Tonight

[Ball99999]

Why would you want to make a heavy oil ball into a light oil ball? Just go to the ball maintenance thread and use the soak method to remove most of the oil every few weeks. You can also purchase the needed abralon pads and polish, perform by hand and restore the ball to factory finish. Definitely prolongs the life of the ball and keeps the reaction consistent.

I wouldn't.. Well I would (instead of keeping it in a closet somewhere). I was referring to this part "As the balls get older they get saturated with oil and start to diminish the way they were intended to hook. When bowlers don't do this, after about 100 games, you're throwing a ball with entirely different characteristics than the ball when new." and others have said that balls eventually go through ball death. So I'm wondering if there is any use for a ball that's outlived it's original purpose.

Any suggestions on where to get the pads? I'd love to be able to do my own surface changes.

[billf]

ummmm, try the site owner, bowlingball.com lol
Search the net as I recall somebody, maybe Bowl1820, posting a site before with awesome prices but I can't remember who posted it for sure or the site name.

[bowl1820]

You can try Supergrit
http://www.supergrit.com/products/pr...cs-abralon.asp
Abralon
$3.50 / 1
$16.25 / 5

[Tampabaybob]

I wouldn't.. Well I would (instead of keeping it in a closet somewhere). I was referring to this part "As the balls get older they get saturated with oil and start to diminish the way they were intended to hook. When bowlers don't do this, after about 100 games, you're throwing a ball with entirely different characteristics than the ball when new." and others have said that balls eventually go through ball death. So I'm wondering if there is any use for a ball that's outlived it's original purpose.

Any suggestions on where to get the pads? I'd love to be able to do my own surface changes.

You are correct in saying the balls will react differently after they get saturated. But as Billf stated there are several ways to "rejuvenate" bowling balls. The quickest, and easiest is to see if there is a pro shop in your area that has a ball "rejuvenator". This a commercial machine that slowly spins the ball in a box with controlled heat. It should restore a ball to about 95% of it's origin OOB condition. Several years ago, when they first came out, I had one of my track balls done, and I was amazed. Most shops average about 20 bucks or so to do it. If you really love a ball and the way it fits and don't have the cash for a new one, ask around and see if someone in your are has one.

One of the guys I bowl with and I have actually been talking about buying one ourselves (because there is not a single on in all of Tampa Bay area) and offering it up as a service to the bowler and pro shops. The machines are not that expensive and you could probably pay of it in a couple, or three months.

Bob

[Ball99999]

You are correct in saying the balls will react differently after they get saturated. But as Billf stated there are several ways to "rejuvenate" bowling balls. The quickest, and easiest is to see if there is a pro shop in your area that has a ball "rejuvenator". This a commercial machine that slowly spins the ball in a box with controlled heat. It should restore a ball to about 95% of it's origin OOB condition. Several years ago, when they first came out, I had one of my track balls done, and I was amazed. Most shops average about 20 bucks or so to do it. If you really love a ball and the way it fits and don't have the cash for a new one, ask around and see if someone in your are has one.

One of the guys I bowl with and I have actually been talking about buying one ourselves (because there is not a single on in all of Tampa Bay area) and offering it up as a service to the bowler and pro shops. The machines are not that expensive and you could probably pay of it in a couple, or three months.

Bob

But after 300 games or more, at some point it just won't be nearly as hooking as new. Can they be repositioned as a medium-light oil ball or are they literally dead and they won't be able to do anything?

[Tampabaybob]

No.....the rejuvenator will take the oil out of balls that have been really saturated and make them respond just like new. It's an amazing machine, and as I mentioned, I've only had the opportunity once, to have mine done. For 20 or 30 bucks you can't beat it. The other methods, such as soaking them in Dawn dishwashing liquid and warm water will work, but I have my doubts as to the effectiveness. One of the guys on my team cooks his in his oven about once a month. Now CAUTION...if you try this you have to keep the temp down to about 125 max, so you would have to have an oven that you can regulate it that low. He keeps them in for two hours and wipes the oil off every 15 minutes. Most ball companies "DO NOT RECOMMEND" this method. I've had him do 2 of my balls and it does change the amount they will hook, back to closer when they were new. The rejuvenator is definitely safer.

Bob