Have you ever seen a bear, combing his hair, down by the bay? Believe it or not, I live that song every morning. When I look in the mirror to comb my hair, I see a lot of hair. My picture doesn't do me justice right now: we are talking full beard...from my neck to my eyes. In order to avoid looking like Ted Kaczynski, I've relied on the Wahl Groomsman for the last two years to keep me looking human.

The Groomsman is a rechargeable dry mini clipper (6"x 1") which, when used with the accompanying variable guide, allows you to consistently trim hair to one of five lengths. The lengths go from about 1\8" to about 3\4". The guide slides up and down and is anchored in place by holding the two screws that hold the clipper blades on. The set comes with the clipper, a charger, oil, a small brush, and the guide.

Durability is the major plus of the groomsman. This thing is practically indestructible. I've dropped, folded, spindled and otherwise mutilated my clipper...the darned thing is still ticking. Like my typical irresponsible self, the last time I actually oiled the thing was in June ('00). It still works...not as well as when I first purchased it, but it has held up. For the kind of abuse that I have given it, I'm surprised it is still in one piece. Wahl built it strong.

Battery life is pretty good as well. I use mine for 5-10 minutes every 3-4 days. It only needs to be charged around once a month. The battery is nickel-cadmium, so it can develop a memory. Be sure that the battery is dead before recharging.

Comfort wise, the Wahl trimmer isn't bad. It is light, small, and fits comfortably in my hand. The blades don't pull my hairs, scratch, or leave any marks on my face. The guide slides over my skin and through my beard fairly smoothly.

There are three problems that I have found with the with the Wahl trimmer. The major problem is that it takes several passes to trim everything down to the right length. This is probably related to my rather poor care and feeding. Understand, that after two or three additional passes, all the hairs are the same length. It does the job; it just takes an extra minute. Basically, it is a mild annoyance.

A second problem is in how the guide is secured to the trimmer. As note above, the guide is secured by a series on notches that allow the heads of two screws to snap it in place. The guide is held fairly well when the trimmer is in use, however it can easily slip if you put the trimmer down. Yet another minor annoyance: you have to verify that it is properly set every time you use it (which I actually do anyway).

The third problem I have noticed is that the blades do not seem to be easily replaced/sharpened. Since the trimmer was only $20 and still cuts pretty well, I'm not complaining.

This isn't a professional trimmer. I don't think it pretends to be one. This is a cheap, durable trimmer that gets the job done. At one point, it was endorse by Richard Karn, "Home Improvement's" Al Borland. The Wahl Trimmer was good enough for a well-compensated celebrity and it is good enough for me.


Recommended: Yes

Amount Paid (US$): 20
Noise Level: Average