Flat Bottom V Skate Sharpening
The flat bottom v sharpening method is the newest craze to hit the hockey world. The flat bottom v was created and first introducted in early February 2009 by Blackstone sports in Kingsville, Ont. The unique skate sharpening method promises better gliding ability, and increased “bite” when turning, everything a hockey player could ask for. While many were skeptical (and many still are) when the new technique was introduced it did not take long for the flat bottom v method to take off, all the way to the NHL
One of the first NHL teams to be using the flat bottom v skate sharpening method was the St. Louis blues, now over 20 NHL teams are using this method, quite a bold statement for a technique that just took off at the beginning of the year! Many players, minor league and NHL alike are claiming that the flat bottom V feels like your are gliding on top of the ice, allows you to glide longer, allows you to turn easier, and skaters will not fatigue as fast because it takes less energy to skate. These are strong recommendations considering the Flat Bottom V is just a minor adjustment in the way the metal is shaped on a thin piece of metal on the bottom of your skate. Some say it is simply a placebo effect, others are disciples of the new cut.
The flat bottom v changes the normal half moon cut of a blade to be a flat bottom with “fangs” on each edge, supposedly allowing you to glide easier, further and faster than the normal cut and turn better. See the diagrams below of the normal skate sharpening and the flat bottom v skate sharpening
This diagram shows the normal cut vs the flat bottom v. (in the diagram it appeared that the v goes all the way up, however see the diagram below these ones for the actual shape of the flat bottom v.
Flat Bottom V Skate Sharpening Options
You can see from this diagram that there are different options to choose from when you get your flat bottom v sharpening done. According to Johnny Macs (a skate sharpening shop that uses the FBV skate sharpening) Most skaters should start with a 100/50 FBV and then adjust their cut accordingly as the best cut in the end will come down to player preference (and who knows, maybe you will prefer the regular method of skate sharpening)
Some people may ask does the flat bottom v wear the blade down quicker? According to No Icing sports (a custom radius shop) Getting a Flat bottom v on your skates will not alter your rocker radius at all and a flat bottom v does not take off any more steel than a regular sharpening would.
We are still waiting on official flat bottom v stats and test results from the skating labs, which will be posted here when they come out (a good reason to subscribe in the box to the left!) Below I have list of possible pro’s and con’s of the flat bottom v
Flat Bottom V Pros and Cons
Flat bottom V Pro’s
- Better gliding ability
- Better turning (more bite)
- Less fatigue
- “For pushing and gliding and being on top of the ice, there’s a huge difference” Cory Stillman, Florida Panthers
- “The concept for the V scientifically makes a lot of sense” Dr. Kelly Lockwood, president and lead scientist at The Skating Lab at Brock University
- From many reviews and posts on forums parents of minor hockey players notice an improvement in skating
Flat bottom V Cons
- Reports from some minor hockey forums state the when you lose an edge you lose it all at once, which could mean missing the rest of the game until you can get the skate sharpened
- If it is easier to lose an edge with this grind it could result in injuries
- If the edge comes off easily then this would require frequent sharpening to keep the edge
It seems like the pro’s far out weigh the con’s, and the con’s all rely on speculation that the edge comes off easily (which has not been proven just yet)
So I leave the debate up to you, how is your experience with the flat bottom v? Post your comments below
If you would like to visit the official website of the people who created the FBV skate sharpening method, or buy a FBV machine for your arena or business then visit Blackstone Sport
Hey Wait!
If you enjoyed this article you should subscribe to our blog! You will be joining a great hockey community with one goal in mind...Become a better hockey player! We HATE spam, and the only reason we need your email address is so we can keep you up to date with new ways to improve your shooting, skating, stickhandling and over all hockey skills! Just put in your name and email below.
No related posts.
Grow The Game
{ 7 comments… read them below or add one }
I find that the blade goes dull quicker than a traditional skate sharpening. If you usually sharpen your skates every 4 games you might find yourself at 3 instead.
Also, I found that when it’s sharp it provides a smoother glide and sharper turns but when it goes dull it’s like standing on ceramic tile.
I got me a Blackstone professionl Spinner portable sharpener which also does the FBV. I play hockey. I completely disagree with the above cons. Sorry.
If sharpened properly all you get is the above pros only. Well, I’m still to investigate if the edges dull quicker vs. traditional ROH sharpening.
I just can’t go back to traditional ROH. You feel like you sink in the ice on ROH after having skated on Blackstone’s FBV.
There’s a whole bunch of NHL players on Blackstone’s FBV now.
Just tried it out, took 5 mins. to get used to but I love it !
Feels like you are skating more on top of the ice – glide is improved.
I am 50 years old – any advantage helps !
My son and husband both skate on FBV and they both love it. My husband had his skates sharpened in Canada and we now have purchased the FBV sharpener. We live in Australia.
As a former pro hockey player my biggest gripe was that I could never find the right sharpening. I have been searching years and have been putting up with inconsistent sharpening(s) and very average sharpenings. As I still play well over one hundered games per year I never have found the right sharpening until last night. I got the FBV and for the first time in my live I felt like I was able to skate to the top of my abilities with full confidence. I would recommend the FBV to anyone who wants to play at the top of their game.
Me and my whole team switched to the FBV more than 1 year ago. It’s awesome. We have also found that the edges last as long, and most of the time, actually longer than our old regular sharpening. The key to FBV is finding a sharpener who can do it correctly. Just like you can get a bad regular sharpening, you can also get a bad FBV. If done correctly, you’ll be amazed at the performance gains.
I was skeptical. I have been skating on 7/8 for years. I wanted to give it a try after reading the reviews. Got a 90/50 which is suppose to be the equivalent to a 7/8. Loved it immediately, no adjustment except for the added glide. I felt a little insecure on my edges so had them redone with a 90/75. Perfect. You do feel like you are on top of the ice and the glide is significantly better.