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A guy at the supply house said 'real barbers don't use guards' and I bit my tongue for about 5 seconds
I was picking up clipper blades in Cincinnati last month and some old timer behind me in line started going on about how guards are for people who never learned to taper. He said he hasn't touched a guard in 30 years and his cuts come out cleaner because of it. I wanted to argue with him but he was buying the same blades I was, so I just nodded. Here's my thing though, I've been cutting 11 years and guards saved my hands. When I was starting out I did everything freehand and my wrists killed me by Friday. Now I blend with a 1 and a 1.5 and my fades look the same or better, and I can do 14 heads on a Saturday without my hands going numb. Knowing how to freehand matters, I'm not saying it doesn't, but acting like a tool is a crutch is just pride talking. I'd rather my client walk out happy than prove something to a guy at the register. Any of you older guys actually given up guards for good, or is that just talk?
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logan_young2921h ago
Small thing but a 1 and a 1.5 aren't actually guards, those are blade sizes on the clipper itself. Guards are the plastic combs you snap on over the blade. Not trying to be that guy, just see people mix that up a lot. Freehand blending with the lever is a whole different skill than running a guard and either one can give you a clean fade.
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the_diana21h ago
Oh man, you just blew my mind a little with the guard vs blade size thing. I've been calling the #1 and #1.5 "guards" for years and nobody ever corrected me, so now I'm wondering how many other guys say it the same lazy way. And you're right that freehand lever work is its own skill, it's not the same thing as snapping a comb on and running it up the head. That old timer was probably doing lever work the whole time and calling it "no guards" to sound cooler than he was.
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