Clipper Blades – What's the Difference and How Do I Know Which One I Need?
Grooming your pup is a great way to deepen your bond while also staying in tune with any changes in their fur or skin, which can indicate potential health issues.
On your quest to become a groomer, whether at home or professionally, you’ve started researching pet clippers. Whoa, there are a ton of options! While this can be overwhelming, our guide is here to help you determine the different clipper blade types and size options to help equip you with the knowledge you need to make the right purchase for your dog’s needs.
Perhaps the most important thing to note it that there are three main clipper blade categories including: adjustable blades, 5-in-1 blades, and detachable blades. Each blade type has a corresponding clipper line that it is compatible with for different uses.
Adjustable Blades
The standard adjustable blade adjusts between three different blade lengths - #30, #15, and #10. It does so via a taper lever on the side of the clipper, similar to those traditionally used for human hair clippers. If you have experience clipping hair, this will be a breeze. If you don't, no worries. The 3 different lengths give you a lot of flexibility to clip with. The cut lengths are approximately 0.8mm (1/32”), 1.5 mm (3/64”), and 1.8 mm (1/16”).
Adjustable blade clippers are good for shave downs on smaller breeds with light or medium coats, such as Malteses, Bichons, Shih Tzus, Yorkies, Springer Spaniels, Bulldogs, Boxers, and Miniature Schnauzers. They can also be used to trim horses' bridle paths, ears, muzzles, and fetlocks.
Wahl also offers an Extra Wide #30-15-10 replacement blade option for quicker shave downs.
While standard adjustable blades are good for basic shave downs and keep up with your pet’s coat in between grooming visits, a trimmer or 5-in-1 blade clipper may be necessary for more sensitive areas such as ears, faces, paws, and sanitary areas. For shaving down larger dog breeds and horses, see the Detachable Blades section below.
Wahl Adjustable Blade clipper options include the U-Clip®, Deluxe U-Clip®, and Pro Ion®. Look for the orange Adjustable icons to identify adjustable blades and their compatible clippers.
5-in-1 Blades
5-in-1 blades features 5 different blade sizes - #9, #10, #15, #30, and #40 – in one convenient, easy-to-adjust blade. The cutting length sizes, or the amount of hair that will be left behind after using each blade, are approximately 2 mm (5/64”), 1.8 mm (1/16”), 1.5 mm (3/64”), 0.8 mm (1/32”), and 0.6 mm (3/128” – surgical cut) accordingly. For longer cutting lengths, try them out with the Stainless Steel Attachment Guide Combs for 5-in-1 blades. These guide combs will allow you to leave up to 1” of hair.
The 5-in-1 blade is suitable for body clipping and trimming small and medium sized dogs with light to medium coats. Examples of dog breeds that fit into these categories include Jack Russell Terriers, Boxers, Great Danes, Shih Tzus, Cavalier King Charles Spaniels, Scottish Terriers, Malteses, Miniature Schnauzers, Airedales, Cocker Spaniels – just to name a few.
Additionally, the 5-in-1 blade is perfect for finesse or precision trimming on any dog breed, including those with thick coats. This includes trimming fur around your dog’s eyes, ears, paws, and sanitary areas. It is also a great solution for shaving cats to keep them tangle and flea free and can also be used for trimming horses' bridle paths, ears, muzzles, and fetlocks.
The 5-in-1 blade comes in two cutting varieties – Fine and Coarse. While the Fine blade is used for most general clipping and trimming, if your pet has a particularly thick or coarse coat, the 5-in-1 Coarse blade may be exactly what you need. Please exercise caution when using coarse blades. Coarse blades are skip tooth blades, meaning there are fewer blade teeth across the blade and will require you to hold skin taught when clipping to avoid any accidental nicks.
Wahl 5-in-1 blade clipper options include the Arco®, Bravura®, Chromado™, Creativa™, Figura®, and Motion™. Look for the blue 5-in-1 icons to identify adjustable blades and their compatible clippers.
Detachable Blades
Detachable blades, sometimes referred to as A5-style blades, come in a wide variety of sizes to meet your clipping needs. These blades are the industry standard used by professional groomers around the world. There are 15 different blade size options that range from a 10 mm cut length (#3F) to 0.4 mm cut (#50), which is a close, surgical cut. The #30 blade can be used with Stainless Steel Attachment Guide Combs for even longer cutting length options that give up to 1” of fur.
Detachable blades can be used for any pet coat – ranging from dogs and cats to horses and livestock.
Detachable blades also come in Fine and Coarse. Blades such as the #3F, #4F, #5F, and #7F are a fine cut (designated by the “F” in the number) and are perfect for shaving down most pet coats. The #4, #5, and #7 detachable blades, however, are skip tooth blades, which mean there are fewer blade teeth and are better for clipping through thick, coarse coats. We always recommend caution when using coarse blades to avoid accidental nicks.
Wahl’s detachable blades, also known as the Competition Series and Ultimate Competition Series blade lines, are compatible with clipper options such as the KM Cordless™, KM10™, KM5™, KM2™, Power Grip®, and SS-Pro®, as well as other competitor detachable blade clippers. Look for the green Detachable icons to identify adjustable blades and their compatible clippers.
