Club Obi Wan

Since I'm currently breaking in a new whip (my first one), I started searching for posts regarding the best way to do it. The answer I found was just to use it.

So why the post, you ask?

I seem to recall posts that said that massaging the whip with you hands was not a good idea. I'm not talking about bending the thing until it creeks and moans . Just a gentle bending in all directions to try and loosen the fibers evenly in addition to using it. It would seem to me to be easier on the whip to do a little of both.

I would love to hear from the whipmakers as well as from the more experienced of the whip crackers...not that those two are mutually exclusive ... and if there are any cell biologists out there that can tell me what happens to the fibers under the different methods that would be great too.

Thanks,
Joe

When you treat the leather with a leather conditioner such as Pecard, you will find it makes a HUGE difference in the action on the whip. Apart from that, just using the thing will exercise the leather in the way it was intended. Working the whip with your hands will not exercise it as in a way the whip was made for.

A whip is made to transfer energy and momentum from your arm to the cracker in one fluid motion. Massaging the whip doesn't simulate this at all.

Just keep cracking.

scavoj wrote:Just a gentle bending in all directions to try and loosen the fibers evenly in addition to using it. It would seem to me to be easier on the whip to do a little of both

Well you wouldn't want to bend it against its natural curve anyway, because that would be bad for the whip. When you crack it, it forms a loop or hairpin curve shape, and that helps accelerate the whip to generate the 1.21 jigawatts you need to break the sound barrier. If you bent it against the curve, it take away from the whip's natural inclination to make that loop so easily.

When I visit Anthony with a new whip he likes to bend them a little bit, but he starts about maybe 6-8" from the ring knot and bends it with the curve from there, to train it to curve tightly, which is what he likes. The reason he skips that first few inches is because the transition is there and he doesn't want to break that. That would REALLY mess up your day!

Shane

McFly wrote:When I visit Anthony with a new whip he likes to bend them a little bit, but he starts about maybe 6-8" from the ring knot and bends it with the curve from there, to train it to curve tightly, which is what he likes. The reason he skips that first few inches is because the transition is there and he doesn't want to break that. That would REALLY mess up your day!

Excellent!! This is the kind of info I was looking for. I actually started doing this while working on the easy roll forward and backward close to the ground that he teaches in his video. Thanks, Shane.

Joe

If you're going to do that, start after the transition and go all the way to the fall hitch. It should be easy to bend - but sometimes you'll feel little kinks in the whip that are tighter than other spots, and you can work those spots a little bit more than the rest to ease them up.

Shane

You know, there are different schools of thought out there when it comes to breaking in a brand new whip, but the most widely accepted one is really still just to use it. You don’t need to break it in by any artificial means. Unless that whip has been sitting around a shop for months and months, you shouldn’t have too use leather dressing on a new whip. One its got more then enough oils still in it from it being made and two you don’t want to over condition it as that can be just as bad as letting it dry out too much. I remember reading through an old book on whip cracking that suggested soaking a new stiff whip in motor oil for 5 to 10 minutes to help loosen it up again not a good idea !

Like McFly mentions, Anthony Delongis likes to work the whips in his hand flexing them back and forth a bit to help to loosen them up. I prefer a more natural break in so usually don’t do this. But if your going to do that, whip maker Mike Murphy suggests the best way to do it is to slowly bend them back and forth while rotating it in your grip, flexing it evenly down the entire length of the thong.

One of the main problems though with trying to artificially break in a whip is most people don’t know when to stop, or how much is too much. So they over do it and run the risk of damaging the belly and stretching the plaiting, putting too much tension on the strand to the point they start to pulling it apart and gap, which can happen when you start cranking a whip back and forth flexing it more sharply then the whip was designed to bend.

Another though on this, is that whips; especially plaited leather whips are very dynamic items, which are designed to transfer energy though its curvature and taper. A new whip will adjust to the way you use them, by breaking it in gradually by using it, you are helping to develop a “memory” of sorts in the leather. This way the whip develops itself to your style and becomes your whip, not just a loose noodle. I know sometimes people will comment when they pick up someone else’s well broken in whip and try to use it, that it doesn’t handle as well for them, as it does the owner, I don't recall ever having that problem but this is thought to be the reason why...

