IPv6Freely

That's good to know that the "I've been doing this for decades" thing isn't as important as those people imply ;) (yes I'm trolling)

Better as far as end result? That depends on your abilities. You should probably expect some pretty bad sharpenings for the first few months at least, which is totally fine if you're willing to put in the time. Much much longer to master it. Its also clearly more expensive. I mean, it's unlikely at the $899 price tag plus $50 for 40 sharpenings that you'll ever make up for the $7-8 per sharpen you get locally. So let's be real here... you buy this machine because a) you aren't interested in learning how to use a traditional machine and b) because you don't have somebody who is convenient/inexpensive/competent near you. If A and B apply to you, congrats, you're the target audience. If you have either A or B, then just stick to those.

Agreed, if I hadn't got the kickstarter price I'm not sure I could justify it. At the kickstarter price it was a no-brainer.

Same as I've already said... if you have a guy who is convenient, affordable, and does a good job I'd suggest the Sparx guys would likely be the first to tell you to stick with them.

You can't upload pictures. Use an external image hosting site like Imgur.com

Basically. Maybe you've gotten used to skating on something with really uneven edges. I did specify those to be much less likely issues, but still possible.

The Sparx box is just a pelican case so I'm sure you could just buy your own. Those things are expensive though so it wouldn't likely be all that much cheaper. They have a foam tray in their case that holds all your accessories... I wish they'd release a case just for that but I'll likely end up just making my own. I don't like having all my grinding rings, alignment tool, etc just sitting in a drawer.

Not just a test of even edges, but if physically move the machine (as you mentioned) you have to re-check the machines alignment. Takes 30 seconds but is important. Also important is that the machine be transported with the plastic insert. There could also be a couple othe less likely issues (your regular sharpener hasn't been giving you the right hollow, the previous sharpenings were so bad that a good one makes things feel wrong, etc.) I just don't see this machine doing a poor job in perfect conditions, if that makes sense.

Nice! I was doing that for a time when I first finished high school and didn't yet know what I wanted to do with my life. It was a fun job, even if it was definitely not something I was all that interested in doing long term.

Interesting. Sounds like the wrong hollow or possibly that she hasn't aligned it correctly after she physically moves it.

Sunday's game is finally up. Had to buy a USB-C microSD adapter for my new laptop. Not very good. The first goal, NOBODY saw the guy. The D man and I are having a laugh about it. Like, totally missed the guy. You don't often see cherry picking like that in the first couple minutes of a game! Both of the other goals were off turnovers from our D trying to be too fancy at the blue line and giving it up. Both shootout goals were the exact same move. My right to left movement sucks. So much fail.

I've been extremely happy with mine. To go along with what @bootsmagee mentioned, not having an adjustment period after a fresh sharpen is wonderful. Although in my case the adjustment wasn't from the wrong hollow so much as just going for so long without getting them done that they felt night and day when I'd eventually get them sharpened. So that's where the consistency thing comes in for me. I have absolutely no doubt that an expert sharpener would do a better job overall. But since I don't have one of those near here, I will take the consistency knowing what it will feel like every time I step on the ice any day. And even if I did have one nearby, I still like that I can do mine before every skate (even if sometimes it's just 2 passes). So really, even if an expert sharpener was available, I'll still take the convenience and consistency any day. If I wasn't a beer leaguer I might feel differently and want the absolute best no matter the cost or convenience, but for me this is just a better option across the board.

I play pickup with an 81 year old with some of the best hands I've ever seen. Every pass he makes is right on your tape. I hope to still be alive at 81, let alone playing hockey!

It hit me in the side of the head after it hit the shoulder. Didn't hurt, just some ringing from the loudness and took the mask off to let the refs know I needed a second to let that subside. The one off the teammates skate was a fluke but I should have had the stick down. Lesson learned. I'll never make that mistake again. The rebound on the toe save... meh, yes they could have cleared that but realistically that was the only one of the last 3 goals (all of which happened in a span of 2 minutes) that wasn't garbage. Last night we have two defensive giveaways in our own end with our D-men trying to make a fancy pass from just inside our blue line, both of which ended up in our net. I should have had both of them though. The first goal was a breakaway. Ended up losing in a shootout that I'm still beating myself up over. Stopped the first shot but the next two were the exact same move and both of them beat me. My right to left movement sucks.

I am a garbage goalie. Bottom of the league in every category.

The injury isn't even a factor anymore. I'm just not very good. Movements are crap. Mostly because of my weight and my complete lack of flexibility.

I don't know if this would be considered "sweet", but I just put a dangler on my goalie mask and a cage on my player helmet. I decided my luck with regards to hockey injuries had run out, so now trying to reduce some risks.

Looking good!

Well, I know which shop I will never ever be going to now.

Nice, that's awesome and makes a lot of sense to do.

And now this week's video. Finally, a win. Should not have been anywhere near this close, but I'll take it after that long losing streak. Between the streak and my injury, this is my first win since May. Ouch. Also, now that I have no pain in the foot or ankle anymore (it's now like it never happened), it's time to start working on some things again. Both goalie specific things, and also weight loss and working out again. I'm terrible at this point and I have to figure out how to get better without having any ice time besides games.

Well that didn't take long. You're already infinitely better than I am...

I forgot to upload last week's game. We had 6 skaters, one of whom played the entire game. It was actually a defensive gem, but that meant not many scoring changes for us either. It's a super short video because I barely did anything. This really could have gone either way.

Winterfest will be my first time on player skates since some game 7 hero broke my ankle in June. Absolutely no plans to play in that league again. I ended up only playing 4 games total that season, too. That's some expensive hockey!

How long did you bake them for? Maybe try a heat gun and punch the area out a bit?