Ball Weights; 15lb vs. 16lb vs. 14lb

[Aslan]

IMHO...the move towards lighter balls has more to do with bowlers wanting to throw the ball harder with more revs.

Agreed. I find that with my 15lb ball I have to be more careful that I don't get my backswing too high and that I don't bring my hand over the top of it when I release it. With the 16lb ball it's a lot more controlled. But the downside is...it's harder for me to get revs so I have to let the ball do more of the work.

[zdawg]

Agreed. I find that with my 15lb ball I have to be more careful that I don't get my backswing too high and that I don't bring my hand over the top of it when I release it. With the 16lb ball it's a lot more controlled. But the downside is...it's harder for me to get revs so I have to let the ball do more of the work.

With my new ball I went with 15, and really the only reason why is because my original ball is 15 - and the reason that ball is 15 lbs because it was the best used ball the proshop had at the time.

I'm sure I can handle a 16 lb ball, I debated going with 16 for my new ball however I finally decided for now its best to stick with a weight I'm used to, and since I'll be using them interchangeably for a while I figured switching weights back and forth might add more complications as I'm still trying to perfect my release among other things.

[Perrin]

It's all about what works for you...

for some people 14 is better... easier on the arm a little more ball speed.

for some 15 is best the extra force from the additional mass without too much

Some people need to throw 16 so they don't muscle the ball or it reduces their speed enough to allow the revs they put on the ball to do some work before the ball gets through the pin-deck.

I switched from 16 to 15 due to my shoulder being tired after bowling 8 games in a row and it also gave me ~1mph of additional ball speed to help match up with the amount of revs I put on the ball.


I noticed after switching that I was getting more 'mixer' strikes. the 16lb ball was too much and I got better carry from 15

[MICHAEL]

I bowled a team of 5 yesterday that had a couple pretty good size guys, (One looked like a linebacker for the NFL)!
They both threw 14lb balls, and had incredible rev's, 220's averages!

I have come across several guys that COULD throw 16lbers, but choose to use 14's, and they make them look GREAT, and all of them have high averages! So,,, I can honestly say 14lbes don't seem to hurt in scores at all!!!

[tccstudent]

In the old days the extra hitting power from a 16 was more of a difference than the power of a 15
With the steroid induced equipment of today it is actually more important to have a high rev rate over a higher ball weight.
If you can throw a lighter ball with increased revs and still hit the pocket you are better off.
At least this is what has been explained to me buy one of the pro shops here in town.

[zdawg]

In the old days the extra hitting power from a 16 was more of a difference than the power of a 15
With the steroid induced equipment of today it is actually more important to have a high rev rate over a higher ball weight.
If you can throw a lighter ball with increased revs and still hit the pocket you are better off.
At least this is what has been explained to me buy one of the pro shops here in town.

Interesting, I wish there was a way to "test drive" both a 14 lb and a 16 lb ball for some games but I don't see how something like this would be possible without buying the ball and having it drilled to your hand - which becomes an expensive proposition especially if I don't know if I even want a ball at that weight.

Of course I've used all three weights back when I started and was using house balls, but of course without having a ball that fit my hand it was completely useless for comparison sake

[tccstudent]

talk to your pro shop about setting up a demo day this way you can try out different ball and different weights of the same ball

[zdawg]

talk to your pro shop about setting up a demo day this way you can try out different ball and different weights of the same ball

I'll ask them about that tomorrow and see what they say. Since I've never seen one of these, how do they work? Mainly how do they get the demo balls to fit your hand?

[tccstudent]

they have generic drilled balls with average spans and removeable thumbs in different sizes to accommodate most people
It wont fit as good as something drilled just for you but the will have it close enough that you can get a feel for the ball.

They generally have one or two around here a year. The last one was A Storm Demo Day.

[GoodGravy]

If you want the true technical answer for your initial question, pick up a Physics 101 text book. There is a significant difference all facets of kinetic energy when you change mass, not to mention the effects of friction on weighted spherical object, weight transfer, motion blah, blah, blah, blah....

Also, most people will, without even knowing it, change their physical approach due to the change in weight...even if it is small...again, pick up a Sports Kinesiology 101 text book...

Bottom line: Use what you are comfortable with and can develop your game around.....just my 2 cents :-)