Calculations

Donovan, that's a pretty good method for calculating bellies and drops. I can be adjusted if you want a whip with more mass at the end (just carry the bellies and drops a bit further down the thong,) etc.

Closed loop binding is winding the sinew around the whip so that there are no gaps (like whipping the end of a rope to keep it from fraying) and open loop is wrapping at an angle so that it forms a web like structure around the belly.

BTW, who is the youngster in your photo. He seems to think you're alright.

Thanks Mark, seems like I haven’t been doing everything all wrong then. I had a hunch that the binding had something to do with spiral as opposed to “cross cross.” And that’s my little brother! He’s the spitting image of me aint he?

Collin, " You ask 10 whip makers and you'll get 15 answers."
That's exactly right.

Ron

I agree with the nose heavy tapering (I found this easier to control and to crack)

PS: I do my calculation using the weight and not the number of strands...
because I want tapering on the mass (weight)

So, in adimensional numbers a single strand going straight the tongue equal to 1 (eg: the core with no BBs or ballchain); a strand plaited equal to 1,5 (sqrt(2)=1,41 because ideally we are plaiting at 45° and that's the value of the hypotenuse of a right triangle with cathetus equal to 1).
And a number of 1,2 if twisted strand.

PS: this the weight of my material:
each 4,5 steel BB = 0,37 gr (22 BBs in 10 cm of tongue =8,14 gr)
(I wish I could find L size ballchain... in the range of 6 gr each 10 cm)
each M size ballchain = 0,17 gr (29 BBs in 10 cm of tongue =4,93 gr)
each S size ballchain = 0,11 gr (33 BBs in 10 cm of tongue =3,63 gr)
(I wish I could find XS size ballchain... in the range of 2 gr each 10 cm)
10 cm of ungutted paracord = 0,70 gr (multiplied by 1 if used on the core)
10 cm of gutted paracord = 0,23 gr (multiplied by 1,5 if plaited; 1,2 il twisted; 1 if used on the core or dropped straight parallel to the core)
Ah, I'm not considering the weight of the binding... simply I did'n yet... (but I feel that somehow with a good tapering on the binding itself it it will not affect the result of tapering)

Those are example (don't look at the value on the y axis... in the first photo is gr/10cm... the second has only adimensional numbers), on the x axis there is the tongue (from left=handle -to- right=fall knot):

PS: "Lineare (Massa)" is the trend line (tapering) of "Massa" (the italian translation of Mass)... so if Massa is close to the trend line I achieved the goal I'm looking for.

I have been making a spreadsheet since I started and keeping rough (very rough) notes and formulas. For those who have seen Nicks strand lengths on his website, many of these came directly from that to give proper credit, which I then edited. A lot of people complained his lengths usually came up short...this could be due to new people plaiting with bad technique, but either way I like wiggle room so adjusted most. I don't know if the calculator highlighted in yellow will work with the link. I can modify it if you'd like to use it, or give you the formula to put into an excel yourself. But either way, feel free to use this at your disposal, and if something is wrong let me know! It's just a nice quick way for me to be able to cut paracord as I go. PS, these lengths give a bullwhip that is pretty evenly staggered close to the 3rds rule if you run down to the end. You of course can drop wherever you want, just keep notes if you wanted to drop lower and a particular strand was too short so you can change later.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1zRWOsv … sp=sharing

Marco, you lost me at the first sqrt(), but amazing nonetheless.  Me, I just wing it.

I have general ideas about thickness and length, and if I want the whip to be a bit more heavy I lengthen the bolsters a bit more.  That is one of the advantages of leather whipmaking; you can adjust strand width as necessary.  If strands are bunching up I can either drop a strand or 2, or I can take a small bevel of all the strands to narrow them slightly.  Either way it works.

I've just been using a spreadsheet I made based on strand count per inch.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/ … sp=sharing

I add up all the counts from the core, bellies and overlay, so in this case 4-8-12-16 has been what I've been using, making 40 strand count at the thickest.  Then I just start at the Overlay, and work my way back down through the bellies dropping strands to keep the taper I want, tweaking it to make sure I don't drop any two strands on different bellies at the same point.  As for cut lengths, I just multiply by 2.5 to be sure I have plenty of material.

There are, like has been mentioned, quite a number of ways to skin a cat (or is that skin a roo?), and they all put out some very fine whips indeed. It's one of the joys of this hobby, the sheer quantity of ways a whip can be made.  I even saw someone using the Fibonacci Series, so you'll settle into something that works well for you