Home Sharpening Tips and Techniques

[clarkiestooth 235]

With permission of the mods, I would like to start a thread to keep home sharpening tips and techniques under one roof. I recently got my own Wissota 911, and while I'm producing nice even edges, I realize that it's an art.  I know there is a lot of sharpening horsepower on here. Any tips to pass on?

I'll start it up with a few questions:  How do you teach the right touch on how much pressure to put on the grinding wheel? Secrets on getting a mirror finish on the blade? What do you use on the base to keep the holder sliding smoothly?

[Axxion89 32]

Very interested in this thread as well. I have a blademaster I bought locally & feel I have it pretty well dialed in but I would too like to know how more experienced sharpeners make it work (I can't get a perfect mirror finish unless I use cutting fluid for example)

To answer the glide question though, I bought a 3M Dry Lube with Teflon & coated the whole surface with it. After a day, its perfectly smooth & even with the well worn felt pads on my holders its glides perfectly. I know Blademaster & others make specific sprays but I can't imagine they are any different than a solvent based silicone or teflon spray

[purepearl32 6]

Me three. I'd also like to hear from experienced sharpeners!

[GoalForFun 176]

As far as I'm aware, the perfect mirror finish is a result of going really, really slow and maintaining an even friction with the wheel.

[2nhockey 21]

'Right touch' I think is going to vary from person to person and probably machine to machine. I notice different sharpeners each do things a little differently, even on the same machine. Different route to same destination kind of thing. 

Generally, unless the steel has deep gouges i make light, 'faster' passes. To get the mirror finish I use a fine oil and make my finishing pass slow and steady. If you go too fast or don't use oil it will frequently look scalloped. If your feed isn't consistent it will show up when you examine the finished product.

[DEATHTRON 19]

For my finishing passes, I use less pressure and go nice and slow. That generally does the job and nets me a very nice (almost mirror-like) finish, consistently.

 

Zach

[clarkiestooth 235]

How do you sharpen a brand new, right out of the box blade? Do you sharpen against the direction of the wheel initially, to take off more steel?  How many passes?

[DEATHTRON 19]

If you have a single head machine: Sharpen just like normal. You will need more passes, however, than a normal sharpening. For FBV: You can use the flattest hollow you have (flattest spinner I have on hand is 1/2) for the bulk of your initial passes, then switch to FBV. 

If you have a crossgrinder: Well, a gentle pass or two can definitely help you even out the bottom of the blade. 

Just how I have done it. 

 

Zach

[purepearl32 6]

Is there a way of checking and/or straightening a slightly bent skate blade without an expensive tool?

[mickz 107]

On 2017-06-06 at 11:43 AM, clarkiestooth said:

With permission of the mods, I would like to start a thread to keep home sharpening tips and techniques under one roof. I recently got my own Wissota 911, and while I'm producing nice even edges, I realize that it's an art.  I know there is a lot of sharpening horsepower on here. Any tips to pass on?

I'll start it up with a few questions:  How do you teach the right touch on how much pressure to put on the grinding wheel? Secrets on getting a mirror finish on the blade? What do you use on the base to keep the holder sliding smoothly?

The right amount of pressure is more about feel but I also listen to the sound and look for the amount of sparks.  Not sure if I can describe this online but watch how professionals like Dana Heinze sharpen for the sound/sparks.

13 hours ago, 2nhockey said:

'Right touch' I think is going to vary from person to person and probably machine to machine. I notice different sharpeners each do things a little differently, even on the same machine. Different route to same destination kind of thing. 

Generally, unless the steel has deep gouges i make light, 'faster' passes. To get the mirror finish I use a fine oil and make my finishing pass slow and steady. If you go too fast or don't use oil it will frequently look scalloped. If your feed isn't consistent it will show up when you examine the finished product.

Wax would also be an ok substitute if one cannot find oil.  It tends to gunk the wheel up a bit quicker but if you are dressing as frequently as you should (I do it every 2-3 pairs), it shouldn't matter.

12 hours ago, DEATHTRON said:

For my finishing passes, I use less pressure and go nice and slow. That generally does the job and nets me a very nice (almost mirror-like) finish, consistently.

 

Zach

I'd recommend the same.  I go about 90% pressure on my finishing pass.

11 hours ago, clarkiestooth said:

How do you sharpen a brand new, right out of the box blade? Do you sharpen against the direction of the wheel initially, to take off more steel?  How many passes?

I never go against the direction of the wheel in any situation.  I sharpen new skates as I would any other pair of skates.  The only difference is more passes.  The number of passes will differ from skate to skate.  Sometimes the bottom of the steel comes flat, most of the times they don't.  If you get the chance to sharpen those cheap Chinese-made plastic skates with the fake groove in them (the ones sold at Wal-Mart, Canadian Tire, etc), those will take more passes.

