self-sharpening or rink sharpening?

[kerosundae]

Hi, I just moved back to Paris and am in desperate need of a sharpening. I have a Pro-filer, am happy with it, and trust myself to sharpen my own blades with it, however, I forgot to bring it with me and my parents can't find it.

I'm not keen on buying another one and getting it shipped over here (over $100 total), so I have 2 other options:

1. buy a Skatemate kit, which will cost $45 shipped. Has anyone used this? Is it as good/better than the Pro-Filer? http://www.skatemate.com/index1.html

2. I can find a place to sharpen it here. Without a recommendation, I would not entrust my blades in the hands of sport shop employees.

I would very much appreciate any insights!

[JimStanmore]

Welcome to skatingforums!

Interesting question because I just went through this last fall and did a lot of research.  I have a SkateMate and it seems to do OK.  I wanted a Pro-filer, but the price was right for the SkateMate at $13 at a sporting goods store.  It touches up my edges so that I can skate three times as long between sharpenings and my sharpener has not commented about the blades being damaged or having to do extra work to sharpen them.  He is our Skating Director so he would have commented - was always picking on my Jackson Freestyle boots, LOL.  I like using very strong and deep curves/edges and the minute I feel the slightest slip it fixes it. The site says that it is for touch-ups, though, and you need a regular sharpening every so often.  If you get a SkateMate make sure to order replacement kit (sanding discs) to save shipping.

A biased (Sweet-Stick) comparison page;
http://www.sweet-stick.com/others.htm

European distributor (Germany):
http://www.centertrade.de/skatemate

Have you tried these:

Sonja Henie Ice Skating Rink or Bercy Ice Rink (?)
8 boulevard de Bercy, Paris, France 75012
Palais Omnisports de Paris-Bercy
Tel : 01 40 02 60 60

PATINOIRE ÉDOUARD PAILLERON
24, RUE ÉDOUARD PAILLERON , 75019 PARIS , FRANCE
Tel. : 01 40 40 27 70

http://www.pailleron19.com/lesite/activitessportives/patinoireactivitesportive/tabid/3256/Default.aspx

Have you tried contacting:
http://www.ffsg.org/disciplines/artistique/artistique.html
http://www.ffsg.org/csnpa/index.html

Somebody affiliated with the Dune of Flanders Cup Adult International Competition in France or the French Cup 2011 outside of Paris may be able to recommend a sharpener:
http://wasaskating.wordpress.com/2010/08/18/dune-of-flanders-cup-international-adult-ice-skating-competition-november-20-21-2010/
http://www.csndg.org/Competitions/competitions.htm#Comp%C3%A9titions%20Adultes

Of course, you are there and you probably speak French, two things I lack.

BTW, USPS small flat rate box Priority Mail to Paris is $13.95 and I found the SkateMate for $17.52 (http://www.amazon.com/Breakaway-Products-SkateMate-Skate-Sharpener/dp/B000NIZAC2.)  That's about $32.  It is about $24 before shipping from the European distributor.

Hope something in this long post helps -Good luck.

[fsk8r]

If you bought a new profiler would it be cheaper to ship to your parents and have them ship it to you?
And I suspect that there are some good sharpeners in Paris. Perhaps you should take some time to ask around at the rink? I'm sure someone will be able to help.

[kerosundae]

wow! thank you Jim for all those links to the associations! I had gone to the rinks and hadn't seen a rinkside sharpener, so I asked an employee who recommended GoSport (sporting goods chain, which I don't trust one bit). The couple of times that I went skating, I hoped to run into someone that would look like they cared about their skates, but never even spotted one person that could confidently stay on their feet; I think the real skaters don't go during public sessions, they skate during "club hours" and to skate in a "club" there's this complicated process involving medical checkups and insurance add-ons. well anyway, I'll have a look at the links and ask around first! In any case, it'll probably be faster to find a sharpener (person) than to wait for a sharpener (tool) to get shipped.

[jjane45]

I guess you don't have to be a club member to go talk to figure skaters after their session has ended, rink-side or in the lobby?

[SillyAdultSkater]

Welcome to skatingforums!

Interesting question because I just went through this last fall and did a lot of research.  I have a SkateMate and it seems to do OK.  I wanted a Pro-filer, but the price was right for the SkateMate at $13 at a sporting goods store.  

Jim - I need a pro-filer for a pair of coronation ace blades (not going to go into details, let's just say I now pretty much live in the middle of nowhere).

What kind of pro-filer do I need for those blades? How do the measurements work?