Dragon Elite Sharpening Services

Scissor Care & Maintenance

Dragon Elite Sharpening Services

Dragon Elite’s Guide to Scissor Care & Maintenance

How to clean, oil and check the tension of professional hairdressing and pet grooming scissors of all types.

Professional Equipment Care Advice from Dragon Elite Sharpening Services

Professional hairdressing and pet grooming scissors are precision instruments. This guide applies to standard straight and curved scissors, thinners, chunkers and texturisers. For clarity, all of these will be referred to collectively as “scissors” throughout this guide. Correct cleaning, lubrication and tension help maintain cutting performance, reduce unnecessary wear and keep your scissors feeling smooth and comfortable between professional sharpening and servicing.

Good routine: Clean → Inspect → Oil → Check → Store

DE-55 Professional Blade & Scissor Cleaner

Water-free cleaner for removing hair, styling residue, skin oils and contaminated lubricant from professional cutting equipment.

View DE-55 Cleaner

Scissor & Blade Oil – 50ml

A convenient professional-size oil for lubricating scissor pivots and clipper blades.

View 50ml Oil

Step 1 — Remove Loose Hair

Before cleaning, close the scissors and carefully remove loose hair from:

Around the pivot and tension screw
Between the blades
Around the finger rings
Between the teeth of toothed scissors

A soft brush or clean, dry, lint-free cloth is ideal.

With toothed scissors, pay particular attention to the spaces between the teeth, where fine pieces of hair can easily become trapped.

Important: Never use a sharp metal object to remove hair from between the teeth. The teeth and cutting surfaces are precisely manufactured, and even minor damage may affect their performance.

Step 2 — Clean the Blades

Open the scissors carefully and wipe each blade individually.

Work from the pivot towards the tip, taking particular care around the sharpened cutting edges.

Remove:

Hair fragments
Hairspray
Styling-product residue
Skin oils
Old lubricant
Moisture
General salon contamination

For routine maintenance, we recommend a suitable professional cutting-tool cleaner such as DE-55 Professional Blade & Scissor Cleaner.

Rather than unnecessarily soaking precision scissors, apply the cleaner carefully and wipe the surfaces thoroughly with a clean cloth. After cleaning, ensure the scissors are dry before lubrication.

Step 3 — Pay Particular Attention to the Pivot

The pivot is one of the most important areas of the scissors to maintain.

Open the scissors approximately halfway and carefully clean around both sides of the pivot or tension assembly.

Very fine hair, styling products and contaminated lubricant can gradually collect in this area. If allowed to build up, this contamination may:

Make the scissors feel stiff
Affect the movement of the blades
Increase friction
Affect apparent tension
Accelerate wear around the pivot
Make otherwise sharp scissors feel as though they are not performing correctly

Cleaning should always be carried out before deciding that the tension requires adjustment.

Step 4 — Oil the Pivot

Once the scissors are clean and dry, open them slightly and apply one small drop of suitable scissor oil to the pivot area where the two blades meet. Our Scissor & Blade Oil – 50ml is suitable for this routine maintenance.

A small amount is all that is required. Excessive oil provides no additional benefit and can simply attract hair, dust and styling-product residue.

Step 5 — Work the Oil Through the Scissors

Slowly open and close the scissors several times.

This helps draw the oil into the pivot and distributes a fine film of lubricant across the surfaces that move against one another.

You may notice the action becoming smoother as the lubricant works into the joint. Afterwards, wipe away any obvious excess with a clean, lint-free cloth.

Step 6 — Check the Tension

Always clean and oil the scissors before checking their tension. Contamination or a dry pivot can make scissors feel tighter than they really are and may lead to unnecessary adjustment.

The Drop Test

Hold the scissors vertically with the tips pointing upwards.
Hold one handle securely.
Open the free blade to approximately 90 degrees.
Release it gently without pushing or flicking it.
Observe how far the blade closes under its own weight.

Correct Tension

The moving blade should fall smoothly and under control, normally travelling approximately halfway to two-thirds of the distance towards the closed position before stopping.

Different scissor designs and tension systems can behave slightly differently, so this should be treated as a practical guide rather than an absolute measurement.

The important characteristics are:

Smooth movement
Controlled closing
No excessive looseness
No stiffness or binding

Step 7 — Recognise Tension That Is Too Loose

If the blade falls completely closed with very little resistance, the tension may be too loose.

