Three-Footer in Progress, part 3 - The End!

Well I finished my black and yellow Pocket Rattler (3 foot snakewhip) last night.  Here are a few more pics of the process.  I wrap electric tape just above the diamond plait and then cut away the excess on top.

I tape two small metal discs, i.e. two pennies :), to the top of the whip for a bit of weight.  Some whipmakers wrap a lead strip for weight instead of the pennies.  This is the beginning of the foundation for the butt knot.  The tape is stapled to the whip eight times in different layers.

When I finish building the foundation I tie the dreaded turk's head knot.  When all this is accomplished, the whip is finished!  And there was much rejoicing.  Yeah.

The pistol is a Ruger P95DC 9mm and the hat is my black "Spirit" fedora made by John Penman. 

Happy cracking!

Ryan - http://www.happycracking.com/

Three-Footer in Progress, part 2

Well I've made some more progress on the black and yellow Pocket Rattler.  Here I have added the six strands for the 12 plait finish.

Pocket Rattlers begin with a short section of a diamond plait and then changes over to the regular whip plaiting.  The top section will eventually get cut away and then covered by the butt knot.

When you finish plaiting it is important to roll each section to smooth out the plaiting.  Here I use a short piece of a 2x4 and roll the whip on the floor.

When I'm finished rolling then I'm ready to attach the fall and tie the fall hitch.

To make the fall I use approximately fifty inches of de-cored paracord.  I attach one end to a small crochet needle with a bit of electric tape.

Then at about the midway point I insert the needle into the paracord and work it through.

Here's the finished fall.  It's around two feet long and is doubled back into itself.  The loop is placed over the end of the whip and then snugged up tight.

After I tie the fall hitch I use a Super Jumbo Perma-Lok Lacing needle to pull the final pass on the knot back through it self.

Here's the finished knot and fall.

More to come.  Hopefully I'll get it finished by this weekend.  Happy cracking!

Ryan

Three-Footer in Progress

I thought I share some pics of my progress as I build a Pocket Rattler (three foot snakewhip).  Lord willing this one will be black and yellow.  I start by loading the core with beaded chain...

I then wrap all the strands in vinyl tape (i.e. electrical tape) and form the loop that I'll hang it from for plaiting.  This is the "core" of the whip, it has two strands of chain loaded paracord and two strands of paracord with the nylon core still in place...

I then cut the strands for plaiting the 8-plait belly (by the way, I remove the inner strands for the plaiting)...

And then the plaiting begins...

After I finish plaiting the belly I reinforce the "handle" area with a bit of artificial sinew.  This reinforcement adds a bit of spring to the whip.

Well that's as far as I am at the moment.  I may get to plaiting the overlay later on today.  I have not sold this one yet.  If you are interested in purchasing this whip you can contact me through my website http://www.happycracking.com/, mention this blog and I'll sell it for $69 shipped (that's $60 for the whip and $9 for shipping).  If I don't have it sold by the time I finish I'll list it on ebay shortly there after.  Also, I'll try to post more of the progress as I get-a-plaiting.

Have fun and happy cracking,

Ryan

Playing with more interesting picture taking

Here are a few shots of the bullwhip mentioned in my last post.  I thought I'd try to do something a bit more interesting than have a whip merely lying on the floor or held in my hand.

(I posted this one on my website http://www.happycracking.com/)

The gun is my .45 Colt Ruger Vaquero.  It's a lot of fun to shoot and can really pack a whallop with the right ammo.  I'm gonna try to get some more creative shots in the future.  We'll see what happens.

Take care and happy cracking,

Ryan

Black & Gray Bullwhip and Snakewhip

Well I've been pretty distracted lately from making whips.  I just finished a couple of matching whips.  A black and gray snake and bull. 

I personally really like these little three foot snakewhips (Pocket Rattlers).  I take mine with me a lot of places I go.  I typically have it in the bag I take to work (one never knows when one will want to blow off and little steam and do a bit of cracking).  I know my wife thinks I'm crazy but I even usually take it with me when we go for walks.  It's fun to crack around with, although she prefers to be at a safe distance. 

I think what I like about these Pocket Rattlers is their small size and fast cracking ability.  I can simply roll it up and put it in just about any pocket.  And then they are just fun to crack - easy multiple cracks and quick flick-of-the-wrist "towel" cracks.