This is for the Skate Sharpeners

[DarkStar50 679]

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/04/business/04knife.html?_r=1&hp

My favorite part of the article. Any skate sharpener who cares knows.

A good knife sharpener knows “how to feel it with your fingers, how to see it,” he said. It’s a craft requiring special training, he said, and even then, “some people just don’t have it.”

[joshy207 15]

So true! I always said it's part science, part art form. You have to know AND care.

[GoBucky 0]

Sharpening skates is an art form.

[biff44 0]

Sharpening skates is an art form.

If you have one of these:

http://www.pro-filer.com/hdi/

and the blade is not bent, it is actually pretty easy to do!

[DarkStar50 679]

If you don't know how to properly dress the wheel or adjust the skate holder when you have a problem, that tool will not solve it. That tool is great to confirm that you have sharpened the skate to level, that's all. Even if the blade is burned!!

[rachael7 1]

If you have one of these:

http://www.pro-filer.com/hdi/

and the blade is not bent, it is actually pretty easy to do!

But unfortunately, bent blades are pretty darn common. It wasn't long after I bought my sharpener when I ended up buying a straightener too. And THAT process is much tougher than sharpening, imo.

[biff44 0]

hogwash! If the blade is bent, it is almost always bent in 1 place, just put it on the edge of a wood table and bend it back. You would notice that by measuring the blade edge heights, and noting that they varied in height from toe to heel.

I conjecture that a dad who is a little handy, with a home sharpener like a wissota and something to measure the blade edge heights will, within 2 weeks, be cranking out FAR BETTER grinds than the local yokel at the skating rink! This is becuase the local yokel NEVER uses a tool to check blade edge parallelism, and SELDOM redresses his wheel. The result are skate shapenings where one blade is 4 thousandths" higher than the other, and the kid falls every time he turns in one direction on the ice.

What is more important, if you have a serious skater, he is going to want a custom hollow radius based on his ankle strength and weight. Try getting from the high school kid grinding skates at the rink! He has his stone set at 3/8" radius to please all the kiddies there, when you may need 5/8"!

There is nothing particularly frightening or hard to learn to get a good sharpening...just attention to detail and a soft touch.

I am not saying that some guy who has been doing it for 20 years and still cares about his quality will not do a superior job, or some guy who has a CAG1 will not get more consistent profiles. I am saying that, on the average, rink sharpening is very poor quality, and you could do better at home.

[forbs02 20]

I conjecture that a dad who is a little handy, with a home sharpener like a wissota and something to measure the blade edge heights will, within 2 weeks, be cranking out FAR BETTER grinds than the local yokel at the skating rink! This is becuase the local yokel NEVER uses a tool to check blade edge parallelism, and SELDOM redresses his wheel. The result are skate shapenings where one blade is 4 thousandths" higher than the other, and the kid falls every time he turns in one direction on the ice.

What is more important, if you have a serious skater, he is going to want a custom hollow radius based on his ankle strength and weight. Try getting from the high school kid grinding skates at the rink! He has his stone set at 3/8" radius to please all the kiddies there, when you may need 5/8"!

There is nothing particularly frightening or hard to learn to get a good sharpening...just attention to detail and a soft touch.

I am not saying that some guy who has been doing it for 20 years and still cares about his quality will not do a superior job, or some guy who has a CAG1 will not get more consistent profiles. I am saying that, on the average, rink sharpening is very poor quality, and you could do better at home.

I've worked in a couple of rinks over the years and I've found that even if you are a good sharpener, the tools you have to work with can be pretty bad. The last rink I worked at had an EZ-sharp that was in just awful condition. They had been using the same diamond for at least two years, there was nothing left. It was impossible to get a good dress. The holder had bolts replaced with whatever was lying around so it was very hard to align the blades with the wheel. I felt just awful giving skates back to people that were nowhere near as good as they could have been if the machine had some basic maintenance done to it. I brought my own edge checker so at least the blades were level.

[DarkStar50 679]

If sharpening skates was so easy, how come everyone can't do it?

[biff44 0]

If sharpening skates was so easy, how come everyone can't do it?

1) they don't have a machine, or

2) they are not mechanically inclined (most moms, some dads do not qualify here)

For 10% of the moms and probably 60% of the dads, it is no big deal.

[Chadd 916]

A lot of the people that think they're good aren't very good at all.

Is it hard to sharpen a skate? No.

Is it hard to be very, very good at it? Yes.

There's a big difference between running a skate a across a wheel and sharpening at a high level.

[biff44 0]

A lot of the people that think they're good aren't very good at all.

Is it hard to sharpen a skate? No.

