Suggestions for a weaker ball

[Blomer]

I have a Storm Optimus and Hy-Road Solid. I was told my next ball should be a step down from the Optimus. Any suggestions?

[RobLV1]

Your Hy-Road is already a step down from the Optimus. How far down do you want to go?

[striker12]

well from your bowling balls you might need more then just 1 step down but the bowling balls I would suggest is if you want a ball weaker then the optimus but stronger then the hy-road then I would suggest the iq tour fusion being a mix between a pearl and soild with a RG of 2.48 and diff of .29 it will give you a late response and get down the lane further before making its move, would be perfect but if you want a ball that's more aggressive then the optimus then go with the marvel-S


so if you want to go with a ball weather then the hy-road solid I would say grab a pearl ball it will create more length and still give you a nice look on the backend like heres 2 balls you can look at the punch out, and hy-road pearl


but I would suggest you get both because you do need to fill that gap also where you got a pearl high aggressive ball and a solid low aggressive ball you need to get some more pearls and soilds in there so say you throw your optimus and it is too aggressive on the backend you would switch to a weaker ball but if the optimus was not aggressive enough you would go to a soild that will grab the lane sooner

[dnhoffman]

If you really do need something weaker... Can I ask for what?

Also...um, pitch black might be good if you're looking to stay with Storm?

[fortheloveofbowling]

The punch out or wipe out would be a nice step down depending on the type of motion your looking for. You know your equipment, how it is drilled and rolls so i'm sure you are correct with your assessment of the strengths of the 2 you mentioned. Good luck with your choice.

[bubba809]

I have a Storm Optimus and Hy-Road Solid. I was told my next ball should be a step down from the Optimus. Any suggestions?


Maybe the Optimus just doesn't work with your style, as I am beginning to believe this in my own case. It's been hit or miss reviews with this ball and I am still trying surface changes and giving it ample time before setting it aside. Just remember Blomer, it may be all the contributing factors in the Optimus not just because it's an aggressive ball.

[RobLV1]

Bubba is absolutely right. Personally, I've never had much success with pearls. For me they tend to be very "squirty" as they make their way down the lane and then over-react to the dry. The only pearl I currently use, the Exile, I put a 500/3000 surface on - that's a whole lot of surface for a pearl. Even with that surface, it's a very condition-specific ball for me.

[goneal32]

I too have the Optimus and got a Motiv Ascent Apex looking for a weaker, dryer condition ball, but for me, the Motiv has a stronger reaction than the Optimus. I have had a heck of a time with the Optimus, tried different surfaces, works best for me at 500/3000,but still "lazy" reaction, hits weak. With polish it is so unpredictable. It is drilled 3 3/8x4x2. My Hyper Cell works great and my Motiv Ascent Apex does a good job. Confused on the Optimus, tho.

[Blacksox1]

One ball that I am considering for myself is the Roto Grip Rumble. Check the specs on bowlingball.com it may be what you are looking for.

[Amyers]

I will say all the hp2 Rotogrip balls are stronger than you think

[Blacksox1]

I will say all the hp2 Rotogrip balls are stronger than you think

Wow, this is kind of trolling. The Rumble is weaker than every ball in my signature except one.http://www.bowlingball.com/CompareProducts.aspx

[RobLV1]

I think a big part of the problem here is the whole weak ball, strong ball concept. I am posting a link to my website. You might want to scroll down to an article I wrote last year titled, "Weak Ball, Strong Ball, Right Ball, Wrong Ball." http://www.modern-bowling.com/Bowling-Coach-Bowling-Balls-Las-Vegas-NV.html

[bubba809]

I too have the Optimus and got a Motiv Ascent Apex looking for a weaker, dryer condition ball, but for me, the Motiv has a stronger reaction than the Optimus. I have had a heck of a time with the Optimus, tried different surfaces, works best for me at 500/3000,but still "lazy" reaction, hits weak. With polish it is so unpredictable. It is drilled 3 3/8x4x2. My Hyper Cell works great and my Motiv Ascent Apex does a good job. Confused on the Optimus, tho.

I have tried the following surface changes to my Optimus: 4000 polish, 4000 no polish, 500/2000 polish, 500/1000/2000 polish, 500/1000/2000 no polish and 500/1000 polish. I agree, most of my hits I am getting are "weak". The ball is so "jumpy" for more, hard to explain. Like it's not consistant for ME. It is certainly not the most controllable ball I have thrown. I go back to my Taboo and it is so much more controllable for me. Again, I'm sure the Optimus is a fantastic ball for some. I do not blame the ball..AT ALL. Oh, and the Optimus and Taboo are drilled the same.

