First game after sharpening..

[Chadd 916]

I have a couple of questions regarding sharpening. I have read through everything I can find on the site, yet I cant find the answers to my questions so forgive me for my ignorance.

First when people bring there skates in to get sharpened to whomever, does the sharpening wheel always hit the center of the blade or should they reposition the skate blade to the wheel each time? I ask this because I never see my local store move the holder which holds the blade. I figure it cant be the same on every skate and if it doesnt hit the middle, wont one edge be higher or lower than the other? Meaning there will actually be two different types of edges put on the blade?

There are some self adjusting holders on the market that claim to automatically center the steel on the wheel without user input.

[jimmy 194]

There are some self adjusting holders on the market that claim to automatically center the steel on the wheel without user input.

True, but there still is human involvement, which means room for error. Always best to check manually.

[Chadd 916]

There are some self adjusting holders on the market that claim to automatically center the steel on the wheel without user input.

True, but there still is human involvement, which means room for error. Always best to check manually.

I trust myself more than I trust the holders. I have to spend some time trying to see if the Blackstone model I have actually works.

[EndBoards 0]

Well, here's the belated update..

The guy said that he did 7/16" last time, so I asked him to go to 1/2".. It was a little too slick, so next time I'll go back to 7/16"..

Maybe the problem with that last cut was that I went from them being super dull (like 20-30 hours w/o sharpening) to a 7/16" cut and it just took that first game to get used to sharp skates again. I guess I'll just try to be less lazy when it comes to getting them sharpened so that I don't get used to dull skates again..

On the bright side, my team came back from a 3-1 deficit and won the championship game 4-3 in OT.. No scoring from me (as usual), but my role is that of a defensive wing so no biggie there..

[jimmy 194]

Well, here's the belated update..

The guy said that he did 7/16" last time, so I asked him to go to 1/2".. It was a little too slick, so next time I'll go back to 7/16"..

Maybe the problem with that last cut was that I went from them being super dull (like 20-30 hours w/o sharpening) to a 7/16" cut and it just took that first game to get used to sharp skates again. I guess I'll just try to be less lazy when it comes to getting them sharpened so that I don't get used to dull skates again..

On the bright side, my team came back from a 3-1 deficit and won the championship game 4-3 in OT.. No scoring from me (as usual), but my role is that of a defensive wing so no biggie there..

Defensive Wing? What a concept. :D I'd be satisfied with just a defensive defenseman!

Back on topic. You can not go more than 6 hrs on a skate before it is completely dull. After that you become use to dull skates, so when you finally get them sharpened, they feel too sharp, regardless of the hollow. More frequent sharpenings are the answer. BTW, there are a couple of more settings between 1/2 and 7/16. 15/32 and 13/32. Even some 64'ths in there but I won't go there.

[logan 0]

I'm sure it was purely accidental jimmy....but 13/32" is deeper than 7/16". B)

Between 7/16" and 1/2", you have 29/64" , 15/32", 31/64"

[jimmy 194]

I'm sure it was purely accidental jimmy....but 13/32" is deeper than 7/16". B)

Between 7/16" and 1/2", you have 29/64" , 15/32", 31/64"

It wasn't accidental, it was the adult beverages. :D

[EndBoards 0]

Defensive Wing? What a concept. :D I'd be satisfied with just a defensive defenseman!

Back on topic. You can not go more than 6 hrs on a skate before it is completely dull. After that you become use to dull skates, so when you finally get them sharpened, they feel too sharp, regardless of the hollow. More frequent sharpenings are the answer. BTW, there are a couple of more settings between 1/2 and 7/16. 15/32 and 13/32. Even some 64'ths in there but I won't go there.

There are defensemen in our leauge that regularly score 2-3 per game. I'll never be good enough to do that myself, but I've found that I am able to limit those guys.. The way I look at it.. If I can keep a 2-3 goal scorer at 0, that's just as good as me getting 2-3 myself..

And I think you're right about needing to sharpen more often.. We don't really have a LHS here, there are just a couple of guys around that can cut skates when we need them. Sometimes schedules conflict and it's hard to get it done, but I will be a little more dilligent about it..