First things first.
Good whips, properly used and maintained, should give long service.
Physical damage such as hitting on sharp objects, gravel, concrete
etc., being jammed in doors or truck tailgates, or chewed by
pets obviously will destroy a whip quickly. Care in three other
aspects
will help you gain the most from your whip.
1. Dirt and sand embedded in the whip will cause internal wear.
Dirt can be washed out with warm soapy water, the whip dried
(without
heat) and then given a heavy coat of leather dressing.
2. Using the whip with excessive force, as in seeking the loudest
possible crack, will cause early breakage of falls and stretch
the thong, so altering the taper. The usual and preferred crack
is that
attained with minimum force. A strong wrist action will over-stress
the the junction of thong to butt section on a bullwhip, and
will cause early failure near the butt in a snakewhip or signalwhip.
Normal use of these whips should employ very little wrist force.
3. Leather dressing is important. A dry whip loses its strength,
and one with the wrong dressing may lose strength and/or stretch
out of shape. Do not dress a whip with tallow, neatsfoot oil,
or any light oils. Use a good cream leather dressing. Pecard's
Leather
Dressing works just fine. Whips stored for any length of time
should be kept dry, and in low light conditions. Sunlight can
dry out
a whip like an old lampshade. Apply a light coating of dressing
every
6 months.
Now
lets learn how to maintain a bullwhip, snakewhip, signalwhip or
stockwhip
