kdwyer56

NEVER tie them the tightest you've ever tied them. Whenever you go anywhere and bake skates always tie them like you normally would. they are supposed to mold to your foot not be a literal sock.

Whenever I sharpen skates I stone them, do 8-10 passes depending on how many nicks there are and if there is a rolled edge, edge check, if needed adjust, if i adjust i do 3-5 more passes, edge check again, if level i do my final pass, check final time to make sure, stone again w fine stone and use a piece of leather to clean the hollow, then i feel the blade to make sure there are no major nicks left and that the edges are sharp and there is no dull spots.

I always had cloth tape under my grip tape so when I picked up Lizard Skins it felt about the same in thickness. It lasts a lot longer too if you put it on well and don't let it sit in your car on a hot day to then take it in to the rink and let it get cold. It is definitely all a personal preference and some customers love it, some hate it

I think your best bet will be the CCM JetSpeed FT1's. Even 70K's I think will be too wide. Unless you want to pay $1,000 for a custom skate I'd try the JetSpeed's on and see if they work.

We just got them for stock at the shop I work at. I tried it out and personally I cannot feel a difference between Lizard Skins and tradition cloth tape (feel wise in glove) I also used one roll for around 6 practice and games and it didn't wear much at all. Granted I don't stickhandle much while I play but so far Lizard Skins are amazing and I will continue to use it.

I would keep using the pressure that is giving you the better feeling skate. I kinda worded it to seem like you're barely touching the wheel with the skate but you just do not want to put way to much pressure. Play around with it and find the amount of pressure that makes a good finish.

We just have a bag of leather used to plug up figure skating mounting holes so I'm not sure.

This is what we use as leather at the shop I work at.

Also make sure that you are lightly applying pressure to the holder and make sure the blade itself isn't grinding the wheel. the sparks should be minimal and you should be lightly guiding the holder during each pass.

You can always look online for skate bite pads because they do make them specifically for that.

I've worked at a skate shop for around a year now and I have found that you just need to give it some time, The damp rag may help a bit but make sure its not too cold. Because as you know a sudden temp change will crack the blade.