page 1   page 2   page 3   page 4   page 5   page 6   page 7 The construction of this whip is primarily based on the procedure used by Bernie Wojcicki in his "How To Make A Bullwhip" tutorial DVDs. For more info on the DVDs, click here. Lace Cutting Saturday February 7, 2004 Step 15: I bought a new hide the other day. It's a black hide and it's larger, thicker, and stiffer than the whiskey hide I used on my whip. I thought maybe these differences were due to either the tanning process or the 'greasing' of the hide but it was suggested to me that perhaps the black hide was from a grey kangaroo while the whiskey hide had been from a red kangaroo. Grey roos have hair while red roos have fur and, hence, a closer grain. Anyway, I bought this black hide to use for my next project ...a stockman's plaited belt so I actually prefer that it's thicker and stiffer. However, before starting that project I'll be using this black hide for the wrist strap and knots on my whip.            [The second picture shows the difference in grain between the black and whiskey hides and the third picture shows the hide after having been trimmed] For the wrist strap I decided I wanted strands that were 5mm thick. I wanted 5 strands, each 2' long. I also wanted to use 1 strand from the whiskey hide that had been one of the laces I dropped while plaiting my overlay. So, I only needed to cut 4 new strands. With my new aussie strander I cut a strip of leather 8' 10" long. Because this was from the outer, weaker area of the hide and also because I had never used an aussie strander before I decided to cut the strand double the width I wanted (10mm) in case either I screwed up or there was a lot of stretch. After the strand was cut, I stretched it. I measured the length of the strand again and now it was 9' 3". There was only a total amount of 5" of stretch. While I was cutting the strand of leather for my wrist strap, I also cut a strand that I would later divide up to be used for tying my knots. Again, I decided I wanted 5mm wide laces so I initially cut them at 10mm wide and then stretched them. The length of this strand was 10' 10" before stretching and was 11' 6" after stretching for a total of 8" of stretch.       I then pulled out my new splitter and went to work splitting the laces. I wasn't only trying to make the underside a uniform thickness. I was also trying to cut some of the thickness out because this hide was fairly thick to begin with. I then took the strands and pared them down to 5mm wide and then skived the undersides using the lace cutter. It was much easier this time around because I wasn't trying to add any taper to the laces. I'm getting more skilled at using the lace cutter and noticed that if you really pull down on the leather, so that it hugs the curve of the lace cutter, you will get better cuts. One of the biggest problems with the lace cutter is if there is any buckling in the strand from having been cut around too sharp a curve. However, if the strand is pulled reasonably tight as it goes through the cutter you can lessen the chance that the buckling will cause a bad cut. NOTES: Wrist Strap Saturday February 7, 2004 Step 16: I took the lace I cut for my wrist strap and divided it into 4 strands that were each 2' long. I took the single whiskey-colored strand, put it with the others and tied the end in a half-hitch to hold them together. I clamped the loose ends in a vice and began a flat plait. Separate the strands, 2 on one side, 3 on the other. Take the outside strand on the left and cross over the one next to it. Take the outside strand on the right and go over, under, over. Take the next strand on the right and go over, under. Take the left strand and go over, under. Continue the sequence. As you're plaiting, pull the strands as tight as you can. They will curl up considerably but can be flattened later. My strands were maybe a bit short. I had wanted to plait 14" but only had enough length to plait for just over 12". Then I laid the strap over my lace cutter (because it has a rounded surface) and pulled down on either side of the strap to flatten out the curl and smooth it out. The plaited strap measured about 12 - 13mm wide. It was my first time doing a flat plait and it's a good thing I got this practice doing it because it'll come in handy when I make my stockman's belt. I think I probably should have split the leather more to thin it out before plaiting the wrist strap. It looks little bit bumpy.       NOTES: Handle End Saturday February 7, 2004 Step 17: Use a sharp awl to poke into and find the end of the handle on your whip. Then either bind or staple the ends of the strands on the handle. I used about 6 staples. Tap the staples down with a hammer. Cut off the loose strands past the end of the handle. With a sharp knife round off (cut) the handle end to make it smooth and round. On a scrap piece of leather mark a 3/4" circle and then cut a + sign up to the circle. The 'arms' of the + sign I cut out were about 7 - 8" long. I then took some letter stamps and stamped my initials on the good side of the leather in the center. Maybe it was because this hide was so thick and stiff but I found that the stamps punched better into the leather when leather dressing was applied to the area beforehand. Place the + sign shaped piece of leather over the handle end on your whip and fold over the arms and staple each one once into the handle. Tap the staples down with a hammer. Cut the knots off your wrist strap and staple to the handle. Use 2 staples one way and 1 staple across the two. Tap the staples with a hammer.            NOTES:                             page 1   page 2   page 3   page 4   page 5   page 6   page 7