SAK

Send it to me sales@blackstonesport.com ill check it for you.

I agree with J.R.. What we have found is that there is very slight variances that can make a huge difference in the way you skate. Going to an 80/75 will give you the less bite feel while maintaining a great glide and stability. you may go back to your old cut when the ice hardens up a bit. Its great that you can feel the difference, for me it just proves that the data does not lie.

The spring is not an issue. Where it was getting hung up was on the post. What I do when I measure is make sure that the bottom of the batwing is touching down down on both edges of the skate blade before I look at the results. All the spring is there for is to create a force instead of a magnet, which we found will pick up debris and can create false readings. Which is one of the reasons we stayed away from a magnet.

Thanks for everyone' input....in regards to the bat Gauge: 1. We tightened the tolerances up. 2. We opened the wholes up by a 32nd to .235. Seems simple enough but it works great. I am a creature of habit and although I am in my early 40's I have been sharpening skates since I was 12. I had a hard time getting use to the bat gauge as well, and I was selling them. I now feel that it is truly one of the most accurate ways to measure your skate. The reason I say this is that I have used many (if not all) the gauges for measuring edges and they all have one thing in common.....wear. The wings on the batgauge are harden steel and with normal use the gauge will last for a lifetime. As many know the whole idea of having measurement tools is to have consistency and accuracy, without one you can't have the other. For those of you that are going to attempt to bore out the wing holes please note it is harden steel. Thanks again. Steve

Not sure. I dont want to create a mess in the industry but there is a reason that we came out with a v and not a ROH with a flat on it, longevity of the blade was a factor along with more variables for players. As a player and sharpener, do what feels the best for your game, its always fun to have a new toy and if FBV can be that new thing that you like in a game that you love than its awesome. I know Blackstone is having a great time bringing it out to the industry as it has effected the game for pro's, kids, beerleagures.........and has got people talking about one of the most important parts of the game. (you can have the best of hands but if you have dull skates you can't skate to your compititor's net to use them) I would definatly try it and see if you can get dialed in, all the studies and all the feedback say there is a significant increase in performance like anything you need a good sharpener who can help you determine what your cut is. I deal with the pro's and there is a significant movement towards it. just saying.......

Hey guys we have been investigating this as well. My sugestion is make sure you are actually getting the Flat Bottom V. As you know there is an attempt to recreate this product which does not create the same results especially in longevity of an edge. Basically if the person is on the list of people who do the Flat bottom v you should be good to go. If they are not on the list and saying they are, my guess is they are doing a knock off which will not give you the advantage of the technology. If I can figure out how to put the link on this it should make it easier if it does not someone with more knowledge of how to do this please help me out, here goes nothing. Remember If you have questions we would love to answer them.who does it

FBV comparison chart is up. Go to the website WWW.blackstonesport.com it is oon the home site or the technology tab under FBV-ROH comparison. I have a feeling we are opening up a can of questions but it could make for interesting conversation.

Nuggy your right....... what we are working on is a slide type of scale (more bite>>>>>>>.......<<<<<<<<<less bite)(more speed>>>>>>>>>>........<<<<<<<<<<<less speed) however there are a lot of variables where it could be integrated, such as goalie skates, figure skates, other types of blades that don't necessarily fall into the "traditional" skate blade. It would be easy to simply but out something which Bob has (which I am not knocking at all) It is just that we want it to be accurate as Bob would appreciate so that he can relate to his customers. As it relates not Bob is correct in saying it is a real personal preference to the individual and we can merely guide you along. I am talking with professional athletes on a daily basis and they are in a similar situation where they want to maximize the benefit of Flat Bottom V, there take on it is interesting, they can feel the difference in the smallest incremental change and they compare it to trying to find the pattern of a stick. I will try to have something put up on our website ASAP. (maybe even today)

We have given the same chart to equipment managers and it was a disaster.

haha I am well aware of it, however I would like to come up with something that answer's more questions than makes more question's. We are still getting results in from our University study as well.

We should be having something fairly soon. We are trying to make it so that everyone can understand it.

My bad. It has to be the way the skate is going in and out of the holder or grit under the holder, should be something very simple.

What makes Flat Bottom V so cool is it is not about "deeper" or "shallow" we just change the bite angle. Orriginally the first thing we thought of was what our compitition is doing right now and that was to make the radi flat. We ran into a lot of issues with it as they probably are finding out by now. With the angles we can adjust by degrees which opens up so much more possibilities and effects the bite angle, release (when you transition from stop to start) and a host of other's that we are still discovering through research from the University of Ottawa. So what it comes down to is 100/50 is no deeper than 90/50 its just a different bite angle. Your freind is going with less bite, the degree on a 90/50 is less than on a 100/50. His speed will remain the same however he will not have as much agility as if he were on the 100/50. I would go with blade thickness, bent blade, or you are putting some sort of preasure on the boot. If you can get one skate you should have no problem getting the other. don't be afraid to adjust the holder, that's what they are there for. Looks like a couple of clicks and you should be fine.

Actually that would not make any difference. The 90/50 has the same glide as the 100/50. The 90/50 has less bite angle and the 100/50 has more, all that would be affected is the transition and stability in the corners. The 100/50 while maintaing speed gives more bite which some players feel is an advantage for agility.

We will take a vote at the office. I will post it up however I am open to more suggestions.

We can take that into account. However which wheel should we use?

lol no worries.

Hey guys, it is true that we have some ruby and fine pink wheels. We are in a testing situation and are going to put a large order in if they work out. I will tell you that the ruby cuts cooler than the orange and you get a wicked finish. Sorry for the premature release it was not our intention and Gerrard has recieved 50 lashes. B)

JR try the 90/75 some figure skaters are finding that it works very well.

No, it was so hot the belt expanded. JR, if it wasn't anyone else, I'd have to call BS. Wow, that is hot. I wonder if a belt with kevlar fibers or other not so thermally sensitive materials could be made available by Blackstone for skating hotbeds like Dubai or JR's garage. When are you going to attempt making a rink on top of your pool! You do remember he's in FLA now...not Michigan *L* The only ice is in the drinks. In other news...Fresh FBV sharpening last night...played better than I have in a long time...I'm not sayin'....I'm just sayin'! Oh I'm well aware where he lives.......my expectation is he will have a compressor and freeze the pool over and put boards around the pool. Make sure you keep the bar!

No, it was so hot the belt expanded. JR, if it wasn't anyone else, I'd have to call BS. Wow, that is hot. I wonder if a belt with kevlar fibers or other not so thermally sensitive materials could be made available by Blackstone for skating hotbeds like Dubai or JR's garage. When are you going to attempt making a rink on top of your pool!

That's great........we did not do heat testing on the machines due to it is ice hockey. Have a beer and put the machine on ice!

Jordan your right. We try to convert the FBV's but it is hard to compare because there is a different feel. Tailboard these are a bit closer to how people feel on the different FBV shapes.

It is very hard satisfying all customers. Chiefs all parts are cnc made. That would be why both pieces you recieved were the same. We measured are parts after this issue that you brought to us and found that all the parts were in spec. I understand your frustrations your expectations have not been met. You both have the number to Blackstone and I welcome you to call and we can arrange to come to some sort of arrangement, it appears you have buyers remourse and we would rather have happy customers. Steve

Boston is.