Skate profiling recommendation for amateur player

[hockeydad3 51]

57 minutes ago, vp1304 said:

I would not trust any German hockey shop, advertising the M5 Pro and having the picture of the Mach skates  instead 🙂

Chapeau! 🙈 Should wear my glasses.

Other picture, same text: https://www.hockeyshop-augsburg.de/BAUER-SCHLITTSCHUH-SUPREME-M5-PRO-SR

[vp1304 3]

Finally, I got the other pair of blades profiled to Quad XS and had a chance to try it out during public skating last night.

Compared to the Ellipse, it feels more agile, a bit less stable (heel section) and surprisingly feels less sharp, quite noticeably ! I did not expect that. Both profiles are sharpened to 3/4" in one place (same machine, same guy). I have Quad XS on the original LS Pulse blades and the Ellipse on STEP Blacksteel but I thought the black coating mainly contributes to better edge retention, not the sharpness itself. I think the main reason would be more blade contact with the ice for the Ellipse, that's why it feels sharper correct ?

For the moment, I prefer the Ellipse that fits better to my skating style = more gliding and energy savings over the quick turns/ starts / stops. But for sure, I am gonna test the Quad XS more in some hockey games as I skated on it for about 40 mins only.

In terms of ROH I've already switched from 5/8" to 3/4" which still feels too sharp (especially with the Ellipse). So next sharpening I am gonna  try 7/8" with the  Ellipse XS (STEP Black) and keep the Quad XS (LS Pulse) as it is for further testing in some hockey games.

 

[Senderos 0]

Hey guys.

Really helpful thread over here. I just have a quick question: I am a beginner player, started playing with 0 skills (skating and stick handling) 3 years ago. I've been very ambitious and learned a lot since then, but I still think of myself as a "better" beginner. My skating is getting better and I just invested in a Bauer X3 (size 9.5, Fit 1). I was wondering what sort of profiling would be recommended for me that will help me learn and practice all the necesarry skills. To be honest, this whole profiling business is quite confusing and the guy at our local ProSharp just says that: "Hey, your skates need profiling as there is very little of the steel touching the ice at one time. Basically, the balance point is short and he is suggesting that he makes a profile that flattens the blade out a bit more so I gain more stability. But.. he doesn't mention numbers, elipse or quad profiling, so it's a bit confusing for me.

Thanks in advance!

[puckpilot 312]

12 hours ago, Senderos said:

Hey guys.

Really helpful thread over here. I just have a quick question: I am a beginner player, started playing with 0 skills (skating and stick handling) 3 years ago. I've been very ambitious and learned a lot since then, but I still think of myself as a "better" beginner. My skating is getting better and I just invested in a Bauer X3 (size 9.5, Fit 1). I was wondering what sort of profiling would be recommended for me that will help me learn and practice all the necesarry skills. To be honest, this whole profiling business is quite confusing and the guy at our local ProSharp just says that: "Hey, your skates need profiling as there is very little of the steel touching the ice at one time. Basically, the balance point is short and he is suggesting that he makes a profile that flattens the blade out a bit more so I gain more stability. But.. he doesn't mention numbers, elipse or quad profiling, so it's a bit confusing for me.

Thanks in advance!

So what your proshop guy maybe referring to is that over time, as you sharpen over and over, the profile of the blade will get rounder (the radius will get smaller). This is because a lot of sharpening is done by hand, so there's variance. It's generally recommended, depending on how often you sharpen, to re-profile the steel approx every year to reset things back to your preferred profile. This maintains the consistency in what you're skating on. 

Imagine if every six months to a year your stick got shorter by half and inch. This is like putting that half inch back onto the height of the stick.

In terms of types of profiles etc. I would say ignore it for now. Just get your skates profiled to whatever the stock profile was when you purchased them. Someone please correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe stock should be a 10' profile. 

When you change profiles, it's about trade offs. You don't want to go in with no plan and no idea of what you're getting into. Changing profiles is about giving up a little of "this" for more of "that", in the hopes that what you gain helps you more than what you lost hinders. For example, if you went to a larger radius, you gain more stability and glide, but you give up some a agility. 

This applies to all profiles. Regardless of what marketing says, there is no profile that gives you everything. If there was, everyone would be using it. It's always about trade offs and what an individual wants and needs to help them along. Changing a profile doesn't cure a person's skating issues. It just gives someone who may have plateaued a nudge in the right direction.  

Edited March 22, 2023 by puckpilot

[VegasHockey 1283]

16 hours ago, Senderos said:

Hey guys.

Really helpful thread over here. I just have a quick question: I am a beginner player, started playing with 0 skills (skating and stick handling) 3 years ago. I've been very ambitious and learned a lot since then, but I still think of myself as a "better" beginner. My skating is getting better and I just invested in a Bauer X3 (size 9.5, Fit 1). I was wondering what sort of profiling would be recommended for me that will help me learn and practice all the necesarry skills. To be honest, this whole profiling business is quite confusing and the guy at our local ProSharp just says that: "Hey, your skates need profiling as there is very little of the steel touching the ice at one time. Basically, the balance point is short and he is suggesting that he makes a profile that flattens the blade out a bit more so I gain more stability. But.. he doesn't mention numbers, elipse or quad profiling, so it's a bit confusing for me.

