7 ms·

That's the first time I've heard that there are left- and right-handed scissors. Is there actually a noticeable difference in usage?

the_mitsuhiko 4y ago
I accidentally bought a left handed scissor for my son and we had to return it. Was incredibly uncomfortable to use.
BugsJustFindMe 4y ago
Handle ergonomics aside, because scissors aren't required to have ergonomic handles, you really want the nearer blade on the bottom so you can see exactly where the cut will be. A nearer top blade would overhang and obstruct the view of the cut line. People talking about causing the paper to fold are either describing how they have subconsciously tilted the scissors to be able to see where they are cutting or the fact that many but not all scissors have handle shapes that curve wrong if held in the wrong hand so they end up holding those specific scissors oddly, which means that the scissors are no longer slicing perpendicular to the paper. But handle curvature is not a requirement of scissors, just a characteristic of some of them. If the scissors don't have ergonomically sloped handles, an ambidextrous person can comfortably cut with either hand if they don't look at what they're doing.
- bagels 4y ago
  Most people are used to using really cheap, dull scissors with poor blade contact. That's what makes the paper fold over.
lyptt 4y ago
I never much point in them as a kid. I'm left handed and I found it harder to use left handed scissors in my left hand than using right handed scissors in my right hand.
- NackerHughes 4y ago
  It depends, I guess. I'm left-handed and sometimes I like to hold the object I'm cutting with my left hand, rather than the scissors.
tsukurimashou 4y ago
oh yeah, I'm left handed and right handed scissors just don't cut anything when I use my left hand, they just fold the paper
- Joker_vD 4y ago
  I'm also left handed and the only difference I've ever noticed is that when I use scissors (whatever they may come from) with my right hand, the cuts are less precise. That's it. And everything I do with my right hand is less precise than when I do it with my left hand.
ianferrel 4y ago
Yes. When you close scissors, you use your grip to push the blades together perpendicular to the direction of travel. This makes the blades closer to each other so they slice. You probably do this without thinking about it due to practice, but if you watch little kids try to use scissors, they'll sometimes end up with the paper just turning sideways and folding flat between the blades. If you use the correct handed scissors, your natural grasp will cause this to happen fairly easily. If you use the wrong handed scissors, you have to push your thumb away from your palm at the same time you bring it closer to your fingers. Unnatural and uncomfortable.
- BugsJustFindMe 4y ago
  This isn't it. The shape of the handle is orthogonal to whether a scissor is left or right handed. The real difference is in which blade half is on the bottom.
  - ianferrel 4y ago
    Right, because which blade half is on the bottom affects which direction you need to apply force so the blades meet tightly. I didn't mention anything about the shape of the handle...
    - BugsJustFindMe 4y ago
      What you described misunderstands or at least poorly describes the problem. > Right, because which blade half is on the bottom affects which direction you need to apply force so the blades meet tightly. That would violate Newton's Third Law of motion, so no. You don't have to apply force in any different direction if you put scissors with symmetric handles in the wrong hand. You will, however, end up tilting the scissors to the side so that you can see what you're doing. But that's not the same as needing to apply force any differently. It's a required sight issue not a required force issue. Anything else only comes from handle shape. If the scissors don't have ergonomically sloped handles, an ambidextrous person can comfortably cut with either hand if they don't look at what they're doing.
Sharlin 4y ago
Then there’s ergonomic scissors, like the iconic Fiskars ones [1], which are obviously extra uncomfortable to use if wrong-handed. [1] You can probably find a pair or two in every Finnish household: https://www.fiskars.com/en-us/crafting-and-sewing/products/scissors-and-shears/the-original-orange-handled-scissors-8-194510-1045 https://www.fiskars.com/en-us/crafting-and-sewing/products/s...
samcheng 4y ago
It's noticeable enough that, as a lefty, I learned early on to use scissors with my right hand.
Freak_NL 4y ago
I've always used right-handed scissors as these are simply the default, but a year ago I bought proper left-handed scissors (one general purpose and one for fabric) and now after almost 40 years of using the wrong type of scissor I can't imagine ever suffering those again. You can use the wrong scissors, but you're constantly compensating and getting a cramped hand in return. It makes a huge difference.
philo23 4y ago
