Summer heat having an effect on the ball?

[JDHamm85]

Thanks all for the conversation. I'm going to invest in some sort of cleaning method to keep the ball long lasting, and make sure to do it before I leave the alley, or at least do it that day. I'll take it to the pro shop over the weekend.

J - Yeah, it is one of those coin operators every house has. We recently went to the shop because my bowling partner, my father in law, got a nice Storm Black Ice for Father's Day and he was getting it drilled. I was thinking about getting the paranormal revived then but held back because A) it is expensive and B) Wanted to see if my deep cleaning would help.
Long story short, the pro shop guy flat out said that those conditioning machines suck. And I tend to agree. I used it once for my Paranormal, but it was only for a minute and it was just to take some off the aggressiveness off of it. And it worked, I think I averaged a 206 that day.
My Father in law, on the other hand, has put his Meanstreak in there the last 3 weeks, for the max time. He says he likes how he throws it, and that he is more of a straight bowler anyway, but throwing it straight is different than having it skid all the way down the lane, then have no energy to flip and finish. Half of his single pin leaves were flat 10s.

[Greenday]

It's too expensive to get your ball revived? How much are they charging you? It cost me like $15 for them to do it for my last ball and when I threw it next, I couldn't remember it ever hooking so hard.

[GeoLes]

Are you talking about one of those coin-op machines? As I understand them they clean the surface dirt from the ball and apply a coat of polish or wax. They're great for keeping plastic balls looking nice and shiny but not very good for reactive resin.

I was advised by a pro shop guy to avoid using those machines for your ball because they also tend to seal the pores of the coverstock. Okay for a plastic ball or a house ball.

[JDHamm85]

It isn't TOO expensive, it just is expensive regardless. I think it was $30 to revive, $40 to revive and resurface. $30 to drill (not counting the inserts) a plastic ball, $60 to drill a reactive ball.

The shop is co-owned by Wes Mallot. He co-owns a couple in town. But the guy who runs it is pretty nice. He gave me a discount and did get a great job on my paranormal. Hopefully when I tell him I'll be bringing him a Disturbed to drill on the way as well, he'll discount me some again.

[vdubtx]

I have found in summer in North Texas the same things you experience JDHAmm. Think the house I bowl in cuts down on the conditioner in summer and also does not have a good AC system. They actually brought in portable AC units into the center the other week.

[JDHamm85]

I wish the house I go to would invest in some additional AC units or something Vdub. Gotta have a microfiber towel for the ball and another towel for my face lol.

[classygranny]

I think the houses here don't really care about the summer league bowlers, they just have them as they know they have to. They want to cater to the kids that come in just to throw the ball as hard as they can down the lane a few games, act silly, and then on to the next activity.

One of the alleys I bowl in oils the lanes at the close of business, then they shut the house up with no air left on and in the morning around 8:30 they turn the fans on, then the ac doesn't go on until 10am, so between 9:15 and 10 you sweat so bad you can't get cooled down even after the ac is on. The other issue is that the condition of the lanes are so different once the temperature reaches over 80 degrees for the low, sometimes it seems like we are bowling on lanes that have been squirted with oil rather than an actually layer of oil. Also, my Defiant Soul tends to pick up the oil really bad in these conditions, so the pro shop guy encouraged me to clean it before putting it away for the day.

I see the balls reacting so differently once this happens - it is really fun and educational to watch the different bowlers try and compensate and some of the things they all try (or don't try) - probably including myself. This is definitely a learning experience - very similar to the "dead zone". Has made me more aware of the other bowlers balls and where they are throwing - which I never really paid attention to before coming to this site.

Thanks to all for all the great help, tips, and ideas.

[e-tank]

Ive noticed lanes transitioning much faster as well. My HRR barely lasts the first game before i switch out to a polished or 4000 grit

[got_a_300]

I know that here in Illinois the summer heat/humidity very much has an effect on lane oil. It seems to thin it out making it transition faster and absorb into the ball more easily.

Talked to the lane techs and they say they are using the same oil and the same pattern/volume as they do over the winter league. but now the ball comes back without oil lines and I have to stand 3-5 boards left of where I do in the winter.

Our center changes over to a different oil blend for the summer season
and then back to the regular oil blend for the fall/winter season.

The summer blend is a lot heaver and thicker concentration of oil to help
keep it from thinning out and to help cut down on the oil carrying down
too fast and the winter blend is a lighter/thinner concentration of oil as
there isn't a lot of heat and humidity to worry about then.