We at Skates always recommend you get your ice skates sharpened professionally. They have to be machine ground - the blades are too hard to grind by hand - and they can be ruined if the sharpening isn’t done well.

Ideally, the store should invest in the proper blade-sharpening equipment for ice skates, which sets the tool in alignment and ensures the skater isn’t thrown off-balance when they next go on the ice. Your best bet is to ask the pros at your local rink where they get their blades sharpened. In the meantime, here’s what can go wrong if you visit the wrong shop:

- Detempering. Caused by the blade being left against the abrasive tool too long, it leaves a tell-tale sheen. The proprietor will swear it is normal, and can be polished away. It’s not, and it won’t! Detempered blades on ice skates become soft and start to buckle during sharpening. When cold, they are weak and brittle – just as they were before the metal was tempered during their manufacture.

- Off centre hollow. When sharpened, the hollow on the ice skates must be absolutely centred on the blade. To the uninitiated, an off-centre blade looks no different to a balanced one. The skater, though, will feel a hell of a difference. Test your blades by placing a coin in the hollow – it should sit flat. If it’s at an angle – you’re off-centre.

- Uneven rockers. Self-explanatory. Well sharpened ice skates preserve the original rocker profile exactly. Another one to watch for is metal removed from the drag pick; a good sharpener never touches the pick with his tool.