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PSA: I finally quit using clippers on the back of the neck first | Barbers - Hub Chatter

PSA: I finally quit using clippers on the back of the neck first

I ran my shop solo last Saturday with 14 guys on the books and got backed up almost 40 minutes by noon. My old habit was to knock down the bulk with clippers right away, but I flipped it that day and did a full scissor blend on the nape before touching the trimmer. The fade lines came out softer and I stopped going back over the same spots twice, which is where I was losing all my time. One regular looked in the mirror and told me it was the cleanest neckline he'd had from me in two years. Any of you run scissors first on the back, or am I late to something everyone already knew?

2 comments

2 Comments

michaela1615d ago

Man, I have to disagree on this one. I've been behind the chair for a while and going scissors first on the nape would slow me way down, not speed me up. Clippers knock that bulk out fast so the scissor work is just cleaning up the lines, and for me that's the whole point of saving time on a packed Saturday. Your result sounds great, no question, but I'd be careful about calling it a fix for everyone, your mileage may vary depending on the hair type and how tight the fade is. I'd also wonder if the 40 minute backup was really about clipper order or just having 14 guys with no help, because that's a lot to lay on one habit. Take this with a grain of salt since every barber works different, but I'd chalk your win up to trying something new and paying closer attention more than the order itself.

jake_martin1615d ago

Michaela makes a fair point about hair type mattering here. What worked for me on tighter fades was running the clippers over the bulk like normal but leaving the nape line a little longer, then going in with scissors to shape before I hit it with the trimmer. Gave me way more control on guys with cowlicks or uneven growth back there, and I stopped having to go back over spots twice. Still do it the fast clipper way on straight hair though, so yeah, it depends on who's in the chair.