Picking a Spare ball

[fungui]

I'm wondering what should be taken into account when purchasing a spare ball. How should the drilling differ from your main ball? I notice that the pros typically throw a straight ball at most spares, does this mean that the ball should not be reactive?

[J Anderson]

I'm wondering what should be taken into account when purchasing a spare ball. How should the drilling differ from your main ball? I notice that the pros typically throw a straight ball at most spares, does this mean that the ball should not be reactive?

There are three reasons to have a spare ball:
To have a ball that goes straight for getting the 10 or 7 pin, or any other spare where straight would be an advantage.
To save wear and tear on your strike ball.
To save time by not having to wait for your ball to come back in order before shooting the spare.

If throwing straight is your top priority, go with polyester a.k.a. plastic. Reactive resin and urethane are also plastic but if you ask for plastic in the pro shop they will probably suggest one of the polyester balls. Even pros who can throw a reactive ball straight by changing their release will switch to plastic to ensure that the ball goes straight.

My preference is for my spare ball to be drilled so it feels the same as my strike ball. I also like it to be the same weight.

[billf]

Pitches and span should be the same. As for layout, polyester balls don't have a PSA or MB so it won't matter. The exception to this rule is the Hammer Taboo Spare ball. That ball has a real core and will hook. Most of the other polyester balls will have a pancake core and unless the lanes are extremely dry or it you're extremely rev dominant, will go straight as an arrow.

My Storm Blue Ice is polyester and I can hook it. My Brunswick T-Zone is polyester and it will only go straight.

[Texasguppie]

So far I'm really pleased with my Ice Storm. It goes straight as an arrow 99% of the time but on occasion It will hook ever so slightly but I'm certain that it's something that I'm doing with my release (a work in progress!)
The hardest thing or me is trusting that it actually WILL go straight!

It's a good looking ball too.

[ghetto24]

I had the Brunswick zone spare ball (before they started calling them t-zone) and that one would hook. bowlingball.com had the pyramids on sale for $40 so I got one. wanted/needed to go down a 1lb. it was like learning how to throw one all over again. absolutely NO hook to this one. irritating at first