Sparx Skate Sharpener - At home sharpener

[althoma1 574]

It'll be great to have you there and I'll be glad to try out a sharpening and check out the machine. If you can bring the fire ring that's the closest to 90/50 FBV that'd be greatly appreciated. 

[stevebalchunas 32]

5 minutes ago, althoma1 said:

It'll be great to have you there and I'll be glad to try out a sharpening and check out the machine. If you can bring the fire ring that's the closest to 90/50 FBV that'd be greatly appreciated. 

Sure thing. I'll try to bring one of everything. 

[marka 526]

Howdy,

Super cool.  I'd like to try out a Fire setup similar to the 95/75 FBV I use.  Probably 1/2" Fire?

Mark

[jimmy 194]

2 hours ago, marka said:

Howdy,

Super cool.  I'd like to try out a Fire setup similar to the 95/75 FBV I use.  Probably 1/2" Fire?

Mark

There is no fire ring "close" to the real FBV. The fire is the same old BFD that was pulled out of mothballs when the FBV hit the market.  But try the Fire and compare it to the FBV, see which you like better.

[stevebalchunas 32]

1 minute ago, jimmy said:

There is no fire ring "close" to the real FBV. The fire is the same old BFD that was pulled out of mothballs when the FBV hit the market.  But try the Fire and compare it to the FBV, see which you like better.

Almost. I'd agree with you when you said there's no direct equivalent. There's no magic chart that will tell you which FBV is which FIRE. They are different, so plan accordingly. I always suggest starting with a 1/2" FIRE and going from there (ship me some steel if you want to try before you buy, just shoot me a message). 

We just did our first real video explaining our FIRE profile here, check it out. It's pretty interesting and really the only place you'll find in-depth info on our FIRE profile (sorry, our fault). We do cover some FBV/BFD/original flat bottom patent info too. But, to be clear, we are not the same as FBV OR BFD.  

Hope that helps!

[stevebalchunas 32]

2 hours ago, marka said:

Howdy,

Super cool.  I'd like to try out a Fire setup similar to the 95/75 FBV I use.  Probably 1/2" Fire?

Mark

1/2" FIRE is the best place to start. If you're super comfortable with FBV and how it feels, then I'd say you can try 5/8" or 3/4"... they are just super slippery feeling for someone trying a flat bottom profile for the first time, that's why I suggest 1/2" FIRE.

[psulion22 402]

Have you done any testing about the longevity/durability of the edges with your Fire to a FBV to ROH?  I find that my FBV doesn't seem to last as long.  Using the math behind it, I'd suspect that's because the "fangs" are particularly thin on any FBV that starts with a 95 or 100.  I had been using 100/50 but went to 95/75 to get a little bit stronger edge.  So since the fangs are so thin, they wear out quickly.  Since the Fire has a shorter "flat" and therefore thicker fangs, does the edge last longer?  How does the Fire differ from FBV so that you can maintain the combinations of glide and bite when you have a shorter flat?  How is it different than going to FBV 85/*, but having to go to a "1" depth, which would greatly sacrifice glide for bite?

[stevebalchunas 32]

2 hours ago, marka said:

Howdy,

Super cool.  I'd like to try out a Fire setup similar to the 95/75 FBV I use.  Probably 1/2" Fire?

Mark

1/2" FIRE is the best place to start. If you're super comfortable with FBV and how it feels, then I'd say you can try 5/8" or 3/4"... they are just super slippery feeling for someone trying a flat bottom profile for the first time, that's why I suggest 1/2" FIRE.

[stevebalchunas 32]

59 minutes ago, psulion22 said:

Have you done any testing about the longevity/durability of the edges with your Fire to a FBV to ROH?  I find that my FBV doesn't seem to last as long.  Using the math behind it, I'd suspect that's because the "fangs" are particularly thin on any FBV that starts with a 95 or 100.  I had been using 100/50 but went to 95/75 to get a little bit stronger edge.  So since the fangs are so thin, they wear out quickly.  Since the Fire has a shorter "flat" and therefore thicker fangs, does the edge last longer?  How does the Fire differ from FBV so that you can maintain the combinations of glide and bite when you have a shorter flat?  How is it different than going to FBV 85/*, but having to go to a "1" depth, which would greatly sacrifice glide for bite?

