Professional Shears come with a variety of options that serve multiple functions for hair stylists, barbers, and pet grooming professionals. Consider yourself an artist when choosing the right professional Shears for your hair dressing and grooming needs. An artist painting a canvas will use different brushes to create a beautiful masterpiece like wise you will need an assortment of tools to create your art. If you are new to all of this it can be overwhelming understanding what you need and why you need it. We can help you to gain priceless knowledge we have gained with over 20 years in the industry.
Did you know on average, professional Stylist, Barber and Groomer will have 6 or more high quality shears on hand for daily use?
- Main Go-To: Your go-to shears are typically smaller for precision 5”-6” inches in length
- Blending (Thinner): Great for blending and removing lines these shears can vary from 27 to 40 Teeth
- Texturizer (Chunker): Create Volume and remove weight these shears can vary from 7 to 24 teeth
- Long Shear: Are 6”-8” inches and used for specialized cutting techniques
- Narrow or Ball Tip Blades: Designed for intricate detail work typically 5”-5.5” long
- Back Up Shears: Are must haves when your main shears are being serviced. Don't forget to get these serviced while you are using your main sets.
SHEAR SIZE
When it comes to shears one size does not fit all. While many hair stylists, barbers, and groomers will use one shear more than their others, there are situations where specialized tools are called for, especially among pet groomers.For pet groomers, cutting hair around the feet of any dog, much less a small dog, is a clumsy endeavor if you bring in a large tool to navigate through all the tiny & delicate spaces. This is where a smaller sized shear really shines. Longer shears are great for cutting hair off large surface areas like long hair or animals with a long coat. Having more surface volume to cut means more cutting, and long shears will do the job much faster than smaller ones.
In order to choose the correct size, you will need to know how shears are measured. Knowing these measurement points are crucial when shopping difference makes and manufactures from around the world.
In the USA and Asia the length measurement points
start from the tip of the blade and finish at the edge of the finger hole that
is along the same side of the blade as shown below.
Length measurement points in Europe start from the tip of
the blade and finish at the edge of the finger rest as shown below.
As you navigate our site you will see the scissor length listed using the USA measurement.
BLADE TYPES
Straight Blade is the most common blade which provides straight line precision cuts. Straight blades come in various lengths offering stability with shorter lengths or less cuts with longer blades.
Curved Blades are best used for
pet groomer who have fluffy companions to groom with a rounded finish. Alternatively,
these shears can prove to be useful for any Barber looking to smooth or round a
top cut or beard.
Extreme Curved Blades are perfect for groomers who work with doodles and larger bread dogs, great for those belly areas.
Ball Tip Blades have a round tip edge available in a Straight or Curved Ball Tip Blade. This feature is perfect for those delicate eye areas typically used for pet grooming they will come in handy for any Stylist or barber working with children.
Serrated Blades have fine lines or
grooves on the beveled edge which allow the blade to hold onto the hair and
prevents it from slipping off the edge of the shear.
Texturizing Chunker Blades have wider teeth
and wider spaces between them. With more hear being cut by each tooth and more
hair being left uncut right next to the cut hair you can visibly see a
difference in the negative space created. Perfect for bangs or wisping it helps
to remove bulk and create more life and movement.
Blending Thinner Blades have narrow teeth
and narrow spaces between them. This design allows the shear to cut just small
amount of hair with each tooth leaving a few hairs next to them uncut. This allows the cut and uncut hairs to blend.
These shears are great for removing bulk allowing it to lay better.
Hybrid Blades are the best of
both worlds combining wide and narrow teeth creating a power tool that
incorporates the cutting speed of Chunkers and the natural blending finish of
Thinners.
Essentially all Shears regardless of blade type were
created to cut with precision, you choose which blade will work best for you
and your clients.
TENSION SYSTEMS
This tiny mechanism is the most important part of your
shears, often overlook, misunderstood and misused. The Tension system is the
center point of your Professional shears, understanding how to properly care
for your shears and learning how to use them effectively will without a doubt
prolong the life of your shears. Many tension issues for straight or curved blades are likely caused by too lose or too tight tension. For Shears with Teeth the most common issue is caused by Inward Pressure.
