Difference between medium and thick/coarse hair?

[rena]

I have not really seen what they look like in comparison to each other...If I were to look at a medium hair I might just as well assume its thick...Can anyone help? Pictures are also welcome.

[Anywhere]

You're talking hair strand thickness wise? I think that coarse is more, noticeable. I know someone with super coarse hair, probably 3 or 4 of my hairs would make one of theirs.

Medium hairs are just. Average. I've found that most people I know have medium hair, because I like to play with people's hair, it helped me realize I have f/m hair. I don't advise touching your friends hair unless you ask first, but it gives you a general feel for "thicker strands than mine", "Thinner strands than mine" or "These are like mine!"

People with coarse hair remind me a bit of horse tail hair, maybe a little less thick but still fairly thick.

ETA: I mean that the people I've known have strands that are thick enough to remind me of the hair on my horses tails and such. My hair reminds me more of my cat, she has superfine hair.

I'm probably not helping much, am I?

[rena]

You're talking hair strand thickness wise? I think that coarse is more, noticeable. I know someone with super coarse hair, probably 3 or 4 of my hairs would make one of theirs.

Medium hairs are just. Average. I've found that most people I know have medium hair, because I like to play with people's hair, it helped me realize I have f/m hair. I don't advise touching your friends hair unless you ask first, but it gives you a general feel for "thicker strands than mine", "Thinner strands than mine" or "These are like mine!"

People with coarse hair remind me a bit of horse tail hair, maybe a little less thick but still fairly thick.

ETA: I mean that the people I've known have strands that are thick enough to remind me of the hair on my horses tails and such. My hair reminds me more of my cat, she has superfine hair.

I'm probably not helping much, am I?

Yes you are helping :) And yes I am talking hair strand wise. Thanks for your input! I have hairs on my head varying from near transparent fine to thicker...I just don't know if my "thickest" hairs are medium or especially thick since I don't have many people around me to compare to.

[UltraBella]

I have thick strands and about 1/3 of them are coarse. Coarse hairs feel very wiry and strong, not soft like finer strands. I took one of my shed coarse strands one day and looped it through the tab of a half full can of soda and could actually pick the can up off the counter !
The comparison to horse tail hair is a good one, they do feel like that.

[rena]

Wow that's some nice, strong hair you've got there UltraBella!

I looked up horse hair strands and they are indeed mega thick. I did not realize humans had that capacity for strands so thick...Less than horse tail hair type of course, but still...

[Igor]

Supposedly the test for sure on coarse hair is that if you roll it between your fingers, you can hear it “crunch” (Of course, very damaged or dry hair “crunches” too)

On a microscopic level, coarse hair has more layers in its structure than other hair types, which explains why a lot of coarsies have problems with protein. The large protein molecules can’t penetrate the hair strand as well as on other hair types and ends up coating it instead

[Anje]

Yeah, coarse hair is really thick, like horse hair or thread. In my old building at school, one of the profs had fingertip-length coarse hair, and you could literally see individual hairs from the other end of the hallway.

On the other end of the spectrum is fine hair. Mine's not as super-fine as hair gets, but I can have individual hairs on my arms (bugging me) and not be able to see them to remove them.

[rena]

Thanks for your answers everyone! I am now convinced that I pegged it right the first time: F/M

[xoxophelia]

Another thing that I notice is that C hair is more resistant if that makes any sense. I should change my classifier back to M/C as I changed it to M until I was certain but basically my hair for example is stubborn. If I try to do a knot bun the hairs pretty much try to spring right out and not only because of slip. My hairs also don't flop right down or hang like somebody with F or M hair. If I hold my ends up they will stick up more so then bend over and it is difficult for my hair to look as though it has too much build up. Basically, it isn't very lank and needs more weight to keep it down.

If you are in doubt you can put M on your profile until you figure out your hair better like I did. Damage can also confuse the whole thing even more.

[Allar]

I have what i think to be coarse hair, crunching when i roll them between my fingers and clearly visible even on dark backgrounds (i have dark hair).

