I've been debating making a new arsenal for quite some time.  Its going to consist of 3-5 balls (not including a spare ball). I'm usually the guy that buys one ball a year, based on what I feel is the biggest gap in my lineup.  I will provide you with what I have worked out so far, and I'd like you to add in any information you might find useful.

I bowl two leagues on a Friday night, which we will refer to simply as Early Shift, and Late Shift.  Both are house shots.  Early shift starts out with a lot of oil in the middle, but the outside of 7 is normally bone dry.  There is no blend as you move further in.  8 to 8 is loaded, and anything outside of 7 checks up almost instantly.  I have had trouble scoring on this shot because I have never bowled in a league with a serious case of wet/dry.  I find my scores increasing week to week, but am unable to put together a real good set because I feel like my ball choice just isn't matching up to the condition.  When late shift comes I find that the shot becomes far too dry, and I usually end up out of my comfort zone of the second to third arrow by the end of the night.  I'm a lefty (I know, the shot should be easy... I'm only sharing that side with one other bowler ) with a fairly high amount of RPM's although I have never really had it measured.  I can play anywhere from up 5 (flattening the wrist, not ripping the ball) to standing in front of the ball return.  My PAP is 5 3/4 over and 1/8 up.  I track very high, almost hitting the thumb and fingers.  Here's what I currently have in the bag or at home.  Please note that I just recently learned how to determine my layout, so only the Virtual Gravity is 100% accurate as far as drilling, the others are just estimations based off of the naked eye, and I can include pictures if necessary.

In The Bag:

Virtual Gravity: Drilled 4x4 with a 2" buffer.  Usually my go-to ball when Early Shift Starts.  Get's me through about the first game with minor adjustments, and then I have trouble making that ball change to keep my scores up.  Ideally this will be my Heavy Oil Ball.

Rotogrip RSX:  This one was given to me by a friend, and it has an EXTREMELY long pin.  I told my pro-shop guy (before I knew drillings) that I wanted this ball to have a big backend motion on the Medium – Heavy oil.  He decided to put the pin about two inches above and between my fingers, while the CG is about ¼ to ½ inch left of my Center Grip.  This ball has always been a little too condition specific for my liking, but when it finds that condition look out!  I find the best results when I pull this ball out after the Virtual Gravity, and shift my feet and mark about 3-5 boards back to the left.  Considering offloading this one because of how condition-specific it is.  This ball is fairly angular and best suited on Medium-Heavy Oil for me.

Storm Rapid Fire:  Drilled RICO.  I bought this used from a friend for $30, it had about 20 games on it.  It gives me a read I can’t even come close to replicating with other drillings, but gives me some issues.  I find that when this ball has some backend motion to work with… it destroys the shot, however with this type of shot, and this drilling; I don’t see that backend motion very often.  Because I track so high, this drilling actually clips the middle finger.  I’m considering offloading this one, although I’m totally undecided.  I like the drilling and may consider throwing it on a different ball.  This ball is a true medium oil ball for me.

Columbia Backyard Bully:  This ball was also given to me back when I knew nothing about how to layout balls.  This ball has the Pin in the ring finger, and the CG kicked in to my palm ever so slightly.  It would appear to be something along the lines of a 5” Pin to PAP.  This ball gives me a very rolly motion on the medium dry.  I find use with this on late shift in about the second game.  It is one of my favorite balls to throw, although it has some age on it.  I’d love to find a suitable replacement for it, so any recommendations would be great.


At Home:

Total NV:  Bought this ball about 2-3 years ago and when it was new it was phenomenal.  It probably has well over 500 games on it, and it just doesn’t have the move it used to.  I find this ball has its best use when the RSX is starting to move too much.  So it finds use the third game of early shift, and is the first ball out of my bag for late shift.

Brunswick Sapphire Zone Pearl:  Ahh my trusty Sapphire Zone Pearl.  I actually picked this one up off the rack two years ago, and it covers the same amount of boards as my Backyard Bully, but in a more angular fashion.  This ball will always stick around my house because I shot my first 300 game with it, but it’s seen some use in games two and three of late shift.

Ricochet Revenge :  Bought this NIB for $60 back in the day.  Haven’t really had a chance to throw it this year, but I know that it usually gave me a pretty angular look on Medium Oil, and if I couldn’t carry the corners with this ball, adjustments usually didn’t matter,  I’d keep leaving them.  Good ball when it carries, but when you flush two corner pins, put the ball away.

Other balls at home that don’t get thrown:  Columbia Action Attack, Columbia Rival, Storm X-Factor Ace


Now comes the tricky part:  I’d like to form a 3-5 ball arsenal (buying two or three balls), that will suit me for these two leagues as well as give me a fair advantage on the PBA shots that I bowl on about once a month or so.  The only balls I’m dead set on keeping in my arsenal are the Virtual Gravity and the Ricochet Revenge (although a re-drill or surface change may be in order), the rest can be either sold, given away, or re-drilled.
 
I feel my biggest struggle is my go-to ball after the Virtual Gravity, so I’d like to purchase something excels where the RSX is mediocre at best.  I used to have a Rival drilled roughly 5 inch pin to PAP, and I loved it.  I always thought it was a little stronger than advertised, and it actually covered more boards than my Total NV back in the day.  I was considering picking one up to fit in this gap.

My next struggle is when the shot dries out game three of late shift.  I was considering picking up a Storm Natural to fill in this gap.  I figure this ball will get me back on the left side of the lane, possibly going down and in when everyone else is struggling to find the headpin.

My final concern is that almost all of the balls I currently have are solids (Rapid Fire, RSX, Virtual Gravity, Total NV, Backyard Bully, Action Attack, and Rival).  I have one pearl ball (Sapphire Zone Pearl), one particle pearl (X-Factor Ace) , and one particle ball (Ricochet Revenge).  I can find success with pearl balls, although I’m usually not a fan of the over/under that can be associated with throwing them.  I’m not brand specific by any means, so all opinions are welcome.  So for a final conclusion, this is what I have:

Heavy Oil: Storm Virtual Gravity (this is a lock, I’m completely satisfied with this ball).

Medium-Heavy: Rotogrip RSX (Looking to replace this with a new Rival, I found that ball could shine on many conditions.)

Medium: Columbia Ricochet Revenge (Although its carry problems kind of scare me, I’d like to think a re-drill or surface change can fix that for me.)

Medium Light: Columbia Backyard Bully (Just one of those balls I always find myself throwing well, although a newer ball with a similar motion is completely fine with me.)

Light Oil: Storm Natural (Based on what I’ve heard, there is no better ball for dry lanes.  I’ve seen it thrown on late shift, this ball was predictable and smooth as all hell.)


If you have read all of this, give yourself a pat on the back.  Thanks for your time and opinions.







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"So there I was... BALLS DEEP!!!"