For anyone who is considering a hairpiece but doesn't know what they look like and the basics of how they work, you might be interested in the following Youtube video:

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This guy is a professional hairdresser, but also suffers from MPB and wears a hairpiece (or a toupee,as he calls it). In this 4-part video he shows how to take the piece off. and how to prepare and put on a clean piece,including scalp preparation. It is a good looking hairpiece,and definitely makes a big difference to his looks.

I found that informative as a noob.
Though.......it was a rushed removal, right? I mean I thought you needed to let the remover soak in a bit?
It was a lace piece with what, some type of 'coating' around the back/sides?

I made this offer yesterday on a thread and I'll repeat it now: I will give any newbie that requests Michigan Baldie's 2 DVD set for free. This is the definitive instruction set and lasts over 2 hours. It covers everthing from attachments, removals, bases, tapes, cleaning, position, and anything else you want to know about wearing hair. Just write to me at <!-- e --><a href="mailto:[email protected]">[email protected]</a><!-- e --> and give your address and I'll mail it out to you---free. It comes in an unmarked case and the envelope only has TL and our return address on it for confidentiality. This set has a wealth of information on it!
Regards,
John

This video is interesting. The tape method seems like a very good hold, I didn't know a "tape release" was necessary for removal. Is that the case with all taped units? Also, all the materials required- tapes, removal material, special shampoos...do they all need to be special ordered, or are they available retail somewhere?
This guy's base was virtually transparent- is this the super fine swiss lace?

Thanksfor your time.

I wasn't suggesting that this video is a substitute for Michigan Baldy's video, but it does give complete newbies a quick plunge into a few of the realities of wearing a modern hairpiece. In particular the realism - no one would suspect this guy of wearing a piece - and the security - your piece is never going to be knocked off like it is in the movies, and this shows you why.

To answer some of the questions: the hairpiece he is wearing is swiss lace with a poly (or perhaps thinskin) perimeter around the back. It is not a Toplace piece, although Toplace ones are much the same. Lace release or alcohol definitely is required to remove a piece. He releases very quickly. I usually allow 5 minutes for the alcohol to do its stuff before trying to remove my piece. Be cause he does it so quickly a lot more messy glue sticks to his piece, which will make it a harder job to clean it.