Sparx Divas...Just stop!

Okay, so I know the old school guys out there think the Sparx machine is a joke and does a terrible job sharpening skates.

You'll never convince them otherwise -- it is what it is, just let it go.

But, adding fuel to their fire, it seems that every new Sparx owner also purchases the edge checker, an expensive extra, and then asks 50 rapid-fire questions on social media about how level the edge should be, about which wheel to use, and this and that and, well...I'll be honest...

You're making yourself look like a fool...using a device designed to be fool proof.

It's awkward af, bud.

And for the guys chiming in with words of wisdom, self proclaimed experts, well, you guys are a laughing stock too with your level edge requirements, profiling suggestions, and number of passes required inclinations.

Please stop.

I have a generation 1 machine from 2016 -- it's the big heavy sucker.

I ordered right at the tail end of the Kickstarter campaign and my device shipped out to me around 7 or 8 months after I'd paid for it.

Early adopter, here, is what I'm saying.

Sure, I had illusions of grandeur putting on steampunk style goggles and a leather apron while grinding my kids' skates down with sparks flying all over the place on a custom Blademaster cabinet in our hockey room as I cackled away like Gargamel.

And then I came back to reality and was like, you know, putting the skate into a vice, pushing a button, and watching a light switch from red to green is probably more in my wheelhouse...

Anyway, my Sparx machine has failed me once.

Ever.

It wouldn't recognize a new wheel and, as it turned out, my machine needed the firmware update that the older machines started to require (with new wheels) in 2023.

Went through that task and, boom, done.

Good as new, again.

It was a 3 day inconvenience...over a 7 year span.

We have 5 skaters in the house, three that are on the ice a minimum of 5 days per week, and I haven't had any of our skates sharpened anywhere but the Sparx machine in our hockey room since 2016.

That's a lot of sharpenings.

And here's one for the newbies and the self proclaimed experts -- I suggest you take a seat and brace yourselves...

I have never checked the edges on my kids skates.

Ever.

Not once.

I have never even considered the purchasing the edge checker tool either, seeing it as an expensive and un-necessary accessory.

You want to know the best way to check your edges?

Skate on them.

I know, right? Blinding flash of the obvious...

Trust the machine -- it works.

And, really, after maybe three sharpens total -- I figured out that I could visually see an iffy sharpening job.

You can literally see it.

Yes. With your eyes.

You can hear it as well.

Listen as it's sharpening -- you can "hear" issues.

There is ZERO need for a $140 accessory that does NOTHING to help you or your kid skate.

Now they have a digital one that costs $250?!

And that's the thing -- Sparx's own marketing material says, "Our most popular accessory with pro hockey equipment managers, the Sparx Edge Checker is a must have for anyone looking for professional performance and quality."

Show of hands...

How many of you are pro hockey equipment managers?

How many of your kids require professional performance and quality?

You don't need to answer...I know the answer.

And was the place you were getting skates sharpened prior to owning a Sparx providing you "professional performance and quality"?

Maybe...but I'm guessing not.

Most hockey pro shops have some midget-aged teenager that doesn't play anymore because they're not good enough for junior hockey and not old enough for men's league yet manning the front end.

They have maybe 10 minutes worth of training on the sharpener. Especially in the States.

Minnesota and parts of Michigan, excluded.

That's a fact.

Dude, this might blow your mind but the kid with the backwards hat on, constantly trying to curl his hair up from under the hat is winging it every time.

Every single time.

So, yeah...unless you're the type of hockey parent that needs all the bells and whistles...you can save yourself $140/$250 and skip over the Edge Checker.

One millimeter one way or the other does not make a difference for a hockey player.

A youth one, at that.

It doesn't.

If you think so, you're wrong. Or have never skated.

Like, for instance, do you go into panic mode when your car shows that your rear passenger side tire is one psi lower than the other three tires?

Do you feel yourself falling into the passenger seat because it's "so" off?

No, of course not.

You'll notice when it's flat.

Kinda like you'll notice when your kid can't skate.

True story -- with a Sparx, your kid will never even know what dull skates feel like.

Having a Sparx has allowed us to help out teammates plenty of times when they couldn't get a sharpen in time for an early morning game the next day...

And, nearly every single time, it's a player with a parent that has that "the pro shop is the only way to go" mentality.

Without fail, they've already filled their kid's head that the sharpen they're going to receive from a Sparx is inferior...

And then, the kid is always out there shaking their heads during pre-game warm-ups acting like something's really off, you know, bad sharpening to blame.

This is so comical to me.

And then when that same dad produces one of those hand held skate sharpener keychain things to "fix" the issue that doesn't exist, well, I'm rolling on the floor.

Familiarity and consistency are of the utmost importance when it comes to skates and the blades.

Guess what a Sparx provides?

You guessed it...consistency!

It's the same damn sharpen every single time.

It's not dependent on which teenager was at the helm, or what they "think" is the best way, or how experienced they are.

It's an automated machine.

My first sharpen in 2016 is exactly the same as the sharpen I did last night.

Unless you're an aspiring high end figure skater, the "quality" of the sharpen -- specifically how level it is -- isn't important at all.

Fun fact, the quality of the steel on hockey skates is garbage to begin with. Even those expensive blade upgrades...

It's a drop in the bucket when it comes to performance.

It's almost as absurd as folks paying a premium for skates or gloves that weigh 20 grams less.

You know what weighs around 20 grams? An empty soda can.

That kind of weight is insignificant.

And, if we're getting really technical -- which I've been known to do -- hockey skate blades resemble figure skate blades with training wheels on them.

