# What does the Hair Club For Men do exactly? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 11, 2000, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-hair-club-for-men-do-exactly/32719 "2000-09-11T01:02:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![DoZ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/838e76/32.png) [@DoZ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DoZ)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2000, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-hair-club-for-men-do-exactly/32719/1 "2000-09-11T01:02:39Z")
I see the ads, but I’m never going bald, so I’m not about to write for details. Is it a wig, a weave, plugs? And is it really that big a secret? Why can’t they just say in the ad? If you’re bald you want to know and if your not, what’s the harm in tell you anyway? It’s not a real club is it? Like Weight Watchers, where you get together and pep-talk each other? ---
**Author:** ![Konrad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/f475e1/32.png) [@Konrad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Konrad)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2000, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-hair-club-for-men-do-exactly/32719/2 "2000-09-11T01:06:51Z")
It’s like “the club” for your car. It’s a big stick you lock onto your head to stop people from stealing your wig. ---
**Author:** ![Astroboy14](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/df705f/32.png) [@Astroboy14](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Astroboy14)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2000, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-hair-club-for-men-do-exactly/32719/3 "2000-09-11T01:09:33Z")
I have a friend who used to be the secretary at the hairclub for men in Boston… she filled me in on it a couple of years ago when we were out drinking on night (so my memory is a little fuzzy on this…) IIRC, HCM does all kinds of hair treatments depending on the client (what their problem is, how much they want to spend, etc.) but a lot of it was basically glueing a wig to your head… She had a lot of very funny stories about the different proceedures and bad results, which I won’t share here… ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2000, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-hair-club-for-men-do-exactly/32719/4 "2000-09-11T01:45:21Z")
…also known as the “Wig o’ the Month Club”? ---
**Author:** ![SkeptiJess](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea666f/32.png) [@SkeptiJess](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SkeptiJess)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2000, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-hair-club-for-men-do-exactly/32719/5 "2000-09-11T01:53:10Z")
I know someone who looked into this – he said it was basically a wig/weave. It was quite expensive (several thousand dollars, I believe) and very time-intensive. You were suposed to let your hair grow to a certain length before getting it cut, and then save the cut hair for them to use in making the wig. The hair harvesting could take months. Then, the completed wig was tied to the fringe of hair around your bald spot… It was too bizarre for my friend, who decided to go another route entirely and just shave his whole head. ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2000, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-hair-club-for-men-do-exactly/32719/6 "2000-09-11T02:49:35Z")
As described by a friend that had this(shudder) “procedure” done. This is the best I can recall the description. If some one has more accurate info I will be glad to stand corrected. The weave part of it has to be described in detail to be believed. As Jess noted it’s a fairly high quality and realistic (as wigs go) wig made with your own hair (or some combo thereof) and after being realistically shaped, matched and dyed for color (age and natural hairline are taken into consideration) and assembled for your particular head shape, it is attached, via an intricate tie down system using both synthetic filaments and human hairs to the remaining fringe hairs of your head. It requires some degree of maintenance as the scalp attachment hairs have to be trimmed, as they are still growing, and the wig has to be re-tightened and re-aligned regularly. The synthetic mesh holding the wig hairs in place is open and can be washed, although I imagine dead skin cells and oils will build up under the mesh after some point so I think it needs to be removed occasionally. All in all it’s an expensive and inconvenient pain in the ass but short of growing hair it’s about as close as you can get to having the “look” of a relatively full head of hair. If done correctly (like my friends) it’s almost impossible to tell it’s a wig unless you’re an inch or two from it. ---
**Author:** ![Green\_Bean](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/green_bean/32/1760_2.png) [@Green\_Bean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Green_Bean)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2000, 3:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-hair-club-for-men-do-exactly/32719/7 "2000-09-11T03:30:31Z")
I actually met Sy Sperling (I’m not just the president, I’m also a client) once. I waited on him in a store. I can report that his hair looked completely natural. ---
**Author:** ![handy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@handy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handy)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2000, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-hair-club-for-men-do-exactly/32719/8 "2000-09-11T15:02:05Z")
So if you don’t pay for it, do they come after your hair & take it back? ---
**Author:** ![akandula](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/7c8e57/32.png) [@akandula](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/akandula)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2013, 3:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-hair-club-for-men-do-exactly/32719/9 "2013-06-17T03:56:25Z")
> [@Astroboy14](#): > > I have a friend who used to be the secretary at the hairclub for men in Boston… she filled me in on it a couple of years ago when we were out drinking on night (so my memory is a little fuzzy on this…)\*\*\* IIRC, HCM \*\*\*does all kinds of hair treatments depending on the client (what their problem is, how much they want to spend, etc.) but a lot of it was basically glueing a wig to your head… > > She had a lot of very funny stories about the different proceedures and bad results, which I won’t share here… Are there any places that offer similar services like hair club for men that you are aware of? ---
**Author:** ![Duckster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duckster/32/1244_2.png) [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2013, 4:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-hair-club-for-men-do-exactly/32719/10 "2013-06-17T04:18:44Z")
Zombie wig! ---
**Author:** ![nion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c5a1d2/32.png) [@nion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nion)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2013, 5:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-hair-club-for-men-do-exactly/32719/11 "2013-06-17T05:14:09Z")
> [@Duckster](#): > > Zombie wig! Shit! They’re even in a prime position to get at your brains! ---
**Author:** ![JBDivmstr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/b4bc9f/32.png) [@JBDivmstr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JBDivmstr)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2013, 8:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-hair-club-for-men-do-exactly/32719/12 "2013-06-17T08:02:29Z")
> [@akandula](#): > > Are there any places that offer similar services like hair club for men that you are aware of? Welcome to the Straight Dope, **akandula**! Just so you know, you’ve posted to a 13 year old thread. :eek: Some of the posters are not around anymore. I see that **Astroboy14** is still active, but I didn’t check to see if any of the others are. Just a friendly tip, you might want to read up on the rules for posting. Enjoy! 🙂