Does CCM own step steel?
Welcome to the CCM family, Step Steel! Very proud and excited to announce that Step Steel is now exclusive to the CCM XS Holder. One-Piece Boot + Step Steel + XS Holder = Best skate in hockey.
Whether it's for hockey, figure skating, or downhill skating, the men and women who choose STEP blades immediately feel the difference: better control, better precision, and absolute confidence in the ability to give their very best performance.
When it comes to blades, there is nothing that out performs STEP STEEL. The quality of the material, consistent thickness, and consistent shapes, provide my players with tremendous confidence. We switched to STEP BLACKSTEEL looking for a blade that holds a sharpening longer.
Step Steel Runners are one of the top choices among NHL Players today. They are built with the highest level of precision that gives players a better sharpening life, superior glide and optimal control. Player. Goalie.
CCM Hockey is currently owned by Canadian private equity firm Birch Hill Equity Partners, after the Adidas Group sold the brand for around $100 million in 2017. As of June 2021, the newly appointed CEO by Birch Hill Equity Partners is Marrouane Nabih.
CCM went bankrupt in 1983 and the plant was demolished soon after. All that remained was the name, which was bought and sold a few times and is now owned by Adidas. NHL stars such as Alexander Ovechkin fire slapshots with a CCM stick while its bicycles are sold at Canadian Tire.
The current leader in replacement steel, Step has perfected the hardening process of steel so it is lightweight, durable, and holds an edge longer. Step steel is available in standard stainless, super polished V-Steel for enhanced performance, and Black Steel for increased edge retention.
Hundreds of NHL players use Ls4 and Ls3 steel, it is the highest grade of steel offered on the Bauer light speed edge holders which is being heavily recommended and borderline mandatory on some teams.
More than two-thirds of NHL players wear Bauer skates. Some of those players may use aftermarket blades (more on those in a bit), but when Bauer introduces a new runner, it's usually a big deal.
Jochen Hecht of the Buffalo Sabres, Dennis Seidenberg of the New York Islanders, Marcel Goc of the Nashville Predators, and Christian Ehrhoff of the Buffalo Sabres are NHL players who use T-Blade skates.
What is the hardest knife steel to sharpen?
Vanadium carbides are among the hardest that form in steel, and chromium carbides are in between iron carbide and vanadium carbide. Steels with very high vanadium content like Vanadis 8, CPM-10V, K390, CPM-15V, etc. have extremely high edge retention.
CCM Hockey, a portfolio company of Birch Hill Equity Partners, has acquired Step Skating Blades, the maker of STEP Steel skate blades. CCM Hockey is a designer, manufacturer and marketer of hockey equipment and related apparel.

You can get your skates sharpened anywhere from 1/8th of an inch to one inch. 1/8th would be the sharpest, and one inch would be the least sharp.
Polished and carbon-coated, the STEP BlackSteel XS runner is a durable way of augmenting your speed on the ice. Give your absolute best performance with these superior steel runners.
Best Depth For Beginner Skaters
For figure skate style boot or a skate with a wider blade, we would recommend a 5/8 sharpen.
Bauer equipment is more accurate when it comes to sizes and also has better quality overall. Other than the equipment aspect of the brands, another factor plays in: pricing. The most expensive pieces of equipment are the skates and sticks. The majority of people use Bauer more because of the cheaper prices.
Callan Foote's size 16 skate.
Adidas said the decision is in line with its desire to refocus its activities on footwear and sportswear through its Reebok and Adidas brands.
CCM is the latest after announcements to divest brands such as Mitchell & Ness, TaylorMade, Adams Golf and Ashworth. The brand – worn by the likes of NHL stars Sidney Crosby, Connor McDavid and Carey Price – first launched as an Ontario bicycle company in 1899, but soon pivoted to hockey skates.
CCM Hockey, an equipment and apparel brand based in Canada, will no longer use Russian star and Washington Capitals left winger Alex Ovechkin or any other Russian in global marketing campaigns to promote its products.
What did CCM stand for?
In September of 1899 Canada Cycle & Motor Company Limited opened its doors for business in Weston, Ontario, Canada.
Carbon steel knives are often the sharpest steel for knives. They're sharper and harder than stainless steel knives. An authentic carbon steel chef's knife is exceptionally sharp, but it is also vulnerable to chipping if not used correctly.
Type 316 stainless steel is not just harder to machine but requires special tools to cut. It performs well against pitting, but it isn't as formable. That explains why it is reserved for applications other types of stainless steel can't handle.
Typically blue super has the longest edge life, #1 has the best edge formation and #2 the best toughness. Blue steels do not sharpen as easily as whites but they cut better as they dull.
Sidney Crosby uses a CCM P29 curve. This Hockey Stick Blade is one of the most popular in the game today and features a deep mid-curve allowing for great stickhandling and puck control.
What profile does Connor McDavid use? Connor McDavid uses custom Tydan Performance Blades. Connor McDavid runs a 10' profile. We sell Tydan Performance Blades.
