sharpening edges - how often?

[liquidfeet]

I find that I am racing at least twice a week, and sometimes three times a week. If I sharpen my skis every night before a race, that's three sharpenings per week. One of those race days is a race class, and we go down the course 5 times or so during the morning. I'm in New England and free skiing is still often on hard, dense snow, so I like to have sharp edges even when I'm not racing.

I only sharpen the side bevel. It's two degrees now. I put magic marker down the side, then use my file guide and the file that came with it. This is new to me, so I'm trying to do it right but am hesitant and cautious.

Am I shortening the life of these skis massively? If they were your skis would you do this to them?

 

[volklgirl]

If you're sharpening that often, you'll need a side wall planer very soon. Each time you file the side edge you take material off the edge, getting closer and closer to the sidewall on each pass. Soon enough, the edger will only be shaving plastic from the sidewall rather than metal from the edge.

While we wax before every race and every 1-3 recreational ski days, we only sharpen when we can no longer shave our fingernail with the edge. If you polish your edges after every race or ski day with a diamond stone or gummy, you should be OK. You'll know when it's time to sharpen cuz your edges will begin to break loose on the really icy stuff.

 

[Jilly]

I'm with volklgirl - I think that's too much. I'm not racing so I don't need extra sharp edges, but I like sharp edges. I do mine every week of 7 days skiing. Now if its been icy, then sooner as they tend to wear faster. You just need to touch up with the stone and remove the burrs.

 

[liquidfeet]

So I have a diamond file, which is a long thin rectangle with a pattern of diamonds (!) on one side, and just words on the other, and I have the gummy stone that feels like an industrial eraser. The diamond file will fit into my file holder in the position that works for sharpening sides, but not in the position that works for the bottom bevel. I can put that in and set it at 2 degrees to do the edges. Should that diamond stone be what I am using, instead of the file that is clearly rougher, that came with the file holder?

I thought the gummy dulled the edges.

 

[volklgirl]

You'll want a small diamond or Arkansas stone for polishing. They're usually 1-2" x 3" or so....you put it in your file guide and do many many very light passes until your edges are sharp and shiny. A rough gummy can do the same thing, but it takes a little longer. The gummy can be used free hand, flat against the edge and scrub back and forth. The gummy is also used to de-tune tip and tail (we don't), and to remove the hanging burr left during filing (run it very gently along the edge anywhere your finger 'catches' - both side and bottom edges).

 

[liquidfeet]

Thanks. I'll try the diamond file instead of the other file. I think what I have is what you are talking about.