[Axxion89 32]

14 hours ago, purepearl32 said:

Is there a way of checking and/or straightening a slightly bent skate blade without an expensive tool?

Checking for straight should be easy enough, take the blade out of the holder and lay on a flat surface (like your sharpener table), if it wobbles its not straight. Remember a holder could cause the blade to kink so take it out to check.

To straighten, the tool is the best way and, personally, I would either buy it or have a pro do it. I had the tool as it cam with the sharpener I bought but I would use it so infrequently & possibly do more harm than good so I sold it

[Axxion89 32]

20 hours ago, clarkiestooth said:

How do you sharpen a brand new, right out of the box blade? Do you sharpen against the direction of the wheel initially, to take off more steel?  How many passes?

From what I've read, you should cross-grind first but its not necessary. From there its a regular sharpen but it takes more passes. You can see this by after a few passes still seeing the crossgrind marks on the edges of the steel as the hollow isn't perfectly formed yet (not yet fully cut into the blade). Once those marks are gone & blades look like a regular sharpen, then you can check the edges for level

[purepearl32 6]

I think the most frustrating thing for me is not being able to 'feel' the edges until I skate on them. Everything can look good and level but perform poorly on the ice.  Any way of possibly checking this?

Also, how often do you guys redress your wheel under the assumption that you're doing between 10-15 passes per skate?

[Axxion89 32]

On 6/10/2017 at 1:39 PM, purepearl32 said:

I think the most frustrating thing for me is not being able to 'feel' the edges until I skate on them. Everything can look good and level but perform poorly on the ice.  Any way of possibly checking this?

Also, how often do you guys redress your wheel under the assumption that you're doing between 10-15 passes per skate?

Edge checker seems to do a good job, I'd invest in a good one. I Paid the extra money for the Blademaster one and it does a good job. Also, after you sharpen and take off the burrs, you should be able to run your finger down the blade and not feel any nicks or grooves.

I redress my wheel every pair of skates but that's just me. I'm sure its overkill but the wheel should last me plenty of time anyway

[DEATHTRON 19]

I re-dress my wheel after every skate, generally with 6 or so passes of a normal piece of steel. A good dressing of the wheel is paramount. If you start off with a poorly dressed wheel, you will most likely end up with a poorly sharpened skate. 

One thing to consider is square edges. Your edges can be level, but if they are not "square" you will still not have a good sharpening. Properly dressing the stone is very important for square edges.

Zach

[bfs9 0]

I just have a quick holder question.  I purchased a new Blademaster SPB 850.  I did not get the holder with it however, as I want one of the newer style holders with the dials and did not want to upgrade to the SH6000 for an extra $500+.  I can get a new Wissota 3D or a used Tri-Lie for about the same price.  Does anybody recommend one vs. the other?  I will only be sharpening about 5 pairs of skates per week for my family.  Thanks.

[clarkiestooth 235]

5 minutes ago, bfs9 said:

I just have a quick holder question.  I purchased a new Blademaster SPB 850.  I did not get the holder with it however, as I want one of the newer style holders with the dials and did not want to upgrade to the SH6000 for an extra $500+.  I can get a new Wissota 3D or a used Tri-Lie for about the same price.  Does anybody recommend one vs. the other?  I will only be sharpening about 5 pairs of skates per week for my family.  Thanks.

I've got a Wissota 3D, but have not used a Tri-Lie.  The 3D is easy to set up, stays set up, is measurable, and comes with comprehensive instructions. Like all Wissota stuff, seems built to last. Can't think of a reason not to get one.

[Axxion89 32]

2 hours ago, bfs9 said:

I just have a quick holder question.  I purchased a new Blademaster SPB 850.  I did not get the holder with it however, as I want one of the newer style holders with the dials and did not want to upgrade to the SH6000 for an extra $500+.  I can get a new Wissota 3D or a used Tri-Lie for about the same price.  Does anybody recommend one vs. the other?  I will only be sharpening about 5 pairs of skates per week for my family.  Thanks.

I would get either the Blademaster or Blackstone holder. They don't come up used at all so you will need to pay full price if you want one. I'm sure the Wisotta one would work but others on here have said the other 2 are much better quality. Did you save any money not getting the basic holder, I just got an old version of that & it works fine for me. The dial ones would be much better but the lever ones work fine

[mickz 107]

6 hours ago, bfs9 said:

I just have a quick holder question.  I purchased a new Blademaster SPB 850.  I did not get the holder with it however, as I want one of the newer style holders with the dials and did not want to upgrade to the SH6000 for an extra $500+.  I can get a new Wissota 3D or a used Tri-Lie for about the same price.  Does anybody recommend one vs. the other?  I will only be sharpening about 5 pairs of skates per week for my family.  Thanks.

