Is compounding necessary after resurfacing a ball?

[Hammer]

I decided to try resurfacing my balls on my own by hand. After resurfacing is putting compound on the ball before hitting it with cleaner necessary? Actually what does compound do to the ball after you put it on? I have seen resurfacing done with a spinner on Youtube. So I have some idea how it is done.

[bowl1820]

I decided to try resurfacing my balls on my own by hand. After resurfacing is putting compound on the ball before hitting it with cleaner necessary? Actually what does compound do to the ball after you put it on? I have seen resurfacing done with a spinner on Youtube. So I have some idea how it is done.

It all depends on what final surface you are trying to achieve, whether or not a compound or polish is used.

Most polishes and compounds are just liquid abrasives, your not putting a finishing coat on like with paint. Your just basically sanding the surface to a finer grit surface when you use them.

Let's say your sanding a ball to it's OOB surface, it would depend on what that OOB was.

Example:
A Ebonite Game Breaker 3 OOB is 500/1000 Abralon Polished w/ Powerhouse Factory Finish Polish. That means sand first with a 500 abralon then with a 1000 abralon then finish with polish.

A Storm Hy-Road X OOB is 1500-grit Polished. That means sand first with a 500 pad then 1000 then 2000 then 4000 and finish with Storm Step 2 a compound.

A Brunswick Rhino Red/Black/Gold Pearl OOB is 500 Siaair/Royal Compound/Royal Shine. That means 500 pad then use compound then use polish.

[boatman37]

I have a Black Widow Gold that is supposed to be 500/1000 polished. I just use a 3000 with no polish or compound. I do have Motiv polish but try to surface mine without any polish or compound. It's really up to you how you do it but just be consistent unless you want to try something different. And make a note somehere of what you did so if you like it you can replicate it later. I have a spreadsheet where I track all of my games and I have a notes section where I note anything I did different and if I surfaced any I note what I did in there. I also use that to track how many games are on each between surfacing. My Squatch is at 30 games now and I usually touch them up after about 25 games but it is still reacting nice so I will leave it for now. But it is 500 Siaair with compound and polished. I will probably just try 3000 on the spinner and see how that goes. Also remember that all pads are different. I use CTD pads and a 2000 CTD isn't quite the same as a 2000 Abralon so keep that in mind. Also, a pad that has been used 4 or 5 times won't have the same grit as a brand new one. Consistency is key here.

[bowl1820]

I have a Black Widow Gold that is supposed to be 500/1000 polished.
No, it's not "supposed" to be that surface. That's just the surface the factory put on the ball to sell it.

The surface is suppose to be the one that gives you the ball reaction you want at the time you use it. The one that best matches up with the lane conditions your bowling on. The factory OOB isn't necessarily the right one.

[boatman37]

No, it's not "supposed" to be that surface. That's just the surface the factory put on the ball to sell it.

The surface is suppose to be the one that gives you the ball reaction you want at the time you use it. The one that best matches up with the lane conditions your bowling on. The factory OOB isn't necessarily the right one.

Yeah. I should have worded that better...lol. None of mine are OOB except the Squatch and thats only cause it is still pretty new. When I bought my Conspiracy the PSO hit it with a brand new 3000 Abralon before he gave it to me so I had a 'known' baseline that could be repeated. I typically like a little less surface on mine, at least that has been what has worked lately.

[RobLV1]

At one point when I was writing monthly for BTM, I did a bunch of research using ball reviews. I found that 60% of the time, bowlers had to change from the OOB finish to get the ball to work the best for their style. The OOB finish is nothing more than a best guess by the Marketing Department as to the surface that will appeal to the greatest number of bowlers. There is nothing sacred about it, and being that it can never be duplicated, it should be changed before the ball is ever thrown.

[Aslan]

This is a good question because I've wondered the same thing.

If you take a ball and hit it with 1000, 2000, a worn 3000...is that the same as 1000, 2000, and Royal Compound (2500)?

Are all "polished" balls hit with compound first? What's the point of a 500 polished if you actually hit it with Royal Compound and make it a 2500+polish? Seems like that would make a 240 polished the same as a 2000 polished....because the Compound is the same?

And why is a ball with Royal Compound or Storm Step 2 or Step 3 so much shinier than if you acheive the same grit with just surfacing pads?

I know Mo Pinel talked about sometimes experimenting with skipping steps when sanding...and how that gives you different looks.