Wahl KM10 Clipper Reveiw

This post has been sitting for a while, but I never got around to finishing it... since it's finals week and I'm procrastinating, I finally got around to it!

I've finally been able to really test out these clippers that I've had for the past year+ so I thought it was time to do a review!

I got these clippers the Christmas before last after my very trusty Laube Speed Feed clippers died. I loved these very small, quiet clippers, but the motor was starting to have a hard time cutting anything and I was tired of buying replacement blades (since you couldn't get the blades sharpened) and the batteries no longer held much of a charge.

I decided that I wanted clippers with a cord so I didn't need to deal with batteries anymore, plus standard blades so I could get the blades sharpened. I needed something quiet and not too hefty, that would do face and leg trimming regularly, plus a body clip once or twice a year.

Initially I was planning on the Lister Star clippers but once I held them in person I realized that they were just way too big for me.

The Wahl KM10's had just recently come out and I got to see them in person at a trade show. They were the perfect size and quiet. I researched it a lot and at the time couldn't find a ton of reviews, but they sounded pretty neat - a brushless motor that would supposedly last a lot longer than regular motors, in addition to making said motor run quieter and cooler.

Perfect size

It has a nice long cord - 14 feet which was great because of the barn's oddly placed outlets. Our outlets are at the ceiling basically, since the one outlet by the crossties in the tack room no longer works. And it has a 5 year warranty which is pretty awesome! It doesn't hurt that they come in turquoise either!

Basically, I love this clipper. It is very quiet (though not as quiet as my Laube clippers). It's extremely light weight which I love and small for my small hands. It did awesome with Jetta's body clip. While it did get hot, I would oil it every 10 minutes and let it rest for a few seconds and it cooled down quickly and I could get right back to work.

Besides the body clip, I've used it about once a month to trim Jetta's bridle path and chin whiskers, in addition to roaching her mane every couple of months. It does a great job, especially with Jetta's super thick mane - it buzzes through just like butter!

Makes quick work of that mane

I've been storing it at home since it was at the barn for the last few months and started to get a small amount of rust, which I do for most of my things since the barn is just so ridiculously damp. But I forsee these clippers having a long productive life!

Trimmed Up

Today's weather was gorgeous out! I thought it was supposed to be rainy for the next few days, but when I got to the barn the sun was shining so I couldn't resist getting the horses outside. I lunged both of the horses in the roundpen and then went for a spin on Misty in the indoor (where it wasn't quite so muddy).

I really need to stop riding bareback or at the very least, bareback without a pad. It huuurts. Misty has lost all her summer chunkiness so I can feel her spine and add hard stops and turns to the mix and I really need some cushioning down there.

She looks a little less homeless without all that hair. Now I just need to wash that mane...

I finally charged up my clippers and attacked some of the wooliness that was happening. Both girls got their bridlepaths, chins, fetlocks and whiskers cleaned up. I also clipped their white socks because I just like how it looks so I did Jetta's one back sock and Misty's two front socks. What a difference!

Before

After

Of course the only bad part about the day was that I forgot Jetta's bridle at home. I really wanted to ride her, but of course since I've been keeping all the bridles in my closet to keep off the mold, I need to actually remember the bridle. Sigh. So that was depressing, but Jetta's been a touch foot sore since her trim so I guess it's not all that bad, giving her time to recover. Though hopefully the Keratex treatment today helped. I swear that stuff is magical.

I don't think she's disappointed about not being ridden

Summer Cleaning

I had a lovely, long afternoon at the barn just getting random things done, my own version of spring summer cleaning. I was planning on a trail ride, hauling to my favorite trails, but at the last minute decided that I was in a cleaning mood (very rare for me!) and after cleaning my room, car and truck I headed out to the barn to tackle the horses, my tack and the tack room.

I ended up getting the horse's bridle paths and whiskers trimmed, tails freshly banged and washed, back legs scrubbed, half of my tack cleaned and my tack box and drawers organized. Next up is the other half of my tack and getting the trailer cleaned and organized. Feels good to get everything looking nice and in order!

