THE LUCKY HARE SHEARS

Wolff has picked up another great line of shears, the Lucky Hare Collection. There are fully forged, made in Korea, have welded handles, and look great. You can find out more about these shears by visiting the Wolff Site at:

www.wolffind.com

If you'd like to visit the Lucky Hare web site here is the address:

www.luckyhareshears.com

If you have any questions, just give Wolff a call at 800-888-3832. This line of shears, cases, and razors sell great online and there are already a number of sharpeners that have had great success with them in the field. Consider adding them to you arsenal of products to sell to your stylists.

WHICH BLADE TO CURRUGATE?

A question I get is which blade should I corrugate? The one you want to corrugate is the stationary blade or the one that moves the least. In the case of a beauty, barber, or grooming shear; the stationary blade is the finger blade. On an industrial shear, the stationary blade is the thumb blade. For more info on this, or if you have other questions about corrugating, give me a call.

WOLFF SHOW AND NASCAR

Howdy! I just wanted to encourage everyone that is planning on attending the Wolff Show in Richmond Virginia on May 2 - 3 to sign up quick. Wolff has already sold a number of seats and seating is limited to just 50. On top of that, we just found out that this is a NASCAR weekend, so if you are signed up and haven't booked your room do it now. Once our block is gone the room rate will jump from $79 per night to $170 per night, so act quick.

This show will be a great one! All the focus will be on shears and how you can grow and expand you business. I will have a full schedule written up soon. Please call if you have any questions. Wolff number is 800-888-3832. To find all the contact and pricing info for the show, click here.

Image: kurtmac

WHAT TO WATCH OUT FOR WHEN BUYING EQUIPMENT OR PICKING A TRAINER

A couple of things I'm often asked is who should I buy a machine from, or who should I train with. Most everyone knows my personal preference for beauty shears sharpeners is either the Hira-To® or Ookami Gold®, the Twice as Sharp® for industrial shears, and the Extreme Kut for clipper blades; but everyone that has talked to me about this knows I'm not adverse to any of the machines out there. Most will sharpen just fine and the people that make them are proficient at sharpening, so there really isn't a wrong choice, but the questions still come; so let me give you some things to consider when you're ready to buy or train.

Things to Consider

Can you work with them?
There are many strong personalities in the sharpening business. Some come across as pompous, others arrogant, and then there's the ones that bad mouth everyone else. Watch out for all of these! If all you hear is how many years they've been sharpening, or how decorated they they are, or how no one can sharpen but them, run. If a person is truly good at what they do, they should have a quiet confidence that you will pick up on when you talk to them. If you feel they think too much of themselves, consider other options. Go with your gut.

Does the Number of Years They've Been Sharpening Matter?
To a degree yes, but this should not be the deciding factor. While I've been sharpening a long time myself, I've seen others that have been sharpening half that time that are excellent at what they do and would make a great trainer.

The Machine Does that "One" Thing
Boy this is the new rage out there! Let me let you in on something. If you hear a machine will do something none of the other machines can do on the market, it's a sales pitch; a gimmick. Is there anything wrong with the sharpening gimmick? No, not at all. But to spend more for a machine that will do some trick won't make you a better sharpener. What you ultimately need is a machine that is dependable and has a good jig system. All of the top selling machines have these features.

Stability
This is one of the most important things to consider. You want to buy from or train with a company that has a strong foundation. What should this foundation include? Here's my short list:
1. Longevity - can you see they've been in the business of supplying sharpeners for a while now.
2. Stock - if they don't have machines on the shelve ready to go, then they are building to order which is another way to say, "Flying by the seat of their pants." No stock, no stability.
3. Support - will they be able to help you when you run into a problem? Will you be able to get in touch with them when you have a questions? Here is something to think about. If you can't get in touch with a company on the phone to order a machine or set up a class during normal business hours, what makes you think you'll be able to get a hold of them if you need help. When you call, if a human being doesn't answer the phone, move on.

These are just a few things to consider. I said it before and I'll say it again, there is no wrong choice; it's just some of your options are better than others. If you'd like to discuss this more, please give me a call or drop me and e-mail. I'll talk to you soon.

Image: faby74

KEEP THE SCREW FROM BACKING OUT

Ever have trouble with the screws backing out of your grooming shears? Most of the time a little lock tight will fix the problem or maybe the shear needs a new washer, but on occasion you run into one of those screws that just won't stay in no matter what you do. So how do you keep it from backing out?

Well, what I do is ding the threads. What I mean by this is I pinch or crush the threads along the screw so the screw has some "bite" as you screw it into the shear. The slight burrs where the thread has been crushed will hold the screw in place so it won't back out. The tool I use the ding the threads up is a pair of regular pliers. Just grab the screw on either side, give it squeeze, and you're ready to go.

I just had to do this for a new customer a few weeks ago. She said she's had a number of other sharpeners try to fix the screw in her shear, but it keeps backing out. I called her yesterday to see if her screw problem was solved after I dinged the threads; she said it hasn't back out since. Give this a try the next time you have a problem screw. If you have any questions, just give me a call.

SHARPENING TRUE LEFT HAND BEAUTY SHEARS ON THE OOKAMI GOLD®

I've been getting a lot of questions about how to sharpen true left-hand shears on the Ookami Gold® Sharpening System. While you can sharpen the shear on the diamond wheel with the clamp in the honing position, and then polish the shear with the clamp STILL in the honing position on the outside corner of the polishing wheel; an easier way to do it is switch your wheels.

It takes a little more time this way, because it takes time to switch the wheels; but the shear will look better when it's done. And besides, in my opinion, it's safer to sharpen the shear this way. It's too easy to flip your clamp into the sharpen position to polish with the other method, and if you do, you will most likely cut into your polishing wheel which will ruin it. Not a profitable situation!

If you'd like to sharpen true lefts without switching the wheels, you can find the instructions on how to do so in the Ookami Gold® manual on page 24. If you don't have the manual, Wolff has a PDF copy online. Click here and then click on the Ookami Gold® link under Sharpening Machines. Another option is the Hira-To®. It's fixture can be set to sharpen true lefts. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to call.

THE NEXT WOLFF SHOW

ATTENTION!!

The next Wolff Show is scheduled and Wolff is taking orders for seat as of now. This first show in 2009 will be held at the Holiday Inn in Richmond, Virginia on I-64 West End.

This show will be focused on Shears. Wolff will touch on Clipper Blade Sharpening, but there will not be a segment on Clipper Repair. (I'll shoot out a post about a show you can get some training on that topic soon.)

To find out about times and dates, click here.

I hope to see many of you there. If you have any questions, or would like to book your seat, give Wolff a call at 800-888-3832. Book soon though! Seating is limited to just 50.

THE SOUND OF SILENCE

Sorry for all the silence around Jim Sharp lately. We were socked by a snowstorm and had a sickness run through Wolff, so I've been filling in and haven't had the time to write. Things should be back to normal next week. See ya then.