I've been buzzing my head with a #2 guard for a while, and I'm getting really tempted to use a #1 or no guard. How different would a #1 look from a #2 buzz, and could I pull it off?

Go for it.  If you don't like it, it will grow out to a #2 length in a week.

As others have said, try it, it will always grow out.

My clippers have a variable adjustment so that with any one guard, I can set short, medium, long, or anything in between.

As I was preparing for moving to head shaving, I started at #2 long, then medium, then short, then #1 long, medium short, and again, no guard long, medium short.

It was just a gradual process of getting shorter every few days over a month or so.  If you need to stop at any point, it's OK.

Actually, I started out when one day, I took off the #2 guard to clean the clippers, forgot to put it back on, and gave a pass right down the center with no guard! Yikes. No choice but to finish the no guard over my entire head. Really liked it! 

The shorter you go with clippers, the more frequently you need to buzz.  Just for practice, during the last few months before head shaving, I would buzz daily. After all, when you shave your head, you are going to be shaving daily or every other day.  Get in the habit.

You will look great at any length along the way.  When you do shave your head, you'll get to enjoy the smooth feel as well. 

I'm looking forward to your post some day when you say, "Why did I wait so long?"

Bottom line, Should I go for a shorter buzz?  YES.

 

Nice. Looks good on you. Give it a week. But if you don't buzz it during the week, you'll be back at #2 within 7 days, so to get the right feel buzz daily or alternate days to keep it short.

yep I like the closer buzz,  I had that also at your age

It looks good, just give it some time for your eyes to adjust.