Inward Pressure is caused if your thumb grip pushes too much against the finger hole trying to hold the shears. When this happens you will notice the shear will almost immediately catch one inch from the pivot. As a courtesy, we provide inserts to fit the Shear purchased however due to finger width varying from person to person your finger width and dimension may require a different Insert size to fit you specifically. Using the correct insert size is crucial to avoiding inward pressure as shown below.
Inward Pressure is not covered by our warranty as this is caused after the shear was unpacked and used you. Each Shear is tested and adjusted appropriately prior to shipping.
- Chunkers,Thinners and Blenders are made where the hair has to be between the blades to cut the hair. They are not like Straight or Curved Blade Shears and must be adjusted differently in order to work properly.
Do not Air Scissor your shears to test them as they can start to catch. You can test your shears tension by opening and closing the shear very slowly. - If the tension is loosened too much it can cause a catch one inch from the pivot or fold the hair near the front. Adjust the tension one click at a time remember the teeth of the shears MUST slightly scrape the cutting blade, if not it will not cut right and may cause the hair to fold.
- If the tension is too tight lubing the pivot with shear lube will make the tension go away, ideally you should be lubing all of your shears with shear oil only blade oil is different and can damage your shears.
- For Straight or Curved Blades if your Tension screw is too loose this will result in not being able to cut effectively causing the hair to bend into the blade and potentially damaging the blade alignment.
- If your screw it too tight this will cause the shears to grind against one another instead of gliding effortlessly. This constant grind will not only dull your blades faster it can also damage your shears by creating knicks along the both blades resulting in damage. This type of damage is not covered by our warranty.
Adjustable Tension Screws are the most
common tension which provide a clean flat edge to your shears. This type of
screw requires an external adjustment key to tighten or loosen as needed. Don’t
know where to find an adjustment key? No worries we include a free adjustment
key when you order this type of shear.
Adjustable Tension knobs come in various colors and designs from gemstones to rosebud knobs. This unique knob gives your shear its own unique personality
and style. Tension knobs are great for quick adjustments while in mid cut.
Ball Bearing Tension Systems uses a roller
bearing which is pressed into the blade to stabilize the blade and eliminate
any rocking as the shear is opened and closed. This is a great alternative
compared to a plastic washer that is common in many blades which can allow the
blade to potentially wobble as they are opened closed causing uneven blade
wear. These high-quality features give you the freedom to use your shears
without having to worrying about adjusting them after use resulting in a longer
lasting blade.
ERGONOMIC SHEARS
Ergonomic Shears are designed to reduce the amount of stress and pain on the hand, elbow, arm, shoulder, neck and back when cutting. Any professional hair stylist or groomer working long hour should consider using an ergonomic shear to provide relief while working. We carry tri-hole handle, single or double swivel and non swivel ergonomic shears in stainless steel or titanium color coated. There are many features on ergonomic shears that make them unique and great at providing relieve lets review below.
Ergonomic Finger Rest depending on preference, you can find shears with no hand rest at all, or with varying acute bends to the left. The purpose of the hand rest is twofold. First it provides a comfortable place to rest your fingers which, in return, gives more control and ease for cutting without having to open and close the blades as frequently secondly the ergonomic shape from a bent hand rest can dramatically reduce the wrist contortions required from stylists and groomers, and therefore helps reduce fatigue and chronic injuries, such as carpal tunnel syndrome.
Ergonomic Pinky Rest
All
proper shears have this feature, as it is a simple and effective way to reduce
forearm fatigue when you spend half your day with scissors in your hands. There
are two types of rests you can choose from depending on your preference. Permanent finer rests are a part of the shear itself viewed as an extension
of the handle but do not count in the length of the overall blade.
Many shears with a fixed finer rest have engraved detail as the rest of the shear handle. Removable finger rests vary in sizes and colors allowing for a customize shear.
Ergonomic Thumb Rest
The ergonomic thumb
rest is difficult to see in an image because 2D images don’t provide depth.
What makes a thumb rest ergonomic is a 15-20 degree tilt outwards, away from
your hand. This feature forces you to use the tip of your thumb to control the
scissor, instead of pushing the whole finger through, which also reduces the
stress on your wrist, tendons, and ligaments.
