Blade Maintenance
Blade basics
It is important to ensure that your skates are completely dry before storage or transporting your skates.
Best practices include:
- The use of an absorptive rag. A rag with oil on it will not fully dry your blades.
- Use cotton blade covers to transport and store your skates. Plastic guards retain moisture and will rust your blades.
2. Plastic guards should be used to properly protect your skates when walking to and from the ice. As dirt can accumulate in plastic guards, we recommend that you rinse them out from time to time. This will assist in maintaining a sharp edge on your skates which will improve your performance.
Maintaining your bend
As a bend in blades is a critical component to skill development and performance, it is important that the following process is followed after a skater falls or clashes blades.
How does a bend change from a fall or clashing of blades?
When a skater falls or clashes blades together it can cause a torque in the blade with can affect the amount and/or the smoothness of the bend in the blade.
The first step to restoring your bend is to loosen and then re-tighten one of your bolts on your skates. Only one bolt on each skate needs to be loosened and tightened. Either the front or back bolt can be used.
This is an excellent intervention to use during a practice should you experience a fall or clash blades.
This is also an excellent option during a competition if a collision occurs during the start of a race and the race is called back. If the ice is being repaired and time allows, this may be a quick fix to restore the bend in the blade before the race restart.
As the loosening and retightening of the bolt on your skate may not totally restore your bend we recommend that you review your bend using a gauge.
The following information will provide you with the best practices to monitor the bend and rocker of your skates using a gauge.
What is a gauge?
The gauge is an instrument that was developed in the early 1990’s, which revolutionized the ability to monitor and adjust both the bend and rocker in speed skate blades. The accuracy 
of the gauge is 0.0001”-.05” of an inch.
Gauge Components
- Indicator
- Base
- Pins
- Indicator screw
- Straight edge
- Indicator set adjustment screw
- Indicator face
- Indicator pin
Zeroing the Gauge
It is recommended that before any measurements are taken that the gauge is “zeroed”. Gauges will also need to be re-zeroed periodically between usages as the gauge zero can be affected by temperature or if the gauge has been bumped.
To zero a gauge you will place it on the straight edge (5) and adjusting the indicator face (7) so that the needle reads zero when resting on top of the straight edge. To adjust the indicator face (7) the indicator screw (4) must be loosened, which will allow you to spin the indicator face.
Which side of the edge do you measure for bend?
Firstly you must understand the difference between the concave and convex side of the blade. Historically the gauge was used measuring the convex side of the blade. Due to some imperfections that can occur in blade thickness, high performance skaters started to measure the concave side of the blade as it is the effective side of the edge, which is in contact with the ice.
Measuring the concave side of the bladeWhen measuring the bend on the concave side of the blade, you will be able to establish a blade that is bent into the corner, out of the corner, and that is straight.
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Best practices for holding the gauge when measuring bend
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Bending Range
The bend in blades is very individual and there are numerous theories which exist. The following illustrations indicate the basic range of bend for short and long track. This example is measuring on the concave side of the blade. Please note bend and rocker work together and impact one another.
Measuring Rocker
What is a rocker?
Rocker refers to the radius of the blade, which is measured in meters. The radius can be consistent or variable, which can enhance a skaters gliding or turning ability. Short Track rockers are rounder (smaller radius) than long track rockers because of the tighter turns [8 meter radius vs 22 meter radius]. The following example will assist in understanding what a rocker is. If you where to put the bottom of the blade on an 8m radius circle it would follow the arc of the circle.
Best practices for holding the gauge when measuring rocker
The blade should be checked for top burr and removed if found before measuring. Top burr can have an effect on the readings as the pins will be riding on the top burr and not on the blade, which will inaccurately reflect in the measurements.- Rocker can easily be measured in a jig before sharpening.
- Best position for reading rocker is to mimic the same position as the skate would be in a jig. This can be done by sitting in a chair and clamping the boot between your legs
- Using both hands steady the gauge on top of the blade
- Ensure the gauge is not tilted and that it is held firmly and square to the blade.
Gauge Readings for Rocker
Rocker can be read with the end of the blade pointed in either direction. It is our recommendation that it is pointed in a direction that allows the skater the ability to see the recording increments on the tube. For information on recording bend and rocker please see below.
