I'm thinking hard of using good hockey skates for this. I like the idea of not having a raised heel, or an upwards bend along the boot length.

Two days ago I tried to spin and jump on hockey skates, without removing the blades. I hate toe picks, but discovered I've become totally dependent on them, and basically couldn't. Also, I need to avoid backwards leans.

So I need to remove the blades (harder to do on some hockey skates than others, and I need to remove the rivets), and adding my figure blades.

But maybe my current blade length is too long without raised heels? Because to some extent, it is the vertically projected length of the foot that should matter to blade length.

The person who runs the pro shop at Gardens Ice House in Laurel, MD, USA, pointed out to me today that hockey skates do have raised heels - in fact they have mostly been raised 3 cm higher than they used to be a few years ago. And they are roughly as high as figure skate heels. In the case of hockey skates, the "heel" is in the blade holder, rather than something that looks like a high heel, as in figure skates.

But where hockey and figure boot insole shapes differ is in the upwards bend near the ball of the foot. There is much less upwards bend in hockey boots.

Yesterday I bought used hockey boots: Bauer Vapor 500 model for $75, in very good condition, though the blade runners, which are easily replaced, have some wear. I showed them to him, and asked about heat molding - he said he would charge $50.

They only require 175 degrees F to heat mold - more or less achievable with some handheld hair driers.

I have previously been unwilling to use a regular home oven, because their temperature regulation is poor. But,
https://www.icewarehouse.com/lc/skates/how-to-bake-a-hockey-skate-at-home.html
points out a fix - use an oven thermometer, and insert the boots after turning the oven off. Page gives very detailed directions.

I didn't have time to ask what he would charge to remove rivets, or whether he carries the bolts and nuts that could hold figure blades on hockey boots.

FWIW, I always felt faster with more glide after a fresh sharpening. That could be translated into "less sticky", I suppose.

In the U.S., 3M brand Scotch transparent tape[/quote], the best known brand, is about $1 or less, at almost any department store, or online. Is there really nothing similar in Germany? It's slippery enough not to scratch the blade significantly, despite my snug fit, and wider than the Pro-Filer gap depth.

I now feel that it is much better to apply the tape to the tool (stuck to the inside of the gap) than to the blade - as I suggested above. It's easier to align the tape with the bottom of the gap, because it touches the stone, than to the blade. I simply fold the excess across the top of the tool. After applying it to both sides, so the blade is snug enough to stick in the gap a bit, I make the tape stick better by inserting the blade, and then press it hard to each side.

This is much faster than carefully trying to align tape to the edge of the blade. The tape stays on for many sharpenings. It makes the tool itself look less pretty, but I don't care.

Being that snug means there is no side to side motion of the blade within the tool - so it makes a clean edge, not bent over at all anywhere (assuming you reverse the tool every few strokes), or needing any straightening (at least when using the coarse stone) with a flat stone or steel.

This way the entire sharpening operation only take a few minutes at most. I hadn't thought of this method when I started posting here about Pro-Filer, about 20 years ago, but I now think it best. I will never go back to sharpening at a pro shop, nor use a power tool.

Ah, yes, the pesky tape problem.  See my recommendation here:  https://skatingforums.com/index.php?topic=6837.0  Reply#18.

Thanks Tstop.  I decided to do a sharpening today and forget the tape.  I’m not sensitive and decided to just deal with the scratching, because it’s hard to find decent tape where I am. 

The edges feel so much sharper after!  I usually go a really long time between traditional sharpenings, but I guess it makes sense to use the Profiler more often.  In any case it’s always nice before a competition.  Let’s see if the the weird, sticky, hard ice feels any better today?

Query, I used the Profiler on the blades of my old pair and was happy.  I just need to tally up my skating hours and see if it isn’t a bit early to bother.  I did have a difficult time finding tape that worked well.  The crappy stuff I had on hand made it jam up annoyingly.