Getting re-fitted tomorrow

[boatman37]

So after mentioning a couple of times that I'd like to try a Storm at some point my wife asked her co-worker (who is a coach and pretty good bowler) and she gave my wife the name of a place that sold Storm so she contacted them and asked about them getting my stats so she bought me a gift certificate for X-Mas. Definitely don't need a ball but guess I'm gonna get re-fitted and get my stats checked tomorrow and get a new ball. Gonna let him decide what is best for me. Will update with what my numbers are and what he says. About time to make room in my bag now anyway. Currently 2 of the balls in my bag have about 100 games each on them but they still roll nice (Uppercut and Igniter). Will probably pull the Uppercut out since I haven't used it much in the past month or so. Been using the Igniter 90% of the time but neither of those do well inside the 10 board. Leaving way too many corner pins when I move in.

[boatman37]

So wife took me to a new center where they sell a little of every brand. Got there at 3:15 in the afternoon. 52 lanes and it was packed end to end with leisure bowlers. Went in to the pro shop and they told me to throw 5 or 6 warm-ups, clean my ball then throw another and bring it in to them. Their shop was right behind my lane. I told them my balls do not get an oil track. So tried both the Uppercut and the Igniter. Very little oil after the shot and none by the time I got in the shop. So they used a 'burned' line in my Uppercut to go off of. The shop was jam packed so it was a bad day to expect them to come out and watch me. They came up with 4 3/4 x 0 for my PAP. They also changed the pitch in my thumb slightly to try to get out cleaner but said it wasn't bad where it was. Instead of drilling the new ball with it they drilled me up a new insert with the new pitch built into the insert to see if I liked it. Didn't notice much of a difference though. So ended up walking out with a 900 Global Altered Reality drilled 45x4x30. Went out and bowled 2 games with it. PSO came out and watched. Based on the video looks like my PAP may be off a hair but I like the ball. Starts reading a little early with nice backend. My goal was to be able to play in heavier oil near the 15 or so board. Where my other balls would either hit almost straight leaving a corner pin or if I stood way right I would take out the 4-7, with this ball it would come back to the pocket. The PSO came out after things slowed and watched a few frames. I had mentioned how bad my 7 pin shooting was so he worked with me a little and I felt much more comfortable and better results. This new ball did have an oil ring so he 'invited' me to come down in a few weeks when things slowed and he would re-check me and try to work a little more with me.
Going in early tomorrow for some more practice before leagues start. But I was able to also throw it up the 7 board as I like to and it was right in the pocket from there too. Even went as far as standing way right and throwing across the 20 board. It didn't quite get to the pocket on those few I threw but much closer than my other balls and pretty sure I can work with that. Of course I will still 'try' to stick in my comfort zone but hope to be able to move in more if I need to. And may enter a tournament next Sunday where they use a 43' sport shot. This PSO said this ball should work good on that pattern. Will update tomorrow night.

Oh, and that PSO checked my tilt and rotation and said right around 14* tilt with about 65* rotation

[boatman37]

Oh, and that PSO said I reminded him alot of Patrick Allen. I hadn't heard of him but watched one of his videos just now and looked very similar.

Here is the Altered Reality (45x4x30)
https://i.postimg.cc/3NvJbt7X/Altered_Reality1.jpg (https://postimg.cc/XBnbrcrq)

[Phonetek]

Patrick Allen? Some millionaire? I bet you get that a lot! 😜

You're lucky you got into a pso, we went to ours and the line was out the door. He was just having people leave the balls and come back tomorrow. He's going in 4 hours early just to catch up. It's nice to see that kind of business even with Covid back on the rise.

[boatman37]

k. long post here probably.

