Club Obi Wan

I haven't contributed much to this forum lately so I thought I'd share a few pics of my workspace. Pageywhips is a small operation these days as I have a lot of other commitments including a wife and kids, a fulltime job, freelance translation and voice-over work, artwork and a band!! As such I don't take on many orders, and never more than three at a time. If I know I'm not able to make a whip within a 6 week period, I don't take the order. This way, whipmaking remains a pleasure!
So here are some pics:


Here are the overlays for an 8ft and a 10ft as well as the strands for a 2nd belly for another 8ft. On the wall are the braided 2nd bellies for the 8ft and 10ft whips.


This is an 8ft in saddle tan that I made a couple of years ago and decided to keep as a display/demonstration piece.


Skiving the strands of an 8ft overlay.

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y285/p ... CN2734.jpg
THe leftovers from skiving

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y285/p ... CN2736.jpg
The bevelled edges that result from skiving help to get a neat braid.

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y285/p ... CN2733.jpg
Some wristloops, falls and crackers

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y285/p ... CN2678.jpg
An 8ft I made a couple of weeks ago - now belonging to Zoltar.

So I have two 8fts and a 10ft on the go. He first 8ft is for a German customer and should be finished before I go on holiday on Monday. The remaining whips will have to wait until after Easter. The 10ft is for a customer and the 8ft will be homeless and end up in the classifieds. I will post some pics when they are finished.
Thanks for reading!

Pretty cool pictures, whiskyman! It's great to see you back in action as a craftsman! Can't wait to check out your latest projects, I hope I'll find the time for it soon!

Me too - a big pot of tea and the smell of roohide. Ahhhhh

Hey nice to see you're still making them! Didn't you "retire" a couple of times? You're such a rockstar; always making a comeback! Anyway, glad you're still around.

Take care,


Franco

I did take a couple fo breaks its true. On both occasions I let the business get bigger than i was confortable with or really had time for. I kept my return to whipmaking deliberately low profile this time so that I wouldn't get many orders.
The set up I have now is very comfortable. I don't generally advertise at all so sometimes I go for months without any orders. I make the odd whip here and there and sell it in the classifieds - just to keep my skills up. When I do get orders they are generally from word of mouth and generally from Germany, the Netherlands, Italy or the UK. Folks in Europe who are happy to get a whip without any customs charges.

Pagey, what amazes me is that how fast you were at picking it up. Usually it takes a lot longer to get to the point you are at and it looks like you are continuing to improve. Thanks for sharing!

Can you recommend a tutorial or video or SOMETHING to teach me how to and cut my strands? ( i don't know if you cut them out

by hand but beveling them by hand would be nice so i don't gotta make something )

Thanks for sharing! It's always neat to see all the hard work that goes into making these whips. Your stuff definetly looks top-notch, and good for you on keeping it an enjoyable hobby you can relax with in your downtime ( although I can't imagine you have much downtime with all the stuff you have going on! ). Once again, excellent work.

riku1914 wrote:Can you recommend a tutorial or video or SOMETHING to teach me how to and cut my strands? ( i don't know if you cut them out

by hand but beveling them by hand would be nice so i don't gotta make something )

I cut everything by hand. I started out with a strander, but following Joe Strain's advice, I ditched it and started doing it by eye with a blade. It allows you to cut much more accurtely (after some practice) because you can allow for stretch as you cut.

I think Morgan's books explain the techniques pretty well if you can get a look at them.

whiskyman wrote:

riku1914 wrote:Can you recommend a tutorial or video or SOMETHING to teach me how to and cut my strands? ( i don't know if you cut them out

by hand but beveling them by hand would be nice so i don't gotta make something )

I cut everything by hand. I started out with a strander, but following Joe Strain's advice, I ditched it and started doing it by eye with a blade. It allows you to cut much more accurtely (after some practice) because you can allow for stretch as you cut.

