I'm happy to say that after a few months, the switch to a full cap has been overwhelmingly positive.
Traco mentioned this in the past, but I can now positively confirm that a full cap attachment is indeed, VERY strong. I had a hair puller recently, and when I say hair puller, I'm talking HAIR PULLER.
It looks to me that the nature of a full cap allows for a more secure attachment due to the fact that the adhesive is positioned lower on the head. This means that if someone is pulling your hair (not that they should, but if they do, hehe) they are pulling vertical to the attachment.
Think of a piece of tape stuck to a table. If you were to grab the tape and pull UPWARD, the tape would release fairly easily. But try getting it up by pulling it parallel with the surface. Even with a low strength adhesive, the tape won't budge.
If you are a guy and someone pulls your hair it is generally going to be from the top or the crown area, not the hairline or the sides or the back. With a topper this poses a problem because the adhesive surface is close to the top of the head (like pulling the tape UP from the table). With a full cap it's like pulling the tape parallel. It's not going anywhere.
On the downside, at least for me personally, I have discovered that it is very difficult for me to go a whole week with an attachment, even if the adhesive is holding up.
Some of this could have to do with the fact that I am using french lace, which is less comfortable for me than swiss, and it also could have to do with the fact that I have skin issues, but I was definitely having fewer problems with my toppers when it came to longer attachments.
what kind of attachment do you use and what areas of your head do you apply it in (the glue or tape), i have problems with my hair in the back (thin and poor) and in the long run i will be forced to use a full cap but my concern is the attachment, as my priority is been always to get a strong hold (2- 3 weeks), in your opinion is there any chance?
>>what kind of attachment do you use and what areas of your head do you apply it in (the glue or tape), i have problems with my hair in the back (thin and poor) and in the long run i will be forced to use a full cap but my concern is the attachment, as my priority is been always to get a strong hold (2- 3 weeks), in your opinion is there any chance?
I mainly use tapes with a little glue on the hairline.
I tape the entire perimeter, applying the tape to the lace in the back to get the unit stuck to my head, then I roll the unit back and apply tape to the side of my head above the ears and across the top. I started going ear to ear direction with the strip instead of front to back to try to get some of the wrinkles out.
Then I peel the tape backing off what is on my head and spritz with alcohol then roll the piece up and get it straight. After that the unit is secure and I can work on the temples and hairline.
This will all change with my next units that have skin perimeters.
For long term hold on a full cap the only real issue is the back. Even if you attach above the base of the skull like I do, there is enough movement there that the lace starts to lift after a couple of days. It's not a big deal since it lifts from the skin and all you have to do is drop a bit of glue on the tape to tack it back down, but it will have to be touched up. the rest of it you will probably have less problems getting it to stay down than a topper.
Keep in mind that I am using my own sideburns at this time, so I can't comment on how integrated sideburns will hold.
Thanks again for the info, Rob. Every little bit helps.
I'm still considering whether to go poly or lace on the temple areas.
You recently wondered if poly would have better hair placement since done by a machine. Possibly. I wear a 3/4 cap now with poly on the sides. There are advantages in attachment, I think.
However, like a frontal hair line, side poly suffers from having to be covered. That means a solid line. Since lace disappears a bit better on the scalp, the temple area could be a bit more staggered.
So, I'm still contemplating.
Styling question. I like the style of your cap. However, it's not my style (I'm 45). It appears you use that style to better disguise the temple area of the cap. It's sort of a cool messed-up style. It looks cut that way. Do you think you could pull off a combed style?
>>Styling question. I like the style of your cap. However, it's not my style (I'm 45). It appears you use that style to better disguise the temple area of the cap. It's sort of a cool messed-up style. It looks cut that way. Do you think you could pull off a combed style?
1) The piece is actually ventilated so that the hair tends to automatically lay forward. Not my choice, just the way it came.
2) That's fine cause that's the style I was looking for anyway.
The temples look fine exposed with 64 lace. Actually, I think they look even better than the hair line with 64 anyway, since there isn't much curvature. All I do is butter up a couple of pieces of tape with CP cream glue to knock out the shine, and attach the tape directly to the piece getting the tape right out to the edge or just a hair beyond. I'm on day 4 of an attachment and I can run my fingers across it and it is very much undetectable to touch as well as sight. Can't say as much for the hairline. My next two pieces are skin all the way around, but if I go back to lace in the front it's gonna probably be SFS at the hairline so i can get it to stick and lay flat.
I now have my two workhorse pieces that are all 64 that I can ventilate hair into as needed so I will always have two durable units, so I can play around with different base designs on future orders to see what works best for me.
