Took me forever to get my clipper gap right on a zero fade

Spent like 2 hours last week fiddling with my Andis Master clippers trying to get that perfect zero gap for a fade. The screw kept slipping and I couldn't figure out why the blade wasn't sitting flush. Turns out I had a tiny hair stuck between the blade and the base plate, took me forever to notice it. Has anyone else had this happen where something simple like that eats up your whole appointment time?

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2 Comments

jakef664mo ago

Oh man, I gotta jump in here. That's a common mistake but you're mixing up the terminology a bit. Zero gapping isn't about the blade sitting flush with the base plate, it's about getting the cutting blade as close as possible to the stationary blade without them touching. A hair stuck between the blade and base plate wouldn't really affect the gap that much. More likely your screw was slipping because the blade tension spring was loose or the screw threads were stripped from over tightening. Next time just clean the whole blade assembly with some clipper oil and a brush before you start adjusting. It'll save you all that headache.

10

paulk424mo ago

Right there with you on stripping screws from overtightening. That reminds me, I once spent an hour trying to get a pair of clippers to stop chattering on me. Turned out I had the blade screws so tight I actually warped the blade itself a little. Had to get a whole new set just because I got heavy handed. @jakef66 is spot on about cleaning first, but also check your blade alignment with a screwdriver instead of just eyeballing it. Ever had that happen to you?

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