6.1 Clipper Cutting & Shear-Over-Comb

Clipper Motor Types

Clippers are motorized cutting tools that drive two interlocking blades — a stationary bottom blade and a moving top blade — to shear hair quickly. The Red Seal exam expects you to distinguish the three motor technologies that power them.

Magnetic (Vibrating) Clippers

Magnetic clippers use an electromagnet that alternately attracts and releases a spring-loaded armature, vibrating the moving blade at high speed. They are loud, fast, and best suited to fine to medium-density hair. The classic Andis Master and Oster 76-style magnetic clippers are workhorses for fades and flat tops. Because the blade vibrates rather than rotates, magnetic clippers can grab on very thick or coarse hair if the blades are dull.

Rotary Clippers

Rotary clippers use a motor that turns a drive to produce smooth, continuous blade travel. They run quieter than magnetic clippers, generate less vibration in the hand, and power through dense, coarse, or curly hair without snagging. High-end rotary clippers (e.g., Oster Titan, some Wahl professional models) are favoured for long sessions because they reduce wrist fatigue. They are heavier and typically more expensive.

Pivot Clippers

Pivot clippers use a pivot mechanism between the motor and the blade — a middle ground between magnetic and rotary. They deliver more cutting torque than magnetic clippers with less noise, making them versatile for general salon use. Pivot motors are common in mid-range professional clippers and trimmer-style units used for edging and detailing.

Blades and Guards

Clippers accept either detachable blades (numbered blade sizes that snap on and off, e.g., an Oster 76 with a #000 blade) or adjustable blades (a single blade whose cutting length is set by a lever on the side). Adjustable blades are paired with plastic attachment combs (guards) that snap over the blade to leave a fixed length of hair.

Guard numbering is the single most tested clipper fact: each guard number adds roughly 3 mm (1/8 inch) of length. The table below is the standard reference.

Note that the #0 guard is the shortest attachment comb — it is distinct from using the bare clipper blade (a #000 detachable or an adjustable blade fully closed), which cuts even shorter and can cut to the skin.

Clipper-Over-Comb

Clipper-over-comb is a technique in which the comb lifts and holds the hair at the desired length, and the clipper — fitted with a guard or running with an adjustable blade — travels along the back spine of the comb to remove the hair projecting past the comb teeth. The comb is the guide; the clipper simply removes what the comb has measured.

Use clipper-over-comb for:

• Tapering the sides and nape when a clean, gradual shortening is needed.
• Bulk removal on thick hair before refining with shears.
• Maintaining a uniform length on short, dense hair where scissor work would be slow.

Key mechanics: hold the comb with the teeth pointing toward the ceiling for the nape taper (the spine faces the floor), rest the clipper flat against the comb's spine, and move the clipper upward and outward following the comb's angle. Move the comb in smooth, small increments — about 1 cm at a time — so each pass blends into the last.

Shear-Over-Comb

Shear-over-comb replaces the clipper with shears. The comb lifts the hair to the chosen length; the shears cut horizontally across the top of the comb teeth, snipping off the hair that projects beyond the comb. Because the shears cut incrementally and the comb supports each subsection, this technique excels at:

• Tapering nape and sideburns where a clipper would leave a hard line.
• Soft blends between a short clipper section and a longer scissor-cut top.
• Detail work around the ears and at the temple.

Keep the shears almost parallel to the comb teeth, cut only the hair protruding past the comb, and never fully close the shears mid-stroke — open, cut, open, move the comb up, cut again. Closing fully can leave a notch.

Blending Clipper Sides into a Scissors-Cut Top

A common Red Seal scenario: the sides are clipper-tapered to #2 (~6 mm) and the top is cut with shears at 25–40 mm. The blend zone — usually between the temporal ridge and the parietal ridge — must transition smoothly. Work the blend by:

1. Clipper-over-comb the transition area with a #3 or #4 guard, pointing the comb upward to lift the longer top hair into the shorter side hair.
2. Shear-over-comb the final 2–3 cm of the blend to soften any visible weight line.
3. Point-cut the top section's perimeter where it meets the sides so the two lengths interlock rather than stack.

Tapering vs. Fading

Tapering gradually narrows the hair from a longer length at the top of the section to a shorter length at the nape or hairline. Fading is an extreme taper that runs all the way down to the skin. A skin fade (also called a bald fade) tapers to bare skin at the hairline, usually with a #000 or adjustable-closed blade. The fade is built by stepping down through guard sizes — #2, #1, #0, then bare blade — and blending each transition with light, flicking clipper motions so no line marks remain.

Sanitation Between Clients

Clippers and trimmers touch skin and hair repeatedly, so they are non-negotiable sanitation points. Between every client:

• Remove loose hair with a clipper brush.
• Disinfect blades with a clipper-specific spray disinfectant (e.g., Andis Cool Care) — spray, run the clipper for a few seconds, wipe with a clean towel.
• Replace or sterilize detachable blades if the unit is shared; many jurisdictions require single-use blades for any service that breaks the skin, such as a straight-razor shave (covered in section 6.3).
• Store clippers in a clean, covered space; never in an open drawer where dust and hair accumulate.