Useful skate blade sharpening techniques

Sharpening your skates is a necessary part of playing hockey or doing tricks. Without sharp skates, you definitely won’t reach your potential as a hockey player or skater.

Having sharp skates while playing hockey can be as important as having proper equipment. Without sharp blades, you are basically almost useless on the ice, because you can’t get to where you need to be, when you need to be there.

Here are some skate blade sharpening techniques and other useful information:

You can’t sharpen your blades if they have rust on them. Rust is caused by moisture. Moisture can be avoided by being sure to dry your skates every time you finish a hockey game or practice. However, if for whatever reason you do find that your skate blades have rust on them, there’s a proven way to remove the rust from the comfort of your home. Simply take a scouring pad and some oil. Rub some oil onto your skate blades, then use the scouring pad on the blades. The rust will loosen, and you can then wipe it off using a soft rag or cloth.

There are ways to sharpen your skates at home, which we will get to later, but let it be known that the easiest, most effective way to get your skates properly sharpened is to take them to the professionals. Either go to your local sports store or to a pro shop in an arena. The experts there have professional skate sharpening tools and machines to provide the best possible outcome for your skate’s blades. But if it’s not possible to make it to a sports store or an arena pro shop before your next hockey game, hockey practice or skating session, there is something you can do at home.

Granted, this tool is mostly intended for removing nicks from your blades. But a nick or two could be what’s preventing your skates from being evenly sharp. Some people think that a tiny nick won’t make a big difference on the ice, but that couldn’t be farther from the truth. Having to do quick starts and stops on the ice can be difficult enough, so you really do not need an annoying nick on your skate making it even more difficult for you.

You can’t be very effective on the ice with dull skates, so implement these useful skate blade sharpening techniques to help you out.