Skate sharpening issue

[RPHockey53]

Hey guys and girls,
After taking a few years off hockey I got back into it about a year ago.. when I was younger I only sharpened my skates MAYBE once or twice every couple of months... and I was on the ice A LOT more (playing both travel and summer house). Now for some reason I'm going through a sharpen every 4 or 5 skates... which is weird... and its not like they're just "dull".. like they are strait up losing edges. For instance I sharpened my skates last Friday.. played a pick up that night and the following day (maybe 3 hours all together) and today I went for a mens league game and had NO EDGE on my right skate... why is this happening? I don't really skate any different (maybe a little slower foot speed since I'm older and took a break)... I skate on a 1/2" if that helps... thanks!

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[Sojourn]

Do you store them differently?

 

[Canadiens1958]

Weight

Travel and summer house reflects a youngster's experience. Today you are an adult or at least older, weighing a lot more.

Suggest getting the skates sharpened at a Pro Shop, preferably the same one, same sharpener. Talk with the sharpener about your skating style and frequency of use. This should produce a more efficient process.

 

[sanityplease]

Usually sharpen every 3 games (208lbs, using a 5/8" cut). I can leave it a bit longer sometimes, but risk discovering a degraded edge when I'm playing.

 

[intangible]

Usually sharpen every 3 games (208lbs, using a 5/8" cut). I can leave it a bit longer sometimes, but risk discovering a degraded edge when I'm playing.

Exactly. I'm 225 and get a 3/8FBV and get mine done every 3-5 skates, depending on laziness and quality of the cut.

You're bigger now, so you're creating more stress on those edges.

 

[RPHockey53]

Seems like everyone is saying the same thing that its because I'm heavier... I figured that's what it was but it's annoying getting my skates sharpened so frequently

 

[AIREAYE]

There could be a host of other factors involved, that you should check off as well.

Do you store your skates safely? Such that the edges are protected with a skateguard?

Has your steel been ground down so much over tim that you are bottoming out? As in your boot/holder touches the ice every time you turn?

What skates are they?

1/2" is a standard cut, used by the majority of skaters of all ages.

 

[boo10]

Not sure weight really has that much to do with it. I'm 5'11' / 190lbs and I've gone as long as 20-25 games between sharpenings. I skate on a 5/8 or 3/4 hollow. I don't think you mentioned which skates you're using now, but could be very low quality steel is the issue if you're using a cheap pair.

 

[RPHockey53]

There could be a host of other factors involved, that you should check off as well.

Do you store your skates safely? Such that the edges are protected with a skateguard?

Has your steel been ground down so much over tim that you are bottoming out? As in your boot/holder touches the ice every time you turn?

What skates are they?

1/2" is a standard cut, used by the majority of skaters of all ages.

Hey man,
They're RBZ skates and the steel is still very new (I have a friend who is a CCM rep who got me an awesome deal on the beauties).. I think I'm pretty safe on how I store them.. I always use soakers and they typically go on the top of all my gear in my bag. 1/2" is just always what I've used.. I tried 5/8 a few times because some canadian friends told me to but my edgework wasn't great when I did so I went back to a 1/2.. thanks man

 

[AIREAYE]

I'm thinking that a part of it is that you are still adjusting to the taller holder, which made a difference to me at first. I was leaning too far on my turns, but with the taller setup, you don't need to do so to catch your edges.

Or it could be a bad sharpener?

 

[Steelhead16]

How long we're you off? What blades came on your skates? I just got a new pair of Reebok 16K's. The equipt mgr of our ECHL team sharpens my skates. When I took them to him to get the blades profiled he didn't even want to bother messing with them. He yanked the steel out and replaced them with a pro steel blade. Made a huge difference. He said he would be sharpening 25 pairs of skates a day if he let his guys play on stock steel. Maybe try doing some research on the web and try and find some new blades and see if that helps. Seems silly to spend more money on new skates but if you can triple the life of a sharpening you can offset the cost fairly quickly at $10 a pop or so.

 

[AIREAYE]

How long we're you off? What blades came on your skates? I just got a new pair of Reebok 16K's. The equipt mgr of our ECHL team sharpens my skates. When I took them to him to get the blades profiled he didn't even want to bother messing with them. He yanked the steel out and replaced them with a pro steel blade. Made a huge difference. He said he would be sharpening 25 pairs of skates a day if he let his guys play on stock steel. Maybe try doing some research on the web and try and find some new blades and see if that helps. Seems silly to spend more money on new skates but if you can triple the life of a sharpening you can offset the cost fairly quickly at $10 a pop or so.

The RBZs came with polished stainless steel. When compared to other retail steel, it is of a good quality.

 

[American in Paris]

It's counter intuitive, but I find that a shallower hollow tends to last longer. I suppose when there's less of an edge to loose it is less vulnerable to wear and tear.

Also, depending on your skating ability, a shallower hollow will make it easier to exploit your blades' outside edges.

 

[AIREAYE]

It's counter intuitive, but I find that a shallower hollow tends to last longer. I suppose when there's less of an edge to loose it is less vulnerable to wear and tear.

Also, depending on your skating ability, a shallower hollow will make it easier to exploit your blades' outside edges.

And edge is an edge. Doesn't matter if it's on a 3/4", 1/2" or 7/16" etc. It's the depth of the hollow that most people feel and articulates as 'sharpness'. All skates sharpened at whatever hollow is 'sharp', it's the depth that counts.