# Grooming with clipper comb tips needed



## Cameo (Feb 5, 2010)

there's little instruction because most that use them are groomers and should already know how to use them. 

First and FOREMOST, you coat must be impecably prepared! NO TANGLES, KNOTS, or MATS whatsoever. The hair must be clean, dried nice and straight, and completely brushed out. 

Now, you use the combs flat against the skin. You can either go with the lay of the hair or against it. If you go against, it will be the exact length of the comb from the skin to the blade. If you go with, it will be slightly longer. Either way, there is some back brushing/combing and scissoring that will need to be done to make it look smooth. 

Personally, when I use my combs, they are just basically to set length, not as a finishing tool. Scissors are a must to get that nice finish. 

Now, to your favor, it DOES take some practice getting the hang of comb clipping, but if you follow the "rules" you should not have a problem once you've adjusted to the learning curve.


----------



## flyingduster (Sep 6, 2009)

Firstly, you hold them like in the first photo. If you hold them with the points digging in, you will dig the points into the skin (yes, they're rounded, but they still poke!) and also you WILL get a very choppy finish if you try and keep the angle right, the whole point of keeping them flat is that you *cannot* go too short; it will set the hair to the length of the comb and no less...

And yes, a clean and fluffed coat will make *the* biggest difference to the finish you get out of the snap on combs. Perfectly knot-free isn't _so_ important with the metal combs that your'e using (though is absolutely necessary if using the plastic snap on combs) as they glide through most lil tangles with little problem (though if you do feel them catch on any knots, brush the knot out to carry on...) 

The main thing though is that with snap on combs you must back comb, re-clip, back comb, re-clip, back comb, re-clip. etc etc. Run them in all directions, fluff the coat up, run them in all directions again... They, by nature, will leave a choppy finish if you only do a few swipes. You can get away with a few swipes going over IF you are just using them to set a length and intend to finish with scissors anyway, but if you're wanting a decent finish without scissoring (much) afterwards you really have to keep going over it plenty of times, and remember to fluff the coat up plenty between 'swipes' (the combs squash the coat down somewhat as they go, so hence you need to keep fluffing back up between swipes)

Even going over it lots, you invariably need to touch up with scissors still...


----------

