Mona mutters…I’ve heard a rumour that cutting hair with heated scissors is better than with regular hair scissors (for example, the Jaguar TC Theracut). I’ve been able to find ladies journal articles recommending sealing split ends with a flame from a hundred years ago, but I can’t figure out how either method is particularly beneficial. Is it beauty science or BS?
The Left Brain’s heated reply:
Mona, this is one of the most intriguing questions I’ve seen in months. Somehow I missed the whole “hot scissors” trend and my jaw dropped when I saw Jaguar’s claims and the associated pictures on their website. In a nutshell, they claim that if you cut hair with heated scissors (or a razor), the ends are essentially cauterized so they are left with a glass like smoothness.
Split ends heat sealer?
I have to admit that the Jaguar Theracut website looks very convincing. It explains how the process works works, how it’s different than conventional hair cutting, and what the overall benefits are. You can see what I mean from these pictures that I borrowed from their website. (If Jaguar complains I’ll gladly take them down.) Here are the “with” and “without” pictures:
These images are amazing. So amazing, in fact, that they trigger my Skeptic-Sense. One of the credos of the skeptic is “extraordinary claims require extraordinary proof.” And these photos are extraordinary because they contradict our understanding of basic hair biology.
Extraordinary claims
Why? Because they show that hair fibers can be “melted” to form a smooth surface when cut. This is very unlikely given that hair is not a polymer that can be “melted” like plastic. The claim is so extraordinary that a single data point (this website) is not sufficient to convince me that it’s real. If all they claimed was that their treatment made the cuticle smoother, a simple electron micrograph would be enough to be convincing. But when they’re claiming to do something to hair that seems contrary to our general body of knowledge, my BS alarm goes off. After all, anything can be Photoshopped these days. As a good skeptic, I can’t totally dismiss this data I’d expect to find some kind of corroborative data from other legitimate sources like the Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists or the Textile Research Institute. To date, I have been unable to find any other studies that confirm this “melting” phenomena.
The Beauty Brains bottom line
If this product really does cut hair as it claims, it should provide a significant reduction in split ends. But I’m still skeptical on Jaguar’s claims until I see more data from the scientific literature that backs up these claims. If anyone know of any, please let me know and I’ll be glad to reconsider my position. In the meantime, I’m calling BS on this one.
Have YOU ever had your hair cut with hot scissors? Did you notice a difference? Leave a comment and share your experience with the rest of the Beauty Brains community.
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{ 37 comments… read them below or add one }
I know nothing about these scissors and have never heard anything about cutting hair with hot scissors or hot knives or hot whatevers… but I wonder, if it melts and seals the ends of the hair shaft as it cuts it, wouldn’t it also melt and seal ALL the ends of the hair TOGETHER? I’m imagining strands of cold wax being cut with a hot knife/razor/scissors, and that entire cut “surface” all melting together and turning into one solid clump.
I’m not sure if I’m making sense with my words… it all makes sense in my mind but I’m having the hardest time articulating exactly what I mean.
Thanks for looking into it! I dislike saying, “if it doesn’t fit what I hold to be true then they must be lying,” but it just doesn’t sound right to me. For starters, why don’t the hair samples cut with the ThermoCut have scales? It’s all logical for synthetic extensions, but I just don’t understand the mechanism for natural human hair to “seal” with the application of 110*C+ heat and their sworn expert statement and proof is absolutely useless from a scientific perspective.
I really, really wish they’d give an enlightening response.
Also, if heating the ends sealed the hair, then you should be able to get the same result just by using a flat iron.
I too am skeptical of their claims. If we look at their logic, would a curling or flat iron also “seal” the hair cuticle too? We all know what kind of damage they do to hair!
If the thermal theory holds true, wouldn’t it then be reasonable to assume that flatirons would seal split ends?
The pictures seem… unconvincing. If you look at the shafts of hair themselves, they are hardly the same; one of them is smooth, while the other one rough (I’m not talking about the cut parts). Could it be that the hair itself is different, or that one of the hairs is treated/synthetic? Or that the one on the worse condition has been selected to look terrible, plus cut with blunt scissors? There is a wide variety of options here.
Also, would a melted surface be so smooth? I’ve no idea, but it does seem unlikely.
I was curious and went to the site to look at the photos. Look at these two photos. In the damaged hair shaft you can see the layered cuticle of the shaft. I also see the cuticle on other photos of the damaged hair. But when I look at the photos of the treated hair shaft, I could not find any which show the waves which are the cuticle.
Since I can’t find any which show this I wonder if the treated ends are actually of hair at all.
Right now, the photos do not convince me.
