Compare the Range — Steel, Hardness & Specifications

Every scissor ShearGenius makes, with its alloy, its measured hardness, its handle form, the lengths it comes in and its price — on one page, so you can compare them against each other and against anything else you are considering.

We publish this because most scissors are sold without it. A listing will tell you the steel is "premium", "surgical" or "Japanese" — none of which is a grade — and almost none will give you a hardness figure at all. A grade name and a measured HRC are the two numbers that let you compare two scissors honestly, so they are on every product page we run and they are all collected here.

An honest caveat before you read the table: hardness is not the same as edge life, and a higher number is not automatically a better scissor. Harder steel holds a fine edge longer but is less forgiving if the scissor is dropped or closed on a clip; softer steel is tougher and easier to bring back. Geometry, heat treatment and how the edge is finished matter as much as the alloy. Use the numbers to compare like with like — not as a league table.

Everything below is forged in Japan by our partner factories, then hand-finished, tensioned and inspected at the bench in Lake Wendouree, Victoria. If a specification is not listed for a model, treat it as unknown rather than assuming it matches another model.

How to read it

Steel. Japanese Cobalt Alloy runs through most of the range; Hitachi ATS-314 is the harder cobalt-molybdenum tool steel used in the flagship cutting models. Both are genuine grade designations — if a seller will not give you one, the word "Japanese" on its own tells you nothing about what is in the metal.

Measured hardness. The figure is for that model, not for the brand. We do not quote one number across a catalogue, because heat treatment differs between models. Worth knowing: there is no public producer datasheet for ATS-314, which is precisely why we publish a measured figure per scissor rather than repeating a brochure number.

Handle. Offset ergonomic keeps your thumb lower and your elbow down. Crane drops the thumb further again. Swivel lets the thumb ring rotate. Left-handed models are built as true left-handed scissors with the blades reversed — not a right-handed scissor with the handles mirrored.

Lengths. A dash means the model comes in one length. Longer blades cover more hair per closure and suit scissor-over-comb and volume; shorter blades stay accurate for detail.

Still not sure?

The table tells you what each scissor is. It cannot tell you which one fits your hand or the way you cut — that is what the free fitting is for, and if we are on your route you can cut with one at your own chair before you buy. If you would rather just ask a person, ring Matt on 0487 391 647.

What the hardness figure actually means at the chair

Rockwell hardness (HRC) is the one number on this page that changes how a scissor behaves in your hand, and it is the one almost nobody publishes. Broadly: a harder edge holds its keenness longer between sharpens, and a slightly softer edge is more forgiving of the knocks a scissor takes in a real salon. Neither is "better" - they suit different working lives.

Our Japanese Cobalt Alloy models are measured at 58 HRC. That is squarely in the professional band: it takes a fine convex edge, glides rather than grabs, and it tolerates the ordinary bumps of a busy chair. It is the right answer for most stylists, which is why most of the range sits there.

Our ATS-314 models run harder, and the forged ATS-314 in the Prodigy is measured at 60-62 HRC. You feel that as a longer stretch between sharpens and a cleaner finish on repeated dry work. The trade-off is that a harder edge is less forgiving if the scissor is dropped or forced - it is a tool for someone who looks after their kit.

Why we publish the measured figure when almost nobody does

A steel name on its own tells you very little. The same alloy can be heat-treated well or badly, and the difference shows up months later as an edge that will not hold. The hardness figure is where the heat treatment either shows up or does not, which is precisely why it is usually left off a product page.

Matt measures it, and we print it next to every model above. If you are comparing us with anything else, that is the number to ask for - along with the actual grade name and where the steel was made. A seller who answers "premium Japanese steel" has not answered any of the three.

Cobalt Alloy or ATS-314 - the honest way to choose

If you cut all day, mostly wet, across a wide mix of clients, the Cobalt Alloy models will do everything you ask and stay comfortable doing it. If your work is heavier on dry detail, slide cutting and repetitive precision - or you simply want the longest interval between sharpens we can build - the ATS-314 and forged ATS-314 models are the step up.

What does not change between them is who made them. Every scissor in the table above is designed by Matt Grumley, forged in Japan, and then hand-finished, tensioned and inspected at his bench in Lake Wendouree before it ships. The hardness figure beside each one is measured, not claimed.