Revisiting blade lengths

[LJRSnowcat]

After our discussions about blade length and against or with the grain of the hair, I contacted Oster. According to their engineers, the guys who design the blades, the # on the blade is the length that the blades cut WITH the grain of the hair. In other words a #4 blade cuts the hair to 3/8" with the lay of the coat, going against the grain the cut is shorter. So Andis may very well measure their cuts against the grain (in reverse) but Oster does NOT. That, my friends is the definitive answer from the manufacturers engineers themselves!

After speaking with Andis, also, they measure the length with the grain also. I indeed saw somewhere ( I'm not sure where) that it's measured against the grain, but according to Andis and Oster this information is incorrect.

[OntheBRINKofDisaster]

Going against the grain drops the blade length by a bit...any company that measures by that isn't a company I'd want to support unless it's clearly explained and stated...especially since most brands/blades should be about the same all the way around. (little idiosyncrasis even within the manufacturer and depending on lay of coat, but generally, a #3 should always clip 1/2". No matter who you buy from.)

[LJRSnowcat]

Going against the grain drops the blade length by a bit...any company that measures by that isn't a company I'd want to support unless it's clearly explained and stated...especially since most brands/blades should be about the same all the way around. (little idiosyncrasis even within the manufacturer and depending on lay of coat, but generally, a #3 should always clip 1/2". No matter who you buy from.)

I agree; however, the topic of the conversation wasn't so much the differences in manufacturers but the interpretation or actually the information being passed by a reputable company, not the manufacturers, misinforming the public!! You can catch up on the topic of conversation by looking at previous posts. Search posts of mine if you can't find it.

[Helly]

I have two problems with this. First, I know for a fact that blades cut differently on different types of coats when you go with the grain. A curly coat cuts shorter than a flat coat, for example. So how can they say they're measuring the length when they cut WITH the grain? With the grain on what type of coat?

If you're clipping against the grain, all types of coats cut pretty much the same length. I also know for a fact that my #3 leaves at least an inch when I clip a Shih or Yorkie with the grain.

But the second problem? When I've called companies in the past I don't think I've gotten too many people on the phone that actually know what they heck they're talking about. It happened to me recently, as a matter of fact. I had to talk to 8 different people before finding one who could actually answer my question in a way that made sense.

[LJRSnowcat]

But the second problem? When I've called companies in the past I don't think I've gotten too many people on the phone that actually know what they heck they're talking about. It happened to me recently, as a matter of fact. I had to talk to 8 different people before finding one who could actually answer my question in a way that made sense.[/QUOTE]

I know, I specifically asked to speak with the design engineers! They needed to get in touch with them and it required them to return a call to me. They were very considerate, and kind to do so.