c/barbers

I finally noticed I was angling my clippers wrong after 4 years

I was wondering why my fades kept looking uneven on the back of the head, especially on rounder skull shapes. Then a customer asked me why I was lifting my wrist so high and it clicked that I was tilting the blade too much. Anyone else have a basic thing like grip or angle that took way too long to fix?

2 comments

the_henry•21h ago

Changed my mind about using thinning shears on curly hair

Had a client come in last Thursday with tight 3C curls and I reached for my thinning shears out of habit to take down bulk. Normally I swear by them for texture blending but this time the curls popped up all choppy and uneven. It was a mess and I had to cut off almost 2 inches to fix it. The client was patient thank goodness but I felt awful. Now I only use point cutting or my straight shears for curly hair. Has anyone else ruined a curl pattern with thinning shears?

2 comments

derekward•1d ago

Found a trick for blending bald fades without using a foil shaver

I was struggling with getting that smooth transition on really dark coarse hair for months, then I tried using the corner of my clipper blade with zero pressure instead of a trimmer. It took the harsh line out completely in about 2 minutes and left a much softer finish. Has anyone else tried this technique or found another way to skip the foil shaver?

2 comments

hugo825•3d ago

Wasted $200 on a clipper that everyone swears by

I bought the Wahl Magic Clip because every barber on here talks about it like it's the holy grail. Figured I'd upgrade from my old cordless Andis. Hated it from day one. The motor is weak and it bogs down on thick hair, especially around the crown. I do a lot of fades and the blade adjustment kept slipping mid-cut. Used it for two weeks then went back to my old clipper. That's $200 down the drain plus the time I wasted messing with it. Has anyone else tried the Magic Clip and just couldn't make it work? What clipper did you switch to instead?

3 comments

derekward•7d ago

Just talked to an old timer at the shop who changed how I think about clipper blades

I was bitching about how my Oster 76s keep pulling on thick hair and this guy named Bill who's been cutting since the 80s told me I been oiling them wrong. He said I should heat the oil up a little before applying it, like 20 seconds in the microwave, so it seeps into the pivot joint better. Tried it on my clippers last night and it ran way smoother this morning. Anyone else ever hear of doing that or am I just late to the party?

3 comments

zarab24•8d ago

Hot take: should you taper the back of a buzz cut or just go straight across?

Had a customer last Thursday say he prefers no taper at all because it looks cleaner as it grows out, but my mentor always told me a slight taper is the only way to avoid the 'helmet head' look. Which side do you guys lean toward for a simple #2 guard all over?

3 comments

hill.andrew•8d ago

Spent 3 hours trying to fix a wobbly clipper blade

Had a Wahl Senior come in with a blade that kept chattering. Thought it was tension. Nope. Took the whole blade assembly apart. Cleaned it twice. Still wobbled. Then I realized the drive pin was worn down by like 2 millimeters. New pin cost me four bucks. Three hours of my life gone over a tiny piece of plastic. Anyone else got a repair that should have taken 10 minutes but ate up your whole afternoon?

2 comments

the_pat•10d ago

Hit my 100th straight razor shave today and finally cracked the grain pattern trick

I kept messing up on the chin area for months (you know, that spot where hair grows in like 3 directions). Turns out I was going too fast and not paying attention to the light. A buddy at the shop told me to slow down and tilt the head different angles, and now I get way less irritation. Has anyone else found a weird trick for tricky grain?

2 comments

vera_murphy•10d ago

Stop soaking your combs in barbicide for 10 minutes like the bottle says

I kept noticing my fine tooth combs getting brittle and cracking after a few months... turns out barbicide will eat through plastic if you leave it in too long. I switched to a 2 minute dip and then rinse with warm water, and my combs are lasting way longer now. The bottle says 10 minutes for sanitation but that's for metal tools mostly, not the acetate combs we use every day. I figured this out after my third $12 comb snapped mid-cut on a regular client last spring. Anyone else notice their combs getting rough or those little cracks forming after a while?

2 comments

the_patricia•12d ago

That time I burned a customer's neck with a hot towel

I was at my chair in Austin last Friday, rushing through a hot towel shave. I didn't shake the towel out enough before putting it on the guy's neck, and he jumped up yelling. I had to apologize, give him a free haircut, and now I always let towels cool for 10 extra seconds. Anyone else had a close call like that with hot towels?

2 comments

hart.cora•13d ago

Switched from comb to shears for beard work 3 months ago

Used to always freehand with clippers but kept getting uneven lines on the neck. Now I do a rough trim with shears first and it cuts my cleanup time in half. Anybody else find shears easier for bulk removal on beards?

2 comments

paulschmidt•14d ago

Walked into a barbershop in Austin last week and saw a guy using a straight razor on a kid who couldn't have been more than 8 years old

The kid was squirming the whole time and the barber just held his head still with one hand while moving that blade right behind his ear, has anyone else seen folks doing hot shaves on little ones or am I the only one who thinks that's pushing it?

