Matrix legacy blades

[Timonerr_]

Hi!

I posted a while ago about my blades, and wanting to get new ones, thank you for everyone that answered! Actually I moved countries and now I have the option for matrix, the lady recommended me matrix legacy, 320€, but I haven’t really seen a lot of reviews about it so if someone can give me gig I’ll be really grateful, that shop also sells gold seals for 400€ so it’s a difference, but not as much, so if someone can give me advice that’ll be very helpful.

Thank you!

 

[WednesdayMarch]

Hi!

I posted a while ago about my blades, and wanting to get new ones, thank you for everyone that answered! Actually I moved countries and now I have the option for matrix, the lady recommended me matrix legacy, 320€, but I haven’t really seen a lot of reviews about it so if someone can give me gig I’ll be really grateful, that shop also sells gold seals for 400€ so it’s a difference, but not as much, so if someone can give me advice that’ll be very helpful.

Thank you!

Gold Seal. No contest.

 

[Ic3Rabbit]

Hi!

I posted a while ago about my blades, and wanting to get new ones, thank you for everyone that answered! Actually I moved countries and now I have the option for matrix, the lady recommended me matrix legacy, 320€, but I haven’t really seen a lot of reviews about it so if someone can give me gig I’ll be really grateful, that shop also sells gold seals for 400€ so it’s a difference, but not as much, so if someone can give me advice that’ll be very helpful.

Thank you!

No to matrix, too flat of a rocker. I believe in your previous thread I told you to go for Coronation Ace or MK Professional. The Gold Seals and other top level blades are too advanced for you at this point.

 

[Timonerr_]

No to matrix, too flat of a rocker. I believe in your previous thread I told you to go for Coronation Ace or MK Professional. The Gold Seals and other top level blades are too advanced for you at this point.

The lady in the shop doesn't have either coro aces or mk's, she only have 8' rocker, she also has jackson ultima legacy 8, but between those and matrix i think matrix is better, she doesn't have a lot of blades, just matrix, legacy and supreme, and gold seals. So the deal it's between matrix legacy's and gold seals, I picked up both and was really surprised to find out that gold seals were much heavier than matrix legacy, will this be a problem?

 

[Ic3Rabbit]

The lady in the shop doesn't have either coro aces or mk's, she only have 8' rocker, she also has jackson ultima legacy 8, but between those and matrix i think matrix is better, she doesn't have a lot of blades, just matrix, legacy and supreme, and gold seals. So the deal it's between matrix legacy's and gold seals, I picked up both and was really surprised to find out that gold seals were much heavier than matrix legacy, will this be a problem?

Gold Seal then.

 

[alyssamarie]

I have matrix legacy blades. No real complaints - very lightweight. I've had them on this boot and my previous boots.

 

[Timonerr_]

I have matrix legacy blades. No real complaints - very lightweight. I've had them on this boot and my previous boots.

Hello!

Can I ask how long does it take between sharpening?

Thank you.

 

[Ic3Rabbit]

Be aware that Matrix Legacy has separate blade runner from rest of chassis that when has to be sharpened, requires a special jig and not all sharpeners have or know how to use one. I would hate for your blades to be messed up due to something like that.

 

[Timonerr_]

Be aware that Matrix Legacy has separate blade runner from rest of chassis that when has to be sharpened, requires a special jig and not all sharpeners have or know how to use one. I would hate for your blades to be messed up due to something like that.

Yeah I asked specifically if they could sharpen matrix blades, so far they said yes and they are charging me 25€ instead of 5€ if I were to get gold seals, I just wanted to know if it really last a lot longer between sharpenings, because if not I’ll go with gold seals but if it’s as good as they say I’ll get matrix.

 

[WednesdayMarch]

Seriously, get the Gold Seals. There's a reason they're so popular.

 

[christy]

I've had Matrix blades for about 8 years now and love them, especially the time between sharpenings. I moved from MK Pros to Legacies, and went from sharpening every 20 hours to sharpening every 50+ hours, however it does seem to depend on the sharpener as I tried someone different and the sharpening didn't last as long.

As others have said you need to find someone with the correct equipment. We have a guy who tries to sharpen without and the results are extremely random!

 

[alyssamarie]

Hello!

Can I ask how long does it take between sharpening?

Thank you.

Not gonna lie i havent really skated much so its been a while. I'd say probably 1-2 months when i skate 1-2 times a week. But i don't get them sharpened right before events. I have to get them sharpened at .5

 

[Lutz Mark]

The aluminum chassis on the Matrix series is specifically made with straight-sided parallel sections so that it is easy and accurate to place on the skate holder. So it is mounted on the skate holder the same as one would with a standard chrome steel blade. Unless the particular skate holder is limited in clamping thickness, there should be no problem. None of the shops in town that I have seen sharpening Matrix blades uses any special jig, and both holders on the machine that I have easily fit the Matrix blades.