I'm left handed but I've always used right handed scissors in my right hand. I can actually cut with either, but cutting right handed has always been more natural for me. Using the left handed scissors in my left hand requires more concentration. The only real benefit I've ever noticed of left handed scissors is that when you hold them in your left hand, you can see the point on the paper where the blades are going to cut. Holding a pair of right handed scissors in your left hand (or vice-versa) obscures that point behind the top blade, making it a lot harder to make accurate cuts. If you try holding a pair of regular right handed scissor in your left hand you should be able to see the issue of the top blade covering the part of the paper you want to cut. Which let me tell you, makes following dotted lines a lot harder in school if you're using them on the wrong hand... That's the only difference I've ever come across anyway, not sure what other commenters are talking about with the paper turning sideways!
mrweasel 4y ago
You're going to love this then: There are left-handed bread knifes, and I want one. Bread knifes have a ever so slight slant to the cutting surface, to ensure that it actually goes straight through the bread. Without it the bottom of the slice will be a little more narrow, or thicker, I can't remember. Anyway, if your left handed the cut goes into the bread at an angle and the bottom get much wider than the top. This happens because the slant in the knife is to the wrong side (for left handed people). It is basically impossible to compensate for, without attempting to use your right hand, which just makes it worse really. The price of the cheapest available left handed bread knife I've been able to find: USD100.
- schiem 4y ago
  You have just answered why I've never been able to cut bread straight. I always thought I was just bad at it and somehow everyone else had mastered bread cutting while I wasn't paying attention.
  - londons_explore 4y ago
    Put the bread face down on the table, and now cut horizontally a half inch off the table... Perfect slice! You can use this technique even with blunt knives like butter knives.
- matsemann 4y ago
  Yeah, the edge on a serrated bread knife is like |/ and not \/. I got a cutting knife (Øyo japansk kokkekniv), which has holes in it and a bump on one side to get rid of vacuum and things sticking to the knife when cutting. I actually got that in a lefty version, with the bumps on the other side.
- deafpolygon 4y ago
  After years of cutting my bread at a bias, I can safely say I can now cut it more or less straight.
- evanb 4y ago
  I have one as-yet-unredeemed gift certificate from my girlfriend for a left-handed bread knife. They're SO hard to find. Living in Germany I've wandered into multiple knife stores and ask and the people there all say "I know what you're talking about but we don't make one." The only time I've actually seen one in real life is at the left-handed store on the San Francisco wharf! Anyway, if you've got recommendations I'd love to hear them.
mortehu 4y ago
We have a pair of nail scissors that I cannot use to cut my right hand's fingernails. Most aren't like this, so it's clearly possible to make ambidextrous scissors.
vl 4y ago
Simple test is to get right-handed scissors and try to cut with your left hand (as your are required to do is some projects due to tool or space constraints). You’ll notice that you have to “horizontally” push in opposite way, which is really hard to do.
bondarchuk 4y ago
I just got the nearest pair of scissors and cut a sheet of paper with it, it was equally easy both with my left hand and my right. Even holding it very loosely so I couldn't secretly unconsciously apply some horizontal force it cut fine, as well as when tilted slightly left or right. The two halves seem perfectly identical, too, so I don't know what's this talk about "nearer blade on the bottom" either by some sibling comment, seems like both blades are about equally near and obviously one is on the bottom and the other on top. So in short I have no idea what everyone's on about.
- im3w1l 4y ago
  I did the same and had the same result. From reading the the other comments, I suspect a high-end pair of scissors is more tolerant of technique whereas as low end scissor you have to push and pull the blades just so for it to work.
- mkl 4y ago
  Some scissors are more ambidextrous than others. If the blades are curved towards each other enough then you may not need sideways pressure from your thumb and fingers, and even sideways pressure in the wrong direction may not matter. I have some scissors like this and some not. Alternatively, it's possible to apply the sideways pressure in the opposite direction to the "natural" one, and thereby use scissors with the hand they're not intended for (you may even be doing that without realising - I do). My dad is left-handed but struggles to use left-handed scissors as he didn't have access to them until later in life and is just used to applying sideways pressure in the "wrong" direction.
  - bondarchuk 4y ago
    >If the blades are curved towards each other enough then you may not need sideways pressure from your thumb and fingers I've never heard of nor seen scissors with blades curved towards each other and I don't see why they ever would be anything but straight in that dimension.
    - mkl 4y ago

the_mitsuhiko 4y ago

I accidentally bought a left handed scissor for my son and we had to return it. Was incredibly uncomfortable to use.

