| Alpaca Shearing 101 DVD |
DVD Cover
Presented by
Matt Best of Best Shearing Service |
 Matt has been a professional shearer for 30 years starting with sheep and now alpacas
Jay Ward of LLE
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Beiyuan Combs & Cutters
"I am a believer in the Beiyuan brand" Read Why
Beiyuan brand combs and cutter are made in China. LLE imports them directly from the manufacturer and passes the savings on to our customers.
Beiyuan is a respected brand in the shearing industries world wide with a strong presence in large shearing markets such as Australia and New Zealand. Pro shearers in the US and around the world use Beiyuan combs and cutters with great success.
All Beiyuan combs and cutters are hollow ground at the manufacturer so that are ready to use out of the package. To maintain best performance be sure to hollow grind all combs and cutters. |
Premier Combs & Cutters
All Premier combs and cutters are high quality products. Demand for Premier combs and cutters continues to increase with each passing year. There is no stronger proof of user satisfaction, product quality and value.
Our Beiyuan & Premier brand combs and cutters will fit our Heiniger/Andis LG-S 68000 and Premier 4000S shearing hand pieces as well all 4 point 3” hand pieces such as Oster, Lister, etc. |
The gentleman that sharpens my blades told me the Beiyuan combs were not as hard as some of the premium blades and therefore would not last as long.
I subjected a Beiyuan 13 tooth comb and a Premier Phantom 20 tooth comb to hardness testing at the base of the teeth, in between the retaining screw slots and on the polished face. Testing was done on a calibrated hardness testing machine. Results showed that each comb was uniformly hardened and in the range expected for this type of cutting tool. Of the two specimens the Beiyuan was harder by 3 points on the Rockwell C scale. Bear in mind that this is single point data and cannot be used to make general conclusions about the larger population of Beiyuan or Premier shearing combs. I will state that the material used in the Beiyuan comb, when properly processed, can produce a comb well within the hardness range required for a durable comb. The same can be said of the Premier comb.
I did not plan on any additional testing since my experience with both combs has been acceptable in terms of performance and durability. 60-63 Rockwell C is pretty darn hard!
Let me know if you have any other questions and good luck at the rest of the spring shows.
John
Vicki & John Askew
Sunset Ridge Alpacas
Valley Falls, NY
www.sunsetridgealpacas.com
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| Short Bevel |
Medium Bevel |
Long Bevel |
| Short Bevel: 3-4mm / 3.5 as usual |
Principally used when the shearing is at its best and the stock
is in top condition. |
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| Medium Bevel: 4.5-5.5mm / 5 as usual |
The most widely used comb for the majority of crossbred shearing. |
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Long Bevel: 6-8mm / 7 as usual |
Particularly suitable for fine wool sheep when the wool is dense and sticky. |
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Beiyuan 94mm Medium Bevel 9 tooth comb and type B style cutters OUT OF THE BOX
54 head very dense white alpacas on 3 combs & 9 cutters.
They were still cutting well when finished herd.
All in 5 hours!!
Matt Best
Best Shearing Service, NH
bestshearing.com
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Some valuable tips on ordering combs and cutters & shearing:
- Purchase 2 cutters per comb, the cutters generally wear faster than the combs
1-2 alpacas on a comb & cutter isn’t unusual for a new shearer
While there are other factors the biggest culprit for new shearers is
usually “shearing too much air” rather than fleece.
The hardware dulls less quickly in the fleece verses heating up while
out of the fiber.
My suggestion is to be as consistent as possible with you strokes and
shut the hand piece off when not in the fleece as much as
possible.
I get 3-5 alpaca on a comb on a good day & I know a few other that get more.
- The 20 tooth comb is a safe comb to start with for one’s first time
shearing.
The 20 tooth comb has small spaces between the teeth and therefore is
less likely to cause nicks.
However a 20 tooth comb is a lot of comb to push through dense fleeces
or as your shearing speed picks up.
- The 13 tooth comb is a good all-around comb for the shearing of alpacas
and llamas.
It has fewer teeth to push through the fleece and therefore the shearer
can move more quickly.
- I suggest a first time shearer purchase one or two 20T combs to start
and the balance 13T combs.
Both combs use the same cutters.
- Our Beiyuan & Premier brand combs and cutters will fit our Heiniger/Andis LG-S 68000 and Premier 4000S shearing hand pieces as well all 4 point 3” hand pieces such as Oster, Lister, etc.
- A small amount of oil is helpful to break the friction to help the comb
and cutter get started, after the shearers are running the oil is gone
quickly.
The Premier brand oil is clear & doesn’t create the mess sometimes
created by the typical motor oil.
- Be sure that the combs & cutters are sharpened on a
beveled wheel only. See the Sharpening on a flat wheel will not provide as good a job and may frustrate the new shearer in particular.
- I use and recommend Dave at Everblades Mobil Sharpening who is now located in FL for sharpening.
His telephone number is (978) 491-9725 and his e-mail is
everblades380@yahoo.com
- Figure 12-15 sharpenings per comb or cutter.
Some tips for cria shearing:
- Cria fleece is fine as you know, therefore fresh, sharp gear and a bit of extra tension is in order
- Also because of the fineness, the fleece needs to be as dry as possible to prevent it from “mushing” between the comb and cutter
- I shoot for a 9-11am window after any morning dampness has dried and before they get sweaty from the summer heat
- Any chasing of the cria may cause just enough sweating to make the cria fleeces harder to shear
A couple of tips for reducing the chance of the dam rejecting the cria:
- I like to let mom watch right over my shoulder or very close by
- I use limited amounts of oil to reduce the chance of the cria smelling really differently
- I don’t shear much of the tail to again reduce the impact on the mom’s perception of the baby’s smell
Please call me with any questions or for advice. 866-999-AVA1 (2821)
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