Went in early and threw 2 games with the new Altered Reality. OOB finish. They put me on the open lanes and I was a bit worried after the first few shots. This ball was strong and crossing over the nose no matter where I stood or what I did. Ended up standing way right (about 28) and throwing over 15. The good thing is I have never had much luck standing that far right and getting back to the pocket. That was the only line that could get me to the pocket. Last night at the other center I was able to strike from the 6 board out to the 17 board with nice entry angle. So warmups started on our normal league lanes and I started at the 6-7 board. Strike. Tried it again...strike. Moved in a few boards at a time and threw 5 strikes in a row in to the 15 board. Past the 15 I struggled to get it back to the pocket but I'm sure I could have worked with it and found a good spot but doubt that I would need to do that very often so concentrated on what I needed to do tonight.
Started off at the 6-7 board and had to stand 2 boards further right than I usually do with my other balls, even my solids with lots of surface. Ended up staying on that line all night with only about a 2 board move. I did find that if I missed right by about 2 boards I went through the nose so had to keep it out there. If I went too far out it had no problem getting back to the pocket. I got out to the 2-3 board a few times and it still snapped back. 3rd game it started coming in a little high so moved 1 board right but then came in light. I probably should have made a bigger move with my eyes and feet but didn't. Like maybe move out to the 10-12 board. We had 2 other lefties and one was a little higher rev but I stayed outside of their lines all night.

Bottom line is I love this ball so far. I rarely can use the same ball all night and can't use the same ball that I strike from the 7 board to strike from the 15 board. I lose too much entry angle and leave corner pins. This ball drives through the pocket and I had no trouble striking from any of these lines in that range. Even in the oil this ball had big backend.

Checked my revs tonight and closer to about 290 so that was lower than I had thought. 2.54 seconds with 12 rotations. Used 2 different charts and both came out to about 288. Oh well. Not going to worry about it. Strikes and carry haven't been an issue so it is what it is.

[boatman37]

Here is a clip of me throwing the new 900 Global Altered Reality right after they drilled it. Been awhile since I've thrown an asymm except the few frames I'd throw the Black Widow Gold every few weeks.

Oh, and Phoney...one of the few times you will see me wearing pants....lol


https://youtu.be/4Z_TMdLuAyQ

[Phonetek]

Oh, and Phoney...one of the few times you will see me wearing pants....lol

https://youtu.be/4Z_TMdLuAyQ

Ya know... you may want to add more context to a comment like that? It kinda makes it seem that I only see you without pants. Our wives may start asking questions.

[boatman37]

Ya know... you may want to add more context to a comment like that? It kinda makes it seem that I only see you without pants. Our wives may start asking questions.

Open to imagination....lol

But have any of you heard of Donnie Iris (biggest hit was 'Ah Leah' and back in 1970 'The Rapper' when he was with the Jaggerz)? He grew up across town from me and I see him around occasionally. He never wears pants either and it has kind of become a joke around here. He usually mentions pants when on stage at all of his concerts. A funny story about him and pants. My aunt used to be good friends with Donnie and his ex-wife and used to hang out at his house back in the early 80's. My grandfather used to be a police officer and she used to wear an old pair of his police pants. Donnie liked them so she gave them to him. He wore them on stage at a large concert. This was back when he was at his prime and usually had 5000-10000 in the audience. Anyway, he spilt the crotch out of those police pants on stage...lol. Mayne thats why he doesn't wear pants anymore...lol.

[boatman37]

Well let's see how tonight goes with the new Altered Reality. Counting last weeks league and the first 3 games Friday night of fun bowing my average with this ball is 217 (current average this year is 198). I know the sample size is too small but definitely got my confidence up and this ball is different from any other ball I have ever had. Can't say if it is because it is a different brand ball, newer technology, or the fact that I got it drilled to match my PAP, which I have never done before. Or it also could be mental. Of course I have been doing a better job at picking up spares too which I know at my current level is the biggest bang for my buck.
Just for the heck of it...in those 6 games I have 40 strikes, 15 spares, 9 opens with 5 splits. So in 6 games only 4 'makeable' opens. One being a 1-3-6-7 so not an easy one, 1 being a 7 pin, 1 being a 2-4-7 and 1 being a 10 pin.