I just had a full three paragraphs typed up, hit submit and it posted a copy of the last reply I made... weird. 

[stevebalchunas 32]

 

1 hour ago, psulion22 said:

Have you done any testing about the longevity/durability of the edges with your Fire to a FBV to ROH?  I find that my FBV doesn't seem to last as long.  Using the math behind it, I'd suspect that's because the "fangs" are particularly thin on any FBV that starts with a 95 or 100.  I had been using 100/50 but went to 95/75 to get a little bit stronger edge.  So since the fangs are so thin, they wear out quickly.  Since the Fire has a shorter "flat" and therefore thicker fangs, does the edge last longer?  How does the Fire differ from FBV so that you can maintain the combinations of glide and bite when you have a shorter flat?  How is it different than going to FBV 85/*, but having to go to a "1" depth, which would greatly sacrifice glide for bite?

3

No, we haven't done any sled testing, nor do we think anyone else has on exactly how much longer certain flat widths last compared to others. Please, anyone, chime in if you know different. In theory, ROH should last the longest, then all flat bottom profiles starting with the narrowest flat all the way up to the widest, with widest being the worst performer. We were more concerned with having both edges when putting on a fresh/level sharpening. With some of those wider flats, it's easy math when you consider almost all blades are bent to see that you're not always going to have both edges on the entire blade. I don't know about anyone else's experience on here, but I would say, almost exclusively, I lose edges when I hit things (skates, posts, cement, etc.), not when they finally end up wearing down. So, for me personally, I'm more concerned with having edges after a sharpening than I am worried about some edges lasting 4 hours versus 6, etc. I'm always fixing a lost edge within the first two to three skates (usually first).   

It' not, it's very similar (in theory, right?) to moving between 85/1 > 85/75 > 85/50 I would assume is much like moving between our FIRE hollows ( the only difference being we have 4). I have never tried going from a 100 to 85, have you? I would be interested to see how much bite you gain and glide you actually lose when making that change. My assumption, knowing what I know now, would be that there's not that much of a tradeoff. This would be an interesting thing to test out. 
 

[cjpritch 62]

3 hours ago, stevebalchunas said:

Almost. I'd agree with you when you said there's no direct equivalent. There's no magic chart that will tell you which FBV is which FIRE. They are different, so plan accordingly. I always suggest starting with a 1/2" FIRE and going from there (ship me some steel if you want to try before you buy, just shoot me a message). 

We just did our first real video explaining our FIRE profile here, check it out. It's pretty interesting and really the only place you'll find in-depth info on our FIRE profile (sorry, our fault). We do cover some FBV/BFD/original flat bottom patent info too. But, to be clear, we are not the same as FBV OR BFD.  

Hope that helps!

Very interesting video and it explains the flat bottom concept really well. I now want to try the flat bottom sharping but they don't offer in down in my area. Might have to invest in a sparx in the future if it has good reviews

[stevebalchunas 32]

17 hours ago, cjpritch said:

Very interesting video and it explains the flat bottom concept really well. I now want to try the flat bottom sharping but they don't offer in down in my area. Might have to invest in a sparx in the future if it has good reviews

You're in luck, we're starting to roll out a reviews feature on all of our product pages. I think it'll be extremely valuable on the Grinding Ring pages where I think it'll be more of people giving their opinion on hollow depths/profiles than comments on actual Grinding Ring quality. We're pretty excited about it for all products to be honest. 

[stevebalchunas 32]

Hey ya'll, I just wanted to thank all of you who were up in Toronto this weekend (especially JR for the invite). I had a blast and you guys made me feel like I was part of the gang. 

We were all over the place in terms of hollows used. I'm pretty sure I did at least one of the following: 3/8", 7/16", 1/2", 5/8", 9/16", 1/2" FIRE, and 3/4" FIRE. If any of you mind sharing your experience, maybe tell me what you skated on before and what we tried over the weekend and what the final verdict was. Wish I could have hung around, but I had a flight to catch. 