Dan

Just for an FYI, usually when you feel a kink in a well-made whip it’s a result of a strand being dropped into the belly of the whip, as part of its tapered design. Some whip makers have a less noticeable drop, others are a little more pronounced but there really isn’t any way around it.

ichnob wrote:Just keep cracking.

Have to agree. I thought I "muscled" mine a bit too much, for the first 25 cracks or so, but found some good info on this site. Just use it and take care of it. If it's of any quality, you can't wreck it, if you follow a few simple instructions found on this website.

Well, after about 6 hours of use the Forehand Vertical Crack and the Sidearm Crack (DeLongis style) are starting to make a little pop. All other cracks on both his DVDs crack with little effort.

Something else I've noticed is that after the whip sits a while, I can find the natural curve without a problem, but after cracking a while, it's difficult to find. Sometimes it takes me a few seconds to turn it a time or two to find it.

Joe

Yep, nothing wrong with that. Chris Camp once told me the same thing; "find the curve, crack it." Not rocket science, as far as I'm concerned.

Joe,
Give it time, learn to "feel" where the whip wants to go to crack. All of my whips handle completely different and that took a while to get into my head to learn how to pay attention to when you "feel" the curve start to form. Once you have that down, all the cracks seem to fall into line.


Crack On!
Allen

Indiana County Jr. wrote:Joe,
Give it time, learn to "feel" where the whip wants to go to crack. All of my whips handle completely different and that took a while to get into my head to learn how to pay attention to when you "feel" the curve start to form. Once you have that down, all the cracks seem to fall into line.


Crack On!
Allen

I think the only reason that the Forehand Vertical and the Sidearm Crack haven't come along is because it's still a bit stiff...and the fact that the DeLongis style puts very little effort into it. If I were to muscle it, it would crack...but it's not about the crack....it's about the technique. I do crack with the curve and since I'm moving so slow I can feel it starting to loosen up (which is why I'm now getting the small pop).

Thanks,
Joe

bluzharp wrote:Yep, nothing wrong with that. Chris Camp once told me the same thing; "find the curve, crack it." Not rocket science, as far as I'm concerned.

By the way, Mr. Camp might know a few things about cracking a whip; so I had no choice but to believe him.

scavoj wrote:... and if there are any cell biologists out there that can tell me what happens to the fibers under the different methods that would be great too.

Thanks,
Joe

I talk to mine, in a calm soothing voice. Seems to work for my houseplants.

BullWhipBorton wrote:Like McFly mentions, Anthony Delongis likes to work the whips in his hand flexing them back and forth a bit to help to loosen them up. I prefer a more natural break in so usually don’t do this. But if your going to do that, whip maker Mike Murphy suggests the best way to do it is to slowly bend them back and forth while rotating it in your grip, flexing it evenly down the entire length of the thong.

One of the main problems though with trying to artificially break in a whip is most people don’t know when to stop, or how much is too much. So they over do it and run the risk of damaging the belly and stretching the plaiting, putting too much tension on the strand to the point they start to pulling it apart and gap, which can happen when you start cranking a whip back and forth flexing it more sharply then the whip was designed to bend.

For my leather and nylon whips, I've always just taken the natural route and cracked them. Admittedly, though, I have on occasion done some hand-flexing, but not much. I was unaware of the potential problem that could develop, so this is good to know.

Joe

This is all superb advice folks.
I'm about to become a bullwhip owner for the first time (I feel like an expectant father).
I always thought that when I first start to handle the whip, in order to find it's natural curve
I might place it on the ground straight out in front of me, pick it up and basically begin throwing it steadily back and forth, just to get the feel of it before even attempting to 'find the crack'. Something similar to fly fishing technique.
Would you say this was a good idea?
Cheers,
JTW.

My guess is that when the whip is delivered, it will be coiled with the curve (whipmakers can correct me if necessary). It will be pretty easy to find. As I stated in a previous post, it's only after I've been working with it a while that it sometimes takes me a little while to find it (and by that I mean only a few seconds).