If you can't tell, I'm really liking this new ball...lol. I know I say that about every ball I get but this one let's me do things that the others wouldn't. Example, The Igniter is great outside the 10 board. Inside and it lacks entry angle and leaves corner pins. The Uppercut works good at the 10-13 range but outside that and it comes across the nose, inside that and corner pins. The Raw Hammer I haven't thrown enough inside yet but it works great outside the 10 board later in the night. Haven't tried it inside yet. My old Kingpin and Conspiracy solids just lack much hook at all. They were great back when I got them and was averaging 175-180. This Altered Reality lets me play from the 3 board all the way in to about the 17 board. I can play that range using multiple balls but have not been able to do it with the same ball until now.

I was reluctant when the PSO mentioned 900 Global cause I know they are a less common brand but geez. Glad I went with it. I have never thrown anything but Brunswick stuff my whole entire bowing career except when I first got my Hammer Black Widow Gold. At that time they weren't under the Brunswick umbrella.

Yeah more long winded blah, blah, blah from me but figured I'd throw in an update while waiting to get out there tonight. Going in a little early for a couple more practice games.

[boatman37]

Well jinxed myself. Not really though. Tough night but there was something going on with that pair. Both teams struggled. In the left lane the 4 pin fell out of the rack almost every time it was left. Rarely on a full rack though, just on a cleanup rack. The other team got to the point where they just threw the ball even when there were only 9 pins standing on a full rack. Our captain told them they can't do that but they were at the point they just didn't care. Their one guy is about a 200 average and rolled a 300 last week and the last game about 3 frames in a row he just walked up and threw the ball. Think he threw about 3 gutters that game.
I went in early for practice. First practice game I was trying different lines and rolled 180. 2nd game I tried and rolled 210. Everyone was fine, my accuracy was good, etc. Moved to our league pair and nothing. Can't quite put my finger on it but had to have been an oiling issue. I tried from the 5 board to the 15 board with 2 different balls and nothing repeatable. I even got out my Igniter and threw a pocket strike. Next ball in that same lane same thing. Didn't change a thing. Ball never hooked. Hit the 2-4 pocket. It almost seemed like every other board had oil. Dunno. I have never seen anything like this. Both teams were very confused and couldn't figure it out. One ball I'd hit light. No changes and next ball would go through the nose. Everyone. All 10 bowlers. Talked to the guys beside us and they said their lanes were fine. We were on the first pair for our league so nobody to the left of us. But based on how well my practice games went and the fact that 10 of us struggled I'm confident it wasn't me or the balls.


Hopefully whatever was wrong with these lanes is fixed next week...lol

[boatman37]

Tough night. Won 2 of 3. Went in early to practice and was striking from everywhere. Once league started I struggled. Had very little miss room. Used the Altered Reality the first 2 games then the Raw Hammer pearl the last game. Probably should have stayed with the AR the last game but I had to be perfect with it but same with the Raw Hammer too. 8 of the 10 of us struggled. Teammate rolled a 300 the first game. His 2nd ever and finished with a 750 (195 average bowler). A guy on the other team rolled a 705 but he is a 230 average so not a 'great' night for him. Aside from that the rest of us were all below average on the night. PSO and the center owner are on that team.
For me it just seemed like I had to be spot on. Miss 1 board left and I'm a little light and 1 board right and a little high. And when I say light and high they still look like good pocket shots, just not getting the carry. I tried the Altered Reality from the 5 board in to the 13 board with pinky tucked and untucked. Tried the Raw Hammer from the 5 board to the 10 board with pinky tucked and untucked. Made no difference. I did realize I was throwing a little harder than I usually do but the lanes were hooking pretty hard. Of the 30 games bowled on our pair tonight our team only had 4 games that were over our averages and the other team only had 5 games that was over their averages so only 9 of 30 games were at their averages so that tells me it had more to do with the lanes than it did me. Especially when I bowled so well in practice. That doesn't excuse my missed spares. Both 7 pins I missed were just barely to the inside. So close I thought for sure I had them but then I made an adjustment and made the next 4 I left. The other spares I missed were either splits or not so easy spares except the 6 pin on my last ball of the night but I only half-hearted that one since we won that game by about 100 and I just wanted to get out of there.

