Haircutting Scissor Problems

When giving a haircut, one of the most important tools are your scissors. If you have a great pair of haircutting scissors, it will make your job that much easier. With proper care, your haircutting scissors can last you a liftetime. Without proper care, however, you may experience a few problems such as -

* hair catching or pulling while you are cutting
* the hair sliding or moving towards the tips of your scissor blades rather than cutting
* hair being pinched or bent when you close the blades
* the shears feeling rough when you are cutting

You can address each on of these concerns with a good cleaning. When you are using your scissors, little bits of hair and chemicals can get around the screw and clog the pivot joint.

Cleaning Your Scissors

To clean them, wipe your scissor blades with a soft, dry cloth. Put a drop of oil between the blades and behind the set screw. Open and close your scissors several times to work the oil into the joint. The oil and the moving blades dislodge the hair bits that were stuck in the joint. Wipe the scissor blades with a soft dry cloth to clean off the hair and oil. Once you clean this area, the blades should be able to move freely, making it unnecessary for you to adjust your scissors.

If your scissor blades still feel rough after cleaning them, you may have damaged your shears and may need to replace them.

After cleaning your haircutting scissors, test them to see if they still need adjusting. If they continue causing problems where the hair is pulling, pinching, or sliding, you will need to adjust the tension. You can check the tension by doing the following test:

* Hold your scissors in a horizontal position, having the blades ½ open.
* When you remove your finger from the lowest grip, the scissor should fall open all the way.
* When you hold your scissors in a horizontal position and have them open less than ½ way, the blades should stay in that same position when you remove your finger from the lowest grip.

Adjusting Your Scissors

Should you find that there isn't enough tension and you need to adjust them, hold your haircutting scissors tightly in a closed position, and press them down firmly on a hard surface. use a dime, a screwdriver, or the adjustment tool (that came with your scissors) to turn the screw clockwise just a little bit (equal to 3 - 4 minutes on a clock face). You want to do this very carefully because if you damage the pivot screw, you'll need a new pair of haircutting scissors.

If you have the opposite problem where the tension is too tight, follow the same steps, except turn the screw ever so slightly in a counterclockwise direction.

Once your haircutting scissors are adjusted to the proper tension and you are still having problems, you may need to get them sharpened. Be sure to get them sharpened by a specialist, someone who knows what s/he is doing.

With proper care, your haircutting scissors should last you a lifetime.

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