#1
|
|||
|
|||
skate sharpening
So how often do you sharpen your skates? I'm curious, cause it feels like all I do is get my skates sharpened. i don't know what it is, but every 1-2 weeks, i get my skates sharpened. i know some hockey players actually sharpen their skates before every game i know it depends on how often you skate, and what kind of skating you do, but i'm just curious.
p.s: you may all start seeing many more posts from me tonight because i have a cell biology final tomorrow, and procrastination is sadly my favorite game to play. |
#2
|
|||
|
|||
Wow, even the super competitive kids at my rink don't get them done every 1-2 weeks. I get mine done every 2 months or so. I'd get it done every month, but my skate shop is at least an hour away (more with traffic, which there ALWAYS is after work). What kind of blades do you have and how often do you skate? 1-2 weeks seems like a lot?!
__________________
"Where are we going and why are we in this handbasket?" |
#3
|
|||
|
|||
i thought it seemed like a lot. but they do skate sharpening at the rink i skate at, which is about 15-20 minutes away. i skate around 3 days a week, for 2-3 hours at a time, doing spins, a bunch of 3-turns, mohawks, and trying to jump. i have ultima blades, not sure of the model, they came pre-attached to the jackson's that i bought, and i believe those are the competitor model, not sure of the number.
bu i definitly feel the need to get my blades sharpened. i can't spin very well, and i get them sharpened, and they stay centered and become nice and fast. and the 3-turns work better. if i sharpened them every 2 months, i don't know what i'd do. maybe i get them sharpened more often than i need to? but i seem to skate much better when i get them sharpened. and i bring them in, and i told the guy that it seems like i get them sharpened too much, and he looked at them, said the edges have already become flat, and i need to get them sharpened again. he did the "nail" test (put his nail on the edge to see if it took anything off, apparently when it's sharp, a bit of hte upper level of your nail comes off). maybe i just wear them down really quickly. |
#4
|
|||
|
|||
I get mine sharpened whenever I feel them going blunt, or use my instructor as a stopper...
|
#5
|
|||
|
|||
I believe the guideline is 20-30 hours of skating between sharpening, depending on your skill level.
Once you have sharpened the skates beyond the hard tempered steel, the blade is much "softer" and doesn't hold the sharpening well. If you still have angled hard steel at the bottom, this may not be a problem. Do you wear hard guards when you're off-ice? It helps keep them sharp. I learned that you should look inside the hard guards' tracks where the blade rests. The guards get cruddy with dirt and debris. Clean 'em or replace 'em if the guards are really nasty. (I love my new guards!) You could try leaning how to use a sharpening stone to bring up the edges before skating. It'll cut down on the "in between" sharpenings.
__________________
Isk8NYC
|
#6
|
|||
|
|||
That does sound like a lot. I get mine done every two or three weeks, but I skate ten to twelve hours a week. The problem with having them sharpened too often is that it wears the blades out quicker. I would try having them sharpened more like every 20 hours of ice time and maybe having them stoned in between. Make sure you're drying them off well and letting them air out after you skate, and like someone else said make sure your guards aren't full of sand and dirt. You can put them through the dishwasher to get them clean, believe it or not. I love to do that- my dad always freaks when he opens the dishwasher and finds my skate guards
__________________
Shae-Lynn and Victor: We knew you were champions, and on 3/28/03 the whole WORLD found out! Thank you for twelve wonderful years! |
#7
|
|||
|
|||
I also get mine sharpened about every 20 hours. For me that's about every 3 weeks to a month, depending on how much ice time I'm getting.
|
#8
|
|||
|
|||
hm, well, i just got these new skates with the new blades, so maybe they'll hold up longer. i haven't gotten them sharpened since the initial sharpening after i bought them. my old skates i was getting htem sharpened every other week or so, probably because they had worn down so much over the years.
i am really good with the soft guards and letting them air out after i skate, my hard guards could use some work though. see, the benches to put on your skates are about 2 feet from the rink entrance, so i figure for 2 feet, what's the point of hard guards? if i go to other rinks with a longer walk to the entrance, than i'll wear the hard guards. unfortunatly, putting them in the dishwasher won't work for me because i don't have one. i live on campus, and at home, my mom doesn't believe in them. sadly, the only dishwasher i have access to is the special chemistry dishwasher, which i wouldn't put anything of mine in there. i was just procrastinating earlier, i'm not sure how these skates will do, hopefully they'll be better cause they're new. what is this sharpening stone? my dad told me he used to use one in Russia on his hockey skates, but what exactly is it? some sort of specialized stone? do they sell them in the pro shops? |
#9
|
|||
|
|||
Yeah, it does seem like you do sharpen your blades a lot...
