Fred Bartick, a Minnesota-based (Bloomington, MN) skate technician with over 35 years of experience, continues his discussion of boots and blades with tips for proper blade care. (See Part 1 of the series here and Part 2 of the series here and Part 3 of the series here and Part 4 of the series here and Part 5 of the series here and Part 6 of the series here.)
Blade stoning can be done by a skater or coach as a way to provide a temporary fix for small damage to a blade caused by stepping on something or hitting something. In that case, the blade may have a “burr” or part of the edge may be “rolled” where the edge is damaged and metal is pushed out. Stoning the blade can help re-establish the edge.
A honing stone is typically about 3 inches long and will usually have medium grit to be most useful for a wide range of issues. It is used by placing the stone nearly perpendicular to the top of the blade, but not quite enough to damage the chrome plating on the blade itself, and moving back and forth along the side of the blade.
Fred notes that stoning is not a substitute for a proper sharpening, although some skaters will stone their blades regularly in an attempt to make a sharpening last longer. A honing stone is inexpensive, and Fred recommends having one in your skate bag for emergencies.
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