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Author Topic: Drilling strong balls weak and weak balls strong  (Read 8715 times)

Shermster

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Drilling strong balls weak and weak balls strong
« on: April 23, 2009, 07:49:38 AM »
Are there any benefits to this..?

Strong balls drilled weak and straighter balls drilled strong?
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jbuzz31

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Re: Drilling strong balls weak and weak balls strong
« Reply #1 on: April 23, 2009, 03:56:20 PM »
You will cause a rift in the space time continuum.......
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Dan Belcher

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Re: Drilling strong balls weak and weak balls strong
« Reply #2 on: April 23, 2009, 03:57:55 PM »
I wrote about this at length in another thread just a few weeks ago (scroll down).  In a very short summary, yes, there are huge advantages to doing this.

Edited on 4/23/2009 3:58 PM
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JessN16

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Re: Drilling strong balls weak and weak balls strong
« Reply #3 on: April 23, 2009, 04:20:44 PM »
Dan nails it. I've got a couple of strong balls drilled weak and this thread interrupted me from what I had been doing, which was kicking my *** all around the room for not doing this sooner.

Drill a strong ball (particularly strong cover) weak, and what you get is the drilling will allow the cover to push through the fronts, but once it finally starts to read it makes a strong CONTROLLED move to the pocket. The "controlled" part is the key there. You don't have to polish it up, either -- in fact, that might be a little counter-productive sometimes, because that might make it too flippy when it reads. Best thing about this is you can play around with the surface of the ball and create a wide range of breakpoint shapes.

On lanes that have puddles in the middle, this strong-drilled-weak strategy will allow you to play closer in and more direct, without worry so much about whether you're going to be able to kick out the corners once the ball comes off the spot. "Playing in the oil" is very tough for me with my average rev rate, because I leave flat leaves too often. Strong-drilled-weak fixes this to a great extent.

You'll also find you can play more conditions with that particular ball, therefore freeing up another spot in your arsenal for something that is condition-specific. I've got several balls that work great but only on a limited number of patterns, and unless I want to drag a dozen balls with me to tournaments, those balls tend to end up being left at home because they eat up valuable space. With a strong-drilled-weak ball in the bag that covers multiple conditions, I now have room to bring one of those risk/reward balls along.

As for weak-drilled-strong, what that allows me to do is get back into the track area rather than continue to move left, left, left. There's a certain point beyond which I can't go any farther left and still rev the ball enough to recover. Going weak with the ball -- or "de-shelling" -- gets me back into my comfort zone. The weak cover will clear the burned heads, then the ball takes over and finishes.

The problem with weak drilled weak is that by the time you have heads dry enough to use those balls, you also tend to have some carrydown at the breakpoint, and a weak-drilled-weak ball is horribly allergic to carrydown most of the time. So if there's any carrydown present at the breakpoint, good luck, because you will need it.

Jess

Edited on 4/23/2009 4:22 PM
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Shermster

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Re: Drilling strong balls weak and weak balls strong
« Reply #4 on: April 23, 2009, 05:26:13 PM »
quote:
You will cause a rift in the space time continuum.......
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Ive Eaten From The Insane Root That Imprisons Reason


LOL

Thanks for the good laugh!
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Shermster

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Re: Drilling strong balls weak and weak balls strong
« Reply #5 on: April 23, 2009, 05:30:27 PM »
Very interesting! I've always wondered about the pros and cons of drilling strong-weak and weak-strong. Thanks for the insight!
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River700

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Re: Drilling strong balls weak and weak balls strong
« Reply #6 on: April 24, 2009, 01:52:10 AM »
Thanks Dan, that makes sense now
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Jay

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Re: Drilling strong balls weak and weak balls strong
« Reply #7 on: April 24, 2009, 04:20:02 AM »
quote:
The problem with weak drilled weak is that by the time you have heads dry enough to use those balls, you also tend to have some carrydown at the breakpoint, and a weak-drilled-weak ball is horribly allergic to carrydown most of the time. So if there's any carrydown present at the breakpoint, good luck, because you will need it.


What should one do in this situation?  Even though the weak ball drilled weak will be allergic to the carrydown, it's still one of the few options you have of getting through the heads.  Other than that, plastic or urethane are probably better options if it's that dry.  Or, one could try lofting the gutter.
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CharlieBrown

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Re: Drilling strong balls weak and weak balls strong
« Reply #8 on: April 24, 2009, 05:36:26 AM »
Dan, Jess, great posts, thank you!!!
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BIGJOEPAPA727

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Re: Drilling strong balls weak and weak balls strong
« Reply #9 on: April 24, 2009, 07:08:34 AM »
I have an NVD drilled 6x4. Probably the best reaction I've ever gotten out of a high end ball.
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Dan Belcher

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Re: Drilling strong balls weak and weak balls strong
« Reply #10 on: April 24, 2009, 07:12:35 AM »
quote:
quote:
The problem with weak drilled weak is that by the time you have heads dry enough to use those balls, you also tend to have some carrydown at the breakpoint, and a weak-drilled-weak ball is horribly allergic to carrydown most of the time. So if there's any carrydown present at the breakpoint, good luck, because you will need it.


