Big Toepicks

[AgnesNitt]

I'm in the mood for some big f*g toepicks.

I'm  a big girl and I want to do a lot of toepicky stuff. I'm in Pros right now, but those toepicks look like grains of rice compare to what I want..

I want toepicks so big that your eyes bleed when you look at them.

Think of toepicks the size of a baby's fist with point like the talons of Jurassic Park raptor and the drop pick like the eyetooth of Indominous Rex.

Suggestions?

[Christy]

 Matrix Legacy blades

[Meli]

I'm in the mood for some big f*g toepicks.

I'm  a big girl and I want to do a lot of toepicky stuff. I'm in Pros right now, but those toepicks look like grains of rice compare to what I want..

Just to be clear, the toepicky stuff involves skating and not bloodshed, right? 

[AgnesNitt]

Just to be clear, the toepicky stuff involves skating and not bloodshed, right? 

WELL...not yet... 

[tstop4me]

Take a look at this:

http://www.skatescience.net/products.html#menu4


Click on Olympus double plus or triple/quad and look at them bloodsuckers.

[AgnesNitt]

I was toying with the Pattern 99

http://www.johnwilsonskates.com/products/pattern-99

Note it has an 'enlarged top toepick'....oooh, yeah baby. I wanna be over bladed.

[AgnesNitt]

Okay tstopme, http://www.skatescience.net/products.html#menu4 those are some honkin' big toepicks.

That rocker is....some weird sum(blocked).

[Query]

I'm absolutely certain you won't get a consensus on blade choice!

Since you maintain a page on blades, I think you probably know better than the rest of us. But...

It's not just the obvious height of the toe pick. It's also how close it is to the sweet spot, in length and in angle change. You are good enough at geometry to know that that involves placment and spin rocker. Plus, some people claim cross-cut blades dig deeper. And Ultima blades are MUCH sharper at the toe pick than MK and Wilson blades.

I'm not good enough at Freestyle stuff to to advise you in an authoritative way. The only real freestyle blade I've tried is Ultima Supreme, one of 3 styles of runner I got for my Matrix blade chassis.

Ultima Supreme blades

  http://www.jacksonultima.com/en/Index.aspx?category=VLrDP7VJmBWQSIPAKIyVdw1A2B3C4D5E1A2B3C4D5E

(compare to your blades at http://mkblades.com/products)

not only have pretty big toe picks, but they are farther back, closer to the sweet spot, so you reach them more quickly, sometimes unintentionally. At least I do. I've been using them recently, out of curiosity, but I often hit the toe picks when I don't want to, especially when I skate fast. They are too much blade for me. But they sound exactly what you want.

If you try moving the mount position on your MK Pros farther back, you will find out if you want the toe picks farther back, and you will see what a pain it is to keep hitting the toe picks when you don't want to. And it won't cost you anything but time. Just be careful not to step on the tail.

Ultima is quite confusing. It is hard to tell whether the Supreme, Freestyle, or Elite are the harder core freestyle blades. Then again, from HD Sports, I'm not sure whether the MK Gold Star, MK Phantom, or Wilson Gold Seal

  http://www.worldsbestblades.com/products

are harder core.

On the other hand, some blades have been made which are very abruptly much wider at the toe (I think they are called K-picks). It makes it even easier to grab ice with that toe pick. And harder to avoid it, especially on deep edeges.

While you are at it, you could use lighter blades - e.g., MK or Wilson Revolution, or Ultima Matrix.

"Mr. Edge" pushes Skate Science blades

  http://skatescience.net

which are supposedly designed for truly elite skaters. Part of that, especially on the "Olympus Triple/Quad" blade, is that the rocker profile is designed to require and take advantage of the strength of an Olympian. (I'm basing this on a long phone discussion with the owner, who loves to talk about his blades.) If your power curve isn't like that... One cool thing is that you might be the only person at your rink with a Skate Science blade.

So: Buy them all! This thread

  http://skatingforums.com/index.php?topic=1173.msg87967#msg87967

has a bunch of blade manufacturers. If you can afford it, you could buy the top freestyle blades from every manufacturer.  I've known people who took an approach pretty close to that, with boots and blades.

But we both know a top flight skate technician - you know who I mean (M.C.). I'm sure he could give you very good advice, and might be the best person you could talk to. He knows what some of the world's best use, and maybe what they think of those choices; those choices are often what the manufacturer wants them to use - and gives them free. Maybe some companies even pay the top skaters to use their most expensive blades? He can also modify rocker profile, ROH, sharpness and relative edge heights to adapt to your needs. Interestingly enough, he prefers parallel sided blades, whereas Mr. Edge, who is also top flight, claims various forms of side honing often help. As you must know, if you don't get parallel sides, it is a lot harder to sharpen well. (For example, some rocker profiles would create wierd edge separation profiles.) And last I knew, M.C. usually gently pushes Ultima, whereas Mr. Edges strongly pushes Skate Science.