Joe

Something like that is probably wise, Jones...

I tend to give any whip that I've never handled a couple "non-cracking" flicks like what you're talking about just to feel the weight, and how it's going to move.

I've made the mistake of just picking one out of someone's collection and cracking it before, (with permission, of course,) and it was a fairly heavy whip and it cracked far louder and harder than I had intended, (and we were at a practice in a gymnasium, so it was LOUD and echoed for a LONG while.)

This can be a good habit to get into when you're first learning to use a whip as well...Give it a few swings, and a light flick like the fly-fishing maneuver you mentioned, just to feel how the weight of the whip moves. Each one is different, and has it's own special characteristics. How easily the whip cracks and how smoothly it rolls out will get easier over time as it breaks in, but those characteristics will most likely always be there, (and that's a good thing!)

All the best, and you have both my congratulations and pity on becoming a new whip owner...It starts with one....And then becomes an obsession. Welcome to the support group!

-Dan

I'm a fan of what Royce Vallejo does, roll it along the floor and see what it does.

JTW,

I wouldn't worry about finding the curve too much, on a brand new whip it is pretty apparent. If you pick it up and hold the handle straight out in front of you parallel with the ground and start to rotate/twist it 360 degrees while keeping it parallel with the ground you will easily be able to see which way it wants to bend more naturally (the natural curve). The more you use it and it breaks in it may be a bit more difficult to find the curve right away (as Joe said difficult meaning it only takes a second or so), but at that point you will likely be pretty comfortable with the whip to the point where you start to pick the whip up and without really thinking about it you will find the natural curve.

Personally when I get a new whip, or am trying a whip I've never tried before, I tend to roll it back and fourth (in front and behind me), just to get a feel for it. After a few seconds of that, and then after the first few cracks I will have a good idea of what to expect from the whip.

Have fun with your new whip by the way!

Regards,

Paul Nolan
http://www.midwestwhips.com

midwestwhips wrote: Personally when I get a new whip, or am trying a whip I've never tried before, I tend to roll it back and fourth (in front and behind me), just to get a feel for it. After a few seconds of that, and then after the first few cracks I will have a good idea of what to expect from the whip.

I think I got that from you, Paul. You did that when I handed my first Strain to you, along with holding it coiled up, handle pointed into the air, and then letting it uncoil from that to watch how it rolls out.

I remember it striking me at the time as making an incredible amount of sense, and I've done in myself ever since.

-Dan

Thank you all for this most helpful advice.
Just one question, purely out of curiosity, if one used a new whip say twice a week for about 20 mins, roughly how long would it take to break in?

You're probebly going to say it depends on the whip...
Cheers,
JTW.

I don't have much to add, except to agree that cracking it is the way to go. Some volleys or fast figure eights will work that whip alot. You can't get a new pair of boots to fit right by bending them in you hands. Boots have to be worn, whips have to be cracked. Anything else is unnatural.

Weston.

Great thread.. So glad I found it.

I've had a few cracks at my Todds 10' and am loving it. So whilst breaking it in it also must be conditioned?? I see Pecards name being used alot and unfortunately for me the supplier over here cannot help.

But will carry on cracking regardless.

Allen UK

tk indy wrote:Great thread.. So glad I found it.

I've had a few cracks at my Todds 10' and am loving it. So whilst breaking it in it also must be conditioned?? I see Pecards name being used alot and unfortunately for me the supplier over here cannot help.

But will carry on cracking regardless.

Allen UK

just be careful that your fall on the whip doesnt break while you crack your whip, you do need to condition it first , i bought a todds 8ft whip and conditioned it for three days and still on the fourth day when i used it the cracker fell away from the fall , i had to reattach the cracker and put my leather lotion on it again .

I started breaking in my Joe Strain 8 ft Raiders whip on the weekend, being careful not to muscle it, just working on form and letting the whip do it's thing.
I conditioned the fall lightly after each practice, and wiped any dirt off the thong.
It's been raining for a few days now and it's KILLING me. All I want to do is get outside and practice!!!