2 comments

xena_brown50•17d ago

Chat with a old school barber about straight razors changed my mind

I was at a trade show in Atlanta last month and got to talking with this guy named Ray who has been cutting hair since the 70s. He told me I was overthinking my straight razor work and that I needed to slow down and feel the hair instead of just rushing through. He said "you're treating it like a race when it's really a conversation with the head." That hit me hard because I realized I been trying to be fast and efficient but losing the quality. I went home and practiced his method of lighter passes and more angle control on my next 3 clients. The results were smoother and my regulars noticed a difference. Has anyone else had an older barber drop wisdom that changed how you do something simple? I'm curious if it's just me or if this is common.

2 comments

grant.sam•17d ago

Swapped my standard clipper blade for a ceramic one out of frustration last month

Been fighting with hot clippers on thick hair for 3 years, finally tried a ceramic blade from a shop in Portland and it cut through a whole head without a single snag, anyone else made the switch and noticed a difference?

2 comments

uma685•17d ago

Clipper oil on a pivot hinge fixed a 6 month squeak in my barber chair

I oiled my chair's pivot joint with Andis clipper oil last Tuesday and the squeak stopped right after. It was annoying me and my customers for half a year. Anyone else use their barber supplies on other stuff around the shop?

2 comments

kevin_dixon•17d ago

Question about handling walk-ins during a sudden rush at State Fair weekend

I was working last Saturday during the State Fair in Dallas and got slammed with 12 walk-ins in under an hour. My system fell apart fast and I ended up rushing cuts I shouldn't have. How do you guys manage the clock when it gets that crazy without sacrificing quality?

2 comments

evan_campbell•18d ago

Switched from clipper over comb to shears over comb after a barber in Chicago showed me the light

I used to do all my fading and blending with clipper over comb for years. Thought that was the only real way to get a crisp taper. Then about 3 months ago, I sat in with a guy named Marcus on the South Side. He grabbed his shears and worked the top of a fade in like 4 minutes flat. The texture was way smoother, less harsh lines to clean up. Now I use my shears for the bulk of the blending, only touch the clippers for the very bottom. Anyone else make that switch or still sticking with clippers?

3 comments

terrybennett•20d ago

That weird clipper rattle that took me 5 hours to solve

My Andis Master kept making this buzzing rattle noise for 2 weeks straight, drove me crazy until I realized a tiny hair had jammed under the blade spring plate thing (not the actual name, you know what I mean). Has anyone else had a random piece of hair cause a problem that took way longer than it should have to figure out?

3 comments

rileyellis•21d ago

A client told me my fades were 'too rushed' and I had to rethink my whole approach

He said I was moving too fast through the clipper work and missing the blend lines... so now I slow down and do a second pass with a half guard before I even touch the trimmers. Has anyone else had a critique that actually made your cuts better?

2 comments

the_charlie•22d ago

Fell for that $200 clipper sharpening scam last month

Sent my whole set to a place I found online that promised factory sharpening for $40 each. Got them back 2 weeks later and they were cutting worse than before, had to take them to a local guy who fixed them for $20 each. Anyone else get burned by those mail-in sharpening services?

3 comments

sammoore•23d ago

That Tuesday I had back to back nightmare clients nearly broke me

Last Tuesday I had three walk ins in a row who all wanted completely different things than what I usually do. First guy wanted a flat top with a skin fade, second was a kid screaming about the clippers touching his neck, third lady asked for a bob cut but kept moving her head every two seconds. I messed up the fade on the first guy because he kept jerking away from my hand, had to refund him $25. By the time I got home that night I was so frustrated I almost quit barbering on the spot. What makes a bad day like that different from a normal rough day for you all?

3 comments

xena373•23d ago

Tried switching to a ceramic blade on my clippers...

I swapped out my regular blade for a ceramic one on a whim last Thursday, and the cut was smoother but the blade chipped after just 3 haircuts. Has anyone else had ceramic blades fail that fast on thicker hair?

3 comments

hayes.jake•24d ago

Noticed a real difference in my fades after switching blade sizes mid-cut

I've been messing with the same #2 guard for months on taper fades. Last week I grabbed a half guard and blended into the #1 and man, the line disappeared way cleaner. Took me like 3 tries to get confident with it but now I'm kicking myself for not trying it sooner. Anyone else find a random adjustment that just clicked one day?

3 comments

jake_owens•24d ago

Vent: Old timer told me to use hair gel instead of pomade and I listened

A retired barber at the shop said gel works just as good for slick backs and costs half the price. I tried it on a client last Thursday and within an hour his hair was a stiff, flaky mess. Had to re-wash and re-style him for free. Has anyone else ran into advice from the older guys that just doesn't hold up anymore?

2 comments

taylor_hayes25•29d ago

Had to choose between a straight razor shave or a hot towel today at my shop

I had this guy come in yesterday who was a walk-in and he was super nice but he smelled like he'd been drinking since noon (which, hey, I get it, bartender instincts kicked in). He asked for a full beard trim and then gave me this ultimatum: either I use the straight razor for his neckline or I do the hot towel treatment but not both because he was in a rush. I went with the straight razor because I'm way more confident with it and honestly, it took like 8 minutes flat. The neckline came out clean but he complained that his skin felt a little rough after, so now I'm second guessing my call. Any of y'all ever get stuck between two services when a customer is impatient?

3 comments