Is it hard to be very, very good at it? Yes.

There's a big difference between running a skate a across a wheel and sharpening at a high level.

From a technical point of view, the biggest problem a dad will have is that he will tend to distort the profile of the skate. The rocker, and the point of balance, all are pretty important. If you screw that up, you will be leaning forward, or falling backwards all the time. Over many home sharpenings, this can happen pretty easily. If you put a little more pressure while grinding at the start of the pass, and a little less pressure at the end of the pass, then after 100 sharpenings the front will be much lower than the rear, and you will be leaning forward!

That said, the average yokel at the skate shop does not understand this either, and he is likely ruining your skates that way too!!!

Probably the best way to go about it is to get a custom profile done at a really good shop, maybe one with a cag machine or some other profiling way, half-way thru the season.

But there is nothing like having Johnny say, at 7AM on some summer sunday morning just before a big showcase: "dad, my skates are really screwed up, can you get them sharpened before the game" and find out there is nobody open. If you can just leisurely stroll to the basement and spool up the stone...priceless.

[DarkStar50 679]

Sharpeners are only as good as the people training them to sharpen.

[JR Boucicaut 3802]

Sharpeners are only as good as the people training them to sharpen.

Not necessarily. It is a major part of becoming a good sharpener, however, I think the better sharpeners are the ones who understand what they are trying to accomplish. I've trained great sharpeners, and I've trained horrible sharpeners. Those who understand the process and are meticulous and constantly strive themselves to do better are the ones who pan out better.

Maximum Edge does a good job at breaking down sharpening, but how many M-E hacks have we seen out there, who believe their reputation is golden because they paid $5000 for instruction?

[DarkStar50 679]

"the better sharpeners are the ones who understand what they are trying to accomplish."

That is the foundation of becoming a strong sharpener. To my original comment, the teacher must be proficient at the craft or the student doesn't stand a chance of learning anything. A poor sharpener will never make a good teacher. He never understood what he was doing in the first place. At the same time, a good sharpener does not guarantee that he will be a great teacher, either. But it sure helps!! I agree that it is up to the guy pushing the holder to determine whether he really wants to be consistent with every skate he ever sharpens or not. It is a pride thing.

[rachael7 1]

It is definitely a pride thing - it takes time and especially care to do a really top notch job. I have the luxury of always doing that level of work, since I only sharpen for myself and a few other people. But I can imagine trying to bring that level of dedication to dozens of pairs per day

[Chadd 916]

It is definitely a pride thing - it takes time and especially care to do a really top notch job. I have the luxury of always doing that level of work, since I only sharpen for myself and a few other people. But I can imagine trying to bring that level of dedication to dozens of pairs per day

When it's your business, you should care and you should only hire people that care. Hire kids that don't give a damn and you get a reputation for that too. Unfortunately, most shops will save a couple bucks an hour and hire someone that doesn't care.

[rachael7 1]

When it's your business, you should care and you should only hire people that care. Hire kids that don't give a damn and you get a reputation for that too. Unfortunately, most shops will save a couple bucks an hour and hire someone that doesn't care.

Agree 100% - a business owner absolutely should care. I try very hard to do my best work in my (non-hockey) business. Unfortunately, not everyone cares that much as long as they still make a buck. But keeping your reputation spotless will reap rewards... word gets around eventually and you get a loyal following.

[ibeck 38]

Sharpeners should treat the customer's skate like it was their own. I never give back a pair of skates until they are perfect and even I would use them.

[dsjunior1388 81]

i just got a job in the pro shop and as a sharpener. I feel like I consistently give back skates with level edges (based on the edge checker) but realistically I have no way of knowing if I'm doing a good job or not. What sort of things should I be looking for to make sure I'm producing a good sharpening every time and if there are any other tips to do a good job every time?

[Jason 65]

Does anyone know where I can find the video of JR's one handed 30 second finishing pass? I tried searching, but I couldn't find it anywhere.

[theWB 2]

i just got a job in the pro shop and as a sharpener. I feel like I consistently give back skates with level edges (based on the edge checker) but realistically I have no way of knowing if I'm doing a good job or not. What sort of things should I be looking for to make sure I'm producing a good sharpening every time and if there are any other tips to do a good job every time?

How do your own skates feel when you skate after you've sharpened them? That's the best feedback possible in my opinion. Get your hands on a couple friends skates (if they trust you) for some additional honest feedback.

[Jason 65]

Thanks, theWB.

[theWB 2]

You're welcome! I'm just surprised I was able to successfully post the link.

[JR Boucicaut 3802]

I need to bring the beard back.