So what really is the difference between left- and right-handed stylist shears?
Firstly, whether a shear is right- or left-handed, when the shear is held in the correct hand, the natural weight of your hand will have you pushing gently with your thumb into the thumb ring of the shear and pulling gently with your index finger on the top (finger) ring. Whether you're holding a right-handed shear in your right hand or a (true) left-handed shear in your left hand, this gentle thumb and finger pressure will pull the blades together, making them cut better.
If, however, you switch the shear to your other hand, the gentle pushing of your thumb and pulling of your finger will actually separate the two cutting blades as you close them, making them cut worse, or not cut at all.
Lefty stylists, who are told that reversing the screw set on their shears converts them from a right-handed shear into a left-handed one, are not being told the truth. A right-handed shear with the screw set reversed is exactly that - a right-handed shear, with a reversed screw set. The shears will still bend and fold hair just like a regular right-handed shear would - the screw set is just now facing your palm instead of facing away from it.
At Edgewise, we try to provide our stylists with exactly the professional tools they want and need. If a salesperson is telling you something about they shears they're looking to sell you that doesn't make sense or you don't understand, or even if you just have general questions about your shears, contact us at edgewisellc@hotmail.com, and we'll get you an answer.