Additionally, the scales on the “damaged” hair are facing UP- meaning we’re not seeing the end/tip of the hair at all. We’re looking at a piece on the other end, probably ripped out and broken off near the root.
From what I understand, split hair problem is caused by bacteria, not so much the ‘torn’ ends. Thoughts?
You’re cutting off split ends when you cut hair so I don’t see the benefit even if it did work..
Anthony, the idea is that the ends are left smooth and therefore are less likely to split again.
The evidence, however, does seem to be a bit patchy right now.
I also wonder: even if the ends *were* sealed shut, is there any reason to believe that would make them considerably less likely to split? I mean, what if the factors like friction, products, heat from styling, light are what determine splitting far more than the initial smoothness of the ends?
As a Hairdresser of 17 years who has studied physics and worked as an electrical technician (in another life), I would be very reluctant to heat my very expensive tempered steel scissors! I say BS.
@Doe – No, split ends are not caused by bacteria. Never heard of that before. Where did you hear it?
Split ends are caused by physical damage to hair. They start as little breaks in the hair and split their way up like a zipper.
My mom used to cut and style hair for a living before she got married. So I asked her as she’d have experience. Here’s what she said.
“No, it’ll fry your hair. It’ll remove the split ends temporarily, but because the ends will be fried in a few days they’ll start to split and break off a lot more.”
So there you have it, from someone with real life experience.
If you click the link from the NYTimes in the post above (about shampooing) you’ll find that heat + split ends has been around for a while (though they recommend using a candle – eek! – instead of hot scissors)
whoops sorry my bad – the link was from elsewhere
Here it is:
http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?_r=1&res=9904E5DA143EE233A25753C1A9639C946997D6CF
Would it bring more damage to hair? Flaming the split ends? If this is in an old technique, is it really ok?
This hair cutting meathod has been used for a lon time in europe. It really does work. I met a girl who just moved to America from Kasakhstan and she had been looking for a place that cuts hair with those Hot Scissors for a long time, but couldnt find one. She said she would pay $100 just to have her hair cut with them. Also i have an uncle who just moved from Europe. He is a hair stylist and he says they really work and he recommend them. i would definitly try then if i could find a place that uses them….
http://www.thermo-cut.com/gb/wirkung/aufbau.html
i had my hair cut with hot scissors ,and i loved it , go for it ,you will like them a lot :0
I have had my hair cut with the heated Jaguar scissors, and it is FANTASTIC!!!!!!! Oh, I loved it! First let me tell you about my hair. It is between a level 2-3 and I have always bleached and colored it, needless to say my hair is dry and damaged. I went to a hair and beauty show in Chicago (my beauty school sent us there quite a few years ago) and they have all sorts of demos there. I was walking by and a guy grabbed me asking if I wanted to try out the demo, I had no idea but I need a cut so I said ok. He used the Jaguar on me, cutting and texturizing. My friends were watching and they said they could instantly tell my hair was healthier. I went home that night and took a shower, and my hair felt fabulous! I felt my wet hair, and it was silky, WITHOUT putting in the conditioner first!!! This was amazing to me, since my hair is so dry I needed conditioner always! After the shower, I styled as usual and my hair had so much volume, and shine! It was like virgin hair all over again, like starting from scratch! I will be buying those scissors one day and use them in my salon! I back them up 200%! Hope this helps!
I’ve had my hair cut regularly with hot scissors for some years and it does work better than the regular trims.
I decided to try out a hot scissors cut when I decided to grow my hair long again and after hearing very good reviews from my friends. The ends do stay healthy longer. I can’t explain why hot scissors work but they do.
I got my hair cut with hot scissors yesterday and my boyfriend was amazed with the results. You can really see how your hair goes from lackluster and limp to shiny and springy right there in front of the mirror when they’re cutting. It had been over six months from my last cut (too long a break, i know!) but they only had to cut less than 2 inches off my hair to get rid of the split ends.
I know the hot scissors thing sounds like science fiction but it does work for me!
Had this hot-scissors haircut several times, loved the results. Now, to be 100% honest, I am not sure if it was the temperature of the scissors that made the difference, or just the way they cut my hair. They use this special technique, not just regular trim of the hair. What they do is twist small locks (strands) of hair into a thin plait and then cut off all the little fly-aways that are sticking out on the sides of the plait. And do it over and over again, many many small locks twisted and “cleaned up”. Obviously if you have relatively healthy smooth hair, your plait is solid and has very few fly-aways, if your hair is already damaged, there will be a lot of short thin ends sticking out along the length of the plait. So they cut off those small sticking out pieces.. So that the overall length of the hair is not changing that much, but the whole head of hair gets “cleaned up”. Your hair really looks and feels healthier, smoother, shinier. But I think it probably would work the same with cold scissors, just nobody does it that way as it is “special hot scissor hair cut” technique.
