy but not excessively light either. I’d classify it as a light to medium weight bullwhip. The shape and taper was pretty good with a lot of the weight and balance of the whip carried forward, extended out into the thong. The plaiting itself was good. Very tight with straight seems, no spiraling or twisting, no real noticeable gaps. As I understand it his nylon bullwhip are made with hollow 450 Nylon para cord. They start with a steel handle and a hollow piece of 450 Nylon para cord fill with BB's as the weighted core, then two plaited bellies, a 6 plait belly and then an 8 plait belly with a 16 plait overly. Over all the construction seems pretty sound and it is a very nice looking 16-plait Indy style whip.

After inspecting it closely, I took it out in the yard and worked with it for about an hour or so. It cracked very nicely. It preformed all the basic throws, the Cattlemen’s crack, flicks, overheads etc, and there respected variations with out too much effort. The whip rolled out well, produced a sharp crisp crack and handled most of the more complex combinations I put it though just fine. It also preformed quite accurately with target cutting, I was able to zero in on the targets easily with out the whip wondering too much from side to side..

It had a couple of very favorable characteristics; One was that it very solid and stiff from the get go. It didn’t suffer for that limp rope syndrome that some nylon whips from some makers unfortunately do. Another thing was the fall design on this whip. James used a twisted nylon fall, as opposed to a straight thin piece of nylon lace. I think this was a big improvement as it gave it a better over all shape to the whip and a better transition from the thong to the popper as the weight & thickness of the thong didn’t overpower the fall as it rolled out which it might have happened with a shoe string type fall.

While I am not a nylon whip convert just yet, I still prefer well made Kangaroo hide whips, I was pleasantly surprised with how this whip preformed for me. From past experiences with A LOT of nylon bullwhips, I probably wasn’t expecting a whole lot to begin with so it certainly exceeded my expectations. He did a good job making this whip.

Clearly a big part of how good any whip is, is its longevity and how it holds up to repeated use over time. Whips change as they are broken in and worked, they either get better or worse. I'll try this one out over the next several weeks, post some photos and video of the whip in action and discuss with James what I like about it and what I think could be improved, even though my fist impression was good. It should be interesting to see how it performs and holds up. At that time I’ll either buy it to keep or return it to James, Stay tuned!

In the mean time, I know a few of you wanted to see a comparison photo with other Indy Bullwhips.

Top:David Morgan, Natural tan Kangaroo 10ft
Middle: ClassicBullwhips Brown nylon 8ft
Bottom: Strain Saddle Tan Kangaroo 6ft

http://img168.imageshack.us/img168/7544/dscf0040sm3.jpg
http://img167.imageshack.us/img167/1832/dscf0046ur5.jpg

(The color is a little off from the flash, making them all look brighter then they really are. I’ll try to get some better ones in natural light soon.)

This really, really makes me want to get my hands on a nice nylon whip from an experienced maker.

Watching the very, very young whip snappers on Mike Murphy's Deuling Whips DVD make me think that nylon could be a fantastic medium for a young cracker (or or anyone else who need to crack a whip in the harsh conditions that would be so rough on real roo). When I was a kid, I took all of the things I loved into really harsh conditions; nylon could be really really nice for a younger whip enthusiast.

Also, the possibility of matched whips could be much more economical in nylon for those hobbists who want to get started on the "fancy" two-handed stuff.

I will be watching this thread with great interest, and I'd love to hear how this whip does over time.

I wonder, would an 18 or 20 plait nylon whip be any heavier-- to give it more of a feel to which those with leather whips are more accustomed?

Mannie,
A higher plait count would add some weight, but a lot of diameter as well.
You could always supplant the steel shot or bb's for lead for added weight with out making it too fat...
Ron

For those interested, I just uploaded a quick demo video of this very nylon bullwhip in action. So you can see it performing some basic cracks and combinations.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F2CUqJEo1Xc

Here is also a higher res picture of the demo bullwhip in natural lighting.
http://img516.imageshack.us/img516/775/dscf0026cs2.jpg

Dan

WOW it really lays out very nicely!
from a distance it looks like it performs like a roo....

im just a newbie, so my opinion probably doesnt go far, but i know what your talking about with the floppy rope syndrome of nylon whips. you can defiantnly tell in the video when you lay it out behind you before the flicks.... the stiffness of the transition is very obvious there.

