Club Obi Wan

Hey Guys,

Can someone point me in the right direction if this topic has been discussed before. I have recently found what appears to be mold growth on my David Morgan Bullwhip, particularly on the wrist loop and also around the last few inches of throng and fall hitch. Have tried cleaning it off but it just returns. Can any one help please?

Cheers
Bullit

bullit wrote:Hey Guys,

Can someone point me in the right direction if this topic has been discussed before. I have recently found what appears to be mold growth on my David Morgan Bullwhip, particularly on the wrist loop and also around the last few inches of throng and fall hitch. Have tried cleaning it off but it just returns. Can any one help please?

Cheers
Bullit

How old is the whip? Has it been exposed to moisture without being cleaned and treated? That's all I can think of for now.

Is it white? If so, it's what Morgan calls spew and is nothing to be concerned about. It has something to do with fat rising to the surface or sometihng like that. It's not mold and won't damage your whip. Just clean it off anytime it appears. If it's green and furry on the other hand...

whiskyman wrote:Is it white? If so, it's what Morgan calls spew and is nothing to be concerned about. It has something to do with fat rising to the surface or sometihng like that. It's not mold and won't damage your whip. Just clean it off anytime it appears. If it's green and furry on the other hand...

My whips do that. I can't figure out how to avoid it.

If that is the case, just let it come out and clean it off when necessary. It shouldn't give you any problems.

Not really sure what leads it to happen, but I think it tends to affect whips in storage. Maybe temperature and humidity pay a part? I had an old Morgan that had it, but my own whip that doesn't really get any use doesn't get affected. Pretty mysterious..

whiskyman wrote:Not really sure what leads it to happen, but I think it tends to affect whips in storage. Maybe temperature and humidity pay a part? I had an old Morgan that had it, but my own whip that doesn't really get any use doesn't get affected. Pretty mysterious..

I was told it has to do with the climate in my area. ALL my new whips do that as they break in, but after a few weeks they stop,

and never do it again.

Hi Guys,

Thanks for the replies. The whip is around 5 years old. It has been exposed to moisture in the past but it was cleaned and retreated with leather conditioner. I've been in touch with David Morgan and discussed the issue via email. Was advised to allow the whip exposure to sunlight to destroy any possible mould, but they too think it is the natural fat content in the leather escaping the the surface "White Blume" was the phrase used. Either way I did what was suggested and will see what happens.

Bullit

I talked to a guy who rebuilds saddles, and he said that the best way to deal with white mold is to spray the leather with a mild bleach solution. 1/2 teaspoon bleach in a bottle of clean water. Spray it lightly, let it dry. If it's mold, that'll kill it. Just a thought.

Weston

"bleach solution" sounds a little extreme. Im certainly no expert but would that damage the patina of the whip?

It's not as severe as it sounds. Just enough bleach to scent the water.

Weston

I'll bear that in mind, thanks Weston.

And then maybe some Dr. Jackson's Hide Rejuvenator from Tandy Leather. Best stuff I've ever used for all my leather stuff (including a lifetime of work with saddles and such)

For what's coming out of your whip, you don't need to worry.

Again, all my new whips do this. You can either clean it off, or if it doesn't bother you too much, you can let it wear off on it's

own.

From the sound of it, it’s probably leather spew/bloom. I’ve touched on this here in the past but sometimes leather, whips included will develop a white powdery coating on them (or just in select spots), it can look like heavy dust, snowflake patterns, or just develop between the plaiting and tends to happen if they have been in storage for a while or exposed to temperature change extremes. Like you might get from going from winter to spring. It‘s often and easily mistaken as mold or mildew, but it occurs when plaiting soaps and leather dressings work their way out of the leather over time. It typically has a slight waxy tallow feel, almost like a dry bar of soap (though not always) but the quickest way to tell is to spot test it by carefully and quickly holding a small flame near to the leather. Spew will melt back in to the leather almost instantly as soon as the heat touches it, Mold wont. Spew is harmless, looks worse then it is, but is easily whipped off and can be cleaned with a clean damp washcloth if needed.

Make sure you know what you’re dealing with before you start doing any extreme treatments methods with bleach solution or commercial leather moldicides/fungicide. For future reference its best to store whips dry, in a dry spot preferably with natural lighting conditions and airflow. If you have to store them in a bag or dark closed off area for extended period of time, its not a bad idea to keep a silica gel bag with them to act as a desiccant and help control moisture and humidity.