Misty all braided and trimmed

I also lunged both ponies and plan to ride next time. They've been getting lunged about every other day while I was cramming for finals the past two weeks so it's almost been that long since I've ridden. But I wanted to make sure that there are no rodeo moves for when I ride so it was one more lunge.

Misty was her adorable, playful self as usual. She just loves getting out on the lunge and is too cute to watch.

Jetta was less adorable. I don't happen to think her rears and spins are cute like Misty's. But she settled down and was good. She is looking SO FAT though right now. Like she could be pregnant fat, lol. She's not quite morbidly obese, but she's fairly close. She needs to back to consistent work so badly right now. I have her feed as low as I want it to go right now, so the next thing is probably as soon as she runs out of orchard grass hay she's going to get the barn's grass hay. Which is nasty straw looking stuff, but at least it won't contribute to her weight.

Her mohawk is coming along nicely!

Awful picture... but that hay belly. Geez.

What Did I Do

I've been considering this for a while and for some reason today, I just decided to go with it.

I've always liked the look of a roached mane and have kind of wanted to do it to Jetta for a long time but always thought that I'd never actually do it. I was too chicken.

For some reason, I just threw all those reasons out the window and shaved it all off today. I hate keeping it pulled, Jetta hates having it pulled, I'm probably not going to show that much this summer, it will keep her cool on our trail rides and I think she'll rock the mohawk.

Mid-way through the cut I kind of had a panicked "what am I doing?!" moment, but now that it's done, I actually really like it.

Pretty Girl

First of all, we got confirmation for our show entry! It's only 13 days away! So excited...

Anyways, today Jetta got her toes trimmed so I just lunged her so I wouldn't make her sore like last time. Also, for your enjoyment some pictures of her cleaned up self and her new "hairdo" which is as always akin to a mohawk. What can I say, my horse thinks she's pretty cool ;)

All trimmed up

Big ears

New 'do - it's growing back in where I accidentally shaved it off so it doesn't want to lay flat, not that it ever does...

Trying to show how sporty her shorter tail looks and failing...

Trimmed toes!

You can better see how short I did her tail, usually I only trim it to the fetlocks, this time it's mid-cannon bone. I like it!

Naked Ponies

Well, they're not completely naked! Just partially :)

Yesterday I clipped Miss Katy. She was such a brat! Naughty girl, she's learning some bad habits... She was acting more like Jetta and just would not stand still in the cross ties. Though it was very bad timing to do it at dinner time... She got a semi-trace clip, sometimes called a chaser clip I believe? She looked pretty good and it only took me an hour and a half. She had such thick fur though! Of course I didn't get any pictures of it, but here's what it looks like.

Her owners were in a bit of a hurry so I didn't get to make it as nice as I'd like, but it still looked really good. She seriously lost a hundred pounds by getting clipped :)



My "after" picture. At least you can see all the hair
she lost! We could make a miniature pony out of all that!



Favoritest clippers ever!



The hardest part for me is definitely clipping the shoulder and the armpit. It just doesn't work very well! But I'm glad I was able to clip her, as it almost didn't work out. I showed up at their new barn (they moved, which was sad, but now I get to give them lessons!) and pulled out my clippers. The mom said that she didn't think that they were going to work, because they're not body clippers. I assured her that they'd be fine since I've used them the past two years to do body clips. I had charged both of the batteries the night before. I turn them on and put it to Katy... and it cuts a two inch square before refusing to do any thing else. Hm. This is not good. The mom kind of says "I told you so", but I switched batteries and tried again. Nada. So the last option is to switch the blades, luckily I had another set in my car. I put those on and voila! Who says these babies aren't body clippers???

So it all worked out and Katy got trimmed as planned.

Today, well, this morning, was Jetta's turn. I decided to leave her in her stall and tie her loosely so she could eat her hay while I trimmed. It would be harder to get her neck, but easier because she would actually stand still. I did a bit more of a clip on Jetta, though it still only took an hour and a half, probably because Jetta's hair isn't nearly as thick as Katy's, but it was almost a little bit harder because her skin was thinner and it got all wrinkled up more easily. Of course, I meant to do a high trace clip, but chickened out so she got a low trace clip. I like it though I may touch it up a bit tomorrow because I'm a bit of a perfectionist like that.