When measuring rocker the conversion chart is used to convert the gauge readings into a rocker reading, which is measured in meters. The following example shows a rocker indicator reading of 6.3 (sometimes referred to as 63). Using the conversion chart the radius in meters can be identified at this point in the blade (6.3 = 8 meter rocker).
| Radius Meters | Indicator | Radius Meters | Indicator | Radius Meters | Indicator | Radius Meters | Indicator |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4.0 | 2.7 | 10.0 | 5.0 | 16.0 | 3.1 | 22.0 | 2.3 |
| 4.5 | 1.3 | 10.5 | 4.8 | 16.5 | 3.0 | 22.5 | 2.25 |
| 5.0 | 0.2 | 11.0 | 4.6 | 17.0 | 2.98 | 23.0 | 2.2 |
| 5.5 | 9.2 | 11.5 | 4.4 | 17.5 | 2.9 | 23.5 | 2.16 |
| 6.0 | 8.4 | 12.0 | 4.2 | 18.0 | 2.8 | 24.0 | 2.11 |
| 6.5 | 7.8 | 12.5 | 4.0 | 18.5 | 2.7 | 24.5 | 2.07 |
| 7.0 | 7.2 | 13.0 | 3.9 | 19.0 | 2.67 | 25.0 | 2.03 |
| 7.5 | 6.7 | 13.5 | 3.7 | 19.5 | 2.6 | ||
| 8.0 | 6.3 | 14.0 | 3.6 | 20.0 | 2.5 | ||
| 8.5 | 5.9 | 14.5 | 3.5 | 20.5 | 2.4 | ||
| 9.0 | 5.6 | 15.0 | 3.3 | 21.0 | 2.41 | ||
| 9.5 | 5.3 | 15.5 | 3.2 | 21.5 | 2.36 |
Rocker Range
The rocker in blades is very individual and there are numerous theories which exist. Short Track rockers go from a standard 8m rocker (63 gauge reading), to complex variable rockers which incorporate multiple radius’s throughout the blade. Long Track rockers are generally consistent (22m-25m) throughout the blade. Variable rockers are more common in Short Track vs Long Track.
Set-Up For Monitoring Bend & Rocker
- Skaters should start by marking their blade in one inch increments. This can be done using a ruler to mark the runner of the blade with a felt tip marker.
- The blade should be marked on the concave side of the blade runner so that both bend and rocker can be recorded using the same marks.
- Measurements should be taken starting at the same end of the blade (ie toe to heel) each time.
Using a recording sheet, identify which end the measurements will start from and which mark the measurement will start at. This is done because the first mark that the gauge accurately starts reading at is when both pins make solid contact with the blade. The illustration below shows the first reading will start at the 3rd mark for both bend and rocker.
Recording Bend & Rocker
What to record in your equipment log:
- Date
- Left and Right Blade
- Plot each recording mark
- Comments
- How your blades feel
- Training phase (End, Speed, Recovery, Build)
- Results (Personal Best, Records)
- Ability to perform different track patterns and execute different skills ( ie defensive track, outside and inside passing)
- Location (ice rink, indoor or outdoor (LT specific))
When should you record your bend and rocker?
Readings should be taken periodically throughout the season. Skaters should work with their coaches to identify specific days within their yearly training program (YTP).
VH TIP:
You need to record your set-up when you feel good as well as bad. A common mistake for skaters is to only look at their equipment when things are not going well. Without recordings from when you feel good, it is difficult to know what to change and by how much.
Blade Tip Maintenance
Why?
Personal injury prevention
Properly maintained blade tips (specifically the front of the blade), will greatly reduce the chance that the tip of the blade will catch when pivoting and changing track patterns/direction in ruts.
Reduce injury to others
Properly maintained blade tips will greatly reduce the chance of injuring other skaters. A common occurrence of this is a lower leg kick during the start of a race.
To avoid disqualification from racing
Speed skating rules require all skaters to maintain their tips to a specified radius. Blades not meeting these requirements will be required to be fixed before being allowed to compete.
How are bad (square) blade tips created?
Blade tips will eventually become square and sharp through sharpening. The illustration below shows how a blade tip becomes square from the removal of steel through sharpening.
How do you determine the radius of the blade tips?
- Place a Canadian dime on the tip of the blade.
- Using a felt tip marker trace around the dime on the blade
After you have traced out the radius you need to grind this material away. Blade tips can be ground down many ways:
- Side of sharpening stone
- Dremel tool
- Bench grinder
The most efficient way is to use a bench grinder. Please note the directions for using a bench grinder, as improper blade direction could damage the blade.
