HEY HAMMERHEADS!
After a good 4 hour session of practice today, I figured I would post some observations on how the new Hammer equipment looked on the lanes today. Please note balls were kept at OOB finishes.
Oil Pattern: All of the new bowling balls were thrown on a THS. The shot can be played in the middle, in the track, or on the outside part near 10 (2nd arrow). Just another "great wall of china" of course but I definitely saw some differences in the equipment and a few of them maybe a surprise to you.
HAMMER JIGSAW
I drilled the JIGSAW with a 60 degree MB and a 5" pin placement, with my axis being 4 1/2" over by 1/2" up that put the Pin at 12 o'clock with the MB just a few inches away from the thumb.
What I expected: Very continuous with strong roll yet still enough energy left to make the corner back into the pocket.
What I observed: Playing direct with the track line having oil to spare, I got great hold with a continuous backend motion. It was not very flippy but I did have decent angle to the pocket. As I played deeper and slowed my speed down I noticed the Jigsaw start to run out of energy and not even turn the corner which was kind of disappointing to me; however, when I moved over to the left gutter cap and played 4th (middle) and 5th arrow sending the ball out to around 2nd arrow (10), it made a comeback which was very surprising to me despite the lack thereof playing in the middle and inside the track area.
Conclusion: To me, throwing the Jigsaw with some oil on the lanes, is when you will see the benefits of having the ball in your arsenal. The ball to me was very iffy when the carry down became imminent. When playing the inside part of the lane, I left a lot of 2-8-10s, 2-4-8-10s and there such.
BLACK WIDOW STING
I drilled the Sting with the same layout as the Jigsaw afore mentioned above. The goal behind laying both of these bowling balls out with the same layout was to see the separation between the core and coverstock combinations.
What I expected: Not as strong as the Jigsaw but still playable enough to have the backend reaction to enter the right angle into the pocket.
What I observed: If the ball hit the dry too soon, this ball was an over reacting monster. The very surprising and refreshing thing about the Sting is that it gave me a continuous motion yet still had the pop on the backend I was expecting. To me the Sting did not quit whereas the Jigsaw did and as the shot broke down it became even more predictable to play with. When I moved semi deep, which for me is standing between 30-35 and aiming between 20 and 15 getting it outside of 10, to me was more ball reaction than the Jigsaw, which was very weird to say the least. Yet when I moved over the deepest I could, the Sting showed me where its weakness was in comparison to the Jigsaw as it used too much energy to make the move back while the Jigsaw did giving me the separation between the two.
Conclusion: I feel the Sting can be used on a heavier volume of oil and could give a better look than the Jigsaw if the Jigsaw is not turning the corner. I do feel also that the Sting gave me a better look playing in the middle of the lane to the track line (at 15).
RAW HAMMER BURN
I drilled this ball with a 4 3/4" Pin Above the Ring Finger with the CG slightly kicked out but not enough to make the weights over an ounce, so no weight hole was necessary.
What I expected: Just as the specs said, a coverstock that was very skid/snap and flippy.
What I observed: Since its inception back in June I have got that skid snap motion. The BURN is a very predictable ball and can be used on a fresh house shot all the way down to when the heads start to break down. With my style, I tend to play more straighter as the lanes transistion through the night and this was no different during this practice session. The BURN benefited me the most while playing the track area (15) and straight up 8 with a change of hand position also. The BURN never died out and the only disadvantage of the BURN is when it skids just a little bit past the break point as I had my fair share of washout and bucket leaves. I personally feel this was due to high ball speed and lack there of revs.
Conclusion: The BURN to me is the benchmark ball out of the new line of Hammer products and one I see myself using the most for the season but however, the Onyx Vibe could very well take the place of that statement very soon. If you thought some of the stuff you are reading is a surprise, you may not believe what I have to say about the Onyx Vibe.
ONYX VIBE
My philosophy with both of the VIBEs I have drilled (Emerald and Onyx) were to drill them with 5" Pins above the fingers. Being what my axis is, it gives me the pin at 12 o'clock. I prefer to not want a weight hole so I put the CG just below the fingers or in the midgrip depending upon pin placement location.
What I expected: Very early, smooth, and stronger overall than the Emerald Vibe. I also expected a ball that I could use once the heads broke down and did not have to worry about over reaction!
What I observed: VERY VERY DECEIVING and surprsing ball reaction. When I say that I mean the Onyx is a very aggressive piece. The market here and how the oil patterns are set up in the six houses we have to bowl at, the lower end stuff makes quite the statement here! I saw a very strong ball motion, very archy and aggressive ball roll to the pocket without loss of energy. On the fresh, I saw the look of the Onyx Vibe being even stronger overall than the JIGSAW and even the Sting! I know that may sound shocking to some of you, needless to say, it definitely threw me for a loop. I finally found the weakness in the ball when playing the deepest shot I could (left gutter cap) and it left an ugly washout versus where the Jigsaw made the turn on the corner.
The Onyx is probably the one ball I under estimated the most while practicing today and one I enjoyed using the most because it was the most consistent ball reaction I saw the whole day. I also need to throw in how versatile of lines I was playing with the ball too. If you read in the Jigsaw part of my post where I talked about playing in the track and the middle of the lane that the Jigsaw lost its energy and never turned the corner..well with the Onyx, one of the surprises was seeing it cut through the nose playing these lines with the ball. It is going to be a toss up which ball comes out of the bag first between the Onyx and BURN. I am very impressed with the price point of this series and how much performance really comes into this piece. Having the CT reactive coverstock on a VIBE ball as stated above is a very deceiving notion.
Conclusion: Very versatile, can play the middle, track area, and up the 8 board with this ball all with the right change of hand position also.
My grades for the new products are as follows:
Jigsaw: B-
Black Widow Sting: B+
Burn: A-
Onyx Vibe: A+
The Jigsaw gets the bill for the strongest and earliest reaction.
The BURN gets the bill for the longest and most backend reaction.
The Black Widow Sting gets the bill for being the dark horse.
The Onyx Vibe gets the bill for the most under estimated and deceiving ball reaction shape (which is a positive do not get me wrong!).
I hope this helps you all with your choosing of the new Hammer line, I feel this is going to be a great start for HAMMERHEADS everywhere this season! Thank you and God Bless You All!
I would love to hear what type of reactions all of you that have drilled these pieces got as well as I'm sure some may or may not agree with my statements.
-Michael-
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--Michael Price--
-McCorvey''s Pro Shop Staff-
-"The Complete Bowler''s Pro Shop!"-
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