How to prevent rust from forming on blades WHILE you're skating? (not during storage of skates)

[Arwen17]

I skated on Matrix Legacy blades for 4 years and never had any problem with rust, no matter how bad I was at wiping them. But I've been skating on Gold Seal Rev blades for over a year and no matter how much I wipe the blades bone-dry, I still have rust. BECAUSE the rust is forming WHILE I'm on the ice! Not while the skates are in my soakers.

I just got my skates sharpened last night. My skate tech removes all rust every time I go. I skated this morning for just an hour and there was already rust on the sides of both blades as I got off the ice. Just from an hour of skating (pictures), some of the rust on the sides is already back.....
I don't have any rust on the bottom of the blade yet, but I eventually will, since every time I go skating during the week, THAT is when the rust is being created, while I'm on the ice, not while the skates are in my bag.

I've seen suggestions online to use oil on blades, but that's for when the skates are in the bag, not while they're on the ice. How in the world do I keep them from rusting while they're on the ice?

Does anyone else have Gold Seal blades or other JW blades? Are your blades this freaken sensitive that you have rust after just an hour of skating?

Is there anything I can do about this? Or is this just going to be an eternal "skate tech removes the rust whenever I go for a sharpening" kind of thing?

My skate tech keeps asking me if I'm wiping well enough because I have rust every time I go back to him. I sent him those pics this morning as proof that the blades are rusting WHILE I'm skating, so it doesn't matter that I wipe the blades bone-dry afterwards, they've already got rust on them as I step off the ice.

 

[tstop4me]

* I previously skated on Wilson Coronation Ace for several decades in many rinks. Never a problem with rust, as long as I dried the blades thoroughly. It is possible that Wilson uses different steels for their different models of blades (different steels can have different propensities for rust). I asked them once whether they did, but never got a definitive answer. As another reference point, a friend of mine has skated on Wilson Pattern 99, both regular and Revolution. She never had rust problems with the regular. She did have rust problems with the Revolution, because the chassis trapped slush and water, making it difficult to dry thoroughly. But this rust occurred during storage, not while on-ice.

* Questions for you. Do other skaters at your rink have the same problem? Do you skate at more than one rink? If so, do you have this problem only at one rink? The reason I ask is that it’s possible there is some corrosive contaminant either on the rubber floor matting or in the water used to make the ice. Something for you to check out.

* It’s possible that rust forms on other parts and gets rubbed off during skating. But it’s odd that you’re not seeing rust on at least parts of the hollow that does not contact the ice during skating. A mystery to me on that point.

* Your first priority should be to remove the rust after each session, rather than letting it build up between sharpenings. Superficial rust should be removed before it causes serious damage. Rust by itself has a porous microstructure, attracting and trapping water, leading to even more severe corrosion.

* When you get home, make sure the blades are thoroughly dry and warmed to room temperature. Using a small piece of cloth, wipe the exposed steel with oil. You can use mineral oil or motor (engine) oil if you have it handy. But my favorite is Liquid Wrench Penetrating Oil (available at hardware stores; get the small dropper bottle, not the spray can). Let the oil sit for about 30 min. Then wet a small piece of Scotch-Brite scrubber pad with the oil, and scrub the rust away. If you have heavy rust build-up the first time, you may need to repeat the above steps.

* I’ve never had the problem you described. But if I did, what I would try to protect the blades from further on-ice rusting would be the following. After you’ve removed the rust as described above, wipe off the oil, and use alcohol pads to clean off all the oil. Then apply car wax (use a synthetic car wax, not traditional wax) to the blades. After the wax has dried, buff off the excess. If this works, repeat the wax treatment after every session, if needed (but look out for too heavy a build-up). I'd be interested in hearing back from you whether this works. ETA: If you use car wax, be sure to tell your sharpener, so he can remove it before he sharpens.

 

[Sibelius]

My skater has been on the same pair of Gold Seals for 2 years now. Absolutely no rust whatsoever and let's say she's not the greatest at drying them off completely. I think you might have a bum pair. Wilson has had some QC issues of various sorts for awhile.

 

[Kat12]

Hm, yes, good point above... I wonder if you might contact them and ask for their advice. They might either have ideas *or* say "that doesn't sound right, I think we may have had a manufacturing problem."

 

[tstop4me]

My skater has been on the same pair of Gold Seals for 2 years now. Absolutely no rust whatsoever and let's say she's not the greatest at drying them off completely. I think you might have a bum pair. Wilson has had some QC issues of various sorts for awhile.

<<Emphasis added>> You mean, since 1696?

 

[gliese]

wd-40 before and after every session. it does help on the ice, don't worry.

