A good pair of manual hair clippers, like the always popular Andis hair clippers, will give you good value for your money if you know how to use them properly. I remember my grandmother had a pair. They were big and heavy, and as I hefted them in my hands, testing them on my cousin’s hair, they felt very capable. They are a relatively recent invention. An American inventor developed the first set in the 1800s and he sold them to barbers who used them to cut hair faster and closer than the traditional scissors could. With a pair of clippers hair could be picked up in locks and the hairdressing delivered quickly to everyone’s satisfaction. The same holds today. The humble manual hair clipper is still popular with households full of small boys!