Arcticfox

So I'm looking into getting my own set of grooming supplies so I can eventually do all the grooming myself. I've heard Oster recommended quite often. Currently, I'm looking at the Oster 78005-140 Golden A5 2-Speed Clippers and the Oster A5 Turbo 2-Speed Professional. Does anyone use either of these? Have you had good/bad experiences with the company? I'm also open to other suggestions.

As for the specific needs, I don't think I'll ever do anything too fancy. I'd like to mostly trim FFT, and keep the body short all over, around an inch or less. I'd prefer one clipper versatile enough to do both rather than a heavy duty one for shavedowns and one for face trims.

Looking at amazon.com, none of them seem to come in kits - I think only the clipper and one blade is included. What other accessories will I need, ie specific blades or combs? Does anyone know of a seller that does bundles? Or just a reliable seller in general?

Some of them say they only ship within the US, but that shouldn't be an issue, my parents are planning to make a trip down to visit some family friends in the next few months so they can pick it up for me. Alternatively, they're still in China right now so if anyone knows any brands sold in China (not necessarily Chinese brands) that are good, I could check that out, too.

Thanks in advance for all the help

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tortoise

I find the Oster A5 clippers to be "wiggly". I have much better control with the Andis 2-speed.

For a show grooming, you'll need a 40 (face and feet) and 15 (set patterns, face and feet between shows) blade. You'll get a 10 blade with the clipper if you find the 15 is too short.

For pet grooming, you will probably want a 3S (skip tooth, for a fluffy but manageable body clip), 15 (face and feet), and 10 (sanitary). If you want a longer cut, I'd get a 3/4HT blade. My absolute favorite blade ever.

ArreauStandardPoodle

Have to checked Wholesale Pet Supplies, Dog Grooming | PetEdge.com They have the best prices I have found anywhere. Once in awhile the offer two blades for the price of one.

I have seven sets of Osters and while they have always been what I recommend ans they are indeed workhorses, they are very heavy and overheat quickly and drastically. When I am ready for new ones, I am going to do a poll here because I have no idea what others to think about. I have never used anything else.

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Arcticfox

Tortoise: Could you be more specific as to which Andis model you like? There are TONS when I looked it up... AG Super 2 speed, UltraEdge, Plus+, AGC, etc, etc. I'm guessing not all clippers from the same brand are equal. I will only be doing pet grooming for my poodle, no plans to show or for show cuts. I've also never handled clippers before so safe and easy to use are top concerns.

Arreau: Those prices are pretty reasonable, but I saw some sale prices on Amazon that were about $40 less (for the osters, those were the only ones I'd looked at closely), I'm not sure how long the sale is, which is why I wanted to buy soonish if it is a good product. How do you deal with the overheating issue? Do you think it would be a good choice if I only had one dog to groom occasionally?

I'm also wondering if I need the 2-speed or if one speed will be sufficient? How many strokes per minute should I be looking for?

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ArreauStandardPoodle

Do you have any pet supply outlets near you where you could pick up and feel the different makes of clippers, just to be sure they are not too heavy? For one dog, they would serve you well.

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star

Hi there!
I have owned both sets of clippers (I am a dog groomer) but I would recommend buying a Andis 2 speed. The oster has a little vent and when you are clippering I find it blew all those little hairs in my face. Plus the osters were always breaking. I did buy the km2 wahls to replace the oster and they did work well but I didn't like the vibration in my hand so I bought the newer Andis 2 speed (green square housing bought from rens pet depot) and they are perfect. I have had them for a year now using them regularily and have had no issues. I like the longer cord as well. Anyways that is my two cents.

Arborgale

I have 2 sets of the Oster Golden A5. I do not have the 2 speed. They work great and have never broken down in the 16 and 7 years that I have owned them. The only reason I have 2 is because my husband took my first one to Afghanistan with him to do his own hair and did not tell me. I purchased snap on combs, but have not been successful in using them, so they sit in their boxes at the bottom of her grooming bag. I have used a 3 and a 5 on the body. It is up to you on the body length you like. We only used those in the summer and just let her grow out in the winter. You will most likely want the 10 for FFT and work up to the 15 or 30 if you like a closer cut. You may want to purchase a couple blades at the same time because they do heat up. That would be my only complaint with the Oster. It does get hot, but we would rotate the blades. I would be interested to hear from Andis owners to see how quickly they heat up.

I just purchased the Wahl Mini Arco for quick FFT tidys. And I love it. It is cordless, quiet, and light weight. I wish I would have purchased that years ago, because it is small and gets into those tight toes easily.

Have you tried looking on Amazon? That is where I just got new blades pretty cheap.

Good luck with your search and congratulations on trying to do the grooming yourself. It is a good bonding experience. It may be bumpy at first, but stay with it and pretty soon everything will fall into place.

tortoise

Andis Plus+ AG 2-Speed Clipper | PetEdge.com This is my clipper. The "plus" refers to it having a blade included.

UltraEdge is one of their lines of detactable blades.

I really recommend getting a corded model. Cordless models only run for 1 hour. Plus the battery weight causes fatigue for me. My boss was going to give me a new cordless Andis, but after holding it I declined. I've had my clipper for 8 years and it runs great.

tortoise

I have my Andis blades and my boss's Oster blades. The Andis blades are cooler, I notice it most on the 10 blades. I have A LOT of 10 blades because I don't like to wait for them to cool, I just change them out. My Andis UltraEdge run 2 - 3 times longer than an Oster blade before it is hot and I change it out.

The other difference is when the Oster blades cool down, and I use them again, they heat up VERY fast the second time. Like the core takes longer to cool off.

I've also found I'm more likely to nick or razor-burn a dog with Oster blades.

mom24doggies

I'm with those who recommend Andis; I've used\watched others use Oster and I feel Andis is better. They don't heat up as quickly and aren't nearly as heavy. As far as power, the Andis I use (Andis UltraEdge 2-Speed Dog Clipper | PetEdge.com) has about 3400-4400 spm, while the Oster Golden A5 2 speed gets about 2100-2700 spm. The Oster is also almost 2 lbs, whereas the Andis Ultraedge is 1 lb.

Blades....you'll definitely want a #10, (for face, feet, tail, and sanitary trim) or maybe even 2 or 3 so you can switch them out as they heat up. If you like faces and feet to be really smooth and short, you'll want a #30 or #40; the #30 will also go under snap on combs. A #15 can also be used under combs.

I would recommend getting a set of snap on combs; the metal Wahl ones are my favorites. Plastic combs have never worked for me. I use snap on combs more then my #3, (1\2") #4, (3\8") or #5 (1\4") ...I feel that the finish of longer blades isn't as nice as that of combs. You can also leave the coat longer (up to 1") if you desire.

I've never seen an all-inclusive set. I think you are just going to have to buy everything separately. Amazon does have good deals on clippers, that's where I got mine. I think I payed $150 for it, I can't remember if that included shipping.

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"Love is the emotion that a woman feels always for a poodle dog and sometimes for a man." ~George Jean Nathan