When tension is insufficient, the cutting edges can separate slightly while cutting. This may cause:

Hair to fold between the blades
Hair to be pushed rather than cut
Pulling or dragging
Poor cutting towards the tips
An apparently blunt feeling even when the edges remain sharp

If your scissors have a conventional user-adjustable tension system, tighten it only very slightly before repeating the test.

Step 8 — Recognise Tension That Is Too Tight

If the moving blade hardly falls at all, or the scissors feel noticeably stiff when opening and closing, the tension may be too tight.

Excessive tension can cause:

Increased friction
Unnecessary hand and thumb fatigue
Accelerated wear
Increased pressure between the cutting surfaces
A heavy or uncomfortable cutting action

If appropriate for your particular scissors, loosen the adjustment very slightly and repeat the drop test.

Step 9 — Adjust the Tension Carefully

Where the scissors have a conventional adjustable tension screw:

To Tighten

Turn the adjustment clockwise.

To Loosen

Turn the adjustment anticlockwise.

Only make very small adjustments at a time. A tiny movement of the tension system can make a noticeable difference to professional scissors.

After every adjustment:

Open and close the scissors gently.
Repeat the drop test.
Check that the movement remains smooth.

Never force an unfamiliar tension system. Some professional scissors use concealed tension systems, click-adjustment systems, specialised screws or manufacturer-specific mechanisms. If you are unsure how it operates, have the scissors checked professionally instead.

Special Care for Toothed Scissors

Thinners, chunkers and texturisers require the same basic maintenance as standard cutting scissors, but additional care is needed around the teeth.

Always:

Remove trapped hair from between the teeth
Keep both the toothed blade and cutting blade clean
Keep the pivot correctly lubricated
Avoid knocking or bending the teeth
Store them where the teeth cannot be damaged

Never Force Thinners Closed

If a toothed scissor suddenly catches, feels rough, will not close normally or appears to have misaligned teeth, stop using it immediately.

Do not force the scissors closed. A bent or damaged tooth may collide with the opposite blade, and continuing to force the scissors can turn a relatively minor repair into permanent damage.

Never attempt to straighten damaged teeth yourself.

How Often Should Hairdressing Scissors Be Cleaned?

During the Working Day

Regularly remove loose hair and obvious styling-product residue.

At the End of Each Working Day

Remove trapped hair.
Clean the blades.
Clean around the pivot.
Dry thoroughly.
Apply a small drop of Scissor & Blade Oil – 50ml.
Work the oil through the pivot.
Wipe away any excess.
Store safely.

Regularly

Carry out the tension drop test, particularly if the scissors begin to feel different in use.

Cleaning Is Not the Same as Oiling

Cleaning and lubrication perform two completely different jobs.

Cleaner

A professional cleaner such as DE-55 Professional Blade & Scissor Cleaner helps remove hair, styling products, skin oils, dirt, contaminated lubricant and general working residue.

Scissor Oil

Scissor & Blade Oil – 50ml provides lubrication between moving precision surfaces.

Cleaning scissors does not remove the need to lubricate them afterwards. Similarly, repeatedly adding fresh oil to dirty scissors does not replace proper cleaning.

Clean → Inspect → Oil → Check → Store

Store Your Scissors Correctly

Once clean and lightly lubricated, scissors should be stored:

Clean
Dry
Closed
Protected from impact
Separately from other tools where possible

Avoid allowing professional scissors to move around loose in a drawer, bag or toolbox. Precision cutting edges can be damaged surprisingly easily by contact with other metal tools.

Signs Your Scissors Need Professional Attention

Regular maintenance can resolve many apparent performance problems, but cleaning, oiling and tension adjustment cannot restore a worn or damaged cutting edge.

Have your scissors professionally inspected if you notice:

Hair folding between the blades
Hair being pushed
Pulling or dragging
Poor cutting at the tips
A rough or gritty action
Notches in the cutting edge
Damaged teeth on thinners, chunkers or texturisers
Excessive movement around the pivot
Tension that repeatedly becomes loose
Scissors that remain stiff after cleaning and lubrication
A noticeable change in the way the scissors cut

Continuing to use poorly performing scissors may increase the amount of wear or damage that eventually requires repair.

Protect Your Investment

Professional scissors are precision cutting instruments and should be treated accordingly.

Clean them. Oil them. Check them. Store them safely.

A few minutes of regular maintenance can help your scissors remain smooth, comfortable and performing at their best between professional sharpening and servicing.