The main difference i've noticed between a thick strand of medium hair and a coarse is that the former feels more like a cotton thread, while the latter is very similar to a nylon one, not "rough", actually smooth as if it was made of plastic, but extra strong, even if this may be due to my hair being not very long.

[christine1989]

Coarse hair is easy to feel when you rolla strand between your fingers while medium hair is not as large in diameter so not as easy to feel. Coarse hair usually (but not always) is wiry and not as soft in texture as normal and fine hair. Mine is a bit odd because it is VERY coarse but usually quite soft.

[rowie]

I have coarse thick hairs and i have to agree with what has already been mentioned on here. My hair is like horse hair and at one point i've tried using Mane N' Tail with no luck. I can also cut skin on my fingers if I were to take a strand of my hair and rub on it, feels like getting paper cut actually, and I wouldn't recommend trying that with your own hair. :D My hair is stubborn and has a mind of its own.

[minxe]

I actually shed some in the shower the other day, and I thought it was funny how thick my coarse hairs are compared to my medium hairs, so I happened to take a picture. Here it is!
http://24.media.tumblr.com/3c09a0f9d08620a4908c39916d84a5ea/tumblr_mie1faOHd11rc5eo7o1_1280.jpg

[Iolanthe13]

Most of my hair is fine and fairly silky, but the coarse hairs are thick and sort of crinkly - I originally thought they were a sign of damage because they feel so rough and wiry. I've only recently started to notice them (I'm 20) but judging by length they've been around since I was 18 or so. They don't stretch at all when wet like my finer hairs can, and I can't even imagine one of those coarse hairs breaking.

[Sharysa]

My hair is largely coarse, and when I roll them between my fingers, they make a soft "crunch" noise. They're also very hard and wiry, although it's less obvious when they're all together. I've noticed that coarse hair tends to be less shiny than other hair-types, even if the individual hairs are actually quite shiny when clean.

I've also experienced the opposite in regards to wetness--the fine hairs (around my temples and ears) break almost instantly if I'm too rough on them when wet, but the majority of my hair is pretty elastic and takes a lot to get deformed or broken.

[chen bao jun]

I think if you have coarse hair, you know it. There is a thread on here--'coarse hairs unite' or something like that in which people describe their coarse hair. I have coarse hair. You can easily see a single hair-it looks almost like sewing thread. I'm always amazed at how other people's single hairs can be almost invisible a lot of the time--you can't miss my shed hairs, believe me. A single hair is also always difficult to snap--resistant, as someone above said. While I no longer think coarse hair necessarily feels tough and wirey, if its not moisturized well, it definitely has that 'harsh' feel and even when it is moisturized, it never feels downy and silky and soft in the same way that finer hair can. In my case, it took me a long time to figure out how to moisturize my hair--it was fifty years before I found this forum and figured that one out! Yes, my hair does make sounds, too. Again, especially if its not moisturized. On the positive side, while my hair never felt very good before I learned how to moisturize it, it was not fragile in the way such dry hair should be. It doesn't tend to break off as easily. I took horrible care of my hair most of my life but it even when I used to have the strongest possible relaxer in it AND blowdry it on high heat AND flatiron it, sometimes every day, again on high heat, it was still always bra strap length and it never LOOKED damaged. It never got any longer than bra strap but it didn't break off shorter than that either and the ends didn't look ragged and they weren't split, either. So you can also assume that you have coarse hair if you've been able to abuse it and 'get away' with it. The person with coarse hair is the one that the hairdresser always feels their hair and then says 'your hair can take it' before recommending some ridiculous treatment(it took me fifty years to realize that these words ought to be a red flag....)

[dancingrain91]

One of my roomates was Japanese and she and I had about the same ponytail circumference (ii/iii). The only difference was that you could literally see each of her individual hairs from a distance whereas I am from a Nordic background and I have trouble finding individual hairs on my own head. My best friend has medium hair and you can see individual hairs standing near her but not from a distance. My japanese roomate and I had rather high maintenence hair. Hers is low maintenence. I don't know that's always true, but it seems to be from the people I know irl. The fineys and coarseys have tons of upkeep issues while those with medium just coast on by.