I think Morgan's books explain the techniques pretty well if you can get a look at them.

ok i might get one then, lol i was hoping for a "free" outcome but i might as well try it, bernie cuts everything with tools and has

amazing outcomes...

edit: is it this:

http://www.davidmorgan.com/product_info ... ucts_id=78

or this:

http://www.davidmorgan.com/product_info ... ucts_id=79

I couldn't find his first "whips and whip making" on his website so i assume he doesn't sell it anymore...

well here it is on amazon, which one?

http://www.amazon.com/Whips-Whipmaking- ... 087033557X

If I recall correctly, "Braiding fine leather" has the best descriptions and pictures of techniques including cutting and braiding.

I've changed some of the above pics to links so I can include a few more:


Stretched, skived, greased and ready to braid!


Braiding, braiding, braiding.. rooHIDE!!!!
My technique is slightly different to Mr. Morgan's as I pull the strand tight before passing it round, rather than the other way round. I learned it this way before I read Mr. Morgan's books - and I can't seem to unlearn it!


Diamond pattern and the transition to herringbone.Make sure those seams stay straight!

OK - no more pics, I really need to get on with this whip!!!

i pull after i pull around but usually before i set it in place, i used to do what you did, but i watched bernies 16 strand diamond plait

video and started copying what he does.

The picture of the strands ready for braiding makes it look like they are different widths - actually it is just the way some of them are hanging in the photo. As you can see in the last pic, the braided strands are all very much the same width!

whiskyman wrote:The picture of the strands ready for braiding makes it look like they are different widths - actually it is just the way some of them are hanging in the photo. As you can see in the last pic, the braided strands are all very much the same width!

I understood that, i knew you wouldn't plait with them if they were like that.

EDIT: i ordered that book you told me about

Riku1914,

I would highly suggest picking up the books, "How to make whips" by Ron Edwards, "whips and whip making, second edition" and "Braiding fine leather" by David Morgan. They are all incredibly excellent books on whip making with detailed descriptions and pictures.

Beveling (also referred to as skiving or paring), is described in detail on pages 16, 17, and 60 in "how to make whips", pages 82, 141, and 142 of "whips and whipmaking, and pages 39-44 in "braiding fine leather". All three of these books also cover cutting lace and many of the different methods and tools that can be used to cut.

Also, Bernie's results are directly due to his skills and experience, and not so much the tools he uses. Even the best tool won't make your work automatically better, it is the subtleties of the skill and experience of the user that makes all the difference.

To quote the cover of Ron Edwards book, "All you need for a start is a piece of leather, a sharp knife, a steady hand, and some patience".

Whiskyman,

Great pics, thanks for sharing!

- Paul Nolan
MidWestWhips

midwestwhips wrote:Riku1914,

I would highly suggest picking up the books, "How to make whips" by Ron Edwards, "whips and whip making, second edition" and "Braiding fine leather" by David Morgan. They are all incredibly excellent books on whip making with detailed descriptions and pictures.

Beveling (also referred to as skiving or paring), is described in detail on pages 16, 17, and 60 in "how to make whips", pages 82, 141, and 142 of "whips and whipmaking, and pages 39-44 in "braiding fine leather". All three of these books also cover cutting lace and many of the different methods and tools that can be used to cut.

Also, Bernie's results are directly due to his skills and experience, and not so much the tools he uses. Even the best tool won't make your work automatically better, it is the subtleties of the skill and experience of the user that makes all the difference.

To quote the cover of Ron Edwards book, "All you need for a start is a piece of leather, a sharp knife, a steady hand, and some patience".

Whiskyman,

Great pics, thanks for sharing!

- Paul Nolan
MidWestWhips

thanks for the advice, i ordered "braiding fine leather" earlier. I'll start with that, and if needed i'll get some others before i start

cutting my hide

I second that recomendation for the Ron Edwards book. I feel that it is by far the easiest to understand of all the different tutorials. The drawings really make the difference I think. I never would have gotten the jist of the turkshead knots it weren't for that book.

and this is what happens with the centerpart rooskin leftovers:

rawvoodoo wrote:I second that recomendation for the Ron Edwards book. I feel that it is by far the easiest to understand of all the different tutorials. The drawings really make the difference I think. I never would have gotten the jist of the turkshead knots it weren't for that book.

i got turks head's from bernie's videos and experimentation.

BreinederIndy wrote:and this is what happens with the centerpart rooskin leftovers:

Always glad to see my left overs get put to a good use!