as someone who cherished my 1/2 inch, non-braidable twa, i would mist with water first thing in the a.m. then apply a leave-in and seal, using my fingers to style. if i needed some product to combat the frizzies, then i would use some gel or aloe vera then seal. styling without water left me with the frizzies--maybe you need something a bit heavier when styling, especially if you're are going for more curl definition.
i would sometimes do my hair in the evening, use a good amount of gel to define my curls, immediately seal with oil and let it dry. i found, using a slightly heavier hand than normal--start with a little product then work your way up until you get the desired effect-yes, it would feel a bit hard once dry, but in the morning, i would just mist with water, let it sit, then lightly apply oil to finger style. that got rid of the crunchies AND my hair 'stayed put'. i could usually get 3 day hair by just spritzing in the morning and adding oil as needed. by the third day, i would normally have to cowash or rinse any product out. take advantage of the shower steam--its added moisture that soon, you may be fighting to hold on to. i learned that my twa hair was easier to style the next morning because it was always moisturized.
i didn't bother fighting the shrinkage. at that length, shrinkage was my friend because it allowed me to have more consistent curl definition, and didn't seem so squished in the a.m. my 3c/4a (fine and coarse which i think are more 4b) parts looked more consistent when short. once i get to about 3-4 inches, the texture differences really show and are trickier to work with.
some of the products i used that gave me good results were:
Ampro Protein Styling gel--i know, it probably has stuff most dont want to use but i got really good results with it. i didn't have to use to much and as long as i used an oil after applying, my hair stayed soft. plus, its like, 2 bucks and last a long time. i also found it useful when i needed a little bit of hold when i finally reached twisting length.
Eco styler gel (olive oil)--same as above, although sometimes i had to be careful or you can get flakes. another cheap product.
Giovanni Direct leave in--apply to soaked hair and really distribute thru hair. immediately seal with oil and let dry. i found if i work it thru as if i was co washing i got really nice definition and some hold to curls--and my hair didn't get hard. i found i could also do this with any dc that could be left in the hair, like Shea Moisture Deep Treatment.
Kinky Curly Knot today--same as above
Kinky Curly Custard--same as above. once dry, i could just spritz with water in the a.m. to revive, getting up to 3 day hair--sometimes 5 day.
i truly loved my non-braidable twa. so much so that once my hair started to grow, i would run to the barber and cut it down. it became addictive--styling took all of 5 minutes, and i never had a 'bad hair' day. it was also a simple solution to my lack of knowledge regarding growing out my natural hair. now i've learned that, once i can braid my hair, i need to move right into protective styling--i'm combining cornrows with a half wig, but at 3 inches still consider myself a twa due to shrinkage.
