Sharpening Skates

Have skates sharpened by a good skate-sharpening company as soon as they are purchased. The bottom pick should never be removed since the pick is part of the design of the figure skates and is essential to proper balance.

Skates should be re-sharpened after approximately 20 - 30 hours of skating or every 2 months, depending upon usage and care. Once you feel that your edge is slipping, skidding or you lack the control you feel you normally have, it is time to sharpen. Some skaters don't mind slightly dull blades while others find that they require them to be really sharp. Skaters should take notice how they like their blades so that they can get them sharpened early enough (or close enough) to competitions and test so that they are perfect when the time counts.

The following excerpt from the Pro-Skate website explains the factors involved in sharpening figure skates. For full details consult http://figure.pro-skate.com/figure-skate-sharpening.asp

Blade manufacturers design blades with a specific measured blade radius. The radius of the blade often referred to as the rocker, is what determines how much blade is in contact with the surface of the ice, as well as the lift of the blade. This can be seen when a blade is placed on a flat surface and rolled forward until it hits the bottom pick. The radius of the blade is measured in feet. Each manufacturer has their own design, however almost all blades will fall between a 7 and 9 foot radius. If you are a skater or a skating coach, understanding the significance of blade radius (rocker) and it's effect on skating will certainly help you be a better skater or at the very least, an informed consumer. Incorrect sharpening (bad sharpening habits) over a period of time will alter the radius of the blade and slowly begin to effect everything from how much flow a blade has to the timing of when the bottom pick comes into contact with the ice surface. i.e.... what happened to my spins that were so awesome just a couple of months ago?

It should... but doesn't, go without saying that maintaining the manufacturer’s original blade radius is an absolute must for consistent performance of the blade.

The depth of hollow is what determines how sharp the skate blade is. It is measured by radius and is generally expressed as the specific increment of an inch. i.e. 1/2" 5/8" 7/16" of an inch. The smaller the measurement, 7/16" for example, the deeper the hollow or the opposite of that, the larger the increment, for example, the less depth of hollow or the less sharpness the blade has.

Sharpening effects the flow of the blade, the amount of bite an edge has and even how hard the skater has to work to maintain their speed. The deeper the hollow the more the blades edges dig into the ice surface, as well, it should be noted that the deeper the hollow the less flow a skate blade will have.

If you want to know more about the physics of how blades work you may wish to check out these links.

http://www.chuck-wright.com/Skating/sharpening.html

http://www.chuck-wright.com/Skating/blades.html