What should one do in this situation?  Even though the weak ball drilled weak will be allergic to the carrydown, it's still one of the few options you have of getting through the heads.  Other than that, plastic or urethane are probably better options if it's that dry.  Or, one could try lofting the gutter.
It depends entirely on how you throw the ball and how the lanes are breaking down.  If the pattern was a shorter and/or lighter pattern to begin with, a weaker-drilled weak cover/core ball will probably be the right choice.  However, you may also find better luck taking a moderate strength ball (i.e. T-Road Pearl) with a length type of drill, moving inside a little, and swinging it out to the spot.  (If you'll notice, this is what you see quite often on the PBA tour.  By the end of the TV show when the heads are dry, most bowlers will take a 5.5" or 6" pin to PAP layout ball and swing it)  It's hard to say because I don't throw the ball like you on the same conditions you do.  Experiment and find what works best for the way you roll the ball.
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JessN16

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Re: Drilling strong balls weak and weak balls strong
« Reply #11 on: April 24, 2009, 12:54:11 PM »
quote:
quote:
The problem with weak drilled weak is that by the time you have heads dry enough to use those balls, you also tend to have some carrydown at the breakpoint, and a weak-drilled-weak ball is horribly allergic to carrydown most of the time. So if there's any carrydown present at the breakpoint, good luck, because you will need it.


What should one do in this situation?  Even though the weak ball drilled weak will be allergic to the carrydown, it's still one of the few options you have of getting through the heads.  Other than that, plastic or urethane are probably better options if it's that dry.  Or, one could try lofting the gutter.


I'll tell you what *I* do about it -- struggle. (g)

In all seriousness, I'll use any of the following options -- and every one of them starts with a move back RIGHT rather than continuing to go left:

1) Change hand position, turn up speed, using a particle pearl with a length drilling. Something medium like a Track Arsenal Angular. The speed will push it through the fronts and the particle pearl is the best option for carrydown, I've found.

2) I have several old balls from around the year 1995 or so, last-generation stuff. Ebonite Matrix Conquest, Faball (Hammer) Nova Pearl, AMF Ultra/C Pearl, etc. Those covers weren't as aggressive as today's covers. I'll then put a medium-to-weak-medium drill on them. You can probably mimic this reaction by buying something in somebody's current value line (maybe a Visionary Blue/Green Centaur, for instance). The issue I've found with current-generation stuff is that once you get down to the value level it's hard to find a performance core. Older stuff allows you to mix strong cores with weaker covers, and only a couple of people do that now. You might also try to take something like a 900Global Link, then take the polish off the surface. I believe the key to battling carrydown is to take the oil at the breakpoint out of play by not depending on that spot to determine the ball's performance through the pins, because it will be too hard to predict. The ball needs to be straightened up, at the very least, before it gets there. Preferably moving left already.

3) Urethane. I've got an old Visionary Red Sorcerer and Visionary Slate Blue Gargoyle that pretty much make carrydown a non-issue because they're already moving back to the pins at that point. The risk here is that the Slate Blue sometimes offers too much length and depending on where the carrydown is, it can fall into the same trap the reactives do. Since the Red Sorcerer is out of production and the Slate Blue is getting to be really hard to find, I'd recommend the Lane #1 Liberator.

Jess
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Cambumbo

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Re: Drilling strong balls weak and weak balls strong
« Reply #12 on: April 24, 2009, 01:00:03 PM »
I like to have my equipment drilled within certain perimeters, regardless of strength, and adjust coverstocks and change hand-positions to yield desired effects.
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cheech

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Re: Drilling strong balls weak and weak balls strong
« Reply #13 on: April 24, 2009, 03:58:04 PM »
in the carry down situation i would take something shiny and weaker with an early rolling layout. it will get it to roll earlier but the shiny cover will get it through the heads.

i currently use a blue vibe 1.5" pin-PAP with a big hole on my axis
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Jesse James

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Re: Drilling strong balls weak and weak balls strong
« Reply #14 on: April 24, 2009, 05:13:05 PM »
To echo what Dan and Jess have already talked about, these days I grab a particle pearl, anytime I see carrydown. They cut thru carrydown more easily and more predictably than pearls.

It also keeps you away from that occasional washout and/or 5-7, pocket split that occurs when using pearls.

I have  quite a few strong balls drilled weak, and they always come in handy on unusual conditions. Not to mention, all the eyebrows that get raised once you pull that bad boy out your bag, on that condition! : )
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