Supposed to bowl in a tournament this Sunday. It's the sport shot tourney with a 43' pattern unless they change it. Grabbed my Kingpin from storage tonight in case I need it. Last tournament I entered there nothing I had would hook except the Kingpin and it was the best ball for me that day but I think the Altered Reality will be good too. The Kingpin has a 500 surface but the pad was slightly worn.

[boatman37]

Seems like the last 2 weeks lanes were very touchy but also seems i am throwing harder than usual. Wonder if there is a correlation? been afraid to slow it down cause the lanes are hooking so hard but just wondering if i slow it down will it help that?

[boatman37]

Well went in early for practice and tried slowing down and moving right. Was able to stand 35 and target 20 and get back to the pocket. Speed was pretty slow, like 14.8 to get it back but was striking when I did. Wasn't consistent but that will come. But in doing that I moved forward about 12" on the approach and it felt better for some reason. Stuck with that all night. Was 3/3 on 7 pins in the 2 practice games then 1 for 1 in league. Looked back and counting the tournament Sunday I have made my last 13 7 pins so that's good news. But have missed too many others that I shouldn't be missing.
Tonight I used the Altered Reality all 3 games and only moved 1 board right. 2nd game was due to bad shot placement, not transition. My speed was critical tonight though. I was around 15.2 all night. If I got over about 15.5 I was light and under 15 and I went through the nose.
The whole team killed it tonight so the lanes were prime for high scores.

Tonight:
225
180
243

648

[Aslan]

It's interesting that the PSO drilled you the Altered Reality.

Backstory:
I recently gave up on my "Closet of Destiny" approach to bowling ball purchases and use a spec-based selection matrix to determine the best balls on the market for each slot in my arsenal. I recently ran those numbers because I plan on getting at least a couple balls for the start of summer season. The Matrix produced the following results:

Ball #1: Hammer Obsession
Ball #2: Storm IQ Tour
Ball #3: Brunswick Twist
Ball #4: 900 Global Altered Reality

Now, what is "Ball #4"?

Ball #4 is the "skid/flip" ball. It's the ball used to battle "carrydown".

What is "carry down" and does it really exist in today's game?

"Carrydown" is oil that is essentially "dragged" (or carried) from the more condensed area of the pattern to the drier part of the lanes. It was more prevalent in the days before reactive resin balls when rubber, plastic, and urethane balls would pick up and re-deposit that oil or push it around. Does it still exist? Debateable.

If you ask "old timers" and some professionals...they will say it certainly does in "some degree".
If you ask moderate bowling experts (like RobM) and other professionals...they will say it either doesn't exist at all or exists at a virtually non-existent level that can be all but ignored.

I actually tend to believe carry down exists...because plastic balls are used to shoot corner pins and bowlers leave a LOT of corner pins. There also is a resurgence in urethane ball usage recently...especially among 2-handers. So, you kinda gotta gauge who you're playing against and how many bowlers you're bowling against...but I think carry down 'can' be a thing in a 4 or 5 person league and/or if you have 1-2 bowlers (same hand as you) throwing urethane.

All that explanation aside...why does all that matter?

The "Ball #4/Skid/Flip Ball" should be the ball you use around Game 2, 3, 4. The lanes get chewed up a little...oil gets carried down toward the breakpoint...and you need a ball that is going to ignore that chewed up area and still have a ton of energy to make that hard, angular, backend motion at the breakpoint.

Where I would "question" this ball choice for you is:

1) You're a lefty. Carrydown should RARELY be an issue for a lefty. Not enough other lefties bowling against you to push oil to the breakpoint.

