Changing My Blades

[dbny]

The thread on New Blades, and my problems with three turns and spins got me thinking once again that I may benefit from a bigger rocker. I'm on Coronation Aces now, with a 7' rocker, but I have a pair of Coronation Comets (8.5' rocker) that I've been wanting to try. If hubby can find them, I am going to use them tomorrow, when the only skating I do is coaching tots followed by skating on an empty public session, and then coaching first graders later. I also have daughter's first pair of Gold Seals (8' rocker) that I could try if the Comets feel too flat for me.

I'm interested in any experiences you have had with a move from a smaller rocker to a larger one.

[pinkjellybean]

I switched from Aces' to comets but it was quite a while ago so I don't have any specific stories to share... however I do remember feeling WAY better in the comets. I felt like it was easier to hit the sweet spot when spinning and I felt like I was standing better with more support... all just from changing the blades. Part of the problem with my aces had been that I felt like i was sliding and I gripped the ice better with comets.

They felt really weird/different at the begining of my first session but I got used to them quickly and by the end of my 2nd session that day I was comfortable in them and could perform all my elements.

[jazzpants]

I went from 6.5" (Wilson Excels) to 7" (MK Pros) and spinning is where I noticed the most difference. Other than that, not much difference for me in terms of edge control.

Also, don't under estimate the powers of getting your blades realigned. That alone made the difference for me!

[NoVa Sk8r]

A year ago, I went from Coronation Ace (7") to Pattern 99 (8"). I had been using the Aces for about 5 years.
I have always had problems with the back scratch and back camel. But with the Pattern 99s, these spins became easier. I guess there's more sweet spot for me to maneuver with. I also noticed that back 3-turns seemed simpler to do.
That said, I do miss the toe pick on the Aces--it was easier for me to do back pivots!

[dbny]

Also, don't under estimate the powers of getting your blades realigned. That alone made the difference for me!

I was thinking about that too, yesterday. When stepping forward in the prelim power threes, I noticed that I seemed to go onto an inside edge on my R foot. I could feel the pressure on my arch, but it wasn't visible to my coach. Could also just be me not having my weight in the right place.

[jazzpants]

I was thinking about that too, yesterday. When stepping forward in the prelim power threes, I noticed that I seemed to go onto an inside edge on my R foot. I could feel the pressure on my arch, but it wasn't visible to my coach. Could also just be me not having my weight in the right place. Okay, one way to tell -- go on a straight line and skate forward on two foot, then lift to one foot (your right in this case), keeping the hip as squared as you do on two foot. If you keep like you're quickly swerving to your left and on the inside edge, you may have a blade alignment problem. It should not be so easy to swerve over to the inside edge.

Just food for thought...

[jenlyon60]

Just over a year ago, I went from MK Dance (which I had used for probably 15 years) and which has a 7 foot rocker, to Ultima Ascend (then the Ultima dance blade), which has an 8 foot rocker.

I have felt much more stable once I got used to the blades, since changing to the flatter blade. Note, however, that I am definitely chubby... so I think the flatter blade helped somewhat from that perspective.

[doubletoe]

I think the only way to do a direct comparison between a blade with a smaller (rounder) radius and a blade with a larger (flatter) radius is to compare two pairs of new blades. Most blade rockers get a little flattened out after repeated sharpenings, so a 7' rocker will behave like a blade with an 8' rocker (or even flatter) after a few years. But on the bright side, that is probably why people tend to spin better on new blades even when they have a bigger radius than their previous blades!

[sue123]

Okay, one way to tell -- go on a straight line and skate forward on two foot, then lift to one foot (your right in this case), keeping the hip as squared as you do on two foot. If you keep like you're quickly swerving to your left and on the inside edge, you may have a blade alignment problem. It should not be so easy to swerve over to the inside edge.

Just food for thought...

that's a good experiment. I was actually having a problem because i kept going into a right inside edge on my new skates. I could not go in a straight line on one foot. I was planning on going to the pro shop on friday to have it fixed. Does it usually take a while before you get the blade aligned properly anyhow? (as in, continuosly going back and forth)

[skaternum]

Does it usually take a while before you get the blade aligned properly anyhow? (as in, continuosly going back and forth)Depends on the skater and the pro shop. It usually takes me forever to get a blade aligned properly, but I'm a freak with a pelvis and hip that used to torque. Now that I have the biomechanical problem stabilized, I still find it takes me a couple of adjustments to get it just right.

