What's The Deal With Steel

As a hairdresser/barber, investing in quality shears might be one of the best things you could do for your career and craft. The simple act of two blades contacting while in motion, can create infinite shapes and textures that your mind can imagine. Let’s talk about the material used to make these shears, steel.

There are 3 things you are looking for and paying for with haircutting shears: material, design, and craftsmanship. The most sought after, and often imitated is Japanese shears.

Japanese steel is known for its quality, which equates to hardness and durability. You may have heard of terms such as Stainless, 440C, VG1, VG10, Cobalt, etc. That is referring to the type of steel used to construct the shear. The harder the material, usually the cost goes up too. The quality of steel affects the longevity of sharpness between sharpening, as well as how long you will be able to use those shears years to come. My first pair of Kasho was a 6” Millennium offset, which has lasted 15 years so far with tons of mileage left, and is still one of my main go-to pair.

I’m also a fan of the weight of high quality Japanese shears. Its light, smooth, and most importantly, silent. When you consider the number of times you open and close your scissors during a haircut, multiplied by how many haircuts in a day, weeks, months, and years, isn’t it worth investing in a pair that is as smooth as possible, hence easier to operate?

As mentioned before, Japanese shears are highly sought after, and also often times imitated with Japanese names or claims the use of Japanese steel. To me, Japanese steel produced or constructed elsewhere is missing the spirit/soul or “tamashii” of the Japanese craftsmen that carefully transforms the material into tools that shape not only hair, but also our future.

Our shears at Kasho are handcrafted in Japan by highly trained skilled craftsmen using high quality Japanese steel, and infusing the Japanese tradition & spirit of blade making. Every time I put a pair of Kasho’s in my hand, I am confident that I am using a product with quality that I can always depend on. #ilovekasho

With much love,

Ty Isobe

KASHO Design Educator

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Ty Isobe 磯部太一