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Thread: Ball Surfacing (revisited)

  1. #1
    Bowling God Aslan's Avatar
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    Default Ball Surfacing (revisited)

    This is a follow-up to a thread we had a couple years back...

    Back Story:
    As we've discussed in numerous threads about the benefits/drawbacks of staying loyal to one brand...bowling ball companies usually release balls that are in "threes"...a solid, hybrid, and pearl. By using these balls (versus others from the same company with different cores or versus balls from other companies)...you have a rather predictable 'progression'.

    'Progression Concept':
    For those that aren't aware of the concept, a standard 'progression' approach is to start off with a solid...on whatever line the lanes and your style dictate. As the lanes transition, you move in. When you've moved in and start seeing leaves that would indicate the ball might be burning up...you ball down to the hybrid. You then continue the same approach with the hybrid. Once the hybrid struggles getting back to the pocket, you switch to the pearl. The approach isn't foolproof...and if you believe in carrydown...at some point you actually need to ball up to a stronger, skid/flip ball to counter the carrydown. Whether the carrydown even plays into the conversation depends on how many plastic and urethane balls are being thrown.

    The Problem:
    If you use balls with varying specifications (core, materials, manufacturers, coverstocks, differentials, age, etc...)...it's harder to put together a reliable progression...too many variables at play. So, rather than simply balling down...you 'may' need to ball down AND make a slight adjustment when you do.

    My Example:
    The DV8 Thug Life is a far stronger and newer ball than the Warning Sign. It's a pearl that would be better suited as ball #3...but I figure with a little surface...it should work as well as my Radical Reax Pearl that used to be my Ball #1 and worked very well as my Ball #1:

    Radical Reax Pearl (by the numbers):
    Average: 192.06 (139 games)
    High Game: 267
    First Ball Average: 8.91
    Strike Rate: 47%


    So, when I ball down from the Thug Life to the Warning Sign, I figured I'd need to actually move a little right AND straighten out the line slightly. I would move about 2.5 boards right with my feet and 0.5 boards left with my eyes. As this season has went on, I've changed that strategy and it got to the point where I really didn't need to make a move right when I balled down to the Warning Sign. The Thug Life wasn't hitting nearly as hard as the Reax Pearl and the Warning Sign had decent movement on the backend once the lanes transitioned.

    DV8 Thug Life (by the numbers):
    Average: 176.24 (103 games)
    High Game: 266
    First Ball Average: 8.66
    Strike Rate: 39%


    So, how does all this jibberish relate to ball surfacing? Well, I FINALLY got the ball spinner up and running...and was able to put a 3000 surface (no compound nor polish) on the Thug Life and put a 2000 surface, followed by Storm Step 3 on the Warning Sign. The result was not so great. The Thug Life seemed like it was transitioning very quickly and when I balled down to the Warning Sign...I could barely get back to the pocket and carry the 2-pin. By the time that I figured out I needed to adjust about 2:2 right when balling down to the Warning Sign with the altered surface...it was too late to salvage much of a series.

    So, like I learned in 2017 with the Ebonite Innovate...hitting a ball with Storm Step 3 at the end of the surfacing...seems to give it WAY more length then I thought it would.
    Last edited by Aslan; 04-16-2019 at 09:02 PM.
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  2. #2
    Bowler taxexpert2's Avatar
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    Default

    Very interesting thoughts here. Thanks for the post.

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