Cutting Time

As we leave our self-imposed lockdown down to frolic like newborn lambs to returned freedoms, and their mothers shiver after a good shearing, we too will notice our hair needs a trim! We might have gone do-it-yourself with shears even pet shears with varying results, but I doubt many will have invested in a barber’s chair – the real secret of a good cut!

Ernest Koken invented the reclining chair for his client’s comfort but then made it hydraulic to save his bad back in the 1890s. You might think this was the end of it but the development which really made things roll was that of Anton J. Rollert who claimed a pedal hydraulic system (US437487, US464588, US437456 & US 598877) rather than Koken’s manual hydraulic elevation. As that old ex-barber, Perry Como (for those too young he was famous in the 50s, 60s and 70s) once said “It’s Impossible” until Anton came along. It shows developments sometimes last longer than the original idea if it makes it more practical!