Aslan's Latest Nerdy Activity: The 4-ball arsenal tiered selection system

[Aslan]

How do your drilling layouts factor in?

From your proposed tiers you are trying to cover as many conditions as possible not necessarily optimize your options for a particular shot.

Correct!! Unlike the pros...us amateurs are limited to how many different balls and finishes and layouts we can routeinly carry around with us. And this is where the system may work well for some and not others. I bowl in many different centers...I try to do tournaments here and there...I bowl in Vegas twice a year or more. So for ME...I NEED an arsenal that can cover as many conditions as I'm likely to see...but it can't be an endless arsenal of 25 different balls...each dedicated to a certain center or certain shot or certain lane.

As far as cost goes it is an indicator but again flawed why I didn't mention it. In my proposed line up the Bad A$$ cost more than any of the other balls listed there from what I've seen (other than the Bad Intentions) but is in tier 2 the IQ Tour/Fusion costs more than an asylum or Rukus but is tier 3. Now most tier 4 balls will be less expensive but so far the manufactures haven't figure out a good way to make us pay more for light oil balls but eventually someone will do it.

From what I saw when I evaluated about 60 balls on my wish list was that in GENERAL...the higher priced balls and new releases were more likely to fall in Tiers I, IV, or possibly II. The lower priced balls were almost always in Tiers III or IV. Especially when you're talking Storm or RotoGrip...where they have their mid-performance or HPII lines....those balls virtually all fell into Tier III.

And actually, its kinda a good system to evaluate whether a ball is "worth the price" because if you have a ball like....I don't have my list in front of me...but lets say an IQ Fusion or Hy Road Pearl or something along those lines. Those balls will have a hefty price tag when first released...yet the numbers don't dictate that they'll be any more effective than many other Tier III balls available for much less $$$. Or you may see a ball like the Storm BYTE and it (back in the day) was a pricey ball...but you look at the numbers and maybe it falls into Tier II...and maybe you take that into consideration because maybe there are cheaper options that give the same performance. But I'd have to have the list in front of me to really give examples.

The biggest things I see with your proposed arsenal are:

1. Starting out with a skid flip pearl (Defiant Edge) on fresh heavy to medium/heavy conditions is not how I see most successful bowlers function (there are exceptions). Most will start off with a more surfaced ball and move in and swing it with a more pearlized ball after the transition or just use a weaker ball and play the same line. Not saying you have too it's just what I observe from watching other highly successful bowlers.

It'll be an interesting ball to try. I tried to make the Encounters my "Tier I" balls and the pearl coverstock just made the balls go too long to be effective in that role...and actually they got bumped all the way back to Tier III. The Defiant Edge may suffer the same fate if after drilling it is going too long. The SYSTEM only helps with selection...you still have to practice and throw shots to figure out EXACTLY what ball does what and where to use it.

2. The Ruckus I have quite a bit of experience watching different people use and in its OOB finish plays just like my Asylum which is neither a true heavy oil ball or skid flip so it just doesn't work the way you were suggesting it. I know DV8 characterizes that ball as skid/flip on their website but unless you've got ridiculous revs it just doesn't perform that way.

Well, wouldn't be the first time a manufacturer stretched the truth about a ball's capabilities...but going strictly by the numbers...the Ruckus is a much stronger ball (overall) than the Asylum.

3. The Warning Sign it extremely similar to the Rukus you really don't need both in your bag.

I don't understand how you came up with this other than them both having assymetric cores and hybrid covers. The balls have completely different numbers. "Could" they end up behaving similar?? Sure.
1) It's probably possible through drilling and surfacing to bring the balls closer together in performance and nullify the numbers.
2) The Ruckus is a bit newer than the Warning Sign so it's possible that the WS technology makes it weaker...perhaps nullifying some of it's number differences. For example...maybe despite the low RG....the cover doesn't bite as much and it goes as long as the Ruckus. Unlikely...but possible.

As far as my tiers go I wouldn't probably carry that exact bag anywhere unless I didn't know what the conditions were going to be. My local alleys Dunbar Lanes is more medium I could throw any of those balls there but at Venture I could throw 15 games on the same set and never need a light oil ball I'd leave it at home and bring a different shot shape ball if it was that important to me. At Galaxy lanes I don't need an Heavy oil ball period switch it out for another lighter piece.

But doesn't that contradict the concept/idea that variances exist not only from house to house...but lane pair to lane pair or even lane to lane?? I rarely need my Tier III balls...and very, very, very rarely need my Tier IV ball (now that wood lanes are gone). But...last night I ended the night throwing my Tier III balls...because I was bowling on the pair closest to the doors to the center and lanes were hooking way, way, way more than usual. Had I just brought the 3 balls I usually need (Tier I, Tier II, and spare)...I'd have had to do some things I really don't like to do...like change speeds.

And honestly, after doing the project...my current arsenal is flawed (according to that system) because the Bullet Train is a Tier III but the Encounters and Rhythm are Tier II. Yet, the Tier III (by the numbers) is erving as my Tier I ball and my Tier II (by the numbers) Encounters are serving as Tier III balls...because I don't have the rev rate to get them to make the turn on medium oil or heavy.

Another theory is that nothing really matters in terms of specs except the coverstock and surface. Obviously as a numbers guy...that would be disappointing if true. And most modern bowling guys and pro shop operators would likely object...as would the ball engineers...yet tests have shown that things like coverstock, surface, and hand-fit...make noticeable differences even at lower levels. I've not seen any actual testing that shows amateurs (underlined for a reason) will see a difference when you change variables such as core or drilling. IF....IF thats the case....then an ideal arsenal is easy...you start with a solid...you ball down to a hybrid....then down to a pearl. You wanna get 'fancy'? Then have 6 balls...3 assymetric and 3 symmetric cores. Bamm...you've covered every base. But I really struggle with the concept that the entire bowling industry has kept us believing that specs are important while secretly only the covers really matter.

How do your drilling layouts factor in?

Short Answer: They don't because drilling layout differences actually effect amateur level player's ball movements so minimally that it's practically a non-factor. See "Encounter Project" in Aslan's videos.

Longer Answer: They DO factor in because once you design your arsenal and make your ball selections...you can then get the pro shop operator/ball driller to drill those balls in a way that optimizes where you have them positioned. For example;

In my next arsenal I have a "poor man's skid/flip" ball in Tier IV...the Brunswick Loaded Revolver. It's replacing the Slingshot...which it is more aggressive than. But it's not at the technological level of a true modern skid/flip ball. So my instructions to the ball driller will be to drill it as "skid/flip as possible" and then give it a high polish finish. So in that case, I'm taking a Tier IV ball and using the drilling/layouts to maximize it. The same can be said for the Defiant Edge of arsenal #3 (future). It fits into Tier I...it has the aggressiveness needed...but the drilling/layout will need to nullify the pearl coverstock as much as possible so that ball isn't going too long.

[JJKinGA]

Rather than the perfect scale to account for coverstock friction, I think you may want to look at BTM's length rating which is designed to provide spearation between the bowling balls and give an idea of the amount of friction. BJI has a similar rating but BTM has been very transparent about how it is measured and it should be pretty consistent. It tracks very well to how they rate the balls for a given amount of oil (longer is higher rated on dry, shorter rates better on heavy). I haven't found that the torque, back end or hook ratings are that useful to me. Perhaps because those properties are more drilling depedant.