2) You're using it as a Ball #1...right out of the gate. It's a polished pearl...a low RG assymetric core with a fairly high differential. Until the OOB surface starts to wear off, the ball is likely to go too long and be too unpredictable in early games.

None of these issue will matter once the polish wears off and the 1500 surface starts to work it's way to 3000-4000. Actually, once it gets to 3000-4000...it'll should be a really great ball to start with...much more controllable. I used my Reaxx Pearl as a Ball #1 and a Thug Life as a Ball #1...both surface at 1000-3000 and they had similar specs to the Altered Reality. The Reaxx Pearl at 3000 was one of the best balls I ever used.

But, I think (and this is just me making a prediction...you can tell me if I'm right or wrong based on what you see on the lanes)...

...you're gonna struggle to throw it as far outside as you normally like to play (because it's too strong on the backend).

...and it's going to be very 'jumpy' when you move inside...especially in early games...because there just isn't any oil downlane to calm it down.

...look for higher scores in later games, when you bowl other lefties, bowl on longer patterns, and look for your Game 1 and Game 2 scores to start improving as the OOB surface wears off.

I forgot to warn RobM not to read this. I may have made his head explode 2-3 times. :eek: :eek:

[boatman37]

It's interesting that the PSO drilled you the Altered Reality.

Backstory:
I recently gave up on my "Closet of Destiny" approach to bowling ball purchases and use a spec-based selection matrix to determine the best balls on the market for each slot in my arsenal. I recently ran those numbers because I plan on getting at least a couple balls for the start of summer season. The Matrix produced the following results:

Ball #1: Hammer Obsession
Ball #2: Storm IQ Tour
Ball #3: Brunswick Twist
Ball #4: 900 Global Altered Reality

Now, what is "Ball #4"?

Ball #4 is the "skid/flip" ball. It's the ball used to battle "carrydown".

What is "carry down" and does it really exist in today's game?

"Carrydown" is oil that is essentially "dragged" (or carried) from the more condensed area of the pattern to the drier part of the lanes. It was more prevalent in the days before reactive resin balls when rubber, plastic, and urethane balls would pick up and re-deposit that oil or push it around. Does it still exist? Debateable.

If you ask "old timers" and some professionals...they will say it certainly does in "some degree".
If you ask moderate bowling experts (like RobM) and other professionals...they will say it either doesn't exist at all or exists at a virtually non-existent level that can be all but ignored.

I actually tend to believe carry down exists...because plastic balls are used to shoot corner pins and bowlers leave a LOT of corner pins. There also is a resurgence in urethane ball usage recently...especially among 2-handers. So, you kinda gotta gauge who you're playing against and how many bowlers you're bowling against...but I think carry down 'can' be a thing in a 4 or 5 person league and/or if you have 1-2 bowlers (same hand as you) throwing urethane.

All that explanation aside...why does all that matter?

The "Ball #4/Skid/Flip Ball" should be the ball you use around Game 2, 3, 4. The lanes get chewed up a little...oil gets carried down toward the breakpoint...and you need a ball that is going to ignore that chewed up area and still have a ton of energy to make that hard, angular, backend motion at the breakpoint.

Where I would "question" this ball choice for you is:

1) You're a lefty. Carrydown should RARELY be an issue for a lefty. Not enough other lefties bowling against you to push oil to the breakpoint.

2) You're using it as a Ball #1...right out of the gate. It's a polished pearl...a low RG assymetric core with a fairly high differential. Until the OOB surface starts to wear off, the ball is likely to go too long and be too unpredictable in early games.

None of these issue will matter once the polish wears off and the 1500 surface starts to work it's way to 3000-4000. Actually, once it gets to 3000-4000...it'll should be a really great ball to start with...much more controllable. I used my Reaxx Pearl as a Ball #1 and a Thug Life as a Ball #1...both surface at 1000-3000 and they had similar specs to the Altered Reality. The Reaxx Pearl at 3000 was one of the best balls I ever used.

