4a or 4b, is there really a difference...

[lsubabiedee]

[ QUOTE ]
UmSumayyah said:
Well, I see it like this:

4a--tiny little coils packed together, like watch spring size.
4b--no curls, just random Zs and sharp little turns
3a---big, loose curls. soda can to hair spray bottle in diameter
3b--medium curls. Smaller than spray bottle to Sharpie marker in diameter
3c--small curls, more like the diameter of a pen or a little smaller.
To me the difference between the 4a and 3c, besides 3s having a slightly larger curl, is that their hair will separate into little ringlets were 4a hair will not. In other words, you don't have to get up close to see that the hair spirals.
ANY consistent wave pattern to me, is a 2. My mom has what I would call 2c hair (even though that isn't one of Andre's types). Tiny little waves from root to tip. This type of hair can get quite fluffy and big but would be hard to style into an afro.

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thats a good description!!!

 

[Armyqt]

[ QUOTE ]
lsubabiedee said:
[ QUOTE ]
UmSumayyah said:
Well, I see it like this:

4a--tiny little coils packed together, like watch spring size.
4b--no curls, just random Zs and sharp little turns
3a---big, loose curls. soda can to hair spray bottle in diameter
3b--medium curls. Smaller than spray bottle to Sharpie marker in diameter
3c--small curls, more like the diameter of a pen or a little smaller.
To me the difference between the 4a and 3c, besides 3s having a slightly larger curl, is that their hair will separate into little ringlets were 4a hair will not. In other words, you don't have to get up close to see that the hair spirals.
ANY consistent wave pattern to me, is a 2. My mom has what I would call 2c hair (even though that isn't one of Andre's types). Tiny little waves from root to tip. This type of hair can get quite fluffy and big but would be hard to style into an afro.

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thats a good description!!!

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For real!! That needs to be posted wherever we have our definitions and acronyms.

 

[greAtness333]

I think there is a difference between 4a and 4b. A couple of my girlfriends have 4a hair- it's soft and the new growth is like tight coils, not really defined curls. My hair is 4b, and has a very dry natural state and the new growth makes somewhat of a 'z' shape. The rigidities of the new growth are very sharp like a 'z' instead of soft 's' or pencil curls like 2s and 3s. My new growth grows outward.

 

[hotshot]

[ QUOTE ]
syoulee1 said:
I have heard someone explain it like this...

4a= curly napps
4b= wavy napps

that has probably confused everyone even more.

and I also have yet to see someone with a "z" pattern to their hair.

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i have and it was really pretty and healthy!
any way, what makes it more confusing is that all hair classification looks different from itself due to one's hair density. my sister an i are 4a i think and our hair looks different.

 

[EbonyF]

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lsubabiedee said:
okay...this is making sense to me now...is that why natural 4b ladies seem to be able to show off more length than 4a's?

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In some sense yes.

"4A" tends to shrink more than "4B". An O/S strand will show less length than a I/Z shape strand.

 

[Poohbear]

Whats the difference in Type 3 and Type 4???

 

[honeycomb719]

My hair looks just like syoulee's and sengschick when I was natural about 2yrs ago. Only thing, my hair isnt as dense. My hair (strands) are very thin and fragile, so while I was natural, I couldnt manage to keep my hair from snapping when every I combed it

. I think my hair more resembles syoulee's because it not as dense, and when I dont color it is a medium color brown.
My has has also was been considered by others as spongy or cottony.
I thought the difference btw 4a and 4b was the size(thickness) of the individual hair strands, along w/ the pattern that they grow in. ex. o,s,z.
Me, I'm a 4aFi o/s.

 

[L80sbabygirl]

I don't think of the hair type systems as gospel. There can be so much variation and confusion about what they are, that some might not want to use them at all. I think they're helpful for a basic idea of what hair type one might have and what products may or may not work. I always considered my hair a 4A. I have very coily hair that has very defined small spiral coils that are interestingly pretty silky. My hair is frizzy and soft. I call my hair coily because I think coily hair is small curls. I always thought type 3 hair had bigger curls and that was the main difference between type 3 and type 4 hair. My curls are similar to ayeshia's, but they're not as big. I definitely think 4A hair has more shrinkage. I definitely have A LOT and my hair grows outward rather than downward. I always thought 4A hair was coily and 4B hair was straight; natural 4B hair seems to be straight/wavy when really long. I've never really seen very long natural 4A hair, probably due to the shrinkage.

 

[EbonyF]

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Poohbear said:
Whats the difference in Type 3 and Type 4???

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Late reply but, the numbers are 1-4.

1 being the straightest, 4 being the tightest.

So type 3 hair has a larger diamater than type 4. This is the best upfront pictures on the hairtypes: http://www.ourhair.net/oldsite/andre_hairtype.htm

 

[sassygirl125]

Thanks for that chart Ebony!

I've never seen that one before.

 

[jainygirl]

Nah,not the same. i have 4a and 4b hair and i notice the difference. the 4a hair grows in little clumped together pen spring size spirals (it looks like about 8-10 hairs grouped together) and the 4b is more seperated (doesnt clump) and has more of an s shape to it. I hope that didnt sound weird. but that's what i find to be happening with my hair whenever i get to around 1.5 inches of newgrowth i see it much more pronounced. Also i notice the sections of 4a seem to grow where i notice the length there without having to stretch my hair. Whereas my 4b sections are the same lengh, they just seem to coil more than the 4a so i have to pull on those areas to see the true length. Like i said i hope that wasnt confusing

-- jainygirl