I can see the "wet noodle" idea behind it but it does seem to flow out very nicely! Thanks for posting the video BWB!

Nice smooth style of whip cracking there, Dan! I've seen all your videos, and you are a real master with a whip.

Amazing whip! how do you attach the twisted fall? It is made of one piece of paracord fold in two?

Hey Bullwhip,

So, it's been a while, is your nylon whip "broken in"? How does it handle now? Does it still look good (loose strands, stretching out, etc)? Did you buy the whip, or send it back. Inquirering minds want to know!

Dan S

I really like my nylon whip made by Steve Huntress. Now my 5 and 8 year olds are learning on it. Looks pretty cute to see a little girl cracking a whip.

Hey Bullwhip,

So, it's been a while, is your nylon whip "broken in"? How does it handle now? Does it still look good (loose strands, stretching out, etc)? Did you buy the whip, or send it back. Inquirering minds want to know!

Dan S

Hi Dan S, Thanks for bumping this thread back up to my attention.

Overall I was pretty happy with the Nylon bullwhip James made. Aside from the bullwhip becoming a bit more broken in from use over the last couple months, I haven’t noticed any negative physical changes or problems in the whip.

The plaiting is still very tight and it’s retained its shape and balance like well-made whip should. There was a slight issue with the base of the fall, but that had been addressed and fixed back in August. I did end up buying it, It’s a fun whip to use, especially if the weathers bad. It’s not going to replace my pro Kangaroo hide whips, but not a bad whip for the price. I was glad to add it to my collection.

Dan

Could you post a pic showing how stiff is transition zone? I'm curious how it looks after using whip for few months.

In that case Dan, I think I may pay attention to classicbullwhips nylon whips in the future then. Sounds like it may be a nice addition for nasty weather.
How about some upclose shots of the whip in areas with most abuse to see how it's holding up?

Even after a few months the transition is still somewhat stiff, but it's definitely more relaxed now the when it was first arrived.



http://img519.imageshack.us/img519/3804/dscf0019cf1.jpg
The main wear and tear is the last foot or two of the whip, and its pretty mild. Just a bit scuffing and fuzz; that’s about all. I tested it out on some rough surfaces.
http://img519.imageshack.us/img519/734/dscf0011fl5.jpg

This is coyote brown paracord - am I right? It's more like saddle tan or whiskey in roo whips?

This is coyote brown paracord - am I right? It's more like saddle tan or whiskey in roo whips?

You know, I really couldn’t say for sure. It is closer to a saddle tan in comparison, but I didn’t make any specific color requests. Classicbullwhips just said he'd make on that looked Like Indys, I am sure he would know though so hopefully he can add in when he sees your question.

Dan

Chocolate brown.
R

BullWhipBorton wrote:Even after a few months the transition is still somewhat stiff, but it's definitely more relaxed now the when it was first arrived.

http://img519.imageshack.us/img519/3804/dscf0019cf1.jpg
The main wear and tear is the last foot or two of the whip, and its pretty mild. Just a bit scuffing and fuzz; that’s about all. I tested it out on some rough surfaces.
http://img519.imageshack.us/img519/734/dscf0011fl5.jpg

that second picture really shows off the plaiting well..... looks nice and even.... no gaps etc........ looks like its holding up really well

And chocolate brown is the same as coyote brown? The darkest color of brown paracord is this dark brown - http://www.ubraidit.com/supplies-detail.php?item=27 ??

heres a bit more complete color chart...

chocolate brown looks a bit lighter than Dark brown

Is this whip balanced with lead or something like that? How much lead does it have? How much weights the whip?

Its actually a very light weight bullwhip.

There is no lead in it, but the whip was weighted by filling the hollow core strand of 450 Nylon Para cord with BB's.

So the turkshead isn't balanced? I've seen your clip with this whip and it cracks so good so I can't believe that it doesn't have lead under the TH

Balance has nothing to do with weight in the turkshead. Many questions come into balance, like where the weight in the thong is, how the transition was bound etc.