Hello,
TLDR; after trying several "quality" beard trimmers that tug on my facial hair, I'm looking for a rechargeable beard trimmer, under $50 (open to higher amounts), with performance on 'zero' setting equal or better than the, cheap, entry level Wahl that runs on AAs.
After over a decade of shaving using a beard trimmer on 'zero' setting, once a week or more. I have always used the entry level Wahl, which costs about $25 $20, and runs on AA cells.
This is a fantastic trimmer, cuts extremely well, and has to be replaced no more than every couple of years. It's performance is about as good as 240V hair clippers (which I have used in a pinch). But I want to move onto a trimmer with a rechargeable battery, as it feels a bit wasteful (even if I am correctly disposing of those AAs), and I don't feel it's worth the bother for rechargeables.
Probably about 8 years ago, I bought a VS Sassoon that I found on clearance, thanks to OzBargain, and it was crap. The motor seemed very weak, and it would get jammed in my hair, and end up tugging.
Went back to the entry level Wahl within a couple of months.
Earlier this year, I tried again. This time with a Wahl that was on clearance at the Shaver Shop down from around $120 to $40-50.
I was told that the reason it wasn't popular, was because the clips it came with were too far apart in length, you could either trim on zero, two, four, six… an so on, and for my purpose, always on zero, it was perfect.
I took it home, and same problem as the previous one. It tugs and pulls, unless I go very slowly, and you can usually hear the blades/motor become overwhelmed, and you have to slow down. Even with the blades oiled.
To give an idea of the difference, the entry level Wahl would glide over my neck from the bottom up to my chin-line, almost like a cartridge razor in the TV commercials, under a second.
The rechargeable one, the same motion, takes about 4-5 seconds. Any faster and it gets overwhelmed and tugs.
Can anyone recommend a beard trimmer that would satisfy my use case? I just don't want to have to spend over $200 to equal performance of a $25 $20 item.
I don't think this is an issue of having thick stubble, as the clearly the cheapest one can tackle it no problem.
Thanks in advance!
I've used a hair trimmer for 30+ years, everyday.
I went in to get a new one and asked for a trimmer and the girl said for your beard, I replied "YES". She said youi need this specialised beard trimmer for $149. I said, i'll take the $25 Wahl hair clippers on sale thanks. She said they are not beard trimmers, I said you see this beard, i have had it for 30 years and only ever used hair clippers. She said WOW, i never knew you could use them for that.
Plus they kill 2 birds with one stone.