Author Topic: How do you know if your blades need sharpening?  (Read 1521 times)

Newskater52

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How do you know if your blades need sharpening?
« on: March 07, 2018, 02:51:05 am »
Quite new to skating and wondering how can you tell if your blades need sharpening? And is if possible to tell before you get on the ice? Because I'm pretty new, im not sure I would be able to feel them being less sharp on the ice, but don't know how to tell if they're sharp enough off ice?

The Sacred Voice

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Re: How do you know if your blades need sharpening?
« Reply #1 on: March 07, 2018, 04:00:32 am »
I've been skating a year and a half and, honestly, I still don't really know how to tell. I read the endless suggestions from various sites about tests you can do, like running your nail along the blade and seeing if it scrapes off a bit, but I feel the most education I've got from it is just experience over time. Your blades being sharp won't make you instantly a lot better, so I try not to stress it too much and just do it when it feels like I haven't had them done in a while; you can still skate in them either way. For peace of mind you could get them sharpened right now and then stick to one of the suggested skating hour guides for when you should next sharpen (e.g. every 20-40 hours of skating, the guideline seems to vary depending on where you read it).

One of the most informative moments I've had in learning this process is when I had a really good sharpen and I got on the ice afterwards and it felt like heaven. But after two weeks or so I'd basically just adjusted back to what it felt like before, so I worry more about just improving my skills and less about whether my blades are perfectly sharpened or not.
I'm blogging about my skating journey, please read along at dontexcelaxel.blogspot.com

Leif

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Re: How do you know if your blades need sharpening?
« Reply #2 on: March 07, 2018, 03:26:47 pm »
I've read every 20 hours is typical but I know people who get them done every 100 hours, and some who do it before each hockey game. Some pro hockey players have their skates sharpened between each period!

I like to get them done every 10 hours. I used to leave 20 hours between sharpens, but I noticed the wear. As to how you know, well if there is damage to the edges, due to walking on concrete or other hard surface, or a collision in a hockey game, then its obvious. Otherwise it's the on ice feel of the skates. It might be worse for hockey skate wearers as we often slide sideways which wears the edges, and our blades are narrower, so have less of an edge for a given hollow. I find with newly sharpened skates that they have more bite, and I have more control.

I do agree with The Sacred Voice's comments.

And make sure they are sharpened by someone you can trust. A bad sharpen will impact your skating. Admittedly I am a tad OCD when it comes to my blades (and the skates in general).

WednesdayMarch

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Re: How do you know if your blades need sharpening?
« Reply #3 on: March 07, 2018, 04:43:17 pm »
Quite new to skating and wondering how can you tell if your blades need sharpening? And is if possible to tell before you get on the ice? Because I'm pretty new, im not sure I would be able to feel them being less sharp on the ice, but don't know how to tell if they're sharp enough off ice?

I would recommend you ask someone at the rink, possibly a pro or one of the better skaters.  They will almost certainly check your blades for you.  What I always do when someone asks me, is to check theirs and if they need sharpening (and provided mine don't!), then I'll get them to feel the edges on their blades and then the edges on mine, so that they can actually compare the two and feel the difference.  That means that in future, they'll be able to tell by feeling the blades.  It's all very well to say that they should be concave and have a sharpish edge, but until a person has felt what's right and what's not, they don't really stand much of a chance of telling the difference!

Of course, the other way is to wait until your blades slide out sideways and you can't hold an edge...   ;)
Returned to the ice in Sept 2017 after a major leg injury in 1999. Skating in Jackson Elite Pro & MK Vision Syncro. Still scary after all these years.

spinZZ

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Re: How do you know if your blades need sharpening?
« Reply #4 on: March 14, 2018, 12:00:43 am »
I would recommend you ask someone at the rink, possibly a pro or one of the better skaters.  They will almost certainly check your blades for you.  What I always do when someone asks me, is to check theirs and if they need sharpening (and provided mine don't!), then I'll get them to feel the edges on their blades and then the edges on mine, so that they can actually compare the two and feel the difference.  That means that in future, they'll be able to tell by feeling the blades.  It's all very well to say that they should be concave and have a sharpish edge, but until a person has felt what's right and what's not, they don't really stand much of a chance of telling the difference!

Of course, the other way is to wait until your blades slide out sideways and you can't hold an edge...   ;)
<<Emphasis added>>  Yes, this is the way to go.  If your sharpener is friendly, ask him to line up a row of skates for you to feel:  freshly sharpened, ready for sharpening, a little past due, way past due.  The widely-touted shave-your-fingernail test won't do in many instances, because many sharpeners deliberately dull the edges somewhat after sharpening.   I like them really sharp, so I always instruct my sharpener not to dull them.  Also, you can hone the edges to pass the fingernail test even though the hollow has been worn down too shallow.

When you feel the edges, make sure your fingertips are clean and dry (you lose sensitivity if you've freshly washed them though).  Don't stroke along the blade; you can get a nasty cut if the edge has been left really sharp.  Stroke across the blade.

Do keep a log of how many hours you have skated and use that as a guide to have them sharpened before they get past due.  You can't go by general guidelines; too many variables:  type and grade of steel, quality of blade, radius of hollow, quality of ice, how careful you treat them (especially wearing hard guards when walking off ice), skating maneuvers ....  As a beginner, your routine will be constantly changing, so the interval between sharpenings won't be stable for a while.  Also, as a beginner, you won't know whether you're having problems with certain maneuvers because your edges are dull or whether you have poor technique.  As you advance, this will come together.  For me, early indicators that a sharpening is due are cross-overs and entrance to a scratch spin.  Note:  You want to get the blades sharpened before they get too dull, so you don't have a major readjustment after sharpening.
« Last Edit: March 14, 2018, 02:14:13 am by spinZZ »

LissyJ

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Re: How do you know if your blades need sharpening?
« Reply #5 on: March 17, 2018, 12:59:37 am »
I skate on average 6 hours a week, and still manage to go months between sharpenings. That said.. I’m cheap and only get them done when my blades are so blunt that they start doing their own thing  ;D



 

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