Most skates are sharpened by cutting an arc in between the two edges, known as the radius of hollow (ROH). This is measured in inches. Hockey player and goalie skates are often sharpened with a ROH from 3/8” up to 1-1/2”. Figure skates are generally sharpened to 1”, and speed skates are COMPLETELY FLAT!
Other superstar forwards like Patrick Kane, Pavel Datsyuk and Wayne Gretzky have also used mild curves throughout their careers... none of which had any trouble scoring.
The Stanley Cup playoff beard has been an NHL tradition since the early 1980s, when the shaggy New York Islanders won four straight championships. It represents the players' singular focus, as if even personal hygiene is sacrificed in pursuit of hockey's holy grail.
Kris King, the NHL's senior manager of hockey operations, said the league approved the heated blades after determining that the blades were safe. The league did not test them for performance.
What is the easiest knife steel to sharpen?
Because 1095 is very easy to sharpen, it is an ideal blade steel to learn sharpening skills. You can take a knife with a 1095 blade and sharpen it while out in the field or in hunting camp.
Bad knife steel
Unsuitable steel is the most common reason why knives cannot be sharpened. Such steel is used in so-called cheap knives from no-name knife manufacturers. There are more than 2500 different types of steel with the most varied properties and applications.
A 1/2” hollow is pretty standard for most players in the League – not too deep, not too shallow and gives a little bit of ability ... The amount of hollow is based on personal preference and style of play, among other things.
There are several different types of hollows to choose from, but pro shops will commonly use 1/2” as their “standard” cut. The 1/2” hollow offers a respectable mix of glide and control for most players but adjusting the depth of the hollow can offer several benefits when done correctly.
It is recommended that you get them profiled before skating in them. The most common profiles are 7 foot 9 foot 11 foot and 13 foot. Most players go with a 9 foot radius, but there are many options to consider.
Used by more than 25 NHL teams, the Sparx Sharpener produces professional results with ease.
Extra sharp skates can slow a player down or make transitions difficult. Sharp skates result in a slower glide because the blades sink into the ice more. Skate blades are too sharp when the hollow (the curve between the inside and outside edges) is too deep.
Sharpen them too often and your blades will wear out prematurely. Not frequently enough, and you'll find yourself losing an edge when trying to turn, or being unable to control your skates.
Unlike most skates that need to be sharpened, these runners are ready to skate, utilizing a standard sharpening hollow. To gain the confidence needed to stand up and start skating, the Stability Blades should be used first since they are flatter and thicker than traditional CCM blades.
A larger profile means more of the blade is in contact with the ice, which means more stability and less maneuverability. A smaller profile means the opposite: more agility, but you are likely to get fatigued more quickly.
What steel is used for ice skates?
Figure Skating
These blades were most commonly made of tempered carbon steel coated with chrome, but lighter materials such as stainless steel are becoming more common. At the professional level, many athletes wear skates with high-grade steels that are much more expensive than common skates.
“What sharpening is standard?” ½ for player skates, 5/8 for goalie skates and figure skates.
The most common skate sharpening radius we see for ice hockey players is a 1/2″ inch or 5/8″ inch cut.
At best, figure skates last about 20 to 25 hours on the ice before they need sharpening — less if a skater likes her blades particularly sharp, or if something goes wrong.
CCM has acquired Step Steel, makes it exclusive to the XS holder going forward.
Reebok bought CCM, maker of hockey helmets and sticks, in 2004 for nearly $400 million, including debt. The next year, Adidas bought Reebok. CCM's value, and its business, have fallen since then.
Step steel is available in standard stainless, super polished V-Steel for enhanced performance, and Black Steel for increased edge retention. We carry Step for all models of CCM/Reebok/RBK, True, the hard-to-find Bauer, and goalie skates.
The larger the radius, the better the straight line, top-end speed and stability. The shorter the radius, the better the maneuverability. The blade can also be contoured with a forward lean or a backward lean — the former enhancing speed, the latter stability. More than two-thirds of NHL players wear Bauer skates.
The CCM SpeedBlade XS1 +2mm Black Runners are CCM's best steel offering since it boasts an extra +2mm in height and CCM's black oxide treatment process. The extra height extends it's sharpening life, providing a better angle of attack and gives players more custom radius options.
Hundreds of NHL players use Ls4 and Ls3 steel, it is the highest grade of steel offered on the Bauer light speed edge holders which is being heavily recommended and borderline mandatory on some teams.
What skate sharpening do most NHL players use?
Hockey player and goalie skates are often sharpened with a ROH from 3/8” up to 1-1/2”.
With different origins, CCM and Bauer have followed similar paths in the past 30 years, continuously pushing innovations in skate, stick, helmet, glove, and pad technology, each company owned for a short stint by the two biggest names in sports, and still the two most popular brands at all levels of play today.
Bauer equipment is more accurate when it comes to sizes and also has better quality overall. Other than the equipment aspect of the brands, another factor plays in: pricing. The most expensive pieces of equipment are the skates and sticks. The majority of people use Bauer more because of the cheaper prices.
Cerebral Cavernous Malformation (CCM)