How common is it that a trip to the local lanes damages your ball?

[ccbehrens]

So, I am fairly new and I am just getting my first ball for hooking. I have been using a plastic ball for about 6 months and there are two local lanes that we go to and are owned by the same company. I won't name them. My spouse has a blue Hammer and I have a cheapo Tzone at the moment. His ball got some nicks and surface marks over the past 6 months bowling league and learning. It was pretty noticable, but I figured that it might be because his was a "performance urythane", but I don't bowl as often since I don't bowl in that league with him. Recently, I noticed mine got a few small gouges in it as well. Both lanes seem well kept, but a few of the lanes at both places seem to struggle with balls getting stuck. Is this just normal or is it that they are a little lax on the maintenance side of things? Should I just expect that the balls will get messed up over time?

[panbanger]

It's way more common than it should be. I've seen balls replaced at the center's expense due to damage from the returns, also balls resurfaced at the center's expense if the damage is somewhat minor. Alert the staff about what's happening when you notice it. They may not realize what's going on.

[fokai73]

I don't worry too much with nicks and scratches on bowling balls. if I did, I'd leave them up on the shelf. But divots and gouges, and depending on their depth and length is a different story. If the there is a Proshop inside the bowling alley, which seems to be less common nowadays, they can surface or repair the damage. A friend had her ball chewed up and Bowlmor replaced it, they ordered her a new ball and it was shipped to the center. No proshop available. I don't know about the drilling services though..

[KYDave]

Like my PSO says small nicks and scratches are like a door ding on a new car. It sucks, but it doesn't effect how the door opens and closes.

I am a little picky about it, depending on how deep it is, especially if it is in my track. My DD got a series of nicks in a ring and told them right away. Shop fixed it for free and can't even tell.

Also had a chip taken out of my thumb slug and shop replaced that for free as well

Poor maintenance will often increase the odds of it happening, but unfortunately it is bound to get a little battle damage from time to time. Let them know right away, then determine if it is severe enough to warrant repair/resurface

[ChuckR]

Nicks and Gouges are one thing. Friends of mine bowl in a league in Las Vegas at a different house than the three of us bowl. I asked if she had gotten a new ball. The answer was the other house gave her the new ball. THEY WERE UNABLE TO FIND HER BALL. They looked for 2 weeks after the incident and couldn't locate it. Chewing up a ball is on thing, but chewing it up and NOT spitting it out is another.

[1VegasBowler]

Unfortunately, getting nicked up is going to happen, and unless it's in my track area or if its significant enough anywhere else on the ball, I let it go.

Of the couple of times a ball has had to be repaired, I've never had an issue with the house getting it fixed.

[manke]

Now that is funny, never heard of a house loosing your ball.

[JasonNJ]

I don't understand how a ball could be lost?

[J Anderson]

I don't understand how a ball could be lost?

I've only seen it happen once. The went off the ball return underneath the lanes. The mechanic came and took the covers off between the gutters and did a quick check and couldn't find it. I'm not sure if they ever did.

[ccbehrens]

I've only seen it happen once. The went off the ball return underneath the lanes. The mechanic came and took the covers off between the gutters and did a quick check and couldn't find it. I'm not sure if they ever did.

Wow! Thanks for the story. :)

As for the nicks, no they aren't bad, however my spouse's ball got stuck once and when it can back I guess you would call it had a divot in the surface if I understand the meaning, where a fairly oval large bandaid shaped scrape could be seen where it was taken off of the surface of the cover stock making it not longer perfectly round in that spot.

[foreverincamo]

I remember back in the 1970's during a pro tournament the guy leading the tournament had the ball he used all week to lead the tournament " disappear " before the TV finals.

[Goose]

I've only seen it happen once. The went off the ball return underneath the lanes. The mechanic came and took the covers off between the gutters and did a quick check and couldn't find it. I'm not sure if they ever did.

Later that week, the mechanic through his first high series with the very same brand of ball....;)

[Hawk]

Just last week got a gouge so bad the establishment, sent it to their pro shop they use it was so bad they had to fill it. Looks great now.. Ball has less the 50 games on it..

[stargell1]

Most of the balls I have purchased end up getting damaged. The center always will fix it for free. Sometimes I have to wait two to three weeks to get my ball back which sucks.

[dmet225]

Earlier this season my ball came back with a hole the size of a nickel and about 1/4 in deep with cracks seeping out the sides of the ball right next to a finger hole. The PSO had never seen a hole that had. They house agreed to replace the ball with a different ball since mine was no longer available. Worked out OK, because I just shot a 300 with the new one last week!

[ccbehrens]

So I just went and shot some today with my brand new ball (same alley) and came away with two divots in my ball in just 3 games. That's not normal, right? The divot in my spouse's ball is 3 times bigger than the large one here.

http://i301.photobucket.com/albums/nn67/CSchiebel/2017-02-24_15-59-18.jpg (http://s301.photobucket.com/user/CSchiebel/media/2017-02-24_15-59-18.jpg.html)

[KYDave]

Those are gouges!! No not normal. Did you report it to the desk?

[J Anderson]

So I just went and shot some today with my brand new ball (same alley) and came away with two divots in my ball in just 3 games. That's not normal, right? The divot in my spouse's ball is 3 times bigger than the large one here.

http://i301.photobucket.com/albums/nn67/CSchiebel/2017-02-24_15-59-18.jpg (http://s301.photobucket.com/user/CSchiebel/media/2017-02-24_15-59-18.jpg.html)

These things happen, probably more often than they should. I hope that you brought it to the attention of the management of the bowling center as soon as you noticed the chips. The best case is that they move you to a different lane or lanes, then have the pro shop repair the damage for you after you finish bowling, and keep the lanes where the damage occurred out of service until they fix whatever caused the damage. We can complain all we want here about how centers don't maintain things properly, but if bowlers don't tell them what's going on they either think they're getting away with the deferred maintenance, or they're wondering why their only customers are kids throwing house balls during cosmic bowling.

[LOUVIT]

I've only seen it happen once. The went off the ball return underneath the lanes. The mechanic came and took the covers off between the gutters and did a quick check and couldn't find it. I'm not sure if they ever did.


I worked in a house growing up and some balls were real hard to find, they are there just maybe not where they can be got to easily..lol

[Tony]

It's the nature of the equipment that balls will get small gouges and scrapes, if you get a larger one show it to the center manager and if it's fairly large and would effect the balls use they will normally repair or replace it, also they should be interested in what pair it happened on so they can check the equipment.

So far over the years I only saw one ball get "lost" my buddy claimed it was in his locker and went missing, they replaced it with a new ball and drilled it for him. Imagine our surprise, when clearing out his machine shop a couple of years later, we found the exact same type of ball he "lost", under a shelving unit right near where he stored his bowling gear, he has never figured out how that happened ! lol I'm pretty sure he thinks I found an old ball like his and planted it there......BTW the span and finger holes did fit him.

[ccbehrens]

So I was in today and showed the manager. He offered to "put a clear coat on and buff it out". Is that typically how these are fixed?

[KYDave]

So I was in today and showed the manager. He offered to "put a clear coat on and buff it out". Is that typically how these are fixed?

Yes it is. Clear epoxy to fill it in and then resurface the ball. If they do a good job on it you will never know it was there.