My experience with beard trimmers…
Every year or so I end up at TJ Maxx or Marshalls buying another beard trimmer.
And they are a disappointment every single time.
They all seem to cost about $20 and last around 12 months. It either simply breaks or my frustration grows until I ditch it. If you do the math the monthly cost is pretty low. But I am reminded every time I pick it up that I don’t like using it. My mother would certainly tell me to suck it up and use it until it stopped working. But life is too short to use bad grooming tools. You can quote me on that.
“Life is too short to use bad grooming tools”
SavingShaving.com
I should really know better. Buying ‘junk’ and expecting it to be ‘not junk’ is foolish. When possible, I try to live by simple rules. Buy quality things. Don’t get fooled by bling and useless features I don’t need. Strive to fill my life with simple, elegant designs that are both efficient and effective (that is why I am so drawn to safety razors, of course).
But a drawer in house is currently hosting these disappointing items: 
The top one is the Norelco Series 3100 trimmer. Decent weight and feel but the trimmer head feels bulky and I could never get it under my nose well to trim my mustache. It eventually stopped holding a charge. I thought I tossed it so I was a little surprised when I found it. It is not sold anymore but Norelco still had a link to product details.
My current trimmer is the ugly yellow one in the photo. A Wahl Model 9953. Summary: frustrating and disappointing. I call it frustrating because it doesn’t cut in 1-2 passes. More like 4 but for some reason it is as loud as a F1 car. Its claim to fame is the ability to spin the head 360 degrees in a circle to make it easier to use. I never once needed to do that. The whole thing feels cheap and this is especially true for the plastic guards. I also find it strange that the rubber surface actually grabs and holds much of the hair you are trimming off. It still holds a charge quite well but it was underwhelming right out of the box. It seems Amazon still sells it so you can see some details and reviews, if interested.
Not really recommended.
Do I just have bad luck or am I buying bad equipment? I have thought about this question quite a lot. It is more accurate to say that I am consistently making a bad decision. Buying a cheap trimmer over and over again breaks all my rules. So you are here witnessing my current moment of clarity. No more.
I should have really learned this lesson much earlier. I need a new trimmer and it will be significantly better than the ones I have been using.
But I also have another motive. I have one more electric trimmer in the house – but it belongs in a slightly different category. I use a big corded Wahl clipper (Model MC3) to buzz my head. I slap on the size #2 guard and buzz my hair down every week. I am pretty happy with it. But it is way too big for normal beard trimming. It is a corded unit but that is only a slight annoyance. It has all the power I need to complete the task quickly and I can do it without a mirror since everything gets the same length.
And now I am wondering if the new unit can also buzz my head? Is it possible to get rid of all the handheld trimmers and just use one? I usually use my beard trimmer with a mirror in the shower before the water gets turned on. Easy clean up. It would be fabulous to be able to change the length setting and give my head a quick buzz at the same time.
So what’s next?
The truth is…I don’t know. I have been reading reviews and scouring Amazon to find a better and (understandably) more expensive beard trimmer. I get tied up reading all the reviews so I haven’t found the one I want to buy yet. I am currently looking at a newer model Panasonic or a Phillips Norelco.
I know it takes several months to get blog readership going and we are just at the beginning here. But if anyone reads this and has a suggestion – please let me know. I will keep looking then I’ll pull the trigger on a new one. And, of course, I will post on what I chose when I give you an in-depth review!
Update:
For a review of the trimer I finally purchased – click Braun Trimmer Review!
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