But, I think (and this is just me making a prediction...you can tell me if I'm right or wrong based on what you see on the lanes)...

...you're gonna struggle to throw it as far outside as you normally like to play (because it's too strong on the backend).

...and it's going to be very 'jumpy' when you move inside...especially in early games...because there just isn't any oil downlane to calm it down.

...look for higher scores in later games, when you bowl other lefties, bowl on longer patterns, and look for your Game 1 and Game 2 scores to start improving as the OOB surface wears off.

I forgot to warn RobM not to read this. I may have made his head explode 2-3 times. :eek: :eek:

When I got this ball I was looking for a Storm and went to a new PSO. It was 2 days after x-mas so inventory was low and my mindset was to let them tell me what I needed instead of me trying to outsmart myself. Since inventory was low he remembered he had this Altered Reality in the back that someone had ordered for x-mas but it didn't come in in time so the guy cancelled. Not knowing anything about the ball I asked if he thought it would work for me and he said he though it would. He drilled it 45 x 4 x 30 saying it should start reading midlane with a pretty aggressive backend. The odd thing is that this ball has been so versatile that I can throw way outside and the hook is tamed down. I'm not doing anything different with my release. Tuesday night I targeted the 6-ish board (at the arrows) all night. Never moved my target. In game 3 I did have to move my feet 1 board right but that was the only adjustment I made all night. My speeds were actually slower than usual all nigh too. There have been a couple of nights where that far out didn't work but that was on practice lanes which are typically drier than our league pairs. At that point I move in to the 2nd arrow and all is good again. I have moved as far in as the20 board but I'm inconsistent there so it may be the ball too but I'm not hitting the same spot consistently from that far in.

If you watch the reviews on the AR many are saying to start with the AR then ball down to the Wolverine. Have also heard to possibly start with the Idol Helios then the AR then the Wolverine but of course that all depends on the bowler and conditions. For me this ball works great whether it's the 1st game or 3rd game. In fact the first time I used it I rolled 669 and my 3rd game was only 201 and I regretted either not making a bigger move in or balling down . The next 2 weeks we had bad lane conditions and everyone on our pairs struggled. But then the other night it felt the same all 3 games. I rolled 225, 180 and 243. The 180 was just a few bad shots that were my fault and a few missed spares. If I put it where I wanted it I was striking.
I'm sure there will be nights where the AR just doesn't match up but so far this has been the most versatile ball I have ever had.
Also, if you look at the ball specs it indicates it is a heavy oil ball. All that said, I have been told our THS is a little shorter than most, like closer to 38'. I did throw it in a tournament the other day with a 43' less than 2:1 shot and although I sucked, I sucked with every ball I threw...lol. It was probably a little better than any other ball I had with me.

EDIT: I have to stand 2 boards further right with the Altered Reality than I do with my Uppercut, Igniter or Raw Hammer pearl. I can usually get away with standing in the same spot just that they start hooking in different areas or one maybe having more backend, etc. But no way can I stand in the same spot with this ball or it goes Brooklyn

[boatman37]

When I got this ball I was looking for a Storm and went to a new PSO. It was 2 days after x-mas so inventory was low and my mindset was to let them tell me what I needed instead of me trying to outsmart myself. Since inventory was low he remembered he had this Altered Reality in the back that someone had ordered for x-mas but it didn't come in in time so the guy cancelled. Not knowing anything about the ball I asked if he thought it would work for me and he said he though it would. He drilled it 45 x 4 x 30 saying it should start reading midlane with a pretty aggressive backend. The odd thing is that this ball has been so versatile that I can throw way outside and the hook is tamed down. I'm not doing anything different with my release. Tuesday night I targeted the 6-ish board (at the arrows) all night. Never moved my target. In game 3 I did have to move my feet 1 board right but that was the only adjustment I made all night. My speeds were actually slower than usual all nigh too. There have been a couple of nights where that far out didn't work but that was on practice lanes which are typically drier than our league pairs. At that point I move in to the 2nd arrow and all is good again. I have moved as far in as the20 board but I'm inconsistent there so it may be the ball too but I'm not hitting the same spot consistently from that far in.