[Amyers]

Wow, this is kind of trolling. The Rumble is weaker than every ball in my signature except one.http://www.bowlingball.com/CompareProducts.aspx

I'm not sure what you mean by trolling and I in no way meant this as a negative on Rotogrip. I own a Rotogrip Asylum and to be honest it is more than likely my next ball will be a Rotogrip product also. My point was a lot of people I see purchase Wreckers and Uproars expecting them to be a step down in the amount of backend reaction especially on lighter oil that people tend to want to play these balls on and struggle with them as both of these balls provide a large backend reaction especially on those kind of conditions.

As far as your line up goes I believe the wrecker or uproar will handle less oil than most of your line up but on transitioning lane conditions to drier conditions I believe you very well could see more backend movement with the wrecker or uproar than you would with your Hyper Cell, Marvel S and Blue hammer at the very least. I'm not familiar with the Brawler or Visionary so can't really speak about those. There is a difference between how much oil a ball will handle and how much back end reaction a ball will generate. If you are talking about oil handling you are correct if you are referring to back end reaction you are incorrect.

[Amyers]

Bubba Have you tried moving your breakpoint farther inside closer to the oil? I have a teammate who throws this ball and has shot some excellent scores with it and that is how he uses it. try keeping it inside the oil line no farther out than 9-10 at the break point

[bubba809]

I hate moving my line too much inside. I realize it may help, I just can't do it, not as fun..haha. Like I said, it just seems like the ball isn't as predictable as I would like.

[vdubtx]

Wow, this is kind of trolling. The Rumble is weaker than every ball in my signature except one.http://www.bowlingball.com/CompareProducts.aspx

He wasn't trolling at all. He is speaking the truth, and I can attest first hand. I have an UpRoar which is shown to be a medium/dry lane conditions. I got it specifically for my Tuesday league where there is more friction and less volume of oil on the lanes. The ball is definitely not working for those conditions that I specifcally got it for. It is much stronger than I think RG intended. Others saying the same thing when I read about the ball. I didn't take their advice and figured that I could tame it down a bit with drilling. NOPE! That is my own fault. Have tried a motion hole, still too strong. Ball driller told me to take it down to 500 and some compound, nope still too strong. May have to get it plugged and drilled even weaker than I have it now. Last resort will be to sell it and then get like a Tropical Breeze or something like that. The ball rolls stronger than some of my other balls will on most lane conditions.

[Amyers]

He wasn't trolling at all. He is speaking the truth, and I can attest first hand. I have an UpRoar which is shown to be a medium/dry lane conditions. I got it specifically for my Tuesday league where there is more friction and less volume of oil on the lanes. The ball is definitely not working for those conditions that I specifcally got it for. It is much stronger than I think RG intended. Others saying the same thing when I read about the ball. I didn't take their advice and figured that I could tame it down a bit with drilling. NOPE! That is my own fault. Have tried a motion hole, still too strong. Ball driller told me to take it down to 500 and some compound, nope still too strong. May have to get it plugged and drilled even weaker than I have it now. Last resort will be to sell it and then get like a Tropical Breeze or something like that. The ball rolls stronger than some of my other balls will on most lane conditions.

Exactly what I was talking about. I see guys throwing the uproar and wrecker both that have way less hand than I do and backend they out hook my Asylum. Not total hook and the asylum will handle more oil but backend reaction those have more. My home alley is a big Rotogrip Dealer so I would say 40%of the balls I see are Rotogrips if it's Roto and been out longer than a few weeks I can pretty much guarantee I've seen it thrown by multiple style bowlers.

BTW thanks for the backup Vdub

[Amyers]

I hate moving my line too much inside. I realize it may help, I just can't do it, not as fun..haha. Like I said, it just seems like the ball isn't as predictable as I would like.

Yeah unless you just have crazy speed that balls not going to work like its supposed to thrown down the outside. If you bowl on sport patterns that have oil flatter out to the edge might be good for you on that. The optimus is more of a stand left throw right kind of ball.

[Stormed1]

You have the Optimus drilled very strong. If you are playing up the outside it is probably "burning up" which will cause the weak ball motion compares to the Uproar and the Wrecker. If you want to play outside
In the dry you may need to take the surface to 4000 plus polish to create length and store energy. A pin distance of 3 3/8 will crEate maximum flare and cause the ball to bleed off energy quicker