Skate Sharpener Competence

Be choosey

How does your skate sharpener stack up?

How to tell if your sharpening is bad

• Your skate blades chatter during a hard stop.
• You don't skate as well as you feel that you can.
• Your blades show traces of brown or black color, as the blade was over-heated and has been re-tempered.  
• Your blades have good height in the center, but the tips are ground away.
• You are unsteady on your skates, possibly caused by reshaping the blade profile.
• You lose an edge and fall when turning, usually caused by uneven edges.

How are blade profiles changed?

Because of the lack of standards and limited training, most skate sharpening is done freehand and as "best guess".  Most skate sharpeners don't regard skate sharpening as a total service, and focus on one or two aspects of the whole job.  The most common skate sharpening mistakes are uneven edges and unthinkingly changing the blade's profile, the blade's center of balance, or both.
 
 Some skate sharpeners "Rocker" skate blades, either on request or because they honestly believe they are helping the skater.  Rockering is a free-hand operation, and is inexact at best, meaning that the profile on each skate could be different.  Rockering is the placement of a heel-to-toe arc on the skate.  Rockering is usually the cause of excessive grinding away of the heels and toes of the blade.

Repairing the profile damage caused by poor skate sharpening

In the worst case, skate blades need replacing.  In other cases, the skate blades may be saved by using a proven profiling or contouring system such as Custom Radius.  (See more on Custom Radius Profiling.)

Re-profiling restores blade shape, and balance, and is a cost effective way to repair skate blades.

Re-profiling involves removal of material from the skate blade, but in an orderly and measured way.  Metal cannot be added to damaged skate blades, and blade tips which have been ground off cannot be restored without blade replacement.

Freehand skate sharpening routinely causes erosion of a blade's profile.  Capable skate sharpeners can control this erosion, and keep it to a minimum.

Newly profiled skates can be corrupted again by poor skate sharpening.  Unless you are careful where you get your skates sharpened, you may be wasting your money by having your skates repaired by re-profiling.

Keeping the damage from recurring

The best defense against suffering skate damage caused by poor skate sharpening is to be choosy where you shop for sharpening.  Word of mouth will usually tell you where to avoid getting your skates sharpened.  If you know a capable, reliable skate sharpener, whom you trust and have confidence in, stick with that skate sharpener.

However if you use a shop just because it's convenient, then you are leaving yourself wide open to getting shoddy workmanship, and no value for your money.

Listen to the skater, because it's the skater who uses the skates.  The skater should have the last word as to when and where the skates are sharpened, and yes, the young kids can tell the difference between a good and bad sharpening.  Check your blades for any damage after use.  It is much better to find any problems before your next time on the ice.

Avoid last minute skate sharpening by getting it done well before you have to use your skates.  You shouldn't have to accept convenience over competence.  Plan Ahead!!

Additional Sharpening and Skate Information

• Skate Sharpening
  
  

• Skate Sharpening Step by Step Process
  
  

• Video - Sharpening Equipment Layout
  
  

• Video - Setup and Sharpening Procedures
  
  

• Current Price List for Skate Sharpening
  
  

• Frequently Asked Questions about Skate Sharpening
  
  

• Factors Affecting Skate Edges and Edge Maintenance
  
  

• Bargain Skates - or Not
  
  

• Custom Radius Skate Sharpening Explained
  
  

• Radius of Hollow (Hollow Grind)
  
  

• Video - Radius of Hollow Wheel Dressing
  
  

• Flat Bottom Form Dressing
  
  

• Video - Flat Bottom Wheel Dressing
  
  

• Skate Sharpening Machines