If you watch the reviews on the AR many are saying to start with the AR then ball down to the Wolverine. Have also heard to possibly start with the Idol Helios then the AR then the Wolverine but of course that all depends on the bowler and conditions. For me this ball works great whether it's the 1st game or 3rd game. In fact the first time I used it I rolled 669 and my 3rd game was only 201 and I regretted either not making a bigger move in or balling down . The next 2 weeks we had bad lane conditions and everyone on our pairs struggled. But then the other night it felt the same all 3 games. I rolled 225, 180 and 243. The 180 was just a few bad shots that were my fault and a few missed spares. If I put it where I wanted it I was striking.
I'm sure there will be nights where the AR just doesn't match up but so far this has been the most versatile ball I have ever had.
Also, if you look at the ball specs it indicates it is a heavy oil ball. All that said, I have been told our THS is a little shorter than most, like closer to 38'. I did throw it in a tournament the other day with a 43' less than 2:1 shot and although I sucked, I sucked with every ball I threw...lol. It was probably a little better than any other ball I had with me.

EDIT: I have to stand 2 boards further right with the Altered Reality than I do with my Uppercut, Igniter or Raw Hammer pearl. I can usually get away with standing in the same spot just that they start hooking in different areas or one maybe having more backend, etc. But no way can I stand in the same spot with this ball or it goes Brooklyn

I would suggest if you want the Altered Reality to get it first then see how it rolls before buying the others. When they told me it was a pearl I was thinking it wouldn't be great early on but so far it hasn't disappointed me. This is my first Storm product and the first that I had drilled using my PAP so maybe that's why it's so much better or maybe it'd the ball itself but it's different than I had expected (pleasantly)

[Aslan]

I would suggest if you want the Altered Reality to get it first then see how it rolls before buying the others. When they told me it was a pearl I was thinking it wouldn't be great early on but so far it hasn't disappointed me. This is my first Storm product and the first that I had drilled using my PAP so maybe that's why it's so much better or maybe it'd the ball itself but it's different than I had expected (pleasantly)

I'm sure it 'could' be thrown as a 'Ball #1' option. Like I said, if the surface was 1000-3000...it really doesn't matter if it's a pearl or a solid. I've thrown pearls as Ball #1s.

For ME...the skid/flip ball (Ball #4) is the ball where I really have to do a lot of upkeep on the surface. I have to maintain the surface to keep it polished because I'm intentionally trying to get it to ge longer and use it at a time when the lanes have been chewed up a little. The other balls in the arsenal are a little less "picky" about the surface because they are just balling down from one to the other to the other. I try to resurface them periodically, but it's not a huge deal.

However, with the skid/flip ball...for the reasons I explained...I need to keep that ball polished because by the time it comes out...I'm expecting the fronts to be chewed up and expecting a little bit of oil to be carried down to the breakpoint. If those two factors don't exist, the ball will likely not perform well for me because it will either go too long or it will be too jumpy.

I'm looking forward to trying it (should it still be at the top of the list when I buy 2 more balls in the fall). The specs are definitely ideal and match up well with other balls I've thrown well. I don't see starting out with it as Ball #1 like you do...but we have very different games. While we have simlar rev rates and are both speed dominant...you're a lefty and therefore are able to start out near 1st arrow. Despite my rev limitations, I'm always trying to get inside of 2nd arrow because (as a righty) there's just way too much traffic in that 7-9 area. I'd need something very polished or a much higher RG option to play out there and hope to carry the 10-pin.

[boatman37]

I'm sure it 'could' be thrown as a 'Ball #1' option. Like I said, if the surface was 1000-3000...it really doesn't matter if it's a pearl or a solid. I've thrown pearls as Ball #1s.