[jazzpants]

Depends on the skater and the pro shop. It usually takes me forever to get a blade aligned properly, but I'm a freak with a pelvis and hip that used to torque. Now that I have the biomechanical problem stabilized, I still find it takes me a couple of adjustments to get it just right. I will also add that if you are able to get someone who can do the alignment right at the rink itself, it speeds things up considerably... (i.e. you don't leave the ice or the blade guy, until you are happy with it.) Also, make sure your coach is there, so they could determine whether it's the blade alignment or whether it's (as the blade guy says...) "a coach's thing."

[sue123]

I will also add that if you are able to get someone who can do the alignment right at the rink itself, it speeds things up considerably... (i.e. you don't leave the ice or the blade guy, until you are happy with it.) Also, make sure your coach is there, so they could determine whether it's the blade alignment or whether it's (as the blade guy says...) "a coach's thing."

well, the pro shop is located at a rink, but the admission for the session is sooo expensive (something like $14, when I'm used to paying $4) If I'm lucky, the skate guy can let me in, but it would depend on who is working. Also, I don't have a coach yet (my lessons start again in January). But i skated a lot when i was younger, so i can kinda feel when things are off. Any chance i'd get lucky and he'll get it right the first time?

[jazzpants]

well, the pro shop is located at a rink, but the admission for the session is sooo expensive (something like $14, when I'm used to paying $4) If I'm lucky, the skate guy can let me in, but it would depend on who is working. Also, I don't have a coach yet (my lessons start again in January). But i skated a lot when i was younger, so i can kinda feel when things are off. Any chance i'd get lucky and he'll get it right the first time?Yeah, I know... but the cost of lost skating time plus traveling repeatedly and the hassle factor is worth the cost of admission to the session... :P

Of course, I should add that I didn't have a coach at the session when I got my blade realigned. But my skate guy is a "really good" ice dancer too, so he was a reasonable substitute for my coach.

[luna_skater]

Maybe I've just been lucky, but not once, in my entire life, have I had trouble with blade alignment. Nor have any of my other skater-friends. I've been skating for 18 years. I'm just sort of fascinated with all these blade troubles...

[3ggi3]

Maybe I've just been lucky, but not once, in my entire life, have I had trouble with blade alignment. Nor have any of my other skater-friends. I've been skating for 18 years. I'm just sort of fascinated with all these blade troubles...

people who pay attention to the slight difference in their blade alignments are usually those who are serious about their skating. u have been skating for 18 years and I do not believe you at all.
I can't believe that u can have a blade screwed onto ur skate without alignment and it can be perfect. are ur boots magic?

[dbny]

people who pay attention to the slight difference in their blade alignments are usually those who are serious about their skating.
Not to my knowledge. Do you have facts to back that up, or is it just your opinion based on your how many years of experience?

u have been skating for 18 years and I do not believe you at all. I can't believe that u can have a blade screwed onto ur skate without alignment and it can be perfect. are ur boots magic? .

We play nice here. If you want to be insulting, I'm sure there are many other places where that would be welcome. I'm not a moderator, but I did start this thread and do not care to have it deteriorate like this.

[jazzpants]

Maybe I've just been lucky, but not once, in my entire life, have I had trouble with blade alignment. Nor have any of my other skater-friends. I've been skating for 18 years. I'm just sort of fascinated with all these blade troubles...Fascinating... I'm curious -- when you get fitted for your skates, did you try out the skates right at the rink and they make blade adjustments as you are trying on your boots and you don't leave until you're happy with your blade and boot? If so, that would explain it! :D

Otherwise, you likely to be a very lucky skater!!!