They're not at all alike.

Figure skaters: Keep getting those "professional" sharpens that cost two or three times as much. You're actually utilizing their expertise.

Did someone mention deburring?

Oh jeez... Did you scratch your black steel up using the honing stone?

Shoulda used the leather strap, dummy...

No, but, seriously, I don't debur the edges at all either and I'll tell you why...

Five strides on the ice will do it for you.

And regarding the deburring -- are you creating a display piece for the Hockey Hall of Fame?

Or are you setting something up to be used during a Tuesday night practice?

There's a huge difference.

Just ask the car guys -- show cars and daily drivers are "maintained" differently.

I'm guessing that 100% of the home sharpener owning crowd aren't sharpening skates for display purposes...they're sharpening them to be used.

Best practices for using a Sparx Machine from a real user that has NEVER had a skate issue.

SETUP ------------------------------

Set the thing up at home. Don't move it around.

You do not need an expensive foam lined travel case so you can do sharpens between games in the parking lot at the tournament. Leave the machine at home.

Trust me -- your kid is NOT dulling their blades over the span of 4 games unless they're purposely stomping on metal door jambs.

Little Billy will be fine if you make it to the finals and a fifth game too.

(Remember, even if you're the coach and double shifting your own kid...the amount of ice time they get in a single game is maybe 10 minutes total. The steel will hold up.)

WHEEL SELECTION ------------------------------

Next, if you have zero clue, just get the regular 1/2 inch wheel. You don't need to hem and haw over which wheel to get, fire or regular, or ask 100 questions. It's all a matter of preference...and total BS at the same time.

My kids use the the 11/16th wheel.

Wanna know why?

They're good skaters and we figured a little more glide would increase their speed about as much as taking 20 grams off of the weight of their gloves.

Plus, we liked the turquoise color of that wheel better.

But seriously, I've found that most Sparx owners are still in that gung-ho, my kids is going to the NHL, phase...meaning, squirt or peewee parents.

If you're not familiar with those terms -- kids that are in 4th grade and those just entering middle school.

Little kids, in the grand scheme.

Guess what?

They don't weigh enough to, A, notice such tiny incremental blade sharpening variations or, B, wear down blades to the point they're dull over the span of maybe an hour of ice time.

They don't.

If you think they do, well, you're fooling yourself.

So, again, use this chart to pick your "hollow". Start with the 1/2 inch right out of the gate.

If your kid skates real well and uses their edges effectively (and someone who has a clue has told you that)...starting moving over towards the options that offer more glide...one ring, maybe two, at a time.

If your kid is one of those players that wipes out every time they do a hockey stop to their weaker side...start moving towards the options with more bite or grip.

Don't even consider the "Fire" wheels.

Cool name, sure, but your kid doesn't weigh enough for it to make an empty soda can of difference.

And, I'll go there... You guys going crazy with the deburring...are removing the "feature" that the Fire wheels provide.

The number of owners I've seen proudly post photos of how they've un-sharpened their kid's freshly sharpened skates blows my mind. You can't make this stuff up.

ADJUSTMENT ------------------------------

Put your kids skate in the clamp and adjust the height of the wheel arm to hit where your kid's skate will actually touch the ice. For setting the height, I generally have the boot facing to the right so the wheel hits the front of the skate first...but not WAY up on the blade.

Your kid isn't skating on their toe -- have the wheel make contact just above where the blade starts to flatten out.

Your machine will sound a lot healthier, your wheel will last longer, and so will your steel.

True story, though -- if you're not a psycho over-sharpener like so many of the self-proclaimed Sparx "experts" are, your kid will outgrow the skate and the blade size long before you run out of steel to sharpen.

Boom. Done.

My skates, my wife's skates, my midget's skates, my bantam's skates, and even my squirt's skates are all at the same height.

Set it and forget it.

There is no need to make "adjustments" for every single pair of skates. None.

PASSES ------------------------------

I do a single pass, maybe once a week, for my kids.

Crazy, right?

For our family, one kid skates 7 days per week and the other two are 5 days per week. One pass will suffice.

If I notice some oddities on the blade after that one pass, I flip the boot around to face the opposite direction...and give it one more pass.

So...two passes if you're a perfectionist.

I know they have the "4" circled as the baseline right there on the machine...but, like, of course they want you to do more passes than you need.

Part of their business model is selling you the peripherals that wear down.

And that's the thing -- one wheel tends to last us an entire season.

Grand total, over 7 years, I think we're on our 7th wheel. Maybe 8th.

Now, for a brand new set of blades, fresh out of the box or plastic blister pack, I'll do 6 passes.

Three with the boot pointed to the right...and three with it pointed to the left. Good to go.

These online warriors saying you need to do 10 passes every time you do something as minor as change the hollow are delusional.

MAINTENANCE ------------------------------

Dump out the dust tray every now and then.

I do it maybe 3 times per YEAR.

Replace the air filter even less frequently.

I've done it...ONCE...but have another one handy for the next time I do it.

And don't over tighten the thumb screw that holds the grinding wheel in place.

That's it.

It's an amazing machine right out of the box.

Don't overthink it.

It does exactly what it's designed to do. Sharpen amateur hockey player's skates.

And it does that really well.

Agree? Disagree? Let me know -- I love the feedback from all angles!

Chris Rutsch

Hockey Dad

Year round, I spend a significant amount of time and money transporting my three boys to and from freezing cold ice rinks. Not because I expect them to make it to the NHL but because I know the rigorous youth hockey experience will serve them well in the future.