I had my hair cut with hot scissors and I don’t know the physics of it but it WORKS!!! normally, when my hair reaches certain length (just a bit below shoulders) it is very difficult to keep it healthy. It takes couple of weeks after a cut to see split ends, whereas it can go couple of months without trimming.
Girls, can anyone recommend a salon in London that has those scissors because I had my regular haircuts abroad.
Natalia, that special way is not a special way for hot scissors as I had that special way with cold scissors performed on my hair, and I have to say I didn’t enjoy it at all. It just depends on the hairdresser what he decides to do with your hair.
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I’ve got to be honest and say that I’m am not technically minded but I would like to say that all of our customers who have purchased the Jaguar TC400 hot scissor system have found both they and their customers have benefitted from using them.
I have really dry and damaged hair. It is always getting tangled with itself because of the split-ends, and it feels brittle.
I have been looking for a good leave-in conditioner for awhile now. I’ve tried many different brands. Many left my hair stiff, like styling gel, while others left it greasy, and some just didn’t seem to do anything at all.
A couple of months ago I decided to try bottle of Shielo’s Antioxidant Leave in Protectant, because the stylist at an expensive salon in NYC recommended it. I thought “why not?”
Before I go into further detail, let me explain my hair more. It is on the longer side, straight, very fine, and color treated. I just wanted to give more info since different hair types might have different results. What works for my straight hair might not work as well for curly hair, and so forth.
The first day I used it I combed it into my towel dried hair, giving the ends of my hair a little extra. The first thing I noticed was that the product wasn’t really sticky like many of the other products I have tried, which is great. It also has a very nice scent. Once my hair had dried it was noticeably silkier, smoother, and tangle free! The scent lingered all day.
I have continued to use the product everyday for the past two months. There has been visible improvement in my hair. It isn’t as dry anymore, the split-ends haven’t gotten worse, and my hair has more shine. Overall, it just looks and feels much healthier.
Greetings,
Does anyone know where I could have my hair cut with hot scissirs in NY? I can’t find a single place in New York who would have that sirvice!
Thanks!
it look good idea, but andbody know about future effects of cutting? i like that cutting system…
Hi, I have actually gotten my hair cut with these things and call BS as much as you want, but I really did notice a wonderful difference. Both my cousin and I have noticed so much growth since getting our hair trimmed with them. I (who’s o.c.d. about split ends and keeping them at bay) actually traveled to Cincinnati every year from NYC to get my hair cut with them, they work so well. I actually stumbled upon this article searching for a salon here in NYC that has them, ’cause they’re so great. They’re wonderful and I don’t know if my hair was melted, or what my hair looks like under a microscope, but I don’t have the splits and my hair grows much more quickly, and I don’t get tangled ends as much since I started using them. Give em a shot, or not. I kinda feel like you should before you discredit something you’ve never experienced.
Oh! and Karina, I saw you were looking for salons in NY that use them these are two that I found. This one’s in NYC http://natissnyc.com/thermocut and this one is in Manhasset Adelina Hair Design Salon. Good luck!
I’m Adelina of Adelina Hair Design Salon in Manhasset. I was trained in Europe and used the Thermocut System exclusively in my work while in Europe. Thermocut seals the ends of hair when it is cut, preventing brittleness and split ends, and protecting hair from damage. Elasticity, health and volume are noticeably restored. The heat of the Thermocut System actually seals the cut ends of hair, and the results are immediately realized. My salon is the only salon on all of Long Island that I am aware of that uses this system. If you would like more information please email me or visit me at my salon. 496 Plandome Road Manhasset NY, 516 869-8600.
Does anybody know of a hairdresser in Las Vegas, NV that uses the hot scissors? I want a hot scissor haircut. Thank you.
Does anybody know of a salon in Los Angeles, CA that uses Jaguar TC?
Thanks
I have had a thermo-cut in Vancouver, Canada a few months ago and honestly it was the best cut I’ve ever had! They took off so little hair.. I’m growing out my hair (it grows very very slow and splits all the time). I definitely noticed a change in the health of my hair since that cut, and the first time is only supposed to take off about 60% of the split ends. You have to keep going. Also you can go to the salon less often with a thermocut. I can’t wait for my next one, next time I’m in Vancouver. I definitely recommend thermo cut to anyone with brittle hair! I’m trying to find a stylist in LA who uses the thermo scissors… so far no luck.