Mark Allen is America's leading supplier of Western Arts equipment. He sells whips of various sorts, along with books and videos on whip cracking. Mark also founded the Wild West Arts Club. Mark usually keeps all his product line in stock, so if you want a whip right away this is a good place to order. His 2002 print catalog features fourteen pages of whips from different makers!
David Morgan is a US whipmaker with a fine reputation. His bullwhips are the standard that other whips are measured against. He is the author of a book called "Whips and Whipmaking". Here's his Bullwhip page. He prefers not to sell whips for SM use, and I encourage everyone to respect his wishes.
Benjamin Scott from California makes bullwhips only, in two main styles. He sells an Indy style whips similar in look to those used in the Indiana Jones movies, and also an Australian style for technical cracking.
Jim Hurlbutt of Specialty Whips in Wyoming prides himself on his custom work, including braiding the owners initials into the handle of a whip.
House of Rawhide in Texas sells a range of whips and other cowboy training tools made by Benton Cassaday, as well as peanut brittle made by Mrs. Cassaday. Cass has mastered the difficult art of working in rawhide, as well as kangaroo and cowhide.
Rhett Kelley of Rhett's Whips says, "I strive to always produce a whip that I am proud to brand my initials on the handle." He grew up on a ranch in Florida, and started to make whips when he was twelve or thirteen. He makes nylon cow whips of parachute cord with a shot loaded core. He has a nice selection of colors, great prices, and his whips will stand up to wet conditions. He prefers not to sell whips for SM use, and I encourage everyone to respect his wishes.
Gregory DeSaye of Stockman Supply in Whitehall, Montana, started making whips in the early 1980s. These days he works with nylon cord rather than leather, and produces reasonably priced bullwhips, stockwhips and longer snake whips made of nylon.
Whips by Ax sell signal whips, snakes and bullwhips as well as some handy whip bags and keepers. Look out for the "'Crack' is Addictive" T-shirt! There is an "in stock" page showing whips available for immediate delivery, if you are in a hurry for your whip.
Joe Wheeler makes a range of high quality whips, and is happy to do custom work, repairs etc. His whips are in high demand, and he often has a long waiting list. His delivery estimates are sometimes hopelessly optimistic, and it is not unusual to wait a year or more for a Wheeler whip.
Westfield, MA has the nickname "Whip City". In the late 19th Century most of the population of the town was employed in whip making and they produced tens of thousands of whips a day, dominating the US market for riding and buggy whips. There is only one whip manufacturer left there, the Westfield Whip Manufacturing Company, 360 Elm St, Westfield, MA 01085-2922, (413) 568 8244. They have the only remaining working 19th century whip braiding machine, but no web page yet.
Joe Strain made the whips for the Mask of Zorro movie when he was apprentice to David Morgan. He's now in business for himself, as well as supplying the Zorro limited edition whips for Mark Allen. You can also read about a visit to him.
Steve Blanton is an amateur maker of fine whips who sells most of his work through auctions at e-bay. You can e-mail him to find out when he puts something new on sale. He does not take orders or do custom work.
Drew's Whips is the home page of another person who has turned his whipmaking hobby into a source of income on e-bay. You get the feeling he likes his whips so much he doesn't really want to sell them.
Jack Matthews makes nylon bullwhips at $10 a foot. Nylon is great if you will be working on wet grass or in other damp conditions. You can e-mail him at jackandpam@webtv.net.
Here's a page about Billy Anderson, a Cajun from Lousiana, who makes whips out of nylon and latigo. His parachute cord whips have a steel cable belly and are coated with wax to keep the damp out. They sell about $10 a foot. He can be reached at AndrsnBlly@aol.com or P.O. Box 9, Hwy. 66, Tunica, LA 70782, (225) 655 4692.
Paul Nolan of Profound Sound Custom Whip Shop makes stockwhips and bullwhips. He also offers a repair service for your damaged whips.
Paul Stenhouse used to show the whips he made at home to David Morgan. "One time, he actually told me that I did a good job and my mouth just about hit the floor." After that, he studied with David unitl he was ready to go into business for himself. He makes kangaroo hide bullwhips to order, all priced at $35 a foot. He also has a whip handling and maintenance DVD for sale.
Mark Watkins of DallasDogsled.com makes custom nylon
dogsled whips and Florida cow whips for about $10 a foot. His page also has instructions for making your own nylon whip.
Dusty Johnson's Pleasant Valley Saddle Shop in Loveland, Colorado sell whips and whip videos. Dusty is a life member of the WWAC and also operates a saddle making school.
US Wings seem to be retailing whips by Mark Allen and Matt Welsby.
The Knife Center sells some bullwhips imported from Spain. Their prices are low, but the quality of the braiding does not look very good.
For even lower prices and corresponding (lack of) quality you can buy a $5 bullwhip from the Texas Longhorn - Horn Co. Yuck!
Australia
Mike Murphy makes quality bullwhips, stockwhips and snakewhips from kangaroo hide. He's also a formidable whip cracker himself (he placed second in the 2002 WWAC two whip freestyle championship) and has several educational videos which are among the best on the market.
Janine Fraser specialises in making matched pairs of stockwhips for the exacting demands of Australian competitive whip cracking. She doesn't have a web page yet, but here's her publicity material.
Eskaytee Bush Leather (also known as SKT) is a family business owned by Sharron and George Taylor. They have a lifetime's experience of cattle ranching, and make working stockwhips tough enough to withstand hard use in bush conditions as well as high quality collectibles. They they also make bullwhips and snakewhips, though these are not pictured on their web page yet.
G. J. Nemeth make stockwhips and bullwhips of redhide and kangaroo. The Nemeth family has been making whips for over 150 years.
Whipmaker Bernie of EM Brand Whips says, "I have been plaiting whips for 27 years, half of my adult life. Now this is very important for a whip maker... I love it!" He sells snakes, stockwhips and bullwhips in cowhide and kangaroo. You can also buy kangaroo lace from him for your own braiding projects.
Matt Welsby's whip page is full of information and opinion on whipmaking and whips. However, some people who have ordered from him have experienced long delays or missing shipments, and he has proved to be unable or unwilling to correct the problem. He sent a fax explaining the situation on 14 March 1997. I have continued to receive reports of problems since then, so I would suggest that if you order from Matt you pay COD, or use a credit card which will allow you to cancel the charge if the goods do not arrive in a reasonable time. I have recently heard from several sources that he has been contracting out his whipmaking to less skilled workers, and the the quality of the whips he sells has declined significantly.
Traditional stockwhips, some with crocodile skin handles, are available from Mick's Whips.
Bould Whips make a range of bullwhips and stockwhips in redhide, cowhide and kangaroo.
Si Davey makes a range of whips in kangaroo hide dyed using traditional Australian bark dyes.
Peter Jack, The Whip Man, is from New Zealand. He makes a range of whips including beautiful two tone ones, and matched pairs of stockwhips for two handed work.
Also from New Zealand, A. J. Rope Services makes the Karaka Whip. This is a shot loaded working stockwhip at a very reasonable price.