I have no idea why the shop would charge so much more to sharpen Matrix blades. The stainless steel runner is harder material, but it is essentially the same that has been used on hockey skates for a long long time. One uses the exact same stone as for other blades. They are no more difficult to sharpen than hockey blades so it seems strange that they do this. All the shops here charge the same amount for Matrix blades as for standard blades.

The only caveat with the Matrix series is that some skater beat up the aluminum chassis so bad when doing jumps (hitting the blades together on triples e.g.) that one has to make sure that there are no large nicks or burrs where the blades will be clamped.

Gold Seal blades on the other hand, may require a special jig, or at the minimum, extra set-up time and attention paid when sharpening. This is because the sides of the blade (including the stanchions) are hollow ground so they can not be mounted as simply as straight-sided blades. Additionaly, the runner is tapered which also requires extra attention to positioning on the holder and sharpening. If you have or buy Gold Seals, one should at least learn how to check edges for even sharpening.

 

[Ic3Rabbit]

Gold Seals just require an experienced sharpening tech to sharpen them correctly, they don't require a jig. They are tapered therefor care needs to be taken. Then again, care needs to be taken with most blades over basic.

Many matrix do indeed need a jig and if one is not sharpening with them, then there's a problem lol.
Proof of jig, techs can order them:

Skate Technicians - Matrix Sharpening Jig available - contact by email at [email protected] for further details

Not only that but i've worn and competed in them in the past and know they need the jig.

 

[Lutz Mark]

Here is what Jackson says about sharpening them:

In the video they explain how the chassis is made straight sided so thay they are easy to mount and acheive an accurate sharpening position. They say it will fit in 98-99% of sharpening machines without needing a jig. This is my experience when sharpening them also -- they require no jig and fit on both types of holders that I have for my machine. The tech does mention two kinds of machines where a jig is necessary, and also says that one can use the jig even if it is not needed on a particular machine, so the shop may have been doing that to save time (the thicker chassis requires slightly more time for machine setup).

The tech mentions that some Matrix runners have a dovetail cross section (MK and/or JW made some blades like that too IIRC). This acheives what is done on the Gold Seal with their hollow ground (concave cross section) blades. On the Matrix leveling for sharpening is easy due to the fact that one doesn't clamp on the runner but on the chassis. On the Gold Seal, there is no place on the runner area or stanchion where the sides are parallel in cross section so that is what takes extra care and time for sharpening.

 

[kolyadafan2002]

Gold Seals just require an experienced sharpening tech to sharpen them correctly, they don't require a jig. They are tapered therefor care needs to be taken. Then again, care needs to be taken with most blades over basic.

Many matrix do indeed need a jig and if one is not sharpening with them, then there's a problem lol.
Proof of jig, techs can order them:

Skate Technicians - Matrix Sharpening Jig available - contact by email at [email protected] for further details

Not only that but i've worn and competed in them in the past and know they need the jig.

Having them, I can concur that they need a special jig (as confirmed by my coach/skate tech).

I want to mention to OP, that having matrix blades, spins have deteriorated compared to gold seal (I won't be getting them again). Jumps are roughly equal, with no noticeable weight advantage. Skating itself is different, but again, no advantage. Stainless steel offers advantages vs rust, but shouldn't be an issue if you look after the blades.
So for pretty much equal skating/jumps, and worse/more scratchy spins, I would not recommend matrix, and would recommend the gold seal instead.

 

[Ic3Rabbit]

Raj didn't get specific in that video. There are blades in that brand that require jig and some that don't. One should be sharpening them with jig (the ones that require but oh well).

 

[Lutz Mark]

He did say that the Flemming Grey, Blackstone and other "tabletop" sharpening machines require the jig for sharpening the Matrix blade line. They are popular machines, but shops and sharpeners do use other types. The essential information in the video is that Jackson has precision machined the chassis so that the sides are flat and parallel to allow easy and precision mounting on most machines. A shop would need to know their particular machine and if it requires a jig or not. The limitation being that the aforementioned machines likely don't have the height adjustment range needed on their skate holders (since for years there was never much variation in blade thickness so the holder need not be made to accomodate the thickness that an aluminum chassis has.)

 

[Lutz Mark]

Just to note too,

Ultima's Matrix line simply describes their blades that have the aluminum chassis construction. They use quite a few different blade profiles in that line so you can't really say they are not good in general for spins etc, but should let us know which blade you were actually using (e.g. Nova, Freestyle, Supreme, Legacy, etc.) Unless you skated in them all and they were all the same!

 

[supersharp]

ic3Rabbit--are you saying that the Matrix blade that claims to have the Gold Seal profile has a different spin rocker than the Gold Seal?