Hi Lynette. You've now heard from one pet owner and one groomer. I show as well as do some grooming on pets for my own as well as other dogs. My first ever set of clippers were 2 speed A5s and I hated them. Large, hot, heavy, awkward and clunky, hot, noisy and HOT. And did I mention hot? They would heat up so much they were even hot to hold, forget the blades that turned to the temperature of molten metal within minutes and i had to change blades after each toe. No I hated them.
To be fair, that was 8 years ago. There are newer Oster models out there that may be better. But with the ones I got you could even buy a sleeve for the clippers to stop burning your hands! sheesh.
So I traded them in for the Wahl single speed clippers. A bit lighter. A bit quieter (though not quiet). A bit lighter, a bit slimmer in design. I love them. Yes the blades do heat up, but even in summer I can clip a whole lot more dog before I need to change blades on them.
And they're the old Wahls. The newer ones which I've used at friend's places and at the grooming salon I worked at, are wonderful. I love them. Quieter than my old Wahls, a much nicer shape to hold, a nice weight, they're just the best. When I need a new set thats what I'm buying.
I also have an old pair of Andis single speed clippers. I love them too. I got them cheap through a newspaper when I thought to myself 'I show poodles, what if my clippers die the night before a show?' so I figured I needed a spare set. Well, to be honest I use them more than I use the Wahls. They are quieter again so I tend to use them on f/f/t of any dog thats a bit skittish. They're a nice shape and also dont run hot.
On the merits of the Andis... I've heard that once they break they're done for good, you cant fix them like you can the Wahls or Osters. I've heard they're not good for grooming shop situations as they cant handle the workload. Which is all fine for me. I have 2 standards and one toy, only one standard in show trim. I use my clippers once a week and not on all three dogs at once. They only get light work with the odd customer dog too. Either of these would be great for a pet owner.
As for blades... well to each his own. I also own a toe blade and I never use it. I think I used it once. I dont like it much... its like almost useless. But then again I use normal sized blades to clip toy poodle toes and babies and everything. It just takes practice in learning how to angle the blade.
For blade sizes you'll need, well thats entirely up to personal preference. The blades I use the most are, of course, the #40s which is what I use on the show dogs, but I also use them on all my dogs for f/f/ts. I like the clean shaven look and dislike fuzzy. On pet dogs I use a #10 but really dont like it. I do think I'll buy a #15 at some stage as I've heard its a bit better. For other blades I have a couple of #7s in both full and skip tooth that get a good workout for pets, a couple of #3s in both F and skip and a #5, #4 and a few #30s. I never use combs as I dont like them so I do all my clipping with the blades and then scissor for the rest. Then again I'm not a professional groomer and I can take as long as I like on a dog.
So at the end of the day I'd probably recommend the Wahl IIs and a #10 or #15 for f/f/t if you dont want to go closer. A #30 if you like clean shaven. And then depending on the weather and how much coat you want to leave on the body either a #7 or a #5. And a good pair of scissors.
Have fun!
