With summer fading fast and with September just around the corner, our horses are starting to get steadily hairier, which is a sure sign of the beginning of the busy Autumn horse clipping season. If your clippers have been stored away over the summer, now is the perfect time to dig them out and give them a thorough check over.
In this blog we'll guide you through some essential clipper checks to ensure your horse clippers are in optimal condition to provide smooth, sharp, stress-free clipping and avoid mid-clip mishaps!
Here’s our checklist to get your clipping season off to the best start.
Essential Checks for Horse Clippers
1. Inspect Your Clippers for Wear and Tear
- Check your clipper is dry: Check over the handset to ensure it is dry and free from rust spots that might indicate that have been in contact with moisture. For cordless clippers, check the battery ports are clean and in good condition too.
- Splits in the cable: For mains powered clippers, check the complete length of the power lead and plus for signs of frayed cables, exposed wires or damage where a horse may have accidentally trodden on the cable. wear or damage.
- Air filters: Ensure air filters are free from trapped hair and the mesh is not damaged and in good condition. Holes in the mesh can let clipped get inside the clipper motor causing excess heat. Blocked filters can also prevent the air to flow through the handset to keep the motor cool. If your clipper has removable air filters, take them out of the handset to give them a goodclean.
2. Check For Missing or Worn Parts
Checking Inside the Clipper Head. The components inside the clipper head are made up of hard wearing but consumable parts that will need to be replaced with extended use. Routine clipper servicing ensures that these moving parts are checked and replaced as necessary, but it's always worth taking a look at these before your start clipping for the season.
- Heinger Style Clippers: For older clipper models with a traditional Heiniger style head, remove the blades and take a look inside the head to ensure that the laminated springs are intact and the square bolt is in position.
- A2 Style Clippers: For modern A2 clipper models, check the tension set is complete - comprising of tension screw, spring and bolt. Check the inside of the head to check the blade cushions, blades runners and anti-vibration grommet are in place, secure and not showing signs of wear. Watch our handy video guide here.
If you notice any parts are missing your can find spares for your Masterclip clipper here with fast and free delivery for simple fixes. For more complex repairs or servicing contact our workshop team and send your clipper to us for a full service and PAT test to ensure they are primed and ready for the busty clipping season ahead.
TOPTIP – Our older Heiniger style clipper models can be upgraded with the modern A2 head to give a much easier and smoother clipping experience and allows for a greater choice of premium clipper blades. The Masterclip Ranger, Hunter and HD Roamer clippers can be quickly and easily upgraded at home and offer easier tensioning, faster blade changes. Contact us here for more information.
3. Check Your Clipper Blades and Supplies
- Rust free blades: Check each part of your clipper blades for signs of rusting, excessive wear, damage or broken teeth. A small amount of rust can be removed from your blades when they are sent off for resharpening. However any blades with broken teeth cannot be used for clipping. Instead, you can save the comb for shortening a mane. To keep your blades rust free, take a look at our storage tips here.
- Sharp Blades Are A Must: Ensure your clipper blades are freshly sharpened and you have at least 2 or 3 sets of the same blades for full clipping. This will ensure that you always have a spare sharp set ready to hand should the first set go blunt mid-clip. Bear in mind too that the turn around time for sharpening blades over the busy winter season may be longer than usual, so having a few blades means you will have spares ready when you need them.
- Clipper Blade Care: Check the levels of your clipper oil and cooling spray. Clipper blades need to be oiled frequently during the clip to ensure they are running smoothly and reduce heat. Clipper oil also needs to be applied to the holes in the clipper head every now again to keep the inner workings of the head well lubricated too. If you have a lot of clipping to do, or tackling more challenging coats, the Andis 5-in-1 cool care spray is perfect for keeping hot blades cool and saving time waiting for them to come back to a comfortable temperature.
4. Test Your Clippers and Batteries
When your happy that your horse clipper and blades are clean, complete and ready, its time to start them up:
- Each horse clipper model and brand has its own unique method of tensioning. Familiarise yourself with changing the blades and how to set the tension correctly as per the clipper manual to save time (and possible confusion) during clipping.
- For mains clippers, using an RCD, plug the clipper in and check it is working and running as it should. Listen out for any unusual noises - grinding or rattling sounds may indicate that something is wrong with the way the blades are attached or something is amiss internally. You can even test them an a bit of fake fur to check they are cutting well.
- For cordless models, run the clipper with each battery after they been charged to make sure each battery is working as expected and the connections are sound.
- For your first clip, test your clippers on a small patch of hair in an inconspicuous area to see that they are clipping well to give you a chance to make any last-minute adjustments and avoid a frustrating first clip. If the clipper blades are leaving lines or not cutting evenly, it might be time to sharpen the blades or make other adjustments. Read ur blog on troubleshooting common issues here.
TOPTIP: Never run your heavy duty clipper without the blades attached.
5. Tips for Keeping Your Clippers Working Through the Winter
Proper cleaning and storage is key to maintaining the longevity of your clippers. After each use:
- Clean the clippers and blades thoroughly.
- Oil the blades to prevent rusting and pop a few drops of clipper oil into the holes on the clipper head to lubricate the internal components.
- Store your cleaned clippers in a cool, dry place, preferably in their carry case or holdall to protect them from dust and damage.
- Avoid storing your cordless clippers and charging the batteries in a cold environment. Just like any other batteries, very cold temperatures can reduce the running time of each battery so they are best stored and charged at home and taken to the yard when needed.
Ready, Steady, Clip!
By following these steps, the majority of common clipping issues will be remedied before you begin your first clip of the season.
If your clippers have not been looked at for a while, or you’re in any doubts, send your clipper to us for servicing by our dedicated workshop team. Our technicians will replace any consumable parts, open the handset to clean it and remove accumulated hair to prevent overheating and PAT test your clipper to ensure they are primed ready for the busy autumn and winter clipping season.
Servicing should be carried out every two years for the average user clipping one or two horses, and once a year for more intensive users. Book your Masterclip clipper service with us here.
Looking for a new horse clipper to see you through this years clipping season and beyond? Take a look at our award winning range of horse clippers and trimmers to give your horse or horses a smooth and professional clip, every time. Not sure which of our clippers would best suit you and your horses needs? Get in touch with our friendly and knowledgeable customer service team today for free advice tailored to your requirements, whether you need a clipper for a shetland, cobs, yard of event horses or to use as a professional groom clipping daily.
I'm missing a part for my horse clippers. Where can I find spare parts?
We stock all parts for your Masterclip horse clippers and they can purchased from our website with free and fast delivery here. Not sure of your clipper model? Just drop us a message or give us a call and we will be able to check which model you have and the exact part you need to get you back clipping again.
Where can I purchase extra blades for my horse clippers?
Our A2 horse clippers can be used with a range of premium clipper blades in superfine, fine, medium or coarse cut. You can find our range if horse clipper blades here. Older Heiniger styles clippers can only be used for medium or fine heavy duty blades. Want to use your clipper with a better range of blades? why not consider upgrading your clipper head? Find out more here.
My clipper doesn't sound right, What could be the issue?
Worn or missing components in the clipper head can cause the clipper blades to sit unevenly on the head and may sound rattly or more noisy than usual. Contact our customer service team to arrange to send your clippers to us for a service to ensure your clipper is primed ready for clipping.
