Whip is not straight

[MartinL]

Hi, back in 2004 I got a Jack Perry 12p 8 foot Indy whip from WSP, a 12 foot Strain. And later a 10 foot Morgan fron eBay - I think is is from the late 80'ties. Just recently I got interested in cracking them again after a few years.

It is the Jack Perry whip that bothers me. First of all, it is quite like a wet noodle (as I read a description of a whip like this). The overlay is still fine with no gaps. The whip is easy enough to crack. The problem is the natural curve and the transition from the handle to the thong. If I hold the whip in front of me, handle vertical much like this
the whip bends to the right side at the transition point. Of course I can straighten it with my hand but the whips does not seem to "align" itself. I know a picture of my whip would be better.
The whip has not been misused. Could it be the loop that forms when doing the forward crack that somehow twisted something?

I'm not sure if the whip has always been like this from the beginning or if it came after cracking it. Comparing it to the Morgan and Strain, the whip seems more "fragile" at the transistion point.

I hope I make sense here. Do you think it is just the characteristic of the whip or is there something wrong? This is a picture of the whip from JP's site.

[riku1914]

I think it could be from when you throw the whip forward, the thong goes off to the right, or left, depending if you are right or left

handed, and the handle stays straight. Unless your strain and morgan do that, it could also be the transition was not built up right

on the jack perry whip.

[MartinL]

I think it could be from when you throw the whip forward, the thong goes off to the right, or left, depending if you are right or left

handed, and the handle stays straight. Unless your strain and morgan do that, it could also be the transition was not built up right

on the jack perry whip.

I'm right handed so it makes sense that the thong goes off to the right side and twist. I just tried with my left hand but I need some practise with that.
There is no problem with the Strain or Morgan but the transition also seems a lot more stiff and strong.

Just to clarify... I'm am not overly concerned since it does not seems to get any worse but it would be great to know if it is me or that particular whip.

[riku1914]

It's the while, what most likely is the problem is that when the whipmaker did the closed loop binding, he didn't change the direction

with different layers, you're not doing anything wrong.

[tomek9210]

Maybe he put the bolster in wrong way, so the natural falling direction of a whp is twisted a bit ?

[riku1914]

That's true, he maybe just cut it out of the side, not making the seams straight.

[thefish]

Martin,

You said you got the whip in 2004, and have just recently gotten interested in cracking again. Did you have the whips in storage? How were you storing them?

I've seen bullwhips develop a bizarre curve that seriously affects how they throw if they're coiled up in storage for long periods of time.

The screen used whip from "Mask of Zorro" had that problem when Paul Nolan first bought it. It had been in a private collection of a prop collector who just put it in a glass case where it had sat for years. The collector hadn't mistreated it, he just hadn't used it, and being coiled up for so long, it developed a curve right off of the transition that made it INCREDIBLY innacurate. It would crack readily, but it didn't roll out anywhere near straight.

When the late, great Alex Green had re-acquired it, he sold it to Paul on the condition that Paul actually USE it to work the curve out of it.

It did work somewhat, (and I think it would have eventually disappeared entirely given enough consistant use.)

Work with it. Crack it a lot, (you don't have to power crack it. Just lots of repeated cattleman's cracks to try to get it to straighten out,) Condition it. Store it uncoiled hanging from the wrist loop for a while.

Hope this helps.

All the best, and happy cracking!

-Dan

[backstagejack]

I bought a used classicwhip KOTCS 10 footer a month or so ago but was warned it hadn't been used or greased in awhile. I just received my pecards in the mail the other day.

I just greased my whip last night for the first time (I spoke those exact words at work and had to explain myself..... I laid it down on a towel and went over it with my hand an some pecards (while watching young indy), then I lightly took off the excess. I let it dry some and then hung it up loosely.

Is that all I needed to do? Can I crack it yet?

[riku1914]

Go ahead and crack it, as long as the leather doesn't feel dry, it'll be fine.

[MartinL]

Martin,

You said you got the whip in 2004, and have just recently gotten interested in cracking again. Did you have the whips in storage? How were you storing them?

I've seen bullwhips develop a bizarre curve that seriously affects how they throw if they're coiled up in storage for long periods of time.

The screen used whip from "Mask of Zorro" had that problem when Paul Nolan first bought it. It had been in a private collection of a prop collector who just put it in a glass case where it had sat for years. The collector hadn't mistreated it, he just hadn't used it, and being coiled up for so long, it developed a curve right off of the transition that made it INCREDIBLY innacurate. It would crack readily, but it didn't roll out anywhere near straight.

When the late, great Alex Green had re-acquired it, he sold it to Paul on the condition that Paul actually USE it to work the curve out of it.

It did work somewhat, (and I think it would have eventually disappeared entirely given enough consistant use.)

Work with it. Crack it a lot, (you don't have to power crack it. Just lots of repeated cattleman's cracks to try to get it to straighten out,) Condition it. Store it uncoiled hanging from the wrist loop for a while.

Hope this helps.

All the best, and happy cracking!

-Dan

I do store my whips coiled on a shefl. But the problem (if it is a problem) did not came after years. I did treat them when the were not used so they would not dry up. I just didn't crack them.
And I never power crack it. The fall seems to wear out quicker than the 12 foot Strain - I just had to replace it. And yes, I grease the fall well.

Maybe I should contact Jack Perry and ask him about it?

But thank you for your answers.

Martin

[MartinL]

After cracking the whip as much as possible (but not hard), the problem seems to be less visible or gone now. I think it was my technique with the forward crack not waiting long enough when swinging the whip up.