Again, couldn't be more grateful for the opportunity to show you guys the machine. Thanks!

[KennyWu 24]

Thanks for the sharpen Steve. I went with 1/2" with Sparx and it felt great. On par with what I used to get with Doug (Rec sports) and the guys at the Goalie Crease. Now to find some teammates willing to split the cost of a machine... 

[215BroadStBullies610 435]

1 hour ago, stevebalchunas said:

Hey ya'll, I just wanted to thank all of you who were up in Toronto this weekend (especially JR for the invite). I had a blast and you guys made me feel like I was part of the gang. 

We were all over the place in terms of hollows used. I'm pretty sure I did at least one of the following: 3/8", 7/16", 1/2", 5/8", 9/16", 1/2" FIRE, and 3/4" FIRE. If any of you mind sharing your experience, maybe tell me what you skated on before and what we tried over the weekend and what the final verdict was. Wish I could have hung around, but I had a flight to catch. 

Again, couldn't be more grateful for the opportunity to show you guys the machine. Thanks!

Thanks for coming out!

[althoma1 574]

Thanks for coming out Steve. I tried the 3/4" fire ring. I was impressed that the machine did it's job so quietly and with no dust. When the skates came out the finish was great and I had even edges. The blades were not hot to the touch (I've had sharpeners overheat the CXN and before that the Mission Pitch steel because it's harder and they don't take their time. This leads to hot steel and usually burnt heels) and I comfortably handled them.

I'd brought a second set of steel freshly sharpened to 90/50 FBV, the hollow I've now been using for years, just in case I didn't like the feel of the fire ring sharpening. The last regular hollow I'd used before converting to FBV was 7/8", but I gradually went shallower from 5/8" to 3/4" to 7/8"; so I have experience with all of those hollows. I didn't end up switching out the blades and skated on the 3/4" Fire Ring sharpening for the entire 2 hours on Saturday and then used the same sharpening to ref 4 games on Sunday night. The edges were even and I had good glide, but I'd say it felt like there was a bit less bite than a freshly sharpened 90/50 FBV cut. At the end of the day, the Fire Ring is a bit different than the FBV cut I was used to, but I had no problems skating on it and wouldn't hesitate to get my skates sharpened with a Sparx machine in the future. My steel was not burnt, the finish was good, I had edges and it was shallow enough for me that I didn't catch any edges when transitioning or chatter when stopping (if I ask for a shallow cut and the sharpener puts on something deeper, I know right away as I feel the edges when pivoting and get chatter when I stop - I can't stand skating on a deep hollow). A consistent sharpening without fear of your profile getting ruined or the steel getting burnt/overheated is definitely a great thing.

 

 

[Swlabr11 69]

Thanks for coming and answering our questions. I normally use a 90/50 FBV. While I'm not the greatest skater I'm very particular about my hollow. If I have too much bite I feel like I'm going to break my ankle. I tried the 5/8 fire ring and really enjoyed it. It's definitely not the same as the 90/50 FBV but my transitions felt smooth and I had good glide. The thing I liked about it is that I felt like I had slightly more bite while turning hard but still the nice loose glide I normally have upright. It's really hard to put into words but I am sold on it. I skated the 2 hours at Summerfest than skated in two games on Sunday. Edges where great through all my games. 

[marka 526]

Howdy,

Really appreciate you coming Steve!  Super nice to get to meet you and talk a lot about sharpening in general and the Sparx in particular.  I'm quite impressed with various features of the machine... You can tell a clever engineer or two were involved in it as there are a few "oh, that's a solution that's obviously awesome" (once its pointed out) design details.  Very impressive toaster!  :-)

I've been skating on a 95/75 FBV for a maybe 6 months or so now.  I went to it from a 7/16" ROH, hoping to keep the same turning grip and pick up a little more glide.

