Rubber Balls

[Grizzly Adam]

The old lady picked up a Brunswick Manta for a buck from a Goodwill. She just wanted it for the retro bag, so I decided to have a little fun resurfacing it and polishing it up. As far as I know I have never thrown a rubber ball, what can I expect?

[got_a_300]

As far as I know I have never thrown a rubber ball, what can I expect?

Well on today's lane conditions you can expect very little hook out of it that's for sure
unless you are bowling on completely bone dry conditions then you'll get a few boards
hook out of it.

I see you're from Iowa what part are you from?

[JasonNJ]

It may make a good spare ball. From what I read, rubber has less friction than even plastic so should be able to throw it pretty straight.

[Grizzly Adam]

I am smack in the middle east west, and 10 miles south of the MN border.

[got_a_300]

I am smack in the middle east west, and 10 miles south of the MN border.

Ahhh so you are way up in the northern part of the state up somewhere around
Mason City or above I take it. I used to live in Davenport, IA years ago we have
another member on here who just moved to Iowa he goes by the name Aslan I
think he moved to the Des Moines area.

[Grizzly Adam]

Yeah, west of Mason, east of Spencer. Further north than both of them.

[Grizzly Adam]

Here is a pic of it mostly shined up. Going to do a final polish tomorrow before we go to the lanes. I re-engraved the brunswick B to make it deeper and added the old lady's name while I was at it. I will show you those pics tomorrow.

https://image.ibb.co/dxUbPF/IMG_0329.jpg

[Grizzly Adam]

Well if I could post a pic here I would...

[J Anderson]

It may make a good spare ball. From what I read, rubber has less friction than even plastic so should be able to throw it pretty straight.

I'm not so sure they had less friction plastic ones. My first ball was rubber with a conventional grip, and it probably hooked 2 boards in 60 feet. Back then among recreational bowlers it seemed there were only two styles; hard and straight at the pocket or the big slow hook. And big meant it went from 15 out to 5 and back to the pocket.

[Grizzly Adam]

Well, the lanes were about as dry as possible, I only noticed a splotch of oil on my ball twice over two games. She hit a little more oil than I did, but she is a right handed hooker (LOL) and I am a straight lefty. She got about three boards of hook with the rubber ball and found some fairly consistent bowling.

[Grizzly Adam]

I think she is really liking the rubber ball, she is getting plenty of hook now that she is used to it. Do you clean the pores on a rubber ball the same way as on plastic and urethane?

[ytlas]

Are you sure it's rubber ball? If you look in the holes do you see a 3/4" shell, then core? It's been over 35 years so the memory is fuzzy, but I think the Brunswick Mantas were LT 51 seconds. Brunswick came out with the LT 48 rubber and LT 48 plastic which was green and black. They stopped making the LT 48 green/black plastic and came out with the LT 51 blue plastic ball.

[bowl1820]

Looking it up the Brunswick Manta is rubber ball with a pancake weightblock.

As far as ball maintenance just keep the surface clean, with whatever cleaner you prefer. It's not like a resin ball that you need to de-oil

[Grizzly Adam]

Looking it up the Brunswick Manta is rubber ball with a pancake weightblock.

As far as ball maintenance just keep the surface clean, with whatever cleaner you prefer. It's not like a resin ball that you need to de-oil

Thanks :)