Ceramic or steel clipper blades, what cuts better?
Alright, guys, with a lot of research put into this article on which cuts better; steel and ceramic clipper blades?
You will get your answer.
Based on science, and of course, what the industry has to say about it.
But First, let’s look into the make and quality of the blades themselves; starting with the steel blade.
What is steel?
Steel is an engineering material made up of silicon, phosphorus, sulfur, and oxygen. With slight traces of alloy, iron, and carbon, steel is the most used metal globally. Steel is incredibly durable and cost-effective.
But can it be used to cut hair, and do a great looking skin fade?
Let’s keep reading!
steel blades erode:
The issues with steel blades are that they erode and can get rusty over time, especially when dealing with wet hair. Steel blades are not build to last, although the cuts steel blades can achieve aren’t too shabby.
steel blades get hot
Steel blades tend to get hotter quicker than ceramic blades due to friction and absorbs heat faster based on their material compound. Most steel blade users keep a can of coolant close by to prevent burning their clients mid-way through a fade.
ceramic blades are heat resistant:
Whereas ceramic blades generate 75% less heat, If you remember, back in science class, they used ceramic titles on the belly of the space shuttle to help dissipate heat when coming through the atmosphere of the earth. Ceramic is made when inorganic, nonmetallic material is exposed to high temperatures.
Other examples of this method are used in making porcelain and brick. Ceramic has a melting point the same as glass, reaching an astonishing 2000 degrees Celsius, or 3632 degrees Fahrenheit.
The element compounds found in ceramic are carbon, nitrogen, and sulfur. Ceramic density is between 2.5G/cm3 and 6g/cm3. Making them weigh more than plastic but lighter than steel in most cases. Ceramic blades remain sharper longer than steel clipper blades, although ceramic blades are less durable.
However, there have been many breakthroughs in the past years in making ceramic blades, such as infusing them with materials that give them more durability.
Advantages of having steel clipper blades:
Steel blades are much cheaper than ceramic blades, usually between five to ten dollars, whereas some ceramic blades can go from fifteen to twenty-five dollars depending on the manufacture or who you buy from.
steel blades fit most clippers
Since ceramic blades are more personalized to specific clipper types, steel blades have a universal value to them you don’t get with ceramic blades. Although steel blades are prone to rust, stainless steel blades are another alternative that prevents this major issue. Often stainless steel is more expensive due to the coat of protection infused in its material.
Now that you have some great information about the two blades under your belt. Let’s put these two types of blades on the chopping block and determine which is best for your cutting style.
steel clipper blades in a nutshell:
We learned that steel blades are heavier than ceramic and are prone to rust if not correctly maintained. The pros to a steel blade are that they tend to be cheaper, more durable, come as stainless steel variants (for an additional cost), and are universal for most clippers on the market.
ceramic clipper blades in a nutshell:
The pros to ceramic blades are; incredibly sharp, heat resistant, and don’t erode or rust.
The problem with ceramic blades is that they work with only a handful of clippers, tend to be more expensive, and are less durable than steel blades. If you drop a ceramic blade, you will need to replace them more often than not.
What’re The Barbers take On The Clipper Blades:
After interviewing various barbershops and speaking to barbers with over ten plus years of experience in the field, here’s the answer they gave us.
Most barbers prefer ceramic blades for the sharpness of the blade and the ability to remove hair to get a fade done as fast as possible quickly.
This allows barbers to make more money ultimately, and most don’t mind spending the extra cost of a ceramic blade to achieve these results.
On the other hand, a slower yet more stable blade is a great choice as well. In most cases, barbers carry both blade types depending on the haircuts they will be cutting. In the end, both blades have their ups and downs, but most career barbers prefer using ceramic blades.
