I'm sure Spoo owners will speaker up, but I have groomed my own poodles 5 toys and 1 mini for the last 12 years. I had rather cheap clippers and plastic blades until about two years ago. The reason for the change, I finally had a poodle with a proper thick coarse coat.
The proper clipper and steel combs made a world of difference.

Roughly a year ago I started getting different clipper blades, I was having difficulty trimming my elderly poodle with her skin being quite elastic I found myself nicking her merely using combs, so I invested in couple blades to make trimming her easier. Since then I added more blades so I currently 10, 15, 30, 40, 4FC, 7FC, 3-3/4FC, 3 3/4HT and 3/8-1/32.

With the blades I feel I get a more uniform trim, that said I am trying to elevate my grooming skills, I've also in the past couple months invested in a HV dryer and a groomer table.

That all said, combs versus blades, I would go steel combs first for a first poodle.

 

Well, the answer depends on the type of grooming you have in mind... the SS comb set would give you much more versatility. However, with the use of combs that attach to your blade, you absolutely must have your poodle combed out thoroughly before you start. I clip three Standards and find myself falling back on the 3/4" blade. It goes through the coat like a hot knife through butter; which is one of the downsides, the blade does get hot, so you need duplicates, or coolant spray. If you go with the SS comb set, I would get a 30 blade for under the combs. If not I think a 10 would be fine, especially for starting out. If you clip against the hair, you can still get a pretty short cut with the 10. Remember, the key to getting a nice even job of clipping, is to have a coat that has been blown straight,otherwise you are dealing with trying to get an even cut on curls. If you are looking for sales on blades, keep an eye on some of the horse supply sites, and groomer specialties, in addition to the regular pet supplies. Good luck.

 

I personally hate combs. I would rather hand scissor than use combs, but I know a lot of groomers who like them. If I were you, I would keep your #10 and get a #1 or #3 blade if you want to keep his body short. If you want longer you will have to learn to scissor or use combs. I also highly recommend the Wahl Arco Se (or bravura, which a lot of people here use) with the 5 in one blade. It is so nice for doing fft!

 

I also tend not to use combs too much. I use blades for shorter parts and shears for longer parts. I also strongly recommend the Wahl Bravura with black diamond blade for FFT. And for other blades make sure you have two since they do get hot.

 

Congrats on your spoo and here's to the at home groomers! It's a learning process for sure but definitely doable.
I have combs and I have different blades. I much prefer to just use blades. I have the combs in case I want to go longer than what my on-hand blades will produce. My boy, Moses, has a very thick coat so I haven't had the patience to use combs on him very much past his puppy coat.
I'm working on my scissor technique and plan on getting myself a nice set of curved scissors this Christmas along with the Wahl 5 in 1.
The blades I have currently are 2- 10 blades, a 5FC, a 4FC, a 4 skip tooth, and a 3 3/4 skip tooth.
I had a 7FC but it dropped an broke... *sniffle*.

Best of luck!

 

I haven't tried combs, but have blades.

I have an Andis 2 speed with a 10, 7FC, 5, 3 3/4FC, 3/4HT (don't use this one much). The 5 and the 3 3/4 FC are the blades I use the most. The dogs are kept in a pretty basic, fairly short, pet cut and I find those two blades do most of the heavy lifting. I also have a Bravura with a 5-in-1 blade and I really love it for FFT, armpits and stomach.

 

Thank you so much for all of the replies and encouragement! Hearing your experience is very helpful.

I think I'll just have to pick either blades or combs and commit--I can't research my way into experience. Which is what I really want to do.

Seems like a majority here prefer blades, so that's what I'm leaning towards. Thanks again!

 

I am not yet a good groomer, but am always learning from the more experienced here on the forum. I have the Arco SE with the 5-1 blade for FFT. For the rougher body I have an Oster with blades - (2) 10's, 7 Skiptooth, and a 5 with an assortment of others that I have collected. Good luck grooming and remember it will grow back if you make a mistake!

 

What is FFT?

 

Face, Feet, and Tail.

I include a sanitary clip in this, as I believe most do.

 

Feet Face and Tail. I also do the sanitary area when I do FFT.