As an educator for Andis Company one of the most common questions I’m asked is: “What’s the best clipper?” The answer to that question is not that straight forward. The answer starts with another question: What are the hair characteristics and hair types that you cut most often? I ask this because different hair characteristics, densities and textures require different clipper motors to achieve the best performance. So to get the best clipper, you must first establish which motor type will meet your cutting needs and those of your clients’. Once you’ve determined that, you can decide about the more subjective features of a clipper such as size, shape, style, etc.
Cutting Coarse Hair
For clients with coarse hair and where a large amount of hair must be removed, a rotary or pivot motor clipper with a course cutting blade will perform best. The power and strength of both the rotary and pivot motor designs will allow for a quick, easy and efficient cutting with each clipper stroke. A coarse cutter blade mounted to either one of those clipper types allows thicker sections of hair to be cut easier and quicker compared to clippers with fine cutter blades. My favorite rotary motor clippers are the Andis BGR+ and the Andis Supra 120 Ion. My favorite pivot motor clipper is the Speed Master II.
Cutting Fine Hair
For clients with fine hair, or if the hair is thin, a magnetic motor clipper works best. Magnetic motor clippers are designed to cut with low torque, but with blades moving at extremely high speeds for better quality finishes. Low torque cutting coupled with fast moving blades allows for less aggressive cutting action which makes cutting small sections of medium to thin hair easier because you won’t remove too much hair attempting to achieve quality. All magnetic motor clippers have fine cutter blades, which are great for fine tuning a haircut. My favorite magnetic motor clipper is the Andis Realtree® Camo Clipper US-1 model.
So for those of you asking, “What’s the best clipper?” I can only tell you what motor is best for you, because that’s objective. If you want speed and ease of use while cutting through thick hair, the rotary and pivot motor tools are your best choice. If you like to fade hair close in small sections, a magnetic motor clipper will be right for you. However, the “best” clipper is also based on style, size and shape, and only you can answer that question. This is where choosing an Andis product becomes easy, because of the large variety of high quality tools offered in varying shapes, sizes and styles in every motor type. Andis tools also come with a great warranty on every product. So which one is right for you?
For more information about Andis tools visit andis.com today.