[kia]

One tyype of blades I would not reccomend if you are a dancer is the new parabolic blades. I'm a precicission skater whois half way through my dance tests. I am not great at jumps but I have always been able to twizzle well. The new parabolic blades are great for speed and edges but they change your center of gravity and twizzles and footwork is much harder

[Mrs Redboots]

Add me to the list of those who have never needed their blades adjusted. When I got my present blades (which are nearly dead, alas.....), I got the fitter to attach them for me. Then I asked my coach to check the alignment - he told me to skate on one foot in a straight line (i.e. on a flat), which I duly did, on both feet, said they were fine, and told me to get on and get used to them!

Having said that, a friend who is also a coach, although he does not teach at our rink, was having great problems with the alignment of his new (actually I think 2nd-hand, but still good) boots and blades.... He knew something was "off", as he couldn't hold is outside edges; I think he's sorted them now.

[suiyan]

My daughter has never had problems with the alignment of her blades until the present pair. She is a senior level dancer and just switched to parabolic blades. She too can no longer twizzle. She has the blades alighned several times but just cant seem to get her twizzles back. I think we will be putting her old blades back on until we can buy another set of non-parabolic blades.

[Beccapoo2003]

You can also look at the bottom of an old pair of shoes that you've worn for awhile and see how the soles are worn down. If the inside is worn, then you pronate, which means you put more pressure towards the arch. If they are worn on the outside, then you supinate, which means you walk more on the outside of your foot. If you pronate, you can move the blade a little to the inside so your weight is more centered over the blade. I am a little bow legged and supinate, so I have had to move the blades severely to the outside (it's almost comical). After going around in circles with my coach, I finally started mounting the blades myself!
Good luck and stand your ground!
Becca

[sue123]

Maybe I've just been lucky, but not once, in my entire life, have I had trouble with blade alignment. Nor have any of my other skater-friends. I've been skating for 18 years. I'm just sort of fascinated with all these blade troubles...

i guess you have magic feet. my ankle is majorly screwed up, so i always pronate. Actually, if i hold my right foot out straight, it my ankle actually bends inward almost 90 degrees. So getting skates, or just any pair of shoes, tends to be a problem for me, so i'm not surprised that i need to get blade adjustments.

[Mrs Redboots]

I think I'm lucky in that the person who fits my boots really does know what he's doing. He can look inside your boots for a few minutes, suck his teeth, and see exactly what the problem is, and deal with it! So I expect him to get my blades right first time!

Suiyan, one of the dance coaches at my rink tried parabolic blades and loathed them - couldn't wait to switch back to regular ones!

[dbny]

I have always pronated, but I never felt that it was a problem in my Klingbeils before now. Today after teaching the tot, I tested the alignment as Jazzpants suggested (thank you, Jazzpants!) and found that I fell to the inside on both feet. My boots have also been feeling pretty loose on my feet, but if I lace them up too tight I have pain. I had the opportunity to ask our skating director about it today and she said the blades could have shifted. I think if I have a little blade shift coupled with the boots loosening up, that could be my problem. I also had another thought about it today, which is that I was doing FO threes with ease right before I broke my wrist. At that time, I was dieting and did Nordic Track while off ice to keep the weight loss going. By the time I got back on the ice, I had lost another 15 pounds. Maybe my boots have been not quite right for my feet since then. Anyway, today I switched to the Coronation Comets and added an insulating foam insole. I had to cut the front part of the foam because there was not enough toe room, but the boots feel snug without being laced too tightly. I'm teaching a beginners class in about an hour, so I will have a chance to check out the changes then.

[NCSkater02]

My boots have also been feeling pretty loose on my feet, but if I lace them up too tight I have pain. I also had another thought about it today, which is that I was doing FO threes with ease right before I broke my wrist. At that time, I was dieting and did Nordic Track while off ice to keep the weight loss going. By the time I got back on the ice, I had lost another 15 pounds. Maybe my boots have been not quite right for my feet since then.

I had to get new boots after a loss of about 15 pounds. My heels were sliding in my previously snug-fitting boots. Since then, I've lost another 20 or so, but haven't had the same problems. It sounds funny to tell people that I lost weight in my feet, of all places. It's worth checking into. I hope to not buy more skates until I start working on the doubles my coach (who is taking serious drugs and not sharing) claims I will do in the future.

