Who makes the blade model name "Gold Test"?

[treesprite]

Maybe someone here knows the answer - I can't find it.

I found some blades on E-bay with the model name on them "Gold Test" and a logo of what looks like a "CF". There's some other writing on the blade but I can't make it out it's too fuzzy - I can't even tell if it's letters or numbers. Wilson has a Gold Seal and MK has a Gold Star, but none of the brands I can find online sell a Gold Test.

The winning - and only - bid was mine for the large sum of... 99 cents. So whatever they are, junk or not, they cost me 8.99 which includes the $8 shipping charge.

[FigureSpins]

"Gold Test" blades are for serious Figure skating - as in Compulsory Figures or School Figures.

"Gold Test" blades are from Mitchel & King (MK). They have a 7' rocker radius, no bottom toepick and a 1" factory ROH. Very flat profile and very shallow edge. It takes great skill to use these blades in Figures. They're useless for dance or free skating.

I'm sure the reason you can't find them in an online listing or catalog is because they were discontinued years ago.

[leafygreens]

Cool! Sounds like something a figures collector would really want, like a scribe.

[treesprite]

I'm from the days when serious skaters skated seriously, i.e., did school figures. I had a separate pair of skates just for figures, with the minimized first toe pick. Getting that second pair made me fell like I had graduated into being a real skater... LOL. I miss doing Patch sessions. I wish they'd bring figures back as compulsory and ditch the MIF - I think skating competition has become too easy with the compulsory figures out of the way.

[luenatic]

I bought my GoldTest blade from Ebay years ago too! It was brand new in the original box.

[Lynne in Minn.]

Let me know what size they are when you get them--if you don't want them, I might.

[treesprite]

I think the size is 9 1/3. The listing was removed so I can't double check. I was thinking of putting them on my Reidell Silver Stars which I have not been using since I got my JEPs.

There are still people doing figures aren't there? So why would a figures blade be so expensive?

[sk8er1964]

There's lots of adults doing figures. There was even a figures only competition (in California??) last year. On Facebook, there's a petition to bring them back.

[treesprite]

OOPS! I did not mean to say expensive, I meant to say hard to find. My brain was on money and half asleep when I was typing.

I would love to have figures come back.

[luenatic]

There's lots of adults doing figures. There was even a figures only competition (in California??) last year. On Facebook, there's a petition to bring them back.

Actually, the annual figures competition is in Portland. This year, the figure competition was merged with a local competition in August.

[treesprite]

I got the blades. Lots of rust - there was no rust on the ones in the picture on E-bay.

The rust on the bottoms of course will be removed with a good sharpening, but the underside of the plates had a lot of bumpy rust - I would really hate to see the soles of the skates they were on! At any rate, I spent over an hour with a dremel, Rustoleum Rust Reformer, and ultra fine (mirror shine grade) carbon sand paper to remove the rust from, and smooth the metal on, the sole side of the plates (note: I did not mess with the skating parts of the blades).

Now I need a pair of boots to put them on.