I originally wanted to run 1/2" Fire, but that ring wasn't working when we tried it so I went with the 7/16" ROH.  The Sparx seemed to cut it just fine.  And I was impressed that it seemed to do the radius change with just a few passes (I think two out and back cycles on each skate?  Something like that).  On the ice I was pleasantly surprised to find that my turning and stopping grip was similar to before, not a huge change either way.  I suppose that makes some sense, given the chart I used to pick the 95/75 FBV profile in the first place, which put the 'grip' as being similar to 7/16".  :-)  It did seem like my skate was 'stuck' a tiny bit more to the ice going straight, but it was subtle enough that I'm not sure if that was a "I know its different, so I'm going to feel a difference" kinda thing or real.

Anyway, super impressed.  I'm a pretty mechanical person by nature (a good bit more so than the average bear I would say) and have plenty of room for a "real" sharpening machine.  But the "put skate in machine and tell it to go" stuff with the expectation of no learning time to get a great sharpening is a powerful draw.

It would not surprise me if one of these was in our family's future.  And if something happens to my current skate sharpening arrangement (basically, there's a Total Hockey that has yet to fuck up my skates 45 minutes away and I'm over there every couple weeks currently), it'll happen sooner.

Thanks again for all your time!  I wish you guys luck with the commercial machine and look forward to the details when they become available.

Mark

Edited August 1, 2017 by marka

[hollowicked 39]

I too had the pleasure of getting my skates done at SummerJam with this machine and the finish was top notch. Super impressed with ease of use and end result. Thank You Steve for coming out and explaining the ins and out of the whole process.

[Axxion89 32]

Thanks Steve for bringing the machine, it was nice talking to you about Sparx & the future of the machine. I tried the 9/16 ROH since that is pretty much what I do on my personal Blademaster. The finish off the Sparx was perfect, it does leave much more burs on the edges off the machine than off my Blademaster but that's taken care of with the hone. On ice they felt great, it felt like they dug into the ice a little more than my sharpening but that is likely due to the ice. I would need to compare on both sharpenings on the same ice to get a perfect comparison but I would feel 100% confident skating on a Sparx sharpening. I will say for sure that the Sparx sharpening is better than about 60% of the sharpenings I've had done by shops & at least equal to the other 40%.

If I didn't have a Blademaster, I'd seriously consider a Sparx unit, for the price & convenience you really can't beat it. The only advantages that the current portable units have on the Sparx currently is longevity of the machine & cost of switching hollows (redress of wheel vs buying rings). However, if the Sparx continues to be a reliable machine, I think the Sparx will be beat any competition for the personal use market

[cjpritch 62]

Looks like everyone at SJ really enjoyed the Sparx sharping and it looks like the reviews of the Fire ring were very positive. Might have to look into investing in a machine with some buddies

[215BroadStBullies610 435]

7 minutes ago, cjpritch said:

Looks like everyone at SJ really enjoyed the Sparx sharping and it looks like the reviews of the Fire ring were very positive. Might have to look into investing in a machine with some buddies

I'd like one for myself also. The silver lining, for me, is that I could write this off on my taxes being a referee ha. It's an impressive item.

[cjpritch 62]

10 minutes ago, 215BroadStBullies610 said:

I'd like one for myself also. The silver lining, for me, is that I could write this off on my taxes being a referee ha. It's an impressive item.

That is a great loophole and a great reason as a ref

[215BroadStBullies610 435]

16 minutes ago, cjpritch said:

That is a great loophole and a great reason as a ref

All I'm doing is imparting knowledge to the peoples haha...

[Hills 712]

On 31/07/2017 at 0:28 PM, stevebalchunas said:

Hey ya'll, I just wanted to thank all of you who were up in Toronto this weekend (especially JR for the invite). I had a blast and you guys made me feel like I was part of the gang. 

We were all over the place in terms of hollows used. I'm pretty sure I did at least one of the following: 3/8", 7/16", 1/2", 5/8", 9/16", 1/2" FIRE, and 3/4" FIRE. If any of you mind sharing your experience, maybe tell me what you skated on before and what we tried over the weekend and what the final verdict was. Wish I could have hung around, but I had a flight to catch. 

Again, couldn't be more grateful for the opportunity to show you guys the machine. Thanks!

Thanks for filming me falling over!