What you should know about Personal Care Products

Personal care made easier-with well-functioning instruments

Manicure, pedicure, hair cutting- perfectly functioning instruments are required for these personal hygiene tasks: sharp scissors, exactly cutting nippers, effective and gently functioning nail files and, depending on personal preferences and habits, other instruments such as, e.g. nail cleaners, corn knives, nail scraper and tweezers, etc. with which all personal hygiene tasks can be carried out effortlessly and exactly.

There is a diverse range of Zwilling J.A. Henckels personal care instruments available, and a large selection of instruments made of various raw materials, in various sizes and for the most varied functions. All these instruments are marked by their outstanding workmanship, making the articles distinctly durable and highly functional.

All you need to know about personal care instruments can be found on the following pages: Why Zwilling J.A. Henckels instruments are of such outstanding quality, how these differences in quality arise and the effects they have.

Zwilling JA. Henckels quality

All products bearing the Zwilling J.A. Henckels trademark are manufactured using the highest quality materials. Of greatest significance is the quality of the steels used. These steels have a fundamental effect on the durability and functionality of the instruments.

Because manicure instruments are often kept and used in the damp atmosphere of the bathroom, the corrosion resistance of the steels used is an important quality feature. The competence of the manufacturer is displayed in the selection of the optimum steel type for the relevant intended use. Zwilling J.A. Henckels uses high-quality, high-grade steel and Friodur® stainless, high-grade steel for its manicure instruments.

Friodur® is a protected trademark belonging to Zwilling J.A. Henckels in many countries. Products are marked as being made of Friodur® if the steel used in their production has been manufactured using a special ice hardening process subjects high-quality, high-grade steel to an even greater degree of qualitative refinement.

Quality features of scissors and nippers

The careful selection of basic materials and the care taken during manufacture guarantee that Zwilling J.A. Henckels products are of consistently high quality. The most important manicure and pedicure scissors and nippers made by Zwilling J.A. Henckels are distinguished by the following features:

-sharp blades
-high resistance to wear

and for Twinox products:
-very high corrosion resistance
-very hygienic owing to rust-resistant steel alloys.

The origin of cuticle nippers

In the manufacture of personal care instrument it is usually a long road from the black to the finished precision instrument. The most important personal care instruments are the nail and cuticle scissors and nippers. These are also the most complicated instruments to manufacture.

Because the manufacturing processes involved in the production of personal hygiene scissors are fundamentally similar and can be read about in the chapter about scissors and shears, the origin of a cuticle nipper will be described here. Cuticle nippers provide an excellent example of the elaborate manufacture of personal care instruments.

A distinction is made between nipper joints, the nipper halves of which rest on each other in the joint area (Lap Joint) and those in which the blade (i.e. one half of the nipper) runs through the other blade in the joint area (box joint). The box joint nippers demand a high level of manufacturing precision. The particular advantage they offer: they are more robust, cut more precisely and stay sharp for longer than the laid on nippers.

The most important manufacturing steps for box joint cuticle nippers are:

1. Production of blanks
During the manufacture of primary parts the basic material (Forging part) is given the appropriate form for further processing. Zwilling J.A. Henckels processes steel bars made of stainless high-grade Friodur® steel, ice hardened, and normal steel in the production of cuticle and nail nippers. The most important manufacturing steps are:
-Cutting to shape: Slugs honed from a long flat steel bar provide the basic materials for the forging of the flat steel bar.
-Heating: The slugs are heated to 1000-1000C
-Forging: In the forming the slugs are given their first rough nipper shape (box blade or lap blade.)
-The first blank is cut out: Burrs and rest material are cut away on an eccentric power press (Punched out).
-Forging remains are removed by sand blasting.
-The shears are formed on a press.

2. Machining from the Blank
The following manufacturing steps are carried out during production:
-Precise milling of the closing surfaces. The milling out of the “box”, i.e. the clearance through which the second nipper half is inserted.
-Boring of the screw hole; cutting of the thread; hobbing of the bearing for the screw head.
-Boring and thread cutting for the spring bolt.

3. Assembly
During final assembly the nipper blades are screwed together. The blades and points are mated. In contrast to scissors, nippers are assembled in an unhardened condition. The cutting edges of a nipper must press against each other exactly so that the nail or protruding edge of skin can be smoothly and cleanly severed. The most important steps are:
-The steel is made formable following inductive heating and the milled opening in the box blade is widened with a special tool.
-The between blade is inserted.
-The box is pressed together in a press.
-The box is bored through both blades.
-Riveting.

4. Hardening
The most important manufacturing steps are:
-Heating
-Cooling
-Tempering

Zwilling J.A. Henckels has optimised the hardening process for high-grade steels. The refined steel which results is called Friodur® and is a globally protected trademark.

5. Surface Machining
The grinding of nippers is an elaborate process which is performed by high-precision machines. The working of the joint area is particularly emphasised by Zwilling J.A. Henckels, because the precise from influences the exact functionality of the nippers. The manufacturing steps are:
-The between blade and box blade are rough dry ground and fine-dry ground.
-Cutting: Grinding
-Nickel plating for normal steel nippers; polishing.
-The surface of high-grade steel nippers is polished or/and matted.

6. Honing and Final inspection
-Seal filing and sharpening of the blade surefaces.
-Honing on an oilstone
-Testing the cutting performance and the closing force of the nipper.

At Zwilling J.A. Henckels particularly stringent quality control is carried out at all stages of production.

How can you recognise good personal care instruments?

All personal care instruments are specially formed and processed for their particular intended use. Only in this way can they fulfil their specific purpose.

1. The raw material
Good personal care instruments such as cleaners, nail scrapers, nail and corn knives are manufactured from the highest quality steel.
Zwilling J.A. Henckels makes exclusive use of stainless, high-grade steel for the working side of its instruments.

2. The finish
The upper part of the instruments have a smoothly ground, polished or matted surface. The blades are sharply ground. All plastic handles are smooth with no surface seams thus guaranteeing finger-friendly work.

3. For nail an corn scissors
The points of the scissors must fit together well when closed. Cutting performance right up to the point is absolutely essential. The blades must have an even closing force and open and close easily.

4. For nail and cuticle nippers.
The cutting edges of a nipper must press against each other exactly. The cutting edges of a quality nipper meet first at the point and clip the nail or skin away when pressed together further. The spring, which opens the nipper, must be fixed properly and should not get in the way when clipping.

5. For non-cutting instruments
The selection of top class materials as well as clean surface and edge processing distinguish carefully manufactured instruments. These properties are essential for proper functioning and are specially formed and processed for each respective intended use.

Care of scissors and nippers

Scissors and nippers from Zwilling J.A. Henckels range of personal care products are precision instruments. With proper handling and care they can be enjoyed for a long time. On the other hand, incorrect use and handling can ruin scissors and nippers. The following points should be noted:

1. Keep scissors clean and out of harm’s way
A case or special stand ensure that the instruments are kept clean and safe. Particular care must be taken to ensure that the instruments do not fall, otherwise the fine points may break or bend.

2. Maintain the easy closing action
Now and then, the screw slot and the joint area should be oiled with sewing machine oil. Should the scissor action ever feel rough, it is usually enough simply to place a little sewing machine oil on the fingertip and to sear this on the inner side area and cutting edge. The scissors will then once again have an easy and smooth closing force.

3. Regrinding by specialists only
If you have used your scissors extensively, the cutting performance may be impaired. It is then advisable to tae these instruments to a specialist cutler retailer to have them reground and straightened.

The cutting performance of scissors or nippers, which have been reworked by a specialist, will be as good as new.