I sharpen mine whenever I come back home from college, since I trust the sharpener that I have now. That's probably only twice a year, but I hardly skate now as it is. I know I really need a sharpening when I starting skidding on my jump landings, LOL. Like, I'll land a loop and I feel myself skidding about 3 inches to the left. |
#10
|
|||
|
|||
Quote:
|
#11
|
|||
|
|||
Quote:
If, like the chorus skater you are very good on edges and able to stop on most of them you will tend to where them down quite quickly but even this class of highly skill skater generaly does not get a skate sharpening every 2 weeks. A skater at this level would only have them done about every 6 weeks as long as the ice is good. Iv seen them step on bords, props, costumes, and each other. If you feel that you are loosing your grip after only 2 weeks you may want to try a deeper grind, However keep in mind that stopping gets more difficult with deeper grinds. Its really up to you and how comfortable you feel on your blades, if your still not sure, try every 6 weeks if you skate at least 3 time a week. |
#12
|
|||
|
|||
Quote:
__________________
Is Portland the only city with it's own ice-dance website? http://www.pdxicedance.net/ |
#13
|
|||
|
|||
I keep track of the amount of time I am spending skating and try for a sharpening every 30 hours or so. I notice that, especially on hard crappy ice, I start slipping when I to around 25 hours or so. I guess I like a lot of grip, and I have a radius of hollow of 7/16".
I love the grip and added speed of a good sharpening! My sharpener does a wonderful job and I don't lose my ability to stop or do turns with a sharpening. Takes me all of 2 or 3 minutes to adjust, and it's mostly because of the surprise I feel over the added speed. Pat |
#14
|
|||
|
|||
I'm afraid I get my blades sharpened whenever they need it - usually every 3 months or so I'd start noticing I hadn't much edge. But the ice has been so hard at our rink lately, that they've needed it more often. And now the man who used to do my skates has had to stop, so my coach takes them, along with everybody else's, to the person he has always used. I think they'll get done rather more regularly now!
__________________
Mrs Redboots ~~~~~~~~ I love my computer because my friends live in it! Ice dancers have lovely big curves! |
#15
|
|||
|
|||
Quote:
__________________
Isk8NYC
|
#16
|
|||
|
|||
Nope, I skate indoors always. It's just that the ice is not always properly taken care of, and a couple of the ice surfaces feel very hard to me.
Pat |
#17
|
|||
|
|||
how often -
In my experience, it can also depend on who is doing the sharpening. I have had two folks sharpen my blades over the last 3 years - and one guy's work consistently needs new sharpenings after about 2 weeks (hard ice, about 10-12 hours of use a week). The other guy I can get 4-6 weeks out of, easy.
Whether the first guy is just more conservative in his sharpening - I dunno - but that's my experience. I've asked a few other local skaters who use these two blade guys, and they seem to have similar experiences. When at all possible, I try to use the guy whose sharpening lasts longer Sara |
#18
|
|||
|
|||
Quote:
|
#19
|
|||
|
|||
Quote:
I get mine done at around 30 hours. I would never let anyone else but my sharpener (who was recommneded by my coach) touch my skates - well, I did once, but it was because my guy was injured and this guy came highly recommended. The substitute sharpener wrote down exactly what my sharpener had told me to tell him, and even had me skate around to see if the grind suited me. It didn't, and he adjusted it to my liking. If my guy ever goes out of the sharpening business, after first having a panic attack, I'd probably go to this other guy, even if it is an hour drive to get there. Oh, as far as the hockey skates go, they do need to be sharpened much more often. We get our son's done every 3-5 hours or so. I don't know why.
__________________
"The only place where success comes before work is in a dictionary." -- Vidal Sasson "Never give up on a dream just because of the time it will take to accomplish it. The time will pass anyway." -- Unknown |
#20
|
|||
|
|||
I don't have mine sharpened much at all, I guess because I don't skate enough. I got my current skates in October 2002 and have had them sharpened 3 (three) times total - first when they were brand new, then in August 2003 and March 2004, which was the last time they were done. I'm sure my blades are due soon to be sharpened.
For the last several months I've only skated 1 1/2 hours a week on average, since March this year. My blades are still okay, but not optimum. My left blade toward the toepick is worst, because of spinning on that spot. I've been noticing some slip there when I do spins. I don't do many jumps...yet. My coach sharpens skates, he's the one who did mine last. I asked him about the "21 hour rule" and he thinks it has more to do with HOW you skate rather than the HOURS. If you do lots of edges, spins, jumps and skids, then you're going to need sharpening more than someone who just skates forward around the rink.
__________________
Andrea |
#21
|
|||
|
|||
Quote:
The funny thing about your spin comment is that I cannot spin after I get my blades sharpened. Seems like I am trying to whittle my blades down after the initial sharpening. I skate 4-5 times per week, and I get my blades (Pattern 99) sharpened every 2-3 *months*. As a bunch of other spinners can attest, I love having 'dull' blades for spinning. When the blades are too sharp, the spin has no give. With a duller blade, I have more control over the spin because the edges are not gripping the ice like mad. A masters-level lady told me she gets her blades sharpened every 6 months!
__________________
Doubt whom you will, but never yourself. "Do what you love, and you'll never have to work a day in your life." -Haha, I've *arrived*! I am listed as a reference on Wikipedia. |
#22
|
|||
|
|||
Quote:
|
Thread Tools | |
Display Modes | |
|
|