A few months ago I got myself a Wahl kit. All told, including tax, it came out at most of $30. It came with guide combs going from 1/16" to 1" and included taper guides for the sides.

So far I have given myself three cuts. Figure I saved about $40 so if I stop now I'm ahead of the game a bit. The first try was a bit rough but after some finagling it came out a bit shorter than planned but acceptable. As far as I can tell the snickering and laughter was well disguised.

After that it got a bit smoother. One of the tricks I learned is to start with very clean and perfectly dry hair. To work the trimmer repeatedly from all directions multiple times systematically covering the whole area.

I may go back and get a smaller trimmer to compliment the large full-power one. The large unit is hard to use to trim around the ears. One slip and you can plow a difficult to blend landing strip. A smaller and less aggressive unit might be just the thing.

If the power goes down the clipper will run well off my generator or an inverter running off a car battery. SHTF and a person with hair cutting skill, more ability than I have, could make a bit of scratch cutting hair. Working off available AC power or an inverter hooked up to a vehicle's 12v battery.

As long as people live their hair will grow. If POCO power is down air conditioning is going to be in short supply. Sweating in the heat is motivation enough for people to want their hair shorter. Short hair also uses less water, demands less attention and can help control lice.