hello all, i was just wondering if there were any videos showing how to cut down a stock piece? i know you use your template but not sure exactly how this is done. thanks for any help.

If its lace you`re trimming, some guys have used a razor or an exacto knife.
Cut from the underside, that is.

Myself, I`ve never done it with a razor, always used scissors.
Lace is a funny material, its stretchy and when I put a razor to it, it seemed to want to snag the lace and stretch is a little before cutting it.
Scissors hold it in place good while they cut. If you`re going to do it with scissors, use small sharp ones.

When you make cuts, hold the hair lace side up, insert the lower blade under the lace, and only open them (the scissors) up just enough to fit the lace in and cut. Keep the blade thats under the lace right up against the lace and dont open it, only open the one thats on your side of the lace.
This will prevent hairs from getting in there and being trimmed, leaving short little stubbles that you dont want.

Try and avoid cutting the very front hairline, other than trimming the extra lace thats there. Trim that lace close to the hairs but leave about 1/8th inch of the extra lace.
We do this for a couple reasons, one so that there very frontal hairs have plenty of base to anchor them and keep them from becoming flyaway and unmanageable hairs, and also, as the base ages the lace in front will fray a little, so you have a bit of extra for trimming off and making it like new again.

Keep in mind that the hairs in the front are put in more artistically, they are staggered and thinner in density at the very front with a gradual increase in density as it goes back.

Cutting into that can ruin the effect, so try and avoid too much cutting of the base in that area. If you do have to, be careful about cutting hairs while you cut the base.

If you do need to trim the front and theres no getting around it due to your preference for the shape of your front hairline, do it just like you would trim the rest of the base.
Carefully.
There will be a few hairs that get cut, and there`ll be little stubs of them sticking out, you`ll have to remove them carefully.
Basically, you`ll need to "rebuild" the artistic work that was done, and to do so, you`ll need to remove not only the little stubbles that will will be trimmed inadvertently, and are unavoidable, but also some of the other hairs to restore the staggered look.

Get the base and hairs wet, then use tweezers or something to get a hold on the short hairs and pull them slowly until the knot comes untied and keep pulling slowly until the hair is pulled out.
Do the same with some of the other hairs in a staggered and random fashion to recreate the natural hairline.

You want to pull the hairs out so they come out knot and all. You dont want to pull too fast and break the hair, or you`ll be left with the knot, or some short hairs that look out of place.
It may be necessary to to apply some conditioner to the knots to help loosen them up.

Be prepared to spend an hour or so on the whole job, that is, if you will also be reshaping the front.
The rest should set you back less than a half hour or so.

I am working on editing this section of my Full Cap eBook as we speak.

Keep in mind that if you are using a knife the blade has to be SHARP, because as MB mentioned it has a tendency to stretch the lace. My rule of thumb is that when cutting into a base through hair, I always use a blade, holding the piece properly to avoid cutting hairs. If the base has no hair and very little excess base to hold onto on both sides I use scissors.

Here is an excerpt from the eBook. Keep in mind that it isn't completely edited. Hope it helps.

Quote:There are a couple of things you will need to do to prepare your new lace unit for a cut-in.

One of the things you will need to do is remove the excess lace.

After the hair has been ventilated into the base of a hairpiece, the ventilator generally leaves some of the excess base material intact. This allows you to customize the perimeter to your liking, as some people prefer to leave a small amount of lace extending out from the hairline, temples, or any other area on a full cap.

On an all French lace full cap, I generally prefer to trim the lace all the way back to the hairline around the entire perimeter. For me personally, the french lace tends to buckle at the hairline if I leave any excess lace, so I simply remove it entirely. Swiss lace is a more flexible material, and as such I like to leave about 1/8 of an inch of excess lace at the hairline. I would recommend leaving a little excess lace with any kind of lace base, test it for yourself, and remove more material if you think it will help you to achieve a better attachment.

In order to trim the lace you will need a small pair of scissors or a sharp hobby knife.

For trimming lace where I am actually removing a piece that still has hair ventilated into it, such as the sideburns, I always use a hobby knife with a sharp, triangular shaped blade. Using the very tip of the knife I am able to easily cut through the base material without having to worry about cutting the hair, which is very important to maintaining the integrity of the piece. As long as you grip the base properly, you will be able to trim away the excess with minimal damage to the hair.

The trick to this method is to work from the underside of the unit, gripping the base with four or five fingers, in a manner that does not place tension on the hair itself. This method requires a little practice to position your hands properly, but when you get the hang of it you can remove sideburns, or any other parts of the base that contain hair quickly and easily.

When trimming away base material that does not contain any hair, you might find it easier to use scissors.

When using scissors to trim the base, comb the hair back away from the edge to prevent the hair from being cut. This time you are going to cut the lace from the top of the base. Most any type can be used, but I recommend using the smallest scissors you can find. Once the hair is combed away from the edge cut the lace slowly, opening the jaws of the scissors just enough to cut the lace. By using small scissors and making small cuts, you will avoid cutting any stray hairs.

Continue working your way around the base, combing the hair back and trimming the lace one section at a time.

This is part of the eBook which is the basis for the DVD script so you will have to visualize what I am talking about when I say "hold the base with four or five fingers in a manner that does not place tension on the hair itself". What this basically means is that you can hold it however you like as long as there is no TENSION between the hair and the base where the knife blade is cutting. Takes a little practice, but once you get the feel for it this makes cutting into hairline areas a breeze. Just make sure you use the very tip of a SHARP knife, and don't allow any tension on the hairs surrounding your cut.

If you need any clarification, just ask.

I have cut some stock units down...I have no problem with the issue of cutting the hair...my problem is with the crown! When I line up the template and cut to it(the template) the crown is the thinnest part of my unit... I have actually hardly any hair at all because of the crown...any one else have this problem....or can anyone advise what I should do...I have tried to shift the template a bit to compensate...and this has helped but still the crown is really a major problem. the back of my template is like an A front hairline. Thanks Cheers

Thanks for the tips and advise folks!!

Right before a cut-in I actually used the blade method to trim the base of unit that was attached to the head of another toplace customer not too long ago.

It was pretty nerve wracking being the first time i had done it, but it came out perfect.

Check my info links thread. There is a link for a video in there.