Tensioning clippers

C

CobsGalore

Well-Known Member
Joined
28 August 2012
Messages
2,298
Location
Buckinghamshire
Visit site
Can anyone help with tensioning clippers? The instructions say to turn until tension is first felt and then another quarter turn, but what defines 'tension'? The wheel seems to get slowly tighter and there is no obvious way to feel when I should stop?

Thank you
 
No masterclip (heiniger copies!) - glad it's not just me struggling. Do you tighten them until you can't turn anymore, and then turn back? I find it difficult to hear the blades changing when tensioning them when they are on too.
 
WelshD said:
This video is for the Swift clipper so probably not the same as yours but I found it really useful to hear the actual sound difference when you tension a clipper so it may help

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2e42KLQebeE
Click to expand...

Thanks for that WelshD, I've got Swift clippers and it's really helpful to see how it should be done, I think I've been doing badly on both the oiling and tensioning fronts!
 
I have one set where you tighten fully (NOT while they are on!) and then take off 1 1/2 turns.

My second set does by sound, so I do loosely but so the blades are still not "loose" and rattling, then turn them on, and listen for the difference. I then clip a bit, loosen a bit, clip a bit, loosen a bit - or tighten a bit - until I find the loosest that will still cut cleanly. If they are tighter then they need to be then they get too hot and seem to blunt a lot quicker.

I know my horses are fine coated and clean, so not "hard" on blades, but by doing it this way and stopping regularly to oil, I can often do a full clip without hot blades, and have done 10 clips without blunting the blades.

As soon as they start to pull rather than cut cleanly I will tighten, but if they need to be so tight they heat up quickly I send them to be sharpened.
 
WelshD said:
This video is for the Swift clipper so probably not the same as yours but I found it really useful to hear the actual sound difference when you tension a clipper so it may help

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2e42KLQebeE
Click to expand...

Glad you like my video lol

Tensioning is quite a knack on Heinigars and even more difficult on any Chinese copies that tend to have blades which are made from recycled T34 Tanks.... good German or Swiss steel blades are easier to tension as you can "hear" when the tone of the blade changes.

All big blades should be "concave" when new or freshly sharpened on the correct equipment by "competent" personnel (Lots of incompetent people around that I wouldn't let sharpen pencils!).
When you tighten the tension, you are squeezing the two concave blades together until they meet, at this point all the teeth are touching and they should cut. You can often hear a "drumming" sound as the blades hit this point. Oil every ten minutes with proper oil! NOT AEROSOL, NOT WD40, DIESEL,LINSEED OIL,SPRY CHIP OIL, or anything else that someone on the yard said they have used since they were a wee babby! A good oil pays for itself a bad one costs you money. Best bit of advice I can give if you have a Chinese Copy clipper is buy a pair of genuine Swiss Steel Heiniger blades, you are much more likely to get a good clip and when your machine goes pop,at least you will have a good set of blades you can put on another better machine. Happy Clipping.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top