Kokoro shears-usa. New Hampshire, United States
Cleaning, oiling & adjusting your hair cutting shears
Type of cloth should be thin something like flannel, T-shirt material micro fiber cloth are perfect. Open the shears into a cross and start cleaning inside blades, paying close attention to the ride are (area around the screw or tension adjuster) Get the inside blades absolutely clean, if there is chemical build up or just plain yucky crud, WD_40 or rubbing alcohol is the perfect cleaner for this. Close the shears and wipe down the outside, when cleaning near the finger rings be careful not to knock the silencer out, we have found over the years this is how many shears lose the silencer during the cleaning. Remove and clean inserts and inside finger rings if possible, put clean inserts back in.
When shears are all clean, open them into a cross again, Place 1 drop of oil in the ride/pivot area. Oil should be clear, mineral oil, sewing machine oil is great. If you only have dark oil don’t use it. We use and sell white Mineral oil for lubricating shears, non-toxic and good for your hands and clients hair. Never spray clipper lube onto your blades, some of these products have fine grits and other chemicals you don’t want on your shears. Point the tips at the floor and open and close shears several times, open up and look at inside blades, any dirt etc. that was between the blades at the screw area will be flushed out and you can wipe off, leaving some oil behind. Do this every day and you will be amazed how long your blades will last between sharpening’s.
Now we check and set shear tension.
Keeping your shear’s tension well-adjusted can triple the edge life of your tool and stop hair from buckling or folding in between the blades.
Follow these simple steps and watch what happens.....
Please make sure your shears are thoroughly clean, and place 1 drop of shear oil in between the blades near the tension system before checking for tension.
1. Hold shear by thumb ring in left hand while pointing tip of shear towards ceiling.
2. Lift ring with finger rest to make a cross. Then let this ring fall.
3. Shear should have a slight drop as shown, but no further than half blade. Certain shears should have no drop.
To adjust tension; turn clockwise to tighten, counter clockwise to loosen. Make your adjustments with shears closed. If you need assistance, contact us.
10 easy steps to prolong shear life and edge sharpness
1-clean and oil your shears daily.
2-Check and adjust your tension, often.
3- Cut 100% Human Hair only.
4- Never force shears to cut through thick, coarse hair.
5- If you can, avoid dry cutting.
6- Store shears in a safe place when not in use.
7- Do not continue using shears that have any nick’s and or damage to the blades. I
8- Avoid holding off with servicing your shears when they are dull or damaged.
9- Do your research and seek out quality, factory type services for your sharpening/service needs.
10- Avoid purchasing inexpensive, low quality shears.
The details
1-clean and oil your shears daily. Always keep shears clean, and oil often, this will extend your edge’s sharpness by a significant amount of time. Any fine clean, dry cloth works well. Always clean any chemicals from the blades immediately. As for type of oil: we sell and recommend, White Mineral Oil, non-toxic and healthy for skin and hair. There are many other oils available that work well also, make sure it is clear & fine.
2-Check and adjust your tension, often. Staying on top of your shears tension and making sure the adjustment is correct, will also extend the function & edge life of your shears. If the shear tension is too loose, they will not function properly, even if the blades are still razor sharp. If tension is too tight, you will prematurely wear/grind down your inside hone-line and outside edge. Using a shear when the tension is too tight can also be bad for the health of the Stylists hand, wrist, elbow and shoulder. We suggest checking shear tension weekly, at a minimum. (refer to our tension adjusting diagram)
3- Cut 100% Human Hair only. Professional Hair cutting shears are designed to cut 1 thing, Hair, human hair preferably. Never cut paper, foils, strings, perm bottle tops, etc. Avoid cutting synthetic hair. If you find yourself in a situation where cutting synthetic hair is needed like Mannequins in a cutting class, wigs etc. buy an inexpensive pair of shears to use for this purpose.
4- Never force shears to cut through thick, coarse hair. If you have a client with very thick or coarse hair, don’t force your shears to cut through thick sections of hair, take smaller sections and spend a little more time on this haircut, avoid cutting through pony tails, etc. your blades will thank you.