[doubletoe]

You can also look at the bottom of an old pair of shoes that you've worn for awhile and see how the soles are worn down. If the inside is worn, then you pronate, which means you put more pressure towards the arch. If they are worn on the outside, then you supinate, which means you walk more on the outside of your foot. If you pronate, you can move the blade a little to the inside so your weight is more centered over the blade. I am a little bow legged and supinate, so I have had to move the blades severely to the outside (it's almost comical). After going around in circles with my coach, I finally started mounting the blades myself!
Good luck and stand your ground!
Becca

Hey, that's brilliant! Never thought of looking at the bottoms of my shoes!

[sue123]

I had to get new boots after a loss of about 15 pounds. My heels were sliding in my previously snug-fitting boots. Since then, I've lost another 20 or so, but haven't had the same problems. It sounds funny to tell people that I lost weight in my feet, of all places. It's worth checking into. I hope to not buy more skates until I start working on the doubles my coach (who is taking serious drugs and not sharing) claims I will do in the future.

i've lost about 10 pounds without planning to, and my boot was getting big. when i got my new skates, i got a full size smaller than my old skates, granted tehy were different brands, but i wouldn't expect that big a change. it is weird to lose weight in your feet, but at least it comes from the rest of me too.

[icedancer2]

I also noticed that when I lost weight recently I lost weight in my feet -- oh, well,k have to get new boots soon anyway!

The blade issue is huge, though and I think on some level they are just as important or maybe more important than the boots. I wish there was some way to test blades out first before paying all of that money!!

[luna_skater]

people who pay attention to the slight difference in their blade alignments are usually those who are serious about their skating. u have been skating for 18 years and I do not believe you at all.
I can't believe that u can have a blade screwed onto ur skate without alignment and it can be perfect. are ur boots magic?

You can believe whatever you want. I have been a competitive synchro skater for 13 years and have competed at the National level for 7 years--with two medals to show for it. I am also a gold-level dancer and am finishing my gold skills. "Serious" is not restricted to being a senior free-skater.

Fascinating... I'm curious -- when you get fitted for your skates, did you try out the skates right at the rink and they make blade adjustments as you are trying on your boots and you don't leave until you're happy with your blade and boot? If so, that would explain it!

Otherwise, you likely to be a very lucky skater!!!

I actually was fitted for my current boots in Edmonton and then ordered blades in Saskatoon. When the blades arrived I took them to my skate guy, he mounted them, and I skated in them. Never had trouble. He mounted my replacement blades when the time came, also. He works out of his home; none of the rinks I've skated at have an in-house rink guy. I got new blades this spring and basically did the same thing--took my boots to the pro-shop, they took off the old blades and mounted the new ones, good as new. So since the initial mounting, the replacement blades have been placed on the same holes. So if the first mounting was correct, that's why the subsequent ones have been.

[dbny]

Ugh! A complete wipe out tonight. Thank goodness I was only teaching beginners, but still the 40 minutes were H*llish. First of all, I could not use the extra insoles because I felt like I was on springs. Took them out, and the boots felt really big. Stepped onto the ice, caught toe pick but did not fall. Next, feet were too close together and caught both inside edges and again nearly went splat. Finally, could not hold an O edge past the top of an arc. I felt like I was going to fall over sideways. The Comets are so incredibly flat compared to the Aces. I'm calling Klingbeil in the morning to get an appointment to have my boots (and maybe blades) adjusted and meanwhile have already put the Aces back on since I have to teach again tomorrow morning and afternoon. Maybe I will try my daughter's old Gold Seals, with the 8' rocker, after I get the boots taken care of.

Anyone want to buy a pair of Coronation Comets, size 9.5 with about half the blade left? Cheap!

[Mrs Redboots]

I also noticed that when I lost weight recently I lost weight in my feet -- oh, well,k have to get new boots soon anyway!Me too, ditto and likewise - but not until I get down to my goal weight, and by then it'll be too near the summer competitions..... But my boots are getting far too large for me already, and I'm only just about half-way there! And my blades are on their last legs, in a manner of speaking..... definitely new boots and blades next year. When I got so obese, my left boot got rather tight, and my fitter stretched it out for me - I almost regret that now, but it was giving me fearful tendonitis!