Flattened rockers?

[Jeujeucda]

Hi everyone,

The rocker of a blade determines how high the end of the blade will be off the ground when you tip the blade forward to touch the picks on the ground, right? So presumably all same-sized blades that have an 8-foot rocker should have their tails the same (or very close) height off the floor when you tip them forward, correct?

The reason I ask is that I wonder if the old place where I used to get my sharpenings flattened my rockers. I used to not have toe pick problems but a while after going onto my current blades (maybe a sharpening or two), they began. These are 8-foot rockers. This month I got a new pair of blades, a different brand, from the shop I now go to. They're also 8-foot rockers but when I compared, their tails are almost twice as high as my old blades. And they're actually 1/4-inch shorter, so it's not because they're longer so they lift up higher. The picks are pretty much the same size on both.

Do you think this is a case of rocker flattened by poor sharpenings? My current blades are about half used, so they're not very old yet.

Jeujeucda

 

[dlkksk8fan]

Hi Jeujeucda. I'm not a blade sharpening expert, but just an old skater.

The ROCKER is the curvature of the blade from the toe to the heel. The size of the rocker and toe pick varies with different models of blades. I know when blades are sharpened they create a "hallow" across the thickness of the blade. I'm not sure that each time you sharpen the blade that it causes the rocker to become smaller. I would think that the rocker stays the same.

8 foot rockers sounds pretty big are you sure you don't mean inches?

I hope this helps some.

 

[cborsky]

Jeujeucda, just a few things I've learned about blades...

I think that an 8 foot rocker is common. That measurement is the radius of the circle that would match the curvature of the blade. 8 inches would be pretty curvy I think.

The key thing with the rocker is the placement of it. When you tip the blade up to the toepick, look for where the blade is in contact with the table. It should be right under the ball of your foot. If it is farther forward or too far back then it would definitely throw your balance off!

But having "flattened" rockers would mean a larger radius on the curvature of the blade and therefore the heel should in fact be lower.
I've had a shop ruin a pair of blades by flattening the rocker. The contact point on the table was shifted way behind the ball of my foot, and the tail was much lower than a true 8 foot rocker curve.

Talk to a professional figure skate sharpener about the problems you're having, and they should be able to fix the problem. Don't blindly hand them over (as I did) without a thorough explanation of what they think is causing your toepick problem and what they can do to fix it. Make sure you completely understand and agree with them so hopefully on one further wrecks your blades.

Good Luck
~Cassie

 

[Mathman]

Cassie, I just caught your name here in the Lutz Corner, which I don't read every day, not being a skater myself. Come on over to the Edge and the Cafe. We've missed you.

Mathman

 

[Steve L]

Hi guys!

I am a newbie here....

Jeujeucda!

The rocker of a blade has nothing to do with the actual HEEL LIFT that you are talking about. The heel lift is measured by the actual curvature and size of the bottom toe pick. In other words a figure blade (I know we don' t do figure's anymore but this is a good example) will rise higher than a freestyle blade and a freestyle blade will not rise as much as as dance blade.

8 foot rocker...guys that is measured in feet it means that if you were to draw a circle with 16 foot DIAMETER than that would be an 8 foot rocker...the term is the radius of a 16 foot diameter hence 8 feet!!!

I am curious though 8 foot rocker...is it a Patt 99 or Gold Seal ?

All MK's are 7 foot rockers
Comet's 8.5
majestik...now 7 used to be 6
Patt and Gold Seal 8 foot.

New Ultima Blades 8 foot

There you have it...Hope this helps!

 

[Jeujeucda]

Hi all,

Thanks for all your thoughts! I decided to put aside my new blades and boots and stayed in my old pair until the second week of February (had a competition that week and didn't want to lose practice time in January trying to get used to new skates).

I found that once I put my mind to it and made myself leave my old skates at home, it only took two practices to get comfortable in the new ones. After a week (four practices) I'd forgotten I had new boots and blades on. The boots were fine right from the start because they fit a lot better AND they're softer than the old ones. The blades took a little longer because they had a much bigger rocker compared to the old flat ones. The picks were different too -- had a few close calls with toe jumps and pivots!

The old blades were definitely flattened by some bad sharpenings. However, the bottom pick on them are also at a sharper angle than those on my new blades, so that made them feel even flatter.

By the way, my old blades were the ISE Stealth. The new ones are the Ultima Protege. Both are 8 ft rockers.

Jeujeucda

 

[Steve L]

Jeujeucda !

Good to here!

I have to say I am shocked to Stealth and Protege


I thought Canadian blades were not a factor in the USA (I am Canadian)...wow...they are great blades both of them and you are right on the rockers...8 foot.

Anyway have a great skate!!!

 

[cborsky]

Jeujeucda,

Good choice with the Ultima blades!

I have Ultima Freestyle blades and I'm thrilled with them. They're better than any other blade I've tried (Gold Star, MK professional, phantom, vantage, Silver Test) I don't know about pricing where you are, but here in Canada the Ultima blades are superior quality and less expensive than their competitors. I think they are an excellent blade, not to mention that Jamie Sale has skated in them!

Enjoy your new boots and blades!

~Cassie

 

[sk8er1964]

I have Ultima Elites, and I really enjoy them. However, they do have one problem, and on another site I posted a thread about it and it seems to be common. The chrome chips off. Apparently, it is only an asthetic problem - I have had no rust, and no problems with performance. I don't like the chipping, and I was told that Ultima would probably replace the blades, but I didn't want to go through the trouble as long as they perform well (and they do). Didn't want you to be surprised if your new blades chip.

 

[cborsky]

Yes, my chrome is chipping too, just a little on the toepick. It's really not a big deal. I can't see it unless I take my skate off and look really closely and you definitely can't see it when I'm skating. Its been like that for a year now and there is absolutely no rust. It hasn't been a problem, I guess thats why I forgot to mention it in my previous post.

~Cassie