Thanks in advance!

For beginners or amateur skaters, I usually recommend an 12', or 13' single radius profile. This will give you more contact with the ice, allowing you to focus more on using your edges while helping you worry less about balance. 

[218hockey 50]

3 hours ago, VegasHockey said:

For beginners or amateur skaters, I usually recommend an 12', or 13' single radius profile. This will give you more contact with the ice, allowing you to focus more on using your edges while helping you worry less about balance. 

What about youth players? Didn't/doesn't Byonic use an 8' radius on all of their junior runners? Thought I had read that. 

[VegasHockey 1283]

6 hours ago, 218hockey said:

What about youth players? Didn't/doesn't Byonic use an 8' radius on all of their junior runners? Thought I had read that. 

Almost all brands use a very long profile on youth skates.

Bauer uses the LS Balance blade on youth skates which is 13' and CCM has the Jetspeed Youth skate which comes with a stability blade and an agility blade. 

[Paluce 24]

On 3/23/2023 at 3:54 AM, 218hockey said:

What about youth players? Didn't/doesn't Byonic use an 8' radius on all of their junior runners? Thought I had read that. 

No they don’t (Byonic) It’s a 9/10 with a nice aggressive forward lean.  Very good starting point for any profile you might want for yourself.

[Paluce 24]

On 3/23/2023 at 10:10 AM, VegasHockey said:

Almost all brands use a very long profile on youth skates.

Bauer uses the LS Balance blade on youth skates which is 13' and CCM has the Jetspeed Youth skate which comes with a stability blade and an agility blade. 

Exactly.  This is why I’m not a fan of Quad 3X, XXS, XS… profiles for small youth/junior skates.   All players House, AA, AAA to Brick team players all have performed better with profiles similar to what the pro’s are on, just scaled down to fit their blade. 6’ toe, small glide surface, 13’ heal. Very stable, very fast, very agile.   

non of this 4-5-7-10 garbage.

[Beflar 53]

On 3/22/2023 at 4:01 AM, Senderos said:

Hey guys.

Really helpful thread over here. I just have a quick question: I am a beginner player, started playing with 0 skills (skating and stick handling) 3 years ago. I've been very ambitious and learned a lot since then, but I still think of myself as a "better" beginner. My skating is getting better and I just invested in a Bauer X3 (size 9.5, Fit 1). I was wondering what sort of profiling would be recommended for me that will help me learn and practice all the necesarry skills. To be honest, this whole profiling business is quite confusing and the guy at our local ProSharp just says that: "Hey, your skates need profiling as there is very little of the steel touching the ice at one time. Basically, the balance point is short and he is suggesting that he makes a profile that flattens the blade out a bit more so I gain more stability. But.. he doesn't mention numbers, elipse or quad profiling, so it's a bit confusing for me.

Thanks in advance!

Quad 0.5 which is (8-10-12-14), notice the number only jump by 2's as apposed to jumping by 3's in all other Quad profiles.  ie (7-10-13-16)

It is basicly the gateway drug to skate profiling.  It has a little of everything you could want and is ten times better than a single profile.

And yes that is Quad 0.5.  You can find info on it at the top of the page under profiles.  

 

 

[noupf 42]

On 4/8/2023 at 3:23 AM, Beflar said:

Quad 0.5 which is (8-10-12-14), notice the number only jump by 2's as apposed to jumping by 3's in all other Quad profiles.  ie (7-10-13-16)

It is basicly the gateway drug to skate profiling.  It has a little of everything you could want and is ten times better than a single profile.

And yes that is Quad 0.5.  You can find info on it at the top of the page under profiles.  

 

 

I'm on the ellipse 1 with my 9.5 100k Pro's and I wish pro sharp would publish the approximate measurements of the ellipse profiles.  I may grab an extra set of steel for my skates and try the 0.5 as I fee like it may be just a little more aggressive in the front half of the blade vs the ellipse 1.  I like the ellipse 1 for the most part, balance and glide are great, but i feel like it feels just a little long in the front and i feel like it leaves me wanting just a little more of an aggressive toe area.  I'm afraid of going too aggressive in the toe with a quad and too long in the back with the quad.  

[krisdrum 233]

I'll pile on here, instead of starting a new thread ... struggling with feeling too upright.  Like my balance point is too much towards the heels and when I try to get up on my toes, it takes more effort.  In a pair of True TF9s, size 4 (I have tiny feet).  Came from some Graf 535 in a size 5 (longer holder and blade), and don't recall feeling like this.  Believe the True stock radius is supposed to be 9'/10'.  But blades have been sharpened for awhile, so who knows where they are now.  Would like to try a profile that helps me get a bit more aggressive.  Thoughts?