What is a Sheep Shearing Electric Clipper?
When I was a young fella aspiring to become a sheep shearer, I wanted to buy the best sheep shearing equipment on the market. I thought it would help me learn to shear sheep quicker and one day become a gun shearer. I wish I had someone to help me get my first shearing gear because when I did get my shearing equipment it ran hot and I ended up with a handful of blisters.
A sheep shearing electric handpiece is a handheld device that moves a cutter across a comb, which removes the wool on a sheep when you push the clipper through the wool. The clipper has an electric motor within the casing of the clipper which powers the movement of the comb and cutter blades. The electric clipper has a direct electric cable attached to the back of the clipper which powers the motor.
Other Types of Clippers
It is not to be confused with a mechanical handpiece which has no internal motor and gets its power from an overhead motor which powers a shaft which rotates and the mechanical handpiece is then driven by the shaft rotation.
An electric clipper can also be a battery powered clipper as the charged battery uses stored electricity to run the clipper. I have a link here that will take you to my blog on Battery Clippers which can be used away from mains power. This Blog will concentrate on Mains powered clippers.
6 Uses for Electric Sheep Shearing Clipper?
Commercial Sheep Farmers.
Many bigger sheep farmers now carry around an electric clipper with them as part of their routine mob inspections, to shear a straggler sheep out in the paddock or catch a flybown sheep and shear the infected area. They will also use the clipper if they find a daggy sheep and clip the dags from the backside before it gets maggots. This can be done away from the shearing shed. The drawback to an electric clipper in the field is, you still need a generator to power the clipper, or get the sheep near mains power to use the clipper. This is much easier then lugging overhead gear and handpiece out into your paddocks everyday to do the same thing. There is now a big trend to more portable battery clippers for use in the field.
Hobby Sheep Farmers.
A cheaper alternative to using traditional overhead gear and mechanical handpiece is purchasing an electric clipper. Even the most expensive electric sheep clipper is about a quarter of the price of the overhead gear and mechanical handpiece. If you are a hobby farmer with a few sheep and want or need to shear your own sheep then an electric clipper is the most sensible option. The electric clipper has a smaller motor to power the blades but still has enough power to remove the wool. The clipper runs slower then an overhead plant but has enough power to remove the fleece. The hobby farmer who generally has a smaller farm can get their sheep in for crutching and shearing much easier then a bigger farmer who might have to bring their sheep from miles away to get to the shearing shed to remove the wool.
Vets
There are very specialised jobs, which an electric clipper comes in very handy for. If a vet is called to a farm for an animal health problem they will generally carry a set of clippers with them for removing wool or hair on an animal to create a smooth clean spot to operate on the animal. A set of electric clippers are perfect for this. The clippers will remove all but 1 or 2mm of wool or hair to make the area free of fibre and easy to steralise, If a vet has not got a clipper most farmers will have electric clippers to do the job.
Specialised Livestock Contractors
There are jobs that are done by livestock contractors that need electric clippers as part of the job. Many wool farmers now take a side sample of wool to be analysed for its micron, yield and strength before shearing. This wool is removed by electric clippers. Then there are some countries that insist cattle bellies are clipped using electric clippers before they are taken to be slaughtered at the abattoirs.
Show Preparation
Many livestock owners who show their animals will use an electric clipper to trim and neaten up their animals before they present them in the show ring or on auction day. An electric clipper can accommodate many different shearing combs for the type of animal to be clipped.
Small Farm Shearers.
Most small farm shearers carry a set of electric clippers with them. As a sheep shearer myself I shear many hobby sheep farms in my area and I always opt for my electric clippers over my overhead plant and mechanical handpiece. If I have more then 30 sheep I’ll use my mechanical gear but under that amount I’ll use my electric clipper. I can set up and be shearing in 5 minutes and have a dozen sheep shorn by the time I’ve dragged all my mechanical sheep shearing plant out of the ute and set it up.
Why Use an Electric Clipper?
An electric clipper is mostly used on smaller jobs. It is lightweight and portable and easily fits into a small canvas bag or plastic carry case. You can be shearing with an electric clipper in a matter of just a few minutes. It is a much cheaper alternative to the overhead shearing plant and mechanical handpiece. An electric clipper should not be used by a professional shearer day in and day out. The electric motor will eventually burn out with long hours of straight us, also the internal electric wires will fray or come lose because of the overuse of the clipper.
What Power Source Do I Need to Run an Electric Clipper?
An electric clipper runs on mains power. You can also run the clipper with an electric generator. Battery powered electric clippers are usually powered by a lithium battery or some have alligator clip cables which can be connected to ute, pickup or ATV battery. Click here for more information on Battery Shearing Clippers.
Is the electric clipper powerful enough to shear sheep?
There are many different types of electric clippers. Some have more power then others. There are different designs of electric clippers which give different cutting speeds and power. Most mains powered electric clippers will shear most types of sheep. As with everything the more you pay the higher the quality, but there are some cheaper gems on the market. Check out our blog here on different clipper types. Beware some battery powered clippers are not powerful enough to shear sheep well. They will be ok for crutching and dagging. Click here for our blog on Battery powered clippers.
Happy Shearing
