Have Balls reached a point of (gimmick) OR

[MICHAEL]

Do the balls in the last 4 years really get better, due to core, cover stock?? Or is it a gimmick? If its not a gimmick,,, how much further can they take the
core and cover stock?

[bowl1820]

Do the balls in the last 4 years really get better, due to core, cover stock?? Or is it a gimmick? If its not a gimmick,,, how much further can they take the
core and cover stock?

First I'll re-word the question.

Have the balls in the last 4 years really gotten better due to improvements to core and coverstock's? or is the "New 'N Improved" just a marketing gimmick? If not a gimmick, How much more can core and coverstock's improvements go?

It would all depend on what you mean by "Gotten better" Do they hook more? Do they have stronger reaction's to lane conditions now verses the past? etc.

Sure there are a lot of marketing gimmicks used to promote balls, "Our new core does this" "Our new coverstock does that".

Yes ball tech has improved/changed over the years. They match cores to coverstock's better, longevity and durability, oil absorption, friction and flare properties etc. have kept pace with bowlers needs and wants. That doesn't mean the older balls won't work, just they will work differently.

Can they keep improving? Depends on what is meant by improve? Well can the hook more? Sure! they can already make balls that can hook right off the lane.

That's what fueled the particle ball craze, till they realized that ball's that hooked that hard. Were so limited in usage they now have all but disappeared.

What Future improvements can be made in balls? It will all depend on what the bowler's want or think they want.

[eugene02]

First I'll re-word the question.



It would all depend on what you mean by "Gotten better" Do they hook more? Do they have stronger reaction's to lane conditions now verses the past? etc.

Sure there are a lot of marketing gimmicks used to promote balls, "Our new core does this" "Our new coverstock does that".

Yes ball tech has improved/changed over the years. They match cores to coverstock's better, longevity and durability, oil absorption, friction and flare properties etc. have kept pace with bowlers needs and wants. That doesn't mean the older balls won't work, just they will work differently.

Can they keep improving? Depends on what is meant by improve? Well can the hook more? Sure! they can already make balls that can hook right off the lane.

That's what fueled the particle ball craze, till they realized that ball's that hooked that hard. Were so limited in usage they now have all but disappeared.

What Future improvements can be made in balls? It will all depend on what the bowler's want or think they want.


very detailed reply.. i like! after reading it.. i get some idea of what the question really is..

[americantrotter]

It also depends on lane conditions. if technology changes the oil, or the lane's makeup, or the pins are altered, etc......

In Golf, courses were very active in reacting to improved distance from balls, clubs, stronger golfers. Will bowling follow suit? probably not as much because the core elements of the game can't change. But if the USBC or enough alleys decide to rein in high scores ball makers will adjust the product line to match those conditions.

Right now? Unless a new product is 100% simpatico with your game why would you buy the latest and greatest when the recently great is awesome and you can pay less for something to suit your game?

[dgz924s]

To come at this from a different angle all manufacturers are going to strive to design a ball that corners the market. With the ball market today it is a true example of the "dog eat dog" world and the top dog takes the prize. No business regardless of it's nature can survive by not being innovative. So to answer the question, as long as there is a way to design and improve ball design and serve the customers needs and wants they will continue to do so and only stop when someone designs a ball which takes out all 10 pins regardless of where it is rolled and how rolled.

There will be gimmicks from time to time to give a manufacturer the edge or to distinguish them from the competition. Storm has already done this by the scented balls. Others offer unique colors and designs, even the logo designs are a way to entice a customer to buy. For most of us we buy a ball to fit the need but there are those who buy because of the look it offers. But in sum the function and looks both play a part in the design and will continue to evolve.

[MICHAEL]

americantrotter,,, thats the question I thought I was asking. Where can bowling balls really go from HERE. It seems like its all GREAT equipment. And there is a ball for every condition you could imagine. Even as bowl1820 mentioned:
That's what fueled the particle ball craze, till they realized that ball's that hooked that hard. Were so limited in usage they now have all but disappeared.
Other then color, sent, name, has technology reached its limit. Where can you go from here?? Any ideas?? Right now, like golf there are many different types of golf
clubs out there to choose from, bowling the same! Has it reached a point where its (finding which of the balls works best for you? that there is no magic cover, or core that will be coming out that gives you better scores then whats out there now... I know that balls have come a LONG way in the last several years! Whats next?

[MICHAEL]

I just thought of a new bowling ball called the Remote Controled Gyro Ball! It has a battery, and gyro inside the ball, that after throwing the ball can be controled by a wrist band that gives corse corrections lol...(:) Name of new ball Gyro Destroyer! Now at all good bowling establishments... for only $1099.99 LOL

[americantrotter]

The only thing left is to stop making durable equipment. LOL

[bowl1820]

I just thought of a new bowling ball called the Remote Controled Gyro Ball! It has a battery, and gyro inside the ball, that after throwing the ball can be controled by a wrist band that gives corse corrections lol...(:) Name of new ball Gyro Destroyer! Now at all good bowling establishments... for only $1099.99 LOL

I'm afraid your to late, there already is a remote controlled bowling ball. 900 global makes it, called the RC-900.
http://www.cheapbowlingballs.com/Assets/Balls/900Global/Performance/RemoteControl/Ball.jpg

[Etrain]

I'm afraid your to late, there already is a remote controlled bowling ball. 900 global makes it, called the RC-900.
http://www.cheapbowlingballs.com/Assets/Balls/900Global/Performance/RemoteControl/Ball.jpg

thats a joke right?

[Davec13]

thats a joke right?

