TPOB stands for “The Pissed-Off Barber,” says Ross. “I think he was getting upset with a lot of the tools in the industry, and he decided to just make some on his own. So he created his own brand.”

Launched in 2018, TPOB operates with a certain air of mystery: Its founder remains a masked persona online to avoid falling out with the industry. However, he makes some darn good tools, says Ross. With his clients constantly wondering how to maintain their beard at home or keep their lines looking fresh, this is the trimmer he hands-down recommends. 

“This TPOB brand is affordable,” he says. “It’s quality products. I’ve been recommending this trio pack, which is a clipper, a trimmer, and a foil shaver. That allows you to do any at-home thing that you want. You could trim your hair; you could trim your beard; you can outline your beard; you can outline all the lines; and you can even get rid of all the stubble. You could go from long hair to short hair to no hair.”

Beyond its trimming capabilities, it has some great UX and design features. “What’s really cool is they’re all battery-powered now,” Ross says. “The one that I’m telling you about, I think it comes with a dock, so you can put everything neatly in that dock assortment.”

“There are different colors. There are fun, cool colors. They come in your standard black, they have white, they have pink, and they have green.”

Plus, it’s not just for the guys. “It’s really cool if you’re a female barber or a lady barber,” he says. “Even if you’re like, ‘Hey, I want to take this and buzz down my leg hair or arm hair,’ they have the foil shaver to get it bald.”

Over the years, it’s more than earned its spot in Ross’s lineup. “I think it’s perfect for what it serves to me and others. It’s rechargeable, you could take it anywhere, it’s small, it’s quiet, and it’s compact,” he says. “There’s really nothing that I would say they could do differently.”

To keep his hair clippers in tip-top condition, Ross says proper care is important.

“Maintenance is big, and it’s one thing that we try to teach our guys,” he says. “You pay a lot of money for these tools, and you want to maintain them and make sure they work properly.”

This spray is “really great for maintaining your product because a lot of people don’t know how to do that,” he says. “This spray is a five-in-one, so it’s a lubricant, a rust preventative, and it’s a disinfectant spray too. You’re going to spray it before and after you use [the clippers], and it’s really going to extend the clipper life and maintain it working properly and efficiently.

The spray comes with a brush, and Ross says all you have to do is spray, wipe it down, brush the hair off, and spray once more — “then you’re good to go until the next time.”

“I’ve been using [MUK] for 12 years now, and usually product lines come and go,” Ross says. “If you were to sit here and say, ‘Give me one product line that I can go on and find whatever I want, and it’s a quality brand, water-based, and safe,’ I would say MUK.”

His favorite product from the line is the styling mud, which is like a putty. “It’s really easy to use because it’s water-based, so it washes out very easily,” he says. 

“What I like about it is it’s a matte finish,” Ross says. “I think a lot of styles now really lean into the matte realm of things. So it’s a matte finish and a strong hold. It’s really great for short- to medium-length hair. I use this one very often. It’s a go-to.”

A main highlight for Ross is how well it features the professional work done in the barber shop or salon. “It really shows off the texture and movement that we put into the hair,” he says. “It’s one of the ones that’s my favorite.”

“With the longer styles now, we’re seeing a lot more curls, a lot more texture, and a lot more movement,” Ross says. “We’re doing more mid-length to longer styles. We’re doing a lot more modern mullets. We’re doing a lot more slick-backs and brush-backs, and low tapers with a lot of length.”

With longer, curl-forward styles, you need to treat it a little differently to achieve a certain look. 

“I’ll use their curl cream, curl amplifier,” Ross says. “We use that one really pretty often. That’s better for medium to long-length hair. That also gives the hair a lot of movement. It’s a little bit more of a wet look, which is really good. It’s a little bit more of that lived-in, looser feel.” 

Overall, Ross says, “the longer the hair, the more flexible hold you need. That’s what that curl amplifier gives us.”

When the day doesn’t call for a super-strong hold nor something easy-breezy, Ross has the perfect recommendation for an in-between look. 

“They have another one called Filthy Muk. That one is a putty, so it’s in-between [hold],” says Ross. “It’s more of a gritty finish. It’s more of a flexible hold. It’s going to give a mild shine, just a touch of grittiness to it.”

Its hold and finish can change depending on what state your hair is in when you apply it, making it versatile whenever you need quick styling. 

“This is ultra-versatile,” he says. “You can apply it to damp hair, and it’ll kind of soften the hold; it’ll give texture and movement. If you apply it to dry hair, it’s going to emphasize more texture and a little bit of movement. 

All in all, it’s a fantastic all-rounder if you want just one great product on your counter. “It’s more of a medium hold, but it’s also going to work for any hair type,” Ross says. “If you want to dive into something that’s pretty neutral, something in the middle, you kind of have hair that you don’t really know where to go with, and you just want a quality product, this is a heavy hitter, a good overall product to use.”