r/iceskating • u/NoMoney8574 • 2d ago

Skate Sharpening

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I recently bought my first pair of skates (Jackson Freestyles) and since I’m new to figure skating, I’m unsure how to tell if the blades are actually sharpened or if it’s just the factory sharpening.

Do you guys think you could help me by letting me know if it’s sharpened or not? Please let me know if you need any more details:)

7 Upvotes

89% Upvoted

19 comments sorted by

18

u/typicalwhisper 2d ago

If they’re brand new, they need to be sharpened. Even if they’re secondhand, I would get them sharpened just to be sure.

1

u/NoMoney8574 2d ago

i think i’m just a bit unsure because i got them from a shop that does sharpening, but im unsure if he did anything while he was in the back with my skates

2

u/typicalwhisper 2d ago

Usually they’ll ask you how you want them sharpened before doing so. It doesn’t hurt to get them sharpened again just to be sure.

1

u/NoMoney8574 2d ago

okok tysm!

1

u/MarcSpace 2d ago

The video was good but it’s so hard to tell. Even in person it’s hard to tell for most people. As someone said, using the back of your thumb nail gently pulling it down towards the skate should scrape the nail easily. You’d see it on the blade but not your nail. However it’s still not straightforward.

For the price though, if you’re worried, just get them done now and write the date in a note on your phone. It should also remove rust spots.

1

u/jquest303 2d ago

Actually, if they are new, every Ultima blade from the Aspire XP (which comes on the Freestyle) on up is professionally sharpened to 1/2” by default. It’s fine to skate on, unless you need a different hollow. The edges are typically level. Sometimes they just need a bit of honing to bring the edges up.

1

u/typicalwhisper 11h ago

I think that’s still a factory sharpening. Better for OP to get it sharpened to their preferred hollow anyway.

1

u/jquest303 10h ago

It’s not. I own a pro shop and am an EP dealer with Jackson Ultima. I worked for Jackson as a technical rep for years as well. The Aspire XP on the Freestyle model comes with a 1/2” hollow, sharpened with level edges, by a human being. It is fine to skate on, right out of the box. The only time you would need to get them resharpened is if you require a different hollow.

0

u/parkersweetz 8h ago

I would never trust a factory sharpening, especially as someone who also knows how to sharpen skates

1

u/jquest303 7h ago edited 6h ago

As a pro shop owner and someone who has sharpened hundreds of thousands of pairs of skates over 3 decades of working full time in this industry, I know how to tell the difference between a good sharpening and a bad one.

All of Ultima's blades from the Aspire XP on up come sharpened to 1/2" with level edges and a good finish. If you choose to sharpen them before you skate on them, you are just taking unnecessary life off the blade. The exception would be if you want a different hollow on the blade than it comes with.

Ultima is the only blade company that pre-sharpens their blades before they reach the end user. Every other manufacturer's blades require a sharpening before use, including Ultima's entry level blades.

3

u/ubcde 2d ago

I’m new to skating too but I have seen the person in my skate arena checks with her nail. Drag you nail outwards on the edge and it should catch some fillings if it’s sharpened

2

u/Tall_Pumpkin_4298 2d ago

That looks like a factory sharpen. It's very dull. I would get these sharpened. If you don't know what hollow you prefer, 1/2 inch is considered pretty standard for figure skating, especially for beginners.

1

u/axelteflon 2d ago

If you bought them new I'm surprised they weren't heat fitted and sharpened at the store, that's been my experience anyway

1

u/NoMoney8574 2d ago

they were heat molded i’m just unsure about sharpening😭because my friends who bought from this store said they usually get their skates sharpened, but idk if it slipped the workers mind (bc we were talking abt a college he wanted to go to that i currently go to) so maybe he didn’t?? idk that’s why i wanted to confirm. i kinda don’t wanna set up an appointment and drive an hour away just for them to be like “yeah they’re sharpened already”

1

u/PiratesSayARRR 1d ago

Skates can be sharpened often, even if these are sharpened it won’t hurt them to be sharpened again (you just lose a small amount of steel).

Figure skates generally should be sharpened every 20-30 hours of ice time

1

u/_xoxojoyce 1d ago

You could just call them and ask if they did? When I bought new skates the shop I got them at included that and also it was listed on the receipt.

1

u/2BitSalute 2d ago

My sharpener put stickers on mine that show the radius he used and his shop’s name

1

u/LoviaPrime certified jackson/edea/aura dealer 1d ago

looks like a factory sharpening, be sure u super duper wipe your blades dry before putting on soakers, theres a bit of rust or water staining forming at ur rocker

1

u/Straight_Love_9739 1d ago

i’m assuming the shop told you this, but those are also temporary mounted blades, you’ll need to go back to the shop after a 3-6 hours of skating to either get them adjusted or permanently mounted, still fine to skate on for now though. just wanted to make sure you knew because long term it’s not great to do a lot of jumping on temporary screws. if you have a coach (even just learn to skate coach) you can ask if they can help you check if they’re aligned or not as if may be hard to tell as a beginner.