BugsJustFindMe 4y ago

Handle ergonomics aside, because scissors aren't required to have ergonomic handles, you really want the nearer blade on the bottom so you can see exactly where the cut will be. A nearer top blade would overhang and obstruct the view of the cut line. People talking about causing the paper to fold are either describing how they have subconsciously tilted the scissors to be able to see where they are cutting or the fact that many but not all scissors have handle shapes that curve wrong if held in the wrong hand so they end up holding those specific scissors oddly, which means that the scissors are no longer slicing perpendicular to the paper. But handle curvature is not a requirement of scissors, just a characteristic of some of them. If the scissors don't have ergonomically sloped handles, an ambidextrous person can comfortably cut with either hand if they don't look at what they're doing.

bagels 4y ago
Most people are used to using really cheap, dull scissors with poor blade contact. That's what makes the paper fold over.

lyptt 4y ago

I never much point in them as a kid. I'm left handed and I found it harder to use left handed scissors in my left hand than using right handed scissors in my right hand.

NackerHughes 4y ago
It depends, I guess. I'm left-handed and sometimes I like to hold the object I'm cutting with my left hand, rather than the scissors.

tsukurimashou 4y ago

oh yeah, I'm left handed and right handed scissors just don't cut anything when I use my left hand, they just fold the paper

Joker_vD 4y ago
I'm also left handed and the only difference I've ever noticed is that when I use scissors (whatever they may come from) with my right hand, the cuts are less precise. That's it. And everything I do with my right hand is less precise than when I do it with my left hand.

ianferrel 4y ago

Yes. When you close scissors, you use your grip to push the blades together perpendicular to the direction of travel. This makes the blades closer to each other so they slice. You probably do this without thinking about it due to practice, but if you watch little kids try to use scissors, they'll sometimes end up with the paper just turning sideways and folding flat between the blades. If you use the correct handed scissors, your natural grasp will cause this to happen fairly easily. If you use the wrong handed scissors, you have to push your thumb away from your palm at the same time you bring it closer to your fingers. Unnatural and uncomfortable.

BugsJustFindMe 4y ago
This isn't it. The shape of the handle is orthogonal to whether a scissor is left or right handed. The real difference is in which blade half is on the bottom.
- ianferrel 4y ago
  Right, because which blade half is on the bottom affects which direction you need to apply force so the blades meet tightly. I didn't mention anything about the shape of the handle...
  - BugsJustFindMe 4y ago
    What you described misunderstands or at least poorly describes the problem. > Right, because which blade half is on the bottom affects which direction you need to apply force so the blades meet tightly. That would violate Newton's Third Law of motion, so no. You don't have to apply force in any different direction if you put scissors with symmetric handles in the wrong hand. You will, however, end up tilting the scissors to the side so that you can see what you're doing. But that's not the same as needing to apply force any differently. It's a required sight issue not a required force issue. Anything else only comes from handle shape. If the scissors don't have ergonomically sloped handles, an ambidextrous person can comfortably cut with either hand if they don't look at what they're doing.

Sharlin 4y ago

Then there’s ergonomic scissors, like the iconic Fiskars ones [1], which are obviously extra uncomfortable to use if wrong-handed. [1] You can probably find a pair or two in every Finnish household: https://www.fiskars.com/en-us/crafting-and-sewing/products/scissors-and-shears/the-original-orange-handled-scissors-8-194510-1045 https://www.fiskars.com/en-us/crafting-and-sewing/products/s...

samcheng 4y ago

It's noticeable enough that, as a lefty, I learned early on to use scissors with my right hand.