The worst "before" picture you have ever seen



"Why you do this to me?!"

"Ok, I'm going back to sleep now..."
But doesn't it look good?!

I think if I change anything, it will be that I clip about a blade's-width more higher along the whole length, and clip the hip portion so that it is more level on top instead of slanted. But not too shabby, if I do say so myself!

Afterwards, I put her other blanket on (she has two sets, spoiled pony) and it's the heavier of the two, plus it's actually clean so she should be nice and comfy tonight.

  



Noms?

So today was nice and productive and I now have a shiny new clipped pony! I'm excited to see how it looks with the saddle on and how she sweats with it now.

Sidenote, what do you think of the blog theme changes? I decided I needed something a bit more cheery since it's so gray and cold oustide, but after having it the same for so long it looks a little strange to me now!



My Picks: Favorite Grooming Products

Well, it's that time of year to get the horses all cleaned up to start showing! Or just for heading out on the trails if the show scene is not for you. My horses have mostly finished all of their shedding already (thank goodness!) and I can't wait to start going to some shows. I thought I'd share a few of my favorite grooming products, on the off chance that you haven't used these before and were maybe looking for some good grooming tools:

Canter Mane & Tail Detangler - Best detangler ever! Not only does it last for days (seriously, if you don't believe me, go try it), it also works well and smells wonderful. Like roses, in case you were wondering :) Previously I always used Cowboy Magic Detangler or Showsheen, but the Cowboy magic bottles leaked goo everywhere and it wasn't very easy to get even coverage with the gel, plus it didn't last long. The Showsheen was similar, love it for their coats, but not the mane and tail.
Unfortunately it's super hard to find in stock around here, so whenever I do find it I buy it!

Furminator - A super, duper shedding blade on steroids! This tool is great when you're dealing with horses shedding out massive amounts of hair. It comes off so quickly and easily, no elbow grease needed. While this tool can be a little expensive, there are other brands on the market that work just as well because the basic design is the same. I think I've got my money's worth out of mine though, going on three years running!

Showsheen Finishing Mist - Showsheen has always been my go-to grooming product for silky and shiny coats in the show ring. This is a new product and it's the best Showsheen product out there in my opinion. They made it smell better, which is a bonus in my opinion because I always thought that the regular formula smelt like glue! Anyways, the continuous mist makes it easy to spray on and get an even coat without soaking random patches of your horse.

QuicSilver Whitening Shampoo - If you've ever had a horse with white on them, you know how hard it is to keep them clean. I use this on all my horses white socks and go through a ton of it trying to keep Katy clean. Ah, the joys of keeping a white horse white. This is the only product I've used so far that will seriously get rid of any dirt/grass/urine stains no matter what. For particularly ingrained stains some serious scrubbing might be in order, but this shampoo is a staple in my bucket of bathing tools.

Laube Speed Clippers - Favorite clippers!! Please don't try to use the cheap-y clippers that cost around $20-$30, they usually don't work. Especially when you've got a horse with unbelieveably thick hair. I've had these clippers for four years and I never had a problem until I lost them :( But I got a new pair! I've used them to shave bridle paths, whiskers and body clip too. They're cordless, which is one of my favorite aspects and the blades are sharp and cut through hair oh so easily.

EQ Solutions Body Wash - Another bathing favorite makes giving baths so, so much easier. Attach the hose and turn the dial and presto! It makes it easier to spray water on without having to hold your thumb over the end of the hose, it works well, and get this: you can even leave the shampoo on and it won't irritate their skin. Get the horse wet, spray on shampoo, spray off shampoo, spray on shampoo again and leave it. The coat is super soft after using this shampoo.

Horse Shaves - These are always floating around in my trailer and grooming bag for show days. They're very handy little razors that you can bring a couple with you just in case you forget to clip your horse or notice a few stray whiskers you missed. These guys are sharp so use with care! Also good for horses afraid of clippers, yet need their whiskers trimmed.