As an engineer, couldn't you design blades that make you jump better, using hidden springs?

With Edge Specialities' adjustable toe pick, you could create a ridiculously long toe pick. But I think they've stopped making them?

[Loops]

I'm digging the picks on my Supremes. Waaaaaay more effective than my vision synchros were, and when I jump leave a smaller hole. I could still cause serious bloodshed though. In fact I've already nailed myself twice in the legs with the tail, so I can assure you, Agnes theyll make eyes bleed at both ends!! I'm still adjusting somewhat to the blades but overall I'm a happy camper. Definitely overbladed...MC would roll his eyes....but it's all good.

[tstop4me]

With Edge Specialities' adjustable toe pick, you could create a ridiculously long toe pick. But I think they've stopped making them?

Did you mean Edge Specialties (makers of the Pro-Filer and HDI)?  I don't think they ever had an adjustable toepick.  Or are you thinking of Sidney Broadbent and his ICEpick removable toepick assembly, http://www.iceskateology.com/Skateology/Goldquest.html?  I'm surprised this design never went mainstream.  Sure would make sharpening figure blades a lot easier.

[tstop4me]

I'm absolutely certain you won't get a consensus on blade choice!

Since you maintain a page on blades, I think you probably know better than the rest of us. But...

There are times when you buy something based on sound engineering criteria and cost-to-value assessment; and then there are times when you've earned a well-deserved bonus and want to reward yourself by splurging on something extravagant, sumptuous, ... and wicked.  This sounds like the latter.  Agnes didn't ask for advice on the best toepicks suited for her skating, she asked for pointers to the most bad-ass, Oedipal toepicks available.

[Query]

Did you mean Edge Specialties (makers of the Pro-Filer and HDI)?  I don't think they ever had an adjustable toepick.  Or are you thinking of Sidney Broadbent and his ICEpick removable toepick assembly, http://www.iceskateology.com/Skateology/Goldquest.html?

You are right!

http://www.iceskateology.com/Skateology/Price_List.html says Goldquest blades are made to order (price not specified) - so perhaps she could get them, and set and keep the toepicks nice and long. I think the idea is really cool. I'm not sure whether Broadbent makes them - at one point he said he was going to sub-contract manufacture to MK.

I think adjustable length toepicks can't become common because they would let you use your blades for a longer time, and maybe use them for more than one figure skating discipline. That would reduce sales, for the manufacturer and for pro shops. M.C. thinks that interchangeable and replaceable figure skating blade runners died because pro shops wouldn't carry them.

[Neverdull44]

And, then your coach will tell you . . . . don't scratch with your big a** toe-picks!

[AgnesNitt]

There are times when you buy something based on sound engineering criteria and cost-to-value assessment; and then there are times when you've earned a well-deserved bonus and want to reward yourself by splurging on something extravagant, sumptuous, ... and wicked.  This sounds like the latter.  Agnes didn't ask for advice on the best toepicks suited for her skating, she asked for pointers to the most bad-ass, Oedipal toepicks available.

Ah, tstopme, you know me so well....except for the Oedipal bit.

[Bill_S]

It just happens that Wilson has created a more aggressive pick than the original double-wide K-picks.

The new blade featuring the up-sized pick is called the Nitt Pick...



This one's for you, Agnes!

[tstop4me]

Now Oedipus has something to be really envious of.

[AgnesNitt]

Ha ha! 

Pretty good shopping!

[Isk8NYC]

Major +GOE for Bill_S - too funny!

[Neverdull44]

Those blades are going to be banned by TSA . . .  and featured on Shark Week.   

[Query]

An update on my Ultima Supremes.

I had to switch back to my old broken down skates , for now, because of the heel that came apart on the current ones.

Without intending to, I shimmed it differently, front-to-back, so the toe picks were higher off the ice. Now they aren't a problem, and I can skate as fast as I want.

So, Agnes, you can change the shim your current blades so that they tilt the toe pick more into the ice, and learn what aggressive picks mean. I admit that if your holes are still in good shape, the screw tops will no longer rest level on the countersinks, unless you drill new holes, but as a temporary experiment in extreme picking,

  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1tqxzWdKKu8

it might work.

[Loops]

It just happens that Wilson has created a more aggressive pick than the original double-wide K-picks.

Omg Bill....rofl + serious GOE