 

[Query]

I would be very curious what JW says when you contact them. If they don't help, I wonder if posting videos to Youtube and to various skating boards would change their mind. I would be extremely annoyed if taking care of the blades as well as you are wasn't enough to prevent rust. Sure, the edges will probably need to be sharpened more often than for stainless blades, because some corrosion will occur, even while on the ice, but I don't think you should see actual rust with such careful use as you mention.

Your Matrix blades were stainless steel. They could rust, if left in water too long (e.g., I had flood damage that destroyed a pair), but my (Matrix I) blades otherwise have had essentially no rust problems - though I admit I do dry them and sometimes oil them, and never leave them in soakers. (I bought a lifetime supply when they went out of production.) AFAIK your Gold Seal Revolution blades are not stainless, so they need to be much more carefully taken care of. But I've used JW and MK blades that were not stainless too. Once I understood wiping dry and oiling, I didn't have much in the way of rust problems. (Mine weren't Revolution blades, and that was a long time ago, so things might have changed... Still.)

They are also rather expensive blades (by my modest standards), and rust potentially wastes a lot of steel - even more if you don't remove it as soon as possible.

tstop4me's question about other people at the rink with the same problem makes a lot of sense. E.g., if you were skating outdoors on a pond with salt or other corrosives in it, that could destroy a blade very quickly. But apart from that, your problem is one I've not heard of it before.

People sometimes reverse very minor amounts of rust by using a mild acid, like vinegar. I wonder if a base, like is in some cleaning solutions on the floor, that was carried by other people's blades onto the ice, could accelerate rust. Also, "hard" water accelerates rust - but well designed rinks, with distillation equipment, remove most of the minerals that make water "hard" before using it to create ice, because it makes the ice more clear, so you can see the hockey lines. Does your rink distill the water first?

BTW, have you looked at and cleaned your soakers? If they have some rust, or corrosive materials, that could cause a problem - and the effect might possibly be delayed until contact with water. But since you take such good care, I doubt you have made that mistake - just asking.

Also, like tstop4me sort of said, be sure to remove ALL the rust, everywhere on the blade. Rust causes more rust.

If none of the solutions others have suggested work, try grease. It is thicker than oil, and some will stay on through a typical skating session. I used to work at a rental counter, and the grease that came pre-applied on one brand of rental skate stayed on for many rental sessions. (However, the people using those blades probably skated more slowly than you do, so their skating might have removed less grease.)

Some people have claimed that oil or grease can slowly remove certain epoxy resins used in certain composite materials, possibly including the "carbon fiber" chassis that Revolution blades have. Others say that is a myth.

I also wonder how well a molybdenum disulfide lubricant would work - I seem to recall from my bike maintenance days that once it dries, it sticks on the metal a bit better than WD-40. But it would leave a non-shiny dark residue on the blade (as does WD-40).

BTW, were your Matrix Legacy blades of the older (sometimes called Matrix I) removable runner type? If so, you can sometimes still find them online, even though they are no longer in production.

 

[tstop4me]

Word of caution: If you constantly apply and leave on a film of oil, grease, or other protectant that doesn't dry to an adherent solid film (i.e., if the film stays fluid, or leaves residue that can readily rub off or flake off), you will muck up your soakers and drying towel ... as well as your hands and skate bag. And the rink maintenance crew likely would not be overjoyed, either.

 

[bcskatingacademy]

I skated on Matrix Legacy blades for 4 years and never had any problem with rust, no matter how bad I was at wiping them. But I've been skating on Gold Seal Rev blades for over a year and no matter how much I wipe the blades bone-dry, I still have rust. BECAUSE the rust is forming WHILE I'm on the ice! Not while the skates are in my soakers.

I just got my skates sharpened last night. My skate tech removes all rust every time I go. I skated this morning for just an hour and there was already rust on the sides of both blades as I got off the ice. Just from an hour of skating (pictures), some of the rust on the sides is already back.....
I don't have any rust on the bottom of the blade yet, but I eventually will, since every time I go skating during the week, THAT is when the rust is being created, while I'm on the ice, not while the skates are in my bag.

I've seen suggestions online to use oil on blades, but that's for when the skates are in the bag, not while they're on the ice. How in the world do I keep them from rusting while they're on the ice?

Does anyone else have Gold Seal blades or other JW blades? Are your blades this freaken sensitive that you have rust after just an hour of skating?

Is there anything I can do about this? Or is this just going to be an eternal "skate tech removes the rust whenever I go for a sharpening" kind of thing?

My skate tech keeps asking me if I'm wiping well enough because I have rust every time I go back to him. I sent him those pics this morning as proof that the blades are rusting WHILE I'm skating, so it doesn't matter that I wipe the blades bone-dry afterwards, they've already got rust on them as I step off the ice.

Thank you for all this information. Matrix supreme are my favourite blades, and have never had trouble with rust.

 

[tstop4me]

Thank you for all this information. Matrix supreme are my favourite blades, and have never had trouble with rust.

That's a major plus for stainless steel runners.