Swivels
This
feature offers the best support for long days it helps reduces many of the
aches that come from holding awkward positions for extended periods of time,
and helps prevent chronic injuries like Carpal Tunnel, Tendinitis, Capsulitis,
Muscle / Tendon strains or general inflammation. The swivel motion allows the
user full control over the tilt and direction of the blade, while minimizing
arm movements. This is a great feature for pet groomers who must deal with
clients that have hair on every surface of their body, at every angle, and tend
not to cooperate.
Single Swivels have a rotating range of 365 degrees verses Double Swivels which have a rotating range of 730 degrees for ultimate control.
Steel Grades
When you buy your tools, it’s essential that you understand what you are buying. There is always a sales pitch to promise you the world, but to make a good decision you need to boil your decision down to the objective facts, not the fancy packaging or the price tag.All salespeople like to say that there is a simple quality/cost relationship, enforcing a false belief that the higher cost yields higher quality. It makes sense for a salesperson, because a higher price yields a bigger paycheck for them, but to get the best deal, it’s better to really understand the fundamentals of what makes a good quality pair of scissors .
All scissor steels are high carbon stainless steels, containing about 1% carbon. Any more would make them too brittle, and prone to chipping or breaking. A favorite for scissor and knife stainless steels is to add molybdenum, which is an element that bonds to chromium and produces an alloy that resists wear better than regular high-grade stainless steels. We carry all the steel grades listed below which contain molybdenum.
Other elements in these steels are added, either to make them
tougher, to make them easier to work with, or to make them harder without
making them more brittle. Keep in mind that the difference between these steels
can be minor, whereas the price difference can be huge. Often you pay a premium
to get the very best, not because it’s 3 times harder or tougher than the second-best
choice, but just because it’s the best. Since they have about the same carbon
and chromium content, all of these steels max out on the Rockwell hardness
scale within 58-60 HRC after heat treatment. While that range does contain
somewhat noticeable differences, the difference between these steel grades is
primarily the toughness and wear resistance of the shear.
ATS 314
This is a famed Japanese stainless-steel alloy containing 15%
chromium and 4% molybdenum. It is a metallurgical masterpiece from Japan,
yielding a harder and more durable product than other high carbon stainless
steels. It is a favorite material for hand-forged shears and is considered the
best material money can buy.
V10 (VG10)
This is also a Japanese steel alloy containing 15% chromium 1%
molybdenum, 0.2% vanadium, and 1.5% cobalt. It is an excellent steel that is
harder and more durable than 440C, but not quite on the level of ATS 314, and
therefore more affordable.
V1 (VG1)
This is a Japanese steel alloy that contains 15% chromium and
0.4% molybdenum. This steel contains the essentials of the V10 steel, without
the frills that put V10 at the top of the series. It costs less than V10 and
performs similarly.
Hitachi Steel
The top three steel grades listed above were invented by a Japanese company named Takefu Special Steel Co. The only company licensed to produce Takefu’s high carbon stainless steels is Hitachi, and so, Hitachi is a sought-after premium brand in the stainless-steel market. Common Hitachi steels are ATS 314, V1 and V10. The V series is often referred to as VG in English, and VK in Japanese. This is because the “G”, stands for gold. The letter changed to be the first letter of the word “Gold”; in whatever language you are speaking. For this reason, we prefer to simply call it V1 and V10.
440C
This is the bread and butter of high carbon stainless steel for
blades and shears. It can contain 18% chromium, 0.75% molybdenum, 1% manganese,
and 1% silicon. It is the most commonly used tool steel in grooming and hair
cutting scissors, due to its quality and its affordability. The majority the scissor we carry are 440C to provide you with the best affordable scissors.
High Quality Japanese Stainless Steel
The most commonly used stainless steel containing 18% Chromium and 8% Nickel , it can maintain good strength and heat resistance in high temperature and low temperature environments and good corrosion resistance. Although not higher grade as the one listed above Stainless steel will maintain it's sharpness and durability providing you with an affordable shear to get the job done.