Freak_NL 4y ago

I've always used right-handed scissors as these are simply the default, but a year ago I bought proper left-handed scissors (one general purpose and one for fabric) and now after almost 40 years of using the wrong type of scissor I can't imagine ever suffering those again. You can use the wrong scissors, but you're constantly compensating and getting a cramped hand in return. It makes a huge difference.

philo23 4y ago

I'm left handed but I've always used right handed scissors in my right hand. I can actually cut with either, but cutting right handed has always been more natural for me. Using the left handed scissors in my left hand requires more concentration. The only real benefit I've ever noticed of left handed scissors is that when you hold them in your left hand, you can see the point on the paper where the blades are going to cut. Holding a pair of right handed scissors in your left hand (or vice-versa) obscures that point behind the top blade, making it a lot harder to make accurate cuts. If you try holding a pair of regular right handed scissor in your left hand you should be able to see the issue of the top blade covering the part of the paper you want to cut. Which let me tell you, makes following dotted lines a lot harder in school if you're using them on the wrong hand... That's the only difference I've ever come across anyway, not sure what other commenters are talking about with the paper turning sideways!

mrweasel 4y ago

You're going to love this then: There are left-handed bread knifes, and I want one. Bread knifes have a ever so slight slant to the cutting surface, to ensure that it actually goes straight through the bread. Without it the bottom of the slice will be a little more narrow, or thicker, I can't remember. Anyway, if your left handed the cut goes into the bread at an angle and the bottom get much wider than the top. This happens because the slant in the knife is to the wrong side (for left handed people). It is basically impossible to compensate for, without attempting to use your right hand, which just makes it worse really. The price of the cheapest available left handed bread knife I've been able to find: USD100.

schiem 4y ago
You have just answered why I've never been able to cut bread straight. I always thought I was just bad at it and somehow everyone else had mastered bread cutting while I wasn't paying attention.
- londons_explore 4y ago
  Put the bread face down on the table, and now cut horizontally a half inch off the table... Perfect slice! You can use this technique even with blunt knives like butter knives.
matsemann 4y ago
Yeah, the edge on a serrated bread knife is like |/ and not \/. I got a cutting knife (Øyo japansk kokkekniv), which has holes in it and a bump on one side to get rid of vacuum and things sticking to the knife when cutting. I actually got that in a lefty version, with the bumps on the other side.
deafpolygon 4y ago
After years of cutting my bread at a bias, I can safely say I can now cut it more or less straight.
evanb 4y ago
I have one as-yet-unredeemed gift certificate from my girlfriend for a left-handed bread knife. They're SO hard to find. Living in Germany I've wandered into multiple knife stores and ask and the people there all say "I know what you're talking about but we don't make one." The only time I've actually seen one in real life is at the left-handed store on the San Francisco wharf! Anyway, if you've got recommendations I'd love to hear them.

mortehu 4y ago

We have a pair of nail scissors that I cannot use to cut my right hand's fingernails. Most aren't like this, so it's clearly possible to make ambidextrous scissors.

vl 4y ago

Simple test is to get right-handed scissors and try to cut with your left hand (as your are required to do is some projects due to tool or space constraints). You’ll notice that you have to “horizontally” push in opposite way, which is really hard to do.

bondarchuk 4y ago

I just got the nearest pair of scissors and cut a sheet of paper with it, it was equally easy both with my left hand and my right. Even holding it very loosely so I couldn't secretly unconsciously apply some horizontal force it cut fine, as well as when tilted slightly left or right. The two halves seem perfectly identical, too, so I don't know what's this talk about "nearer blade on the bottom" either by some sibling comment, seems like both blades are about equally near and obviously one is on the bottom and the other on top. So in short I have no idea what everyone's on about.

im3w1l 4y ago
I did the same and had the same result. From reading the the other comments, I suspect a high-end pair of scissors is more tolerant of technique whereas as low end scissor you have to push and pull the blades just so for it to work.
mkl 4y ago
Some scissors are more ambidextrous than others. If the blades are curved towards each other enough then you may not need sideways pressure from your thumb and fingers, and even sideways pressure in the wrong direction may not matter. I have some scissors like this and some not. Alternatively, it's possible to apply the sideways pressure in the opposite direction to the "natural" one, and thereby use scissors with the hand they're not intended for (you may even be doing that without realising - I do). My dad is left-handed but struggles to use left-handed scissors as he didn't have access to them until later in life and is just used to applying sideways pressure in the "wrong" direction.
- bondarchuk 4y ago
  >If the blades are curved towards each other enough then you may not need sideways pressure from your thumb and fingers I've never heard of nor seen scissors with blades curved towards each other and I don't see why they ever would be anything but straight in that dimension.
  - mkl 4y ago