Clipper Maintenance Guide

Your clippers are the single most important relationship in your life (sorry, family). Treat them well and they'll glide through fleece like a hot knife through lanolin. Neglect them and you'll end up on our Report a Bad Shear page.

Before every shear

• Oil the blades. Then oil them again. You have not oiled them enough.
• Check the comb and cutter for nicks. A nicked blade tugs, and a tugged sheep gets grumpy.
• Give them a little pep talk. Blades can sense fear.

During the shear

• Keep long, confident strokes. Sheep respect confidence.
• If the clippers get hot, pause. Cool blade, cool sheep, cool you.
• Never chase a fleece. Let the fleece come to you.

After the shear

• Brush out the wool. Wipe down. Oil once more for the road.
• Store somewhere dry, away from ambitious goats.
• Thank them. Out loud. We're serious.

Troubleshooting

• Clippers won't start: Check they're plugged in. Then check the sheep isn't sitting on the cord.
• Uneven cut: Blades are dull, or you're rushing. Probably both.
• Sheep escaped mid-shear: This is a you problem, not a clipper problem.