Dan

BullWhipBorton wrote:From the sound of it, it’s probably leather spew/bloom. I’ve touched on this here in the past but sometimes leather, whips included will develop a white powdery coating on them (or just in select spots), it can look like heavy dust, snowflake patterns, or just develop between the plaiting and tends to happen if they have been in storage for a while or exposed to temperature change extremes. Like you might get from going from winter to spring. It‘s often and easily mistaken as mold or mildew, but it occurs when plaiting soaps and leather dressings work their way out of the leather over time. It typically has a slight waxy tallow feel, almost like a dry bar of soap (though not always) but the quickest way to tell is to spot test it by carefully and quickly holding a small flame near to the leather. Spew will melt back in to the leather almost instantly as soon as the heat touches it, Mold wont. Spew is harmless, looks worse then it is, but is easily whipped off and can be cleaned with a clean damp washcloth if needed.

Make sure you know what you’re dealing with before you start doing any extreme treatments methods with bleach solution or commercial leather moldicides/fungicide. For future reference its best to store whips dry, in a dry spot preferably with natural lighting conditions and airflow. If you have to store them in a bag or dark closed off area for extended period of time, its not a bad idea to keep a silica gel bag with them to act as a desiccant and help control moisture and humidity.

Dan

Thanks for all the information. Still doesn't explain why all my new whips do this almost instantly, ever since I've used plaiting

soap. Not a single one hasn't done it, and it's not like they are being exposed to extreme temperature changes or anything,

they've just all done this.

Even when I grease the bolsters, it "spews" , after it's absorbed, the next day it will have the stuff on it.

After it's stopped, they have never done it again, but it really is irritating!

Not sure Riku, I can't say i've ever heard of other whip makers having that problem and nor do I recall ever getting a new whip in that condition. I’d suspect it's something your doing differently that’s causing it. Could it be the plaiting soap formula you are using? An ingredient your using? How you’re mixing and heating it? How much you’re applying? Since its happening every time for you, there must be some variable that is causing the plaiting soap mixture to separate out from the leather so quickly.

This happens. It's never happened tome, but I suspect it may have a lot to do with climate at it seems to be a constant for Riku but not me... As far as the plaiting soap is concerned, most use more or less the same recipe with minute variations, so not sure that would account for it. Just wipe it off.

BullWhipBorton wrote:Not sure Riku, I can't say i've ever heard of other whip makers having that problem and nor do I recall ever getting a new whip in that condition. I’d suspect it's something your doing differently that’s causing it. Could it be the plaiting soap formula you are using? An ingredient your using? How you’re mixing and heating it? How much you’re applying? Since its happening every time for you, there must be some variable that is causing the plaiting soap mixture to separate out from the leather so quickly.

I use the exact formula Paul Nolan uses, and I've applied the same as him. I also have tried different methods, for instance Louie

Fox just greases about 1 ft. of strand at a time, so I tried that. The soap didn't even have enough time to penetrate the leather

by the time I got ready to grease it again, and I wiped off the soap that seeped out from tight plaiting. It still did it!


BTW, I found out recently that Joe strain uses 4 times as much water in his recipe than myself! Other than that, he uses about

the same amount of the other ingredients. But again, I use the same recipe that Paul Nolan uses, and he doesn't have the

problem.

Ok, yeah I know Paul hasn’t had that problem. Since your pretty much doing the same thing he is, what exactly is the climate like in your area? I suspect it’s more a curiosity then actual problem to be concerned with but there must be some x-factor in the mix that’s causing it to happen with such consistency.

BullWhipBorton wrote:Ok, yeah I know Paul hasn’t had that problem. Since your pretty much doing the same thing he is, what exactly is the climate like in your area? I suspect it’s more a curiosity then actual problem to be concerned with but there must be some x-factor in the mix that’s causing it to happen with such consistency.

It's texas weather, never quite the same. I started making whips last summer, out hottest summer ever. Then through the winter,

quite a mild winter but cooler temps obviously, and it still did it. Now it's getting hot again and it still does it.

Typically it's fairly warm and very humid in the summer, but the humidity tends to be a constant. I've thought that may be something about it, because it really is extremely humid here.