When I purchased my machine, my local Blademaster rep let me pay the difference to upgrade the stock holder to the SH8000.  stick with the Blademaster holders.  There's a reason why they don't come up on the used market often. 

[purepearl32 6]

On 6/9/2017 at 6:21 AM, Axxion89 said:

From what I've read, you should cross-grind first but its not necessary. From there its a regular sharpen but it takes more passes. You can see this by after a few passes still seeing the crossgrind marks on the edges of the steel as the hollow isn't perfectly formed yet (not yet fully cut into the blade). Once those marks are gone & blades look like a regular sharpen, then you can check the edges for level

What about for the guys that just have a single head machine and no cross grinder? Number of passes?

[mickz 107]

5 hours ago, purepearl32 said:

What about for the guys that just have a single head machine and no cross grinder? Number of passes?

10-12 passes for brand new steel on a finishing wheel should be enough.  If your new steel is really off, probably another couple of passes.  The number of passes will vary from different batches of steel but keep checking to make sure you've established edges on both sides.

You don't need to use a cross grinding wheel in most cases.  Some people out there are still teaching outdated techniques that involve cross grinding and creating witness marks before every sharpen.  It's a waste of both time and steel.  I would only use a cross grinding wheel for profiling and shaving toes/heels.

[bfs9 0]

I have been sharpening on my new blademaster spb 850 with a wissota 3d holder for about 2 weeks now. Clearly I have a lot more practice ahead of me, but am improving now that I have the holder more dialed in.  Quick question on an issue I am having. I have been able to get perfectly level edges (according to the br100 edge checker anyway) on the last 3/4 of the blade.  On the first 1/4 however, the edge checker shows off about 2-3 lines. I am afraid to adjust the holder since the largest part of the blade reads square and don't want to throw that out of sync. Does anybody else get a different reading on the extreme points of the blade after sharpening?  I have been sharpening toe to heel if that matters. The same reading has also happened on multiple pairs of skates. Any thoughts would be appreciated. 

[mickz 107]

11 hours ago, bfs9 said:

I have been sharpening on my new blademaster spb 850 with a wissota 3d holder for about 2 weeks now. Clearly I have a lot more practice ahead of me, but am improving now that I have the holder more dialed in.  Quick question on an issue I am having. I have been able to get perfectly level edges (according to the br100 edge checker anyway) on the last 3/4 of the blade.  On the first 1/4 however, the edge checker shows off about 2-3 lines. I am afraid to adjust the holder since the largest part of the blade reads square and don't want to throw that out of sync. Does anybody else get a different reading on the extreme points of the blade after sharpening?  I have been sharpening toe to heel if that matters. The same reading has also happened on multiple pairs of skates. Any thoughts would be appreciated. 

The first 1/4 is not square.  You may have to adjust the other side a little bit but it won't be a huge deal.  If you are concerned about it you can always mark the original point with some tape prior to making any adjustments.

Sharpening toe to heel or vice versa does not matter.  Blademaster recommends sharpening with the toes pointed to the right simply because that is the way their profiling system is oriented. 

[Axxion89 32]

17 hours ago, bfs9 said:

I have been sharpening on my new blademaster spb 850 with a wissota 3d holder for about 2 weeks now. Clearly I have a lot more practice ahead of me, but am improving now that I have the holder more dialed in.  Quick question on an issue I am having. I have been able to get perfectly level edges (according to the br100 edge checker anyway) on the last 3/4 of the blade.  On the first 1/4 however, the edge checker shows off about 2-3 lines. I am afraid to adjust the holder since the largest part of the blade reads square and don't want to throw that out of sync. Does anybody else get a different reading on the extreme points of the blade after sharpening?  I have been sharpening toe to heel if that matters. The same reading has also happened on multiple pairs of skates. Any thoughts would be appreciated. 

If sharpening toe heel & the first 1/4 of the blade is out of square then you need to adjust the toe side of the holder either up or down. Happens with me all the time sometimes one side is perfect and the other is not, a simple adjustment will fix it.

I also sharpen toe to heel, main reason is I saw on a video that doing it that way helps prevent grinding off the profiles of the heel of the skate. I have also seen most sharpeners do it this way as well

[purepearl32 6]

Great knowledge so far! Thanks for everyone!

Got another one for you guru's. Is there a way to cool a blade down while sharpening, other than giving it 5-10 minutes? I was working on a skate that had a large nick so I was obviously making more passes and the steel became quite hot (no burn marks though). I thought about using a slightly damp rag and then drying the steel off before touching the wheel again but I wasn't sure so I just gave it time to cool. Just curious. Thanks!