Customer Reviews

Wahl 9906-2001 "The Mustache" Cordless/Battery Operated Beard and Mustache Trimmer

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I have owned this cordless WAHL model for 30 years. It has taken me through heavy, full beards,light and tight comtemporary stubble and in-between...plus it's great on sideburns. I keep coming back to the WAHL cordless model because it is so handy as I have a trim at home in the morning, travel around the world or on a camping trip in the Outback I never have to worry about foreign outlet connections, electricity or service centers. It did cause a stir at airport security when the switch accidently got bumped on and the noise from my carry-on created a bit of an alarm. I knew exactly what it was and got a kick out of opening my bag for security. This model comes with a neat little soft-sided travel pouch that I've used ever since. The price is right and WAHL is as dependable as it gets.

I used this same mustache trimmer for like 20 years and it worked excellent, finely it died. So I just bought another one how can you go wrong! The only thing is the new one didn't come with the multi adjustable comb attachment that came with my old one. Who ever decided to take this attachment out made a big mistake and should get canned, lucky for me I still had my old attachment and it still fit the new trimmer. So that's why I took 1 star away, all those little trimmer attachments you get with it now stink and really hurt this products performance.

I am very happy with my trimmer. It works well on my full beard. It is very quiet and does not hurt my ears when I use it. Good value for the money.

For me, the best feature is that it operates on household batteries -- no need to worry about keeping it out in a base, plugged into an outlet.

As for trimming a beard, even Wahl's operating instructions don't make that claim. The booklet is for a "Mustache Trimmer"; the instructions (and illustrations) are for "Trimming Your Mustache"; and there are only three quides: 3/16", 1/8" and Taper. Even though the product is clearly designed to trim a mustache, the instructions and illustrations are not much of a teaching tool either for those nervous about making a mistake, or semi-pros looking for styling tips.

If you want a closely trimmed beard you can probably make this work for you, but mustache/beard-wise, this is not an equal opportunity trimmer.

1. Well made with Wahl quality trimmer blades.

2. Uses 3 AA batteries ( I use my rechargeable NIMH batteries ), so no worry about a "fixed" proprietary rechargeable going bad.

3. The price for this quality is excellent.

4. Nice and compact, yet rugged.

5. Precision trimming.... creates a great trim on the upper lip line.

Not much more to say..., I'd buy it again if it were to go away. Heck, I'd even buy another one in 6 months if it broke and wouldn't feel like I was cheated. (Don't tell Wahl this though.. they'll raise the price on this fine trimmer.)

What can I say, It's a Wahl product. Wahl makes professional clippers and trimmers for professionals. I can't think of anything else to comment on except. Well packaged,good instructions on care and use,came with everything I needed except batteries.

I have been using the same 110v powered trimmer for years and was dissapointed to have made a mistake in ordering - and ordered the battery powered. The cost of the rechargeable battery was outrageous, even though it lasted for years, compared to the trimmer cost! I even tried to order one and got the order messed up - never receiving one.
I was always amazed at the durability and length of time that the 110 charged batts lasted and the quality of the cutting, but now the battery powered replacement is the same in trimming performance.
The only thing you should improve is the plastic stand. It is topsy and too light weight, as well as having a poor storage for the attachments. Plastic is cheap. Double the area that the stand sits on and maybe include the power cord in the bottom,(wound around the base?) to add weight.

I bought this particular trimmer because I'd had good experiences with Wahl's products in the past, and because I wanted a model that ran on standard AA batteries. But I ended up returning it.

On the plus side ("the good"), it cuts facial hair cleanly and effectively.

On "the bad" side is the cheapness of the three "guide combs" and the razor stand. The stand is so lightweight in comparison to the weight of the trimmer + batteries that I found it pointless to use. And the "guide combs" are made of the cheapest thin and flexible plastic I could imagine them using. They do the job, but are difficult to remove when you need to clean the trimmer, and the awkward way of removing them means you are sure to break them sooner rather than later.

The ugly: the battery compartment. It was a real hassle to install and remove the batteries. What they make you do is wrap a strip of ribbon around each of the three batteries, in a serpentine fashion, as each is installed. The theory is that you should be able to tug on the ribbon and remove each battery in reverse order of their installation.

Let's ignore for now the fact that my trimmer didn't come with a removal ribbon, something I hope was just an isolated problem. When I improvised a replacement ribbon and tried following their directions, I found the batteries to be so tightly and awkwardly stacked inside the compartment that I had trouble putting the battery cover on. Then, when I tried to remove the batteries, the ribbon alone couldn't pull the batteries out as intended. For two of the batteries I had to tug on the ribbon while also prying them out with a lever, and had to use so much force that I gouged the surface of two batteries. To my eye, it looks like they didn't bother designing the case of the trimmer for AA battery use: instead, it looks like they took the case from a rechargeable corded version of the same trimmer and minimally adapted it for consumer-installed batteries.

In short, I give it one star because of the unworkable battery compartment design and the flimsy and hard-to-remove guide combs.

P.S. This could also benefit from a switch to Amazon's "Frustration-Free" packaging...

To be fair this review starts off by giving the trimmer three stars. It gets one extra star for its low price. Then, it gets one star minus for the fact that three supplied guides all are ridiculously short and are only good if you want that short mustache or beard. If Wahl wants to limit the guides to three lengths, at least distribute them over a larger range. It gets another big star minus because the hairs have a tendency to get stuck in the guides, so it feels like waxing hair by hair without the wax. The sum equals: two stars. Happy shopping.

I had an older model rechargeable groomsman and every replacement battery I got seemed to be too weak. You can get the replacement battery on Amazon for ~$12, but for a few bucks more you can get this trimmer. I like it better because you can use your own rechargeable batteries that are cheaper. It feels heavier (which is nice) than my older one, and all the old attachments fit this one. If you want to get a battery for the rechargeable model, look at the Wahl website - they are $5 (shipping included). I have ordered that one, and if it works, great I now have one for home and one for travel. If it does not, I have this one and it works fine. (review by Liz's husband, Liz doesnt need a mustache trimmer!)