Not at all and at $1500 a ball it's a real investment. It's more for bowling centers that cater to kids parties and even disabled people to a degree. There is even a launcher built for it. Anything that brings people into the alley though and inspires future bowlers is a good thing.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wqlMIueWdZo

[MICHAEL]

THATS GREAT!!!! REALLY enjoyed watching that!!! lol....lol... Great music too~~lol!!!!

[martin]

WHAT??!! you serious? now anybody with enough money can bowl 300 games easily.. lol..

[eugene02]

WHAT??!! you serious? now anybody with enough money can bowl 300 games easily.. lol..

not about the score! but about the achievements! hahaha

[eugene02]

Not at all and at $1500 a ball it's a real investment. It's more for bowling centers that cater to kids parties and even disabled people to a degree. There is even a launcher built for it. Anything that brings people into the alley though and inspires future bowlers is a good thing.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wqlMIueWdZo

if i own a alley, i'll definitely get 2 of these and lay down for display / kids who wanna play bowling for fun =P

[MICHAEL]

X box Play station, game boy,,, Kids now days love things like this! I agree it could make a alley a fortune!! lol.... Can't stop laughing!!! So fricken funny!!!
I WANT ONE!!!

[slmrcs]

As far as equipment goes, there is a question of, do newer balls make scores higher. Or are they really new or
Are new balls really new, or just old balls with new names, new colors and very minor changes?

I just got back into bowling after 7 year break. I have 10 year old equipment, some without a lot of games on it. I have a Fire Quantam released in 1995 (which I got in 2001), which hits very hard and is very controllable, and less than 100 games on it. Is going out and buying something new going to help? The ball companies would like me to think I need something new, but a pocked hit with a reactive ball is going to strike regardless of how old a ball is.

And if I do some research, the coverstock on quantum is same as on the new Karma. Karma has a slightly higher diff, so a little more flare? Does that really matter, esp if I just want to throw ball up second arrow?

[jaydee]

It don't think ball technology has really "improved" much if at all in the last 3-4 years. Balls are just different, not necessarily better, but certainly not worse. I still like my 3 year old Virtual Energy the best on most oil patterns I've faced, though I have 4 balls newer then it.

[eugene02]

X box Play station, game boy,,, Kids now days love things like this! I agree it could make a alley a fortune!! lol.... Can't stop laughing!!! So fricken funny!!!
I WANT ONE!!!

this one can definitely win over xbow ps3 wii! because this is real life! the one they're playing are just VIRTUAL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[MICHAEL]

Thats what my question boiled down to. Yes bowling balls have come a lONG way since the early days. But has it changed that much in the last 4 or 5 years?
Its there anywhere else to go in regards to getting in the pocket at any better angle then is out there now? ((other then the remote controled Ball)) lol..(:)

[The Mayor]

Every 5 years or so there will be a breakthrough in technology and a ball will come out that will change the way people look at bowling balls. The Danger Zone, Hy-Road, Shift (Virtual Gravity), VG Nano. There was reactive resin then particle then hybrid reactives and now Nano-technology. In a few years someone will come up with another coverstock that reacts differently with the lanes. Maybe a ball that has an additive that reacts one way when it's in oil but doesn't have any effect when it hits the dry back part of the lane. So yes, balls can still have breakthroughs, but more importantly when they do, people understand the game and their equipment better.

[MICHAEL]

I guess a way of knowing if the technology has has improved and exactly how much would be to look at the sanctioned league bowlers! Is there a place that shows the bowlers averages,,,,, if so,,,, can score averages for each year be found? If so it would be easy enough to look at the averages, say from 2000, to 2011, and look at the scores. I am not sure records are even kept... maybe a better way, look at the Pro's. Are the Pro bowlers averages going up at a steady rate? That should be a good way of knowing how much better the balls are getting. But then what do I know,,, I am just hungry for knowledge! Does each year show more 300 games... (( I know other factors would effect that, like decline/incline in number of bowlers)) So maybe it would only work if we
used Pro's! Those figures should be easy enough to get, and is not effected by incline/decline. I am not questioning the fact that there are many remarkable
balls out there! I just wonder if Pro averages prove it to be true, that it shows in the scores they make, OR, has it been about the same for the last 10 years.

[eugene02]

Every 5 years or so there will be a breakthrough in technology and a ball will come out that will change the way people look at bowling balls. The Danger Zone, Hy-Road, Shift (Virtual Gravity), VG Nano. There was reactive resin then particle then hybrid reactives and now Nano-technology. In a few years someone will come up with another coverstock that reacts differently with the lanes. Maybe a ball that has an additive that reacts one way when it's in oil but doesn't have any effect when it hits the dry back part of the lane. So yes, balls can still have breakthroughs, but more importantly when they do, people understand the game and their equipment better.

who knows maybe next time we'll be throwing a 5lb's ball but when it touches the lane, it expands into a 15lb ball.. no one can be too sure what will be coming out.. haha.. will be kinda interesting though..

[MICHAEL]

I think it would be and achievement just getting that machine down the lane without have it go in the gutter!! lol...(:)

[eugene02]

I think it would be and achievement just getting that machine down the lane without have it go in the gutter!! lol...(:)

full game without gutter and spare! 300's!!

[MICHAEL]

Call me old school..... but if they get to the point where the tech gets to the point where you stay at home, and use your X box to bowl at a alley in your town, by use of and Android, and he physically bowls for you, through your controler,,,, well...... ITS just gone toooooooo far!! (:).... Look at the thread of billf on this site bowling with a house plastic ball 214. What a guy!!!! KING of the PINS!!! WORTH THE time to watch