Indiana Jones has nothing on this cheap, sturdy, and seriously striking bullwhip!
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PARACORD BULLWHIP
SAFETY KEY:
+ Safety glasses
SKILL LEVEL:
EASY
INTERMEDIATE
ADVANCED
APPROXIMATE TIME:
90 minutes
WHAT YOU’LL NEED:
+ ¾-inch PVC
+ 1-inch PVC
+ Paracord
+ Daisy 2400-count BBs
+ Athletic tape
+ Electrical tape
+ Drill
+ Lighter
+ Bench vise
LET’S BEGIN
MAKE THE HANDLE
1. Cut your ¾-inch PVC to the length that you want for your handle (nine inches is generally a good length). Also cut a one-inch-long piece of the one-inch PVC.
2. Push the smaller one-inch piece all the way onto the longer piece.
MEASURING
1. Run the paracord through the handle and measure eight feet in front of the handle and about two feet behind. It should be about ten feet in length. Use electrical tape to mark the bottom of the handle at the two-foot mark.
2. The next piece will run the length of the whip, and the last eighteen inches will be the “fall,” which gives it that distinctive crack. Place another piece of electrical tape to mark the beginning of the fall. Cut another piece that measures the length between the two pieces of electrical tape.
3. For the remaining seven pieces, remove an additional eight inches of length for each cord, taking off another eight inches more with each piece. You should have ten pieces in diminishing lengths. If you’re off by an inch or two for some of your pieces, don’t worry; it won’t make a big difference.
ADDING SOME WEIGHT
Traditional bullwhips are made of kangaroo leather, so you’re going to need to add something extra to give your paracord whip more heft.
1. Cut three pieces of paracord that match three existing pieces (longest, shortest, and the middle piece is a good way to go). Pull out the white internal strands from the paracord completely. You can throw these away.
2. Seal off one side of each of the three cords by melting it closed with a flame.
3. Insert a 3⁄16-inch drill bit into the open end of one of the strands. Melt the strand around the drill bit so it stays open. Repeat with the other two cords.
4. Fill each strand with BBs. This may take a while, but you’ll finish with three strong yet flexible cords. Melt the ends to seal.
ASSEMBLING
1. Using electrical tape, secure all thirteen strands of paracord together.
2. Drill a 3⁄16-inch hole three-quarters of an inch from the end of the handle. Thread the extra piece (the first piece that we cut) of paracord through until it pulls the entire bundle into the handle. Pull the strand tight until it pulls the rest of the pieces up through the handle. Take the remainder of the first piece and wrap it around the handle. Secure the cord on both ends of the handle with an ample amount of electrical tape.
3. Wrap a piece of electrical tape around the paracords about every foot and a half so they don’t get twisted.
4. Secure the handle in a bench vise and carefully wrap the paracord bundle in athletic tape, keeping the strands tight and parallel. Start at the base of the handle until you reach the fall, but make sure you leave the fall exposed.
5. Now that you’re done assembling, use colorful tape to decorate your handle.
GET CRACKING
Time to take your whip outside and give it a whirl. The “Cattleman’s Crack” involves hurling the whip over your shoulder. For the “Overhead Crack,” spin the whip in a circle over your head before spiking it down in front of you. Just remember to wear long sleeves and safety glasses.
You’ll become hooked by its sonic boom as you play around with more innovative ways to utilize your whip! Watch out, cowboys and movie stars, this earsplitting whip is a force to be reckoned with.
FUN FACT: The crack of a whip breaks the sound barrier as the tip zooms at up to 750 miles per hour. It is believed that a whip is the first manmade object to ever break the sound barrier.