For ME...the skid/flip ball (Ball #4) is the ball where I really have to do a lot of upkeep on the surface. I have to maintain the surface to keep it polished because I'm intentionally trying to get it to ge longer and use it at a time when the lanes have been chewed up a little. The other balls in the arsenal are a little less "picky" about the surface because they are just balling down from one to the other to the other. I try to resurface them periodically, but it's not a huge deal.

However, with the skid/flip ball...for the reasons I explained...I need to keep that ball polished because by the time it comes out...I'm expecting the fronts to be chewed up and expecting a little bit of oil to be carried down to the breakpoint. If those two factors don't exist, the ball will likely not perform well for me because it will either go too long or it will be too jumpy.

I'm looking forward to trying it (should it still be at the top of the list when I buy 2 more balls in the fall). The specs are definitely ideal and match up well with other balls I've thrown well. I don't see starting out with it as Ball #1 like you do...but we have very different games. While we have simlar rev rates and are both speed dominant...you're a lefty and therefore are able to start out near 1st arrow. Despite my rev limitations, I'm always trying to get inside of 2nd arrow because (as a righty) there's just way too much traffic in that 7-9 area. I'd need something very polished or a much higher RG option to play out there and hope to carry the 10-pin.

For me the AR isn't as much skid/flip as some of my other pearls. My Black Widow Gold, Brunswick Igniter and Raw Hammer pearl all go longer than the AR but the AR is pretty aggressive once it hits friction. The BWG is asym too but the other 2 are symmetrical. To me it seems like the AR is similar to my Conspiracy solid for the first 40' or so then more like my Igniter the last 20'. My axis rotation is about 75* so I naturally get more skid than many others but this ball with the layout thats on it lets it start reading earlier. The day I got it I wasn't able to target the 7 board but I was at a house I had never been to before and who knows what was on the lane before me.

Here is a video of that day. I recorded it with Hudl Technique and it automatically put it in slo-mo through the middle part and there was a lady beside me that came up after I was starting to take my first step so I stopped and let her go ahead:

https://youtu.be/1omZv_L8riU

[boatman37]

Well not so good tonight. 2 practice games went well but league was tough again. My accuracy wasn't the beast but had a tight line. Used the Altered reality the first game then switched to the Raw Hammer pearl. Neither was great. Stayed clean in game 1 then game 2 struck every shot in the right lane but no strikes in the left lane and 1 open. Game 3 was just rough. My accuracy really struggled and left a few opens. On a positive note I was 3/3 on 7 pins in league and made all of them in practice too so I have made my last 19 or 20 pins in a row so hoping to keep that going.

200, 198, 169 (567)

[boatman37]

Another tough night. We did win all 3 so that was good but pretty sure this Altered Reality needs freshened up. Have about 35 games on it and had a few pocket hits tonight with 8 and 9 counts. Had a pocket 7-10, pocket 9, last frame of the night threw it the same as I had been and could have swore it was my spare ball. Never hooked at all. Guy next to me has an AR also and agreed it was very weird to see that ball not hook. Didn't even make it back to the head pin.
Had made about 23 7 pins in a row including practice until tonight. Went 2/3 tonight. Spare game has been much better but can't strike.

We just started the last 3rd and took all 3 so we are at least tied for 1st right now...lol

[Aslan]

I can't say for sure without seeing it...but it sounds like it's dying before it ever hits the pocket. I think the polished surface has worn off and you're still trying to throw it way out in the dry. Are you noticing any deflection after it contacts the pocket?

[boatman37]

I can't say for sure without seeing it...but it sounds like it's dying before it ever hits the pocket. I think the polished surface has worn off and you're still trying to throw it way out in the dry. Are you noticing any deflection after it contacts the pocket?

It is deflecting more than it used to but I don't see the ball 'straighten out' so to speak. But I completely resurfaced it last night so will see if that helps