5- If you can, avoid dry cutting. Cutting damp freshly shampooed hair is always preferred and gentler on your blades. If you find that you want to do a lot of dry cutting just be aware, dry cutting will dull your edges up to 4 times faster. If dry cutting is something you want to do, we suggest buying a separate shear for dry cutting, keeping all the damage off your favorite shear that you need to stay razor sharp for razor cutting techniques. Stylists who own several cutting shears can designate 1 of these to be their dry cutter.
6- Store shears in a safe place when not in use. When not in use try to keep shears safely stored in their case or shear pouch. Shear stands safely placed on your station is also another great choice. If keeping your shears in a drawer, take the steps to have some kind of divider with padding. This will keep them from banging around with other items in the drawer every time you open and close it and becoming damaged. Avoid placing shears on station shelf or on top of carts or stands where they can get bumped off and hit the floor.
7- Do not continue using shears that have any nick’s and or damage to the blades. If you find your shears have any damage such as nicks or burrs in the edges, especially after a floor drop, rust or corrosion, do not keep using them. By using damaged shears you will make the damage far worse, resulting in more work and or metal that must be removed during the repair process. If you have dropped your shears on the floor (and we all do) carefully inspect them for visible damage. Open and close the shear very slowly and gently a few times feeling for damage, you can also use the edge of a business card and drag it up and down the edge of the shear feeling for nicks. If nicks or burrs are found, service immediately. If no damage is found but shears do not cut correctly after a floor drop, you could have problems with your tension system and/or blades being knocked out of balance; these problems can be taken care of with a proper shear service.
8- Avoid holding off with servicing your shears when they are dull or damaged. With the thought that the fewer times you have your shears serviced the longer the overall life will be. There is some truth in this, but putting off needed service will cause further damage than just normal dulling from normal use. Using dull shears forces you to use side pressure with your thumb in order for them to cut; this damages blades and is not healthy for a Stylists hands, wrist, elbow and shoulder. Finding the correct type of service provider is very important, under normal circumstances quality shears can be serviced dozens of times giving you decades of use with your shear. Using the wrong type of Service Company, some shears can be no longer used after as few as 3+- sharpening services.
9- Do your research and seek out quality, factory type services for your sharpening/service needs. Who you use to service your shears is very important. 1 improper service can affect the longevity of your tool. Always be very wary of who you choose to service your shears and do your research, get recommendations and testimony from other Stylists. There is a great many on the spot sharpening/grinding services, these sharpeners work from a van or bring their sharpening/grinding machine into the salon, these types of services are fast and generally less expensive than factory type services, Don’t let the Convenience and lower cost sway you into taking a chance with your shears not being serviced correctly. Also don’t be fooled or lured in by terms like “Master” sharpener or “Factory Trained” These terms should mean something, but these days they are thrown around a lot, and can be much misused and have no actual bearing on the service you will receive. Seek out Factory type services, these companies have experience with shear manufacturing and will use this experience and techniques with the sharpening service. These services are not mobile, this may mean you may end up having to ship your shears and pay a little more but many Stylists find this well worth it. Do research, get as many references as possible, Search the company’s website for customer testimony and how they got their experience, how many years they have been servicing Hair cutting shears for professional hairstylists, and always remember the type of services Barbers, Animal groomers etc. need and use, can be extremely different than what a hair stylists needs with their shear services.
10- Avoid purchasing inexpensive, low quality shears. Just like you tell your own clients when it comes to the type of Color services that professional Stylists can offer compared to the box mix at the drug store, you get what you pay for. Don’t go for the cheap/inexpensive tools. Your Hair cutting shears will be one of your most used and important tools that you will invest in. We do not believe in promoting super expensive shears, $1000- $1500 -$2000 and up, seems the sky is the limit. Although some Stylist may feel they must buy or enjoy buying Shears in this price range just because they can, it is not necessary or needed in order to have great quality shears that can help you do great quality work. Do you believe a $1500 shear is going to be 3 times sharper, have a lifetime 3 times longer or cut 3 times longer between services compared to a $500 shear?. They will not. A $500 shear absolutely will cut and feel and last 10 times longer than any $50 shear. Be prepared to spend anywhere from $150 to $500 to get a good to great quality shear that will perform great, be razor sharp and last for decades under proper care and proper shear services.