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Introduction to Singletail Whips

Last Updated (Thursday, 26 June 2008 19:11) Written by Mistress Ardenne Wednesday, 25 June 2008 15:33

So whenever I break out my whips, it seems like a conversation starts about who made each of them and whose whips are the best. Everyone has an opinion on the subject.

Mike Murphy is a whipmaker in Australia and is one of the most respected names in whipmaking and whip-throwing. He was the craftsman behind my twin set of 4ft. signal whips.

Victor Tella is a whipmaker in the US who is most famous for his snakewhips, although he crafts signals and bulls as well. He prides himself on his whips being fully handcrafted, down to the "fully-plaited belly" that he often stresses sets his whips above the rest. My two white 4ft. snakewhips were made by him.

Joe Wheeler often seems to me to be the name most thrown around in the scene. Wheeler started under the tutelage of David Morgan and then broke off his apprenticeship when Morgan forbade him to make whips for the leather community. I don't own any Wheeler whips, but he was second in consideration when purchasing my snakewhips -- I spent a good amount of time in correspondence with both him and Tella before ultimately deciding on Tella. Were I to purchase another whip for my caddy, I would most likely choose Wheeler this time as he would round out my collection nicely.

Joe Strain is the whip craftsman behind Northern Whip Co. in Idaho. While his name doesn't come up nearly as often as the former three, the work I have seen from him has been of at least equal quality. As a proud owner of one of his 6ft. bullwhips, I would like to see him gain just as much fame in the scene as a master craftsman.

David Morgan is a well-known whipmaker who mentored many of the other well-known craftsmen making whips today (Wheeler and Strain, for example). It was his whips that were used in the Indiana Jones movies, he claims. While his whips are widespread and popular, he now focuses much more than the above whipmakers on making other leather goods and usually outsources the crafting of his whips to other makers. In my personal experience I have found his craftsmanship to be inferior to the other craftsmen I've mentioned, and in my opinion his whips are rather like the Budweiser of BDSM... available everywhere, but not really a great product. I have thrown several David Morgans but do not own one.

David King is the man behind Coyote Whips, and is famous for his nylon snakewhips. I've listed him last because his nylon whips, made of 550 parachute cord, aren't really comparable to the level of craftsmanship needed to make a leather whip. However, his nylon whips have great advantages (especially in the pro scene where we use them on multiple bottoms -- they can be washed!), there isn't nearly as much of a waiting list for them, they are easy to throw, they appeal to vegan players, and they come in a beautiful variety of colors. King himself has also been very friendly in correspondence. My two pink nylon snakewhips were of his making.