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Author Topic: Price for Drilling up Blank Ball?  (Read 1829 times)

Musky300

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Price for Drilling up Blank Ball?
« on: April 30, 2007, 12:17:19 AM »
What do you guys typically see for costs when you bring a blank ball in to get punched up?  Do not include grips/slug if you use them, assume that you bring those in also.

I buy my balls, grips, and slugs online and then bring them to a local guy to drill.  We are good friends and he has in the past usually cut me a really good deal (like $10/ball), but lately I can tell that something is different and I sense he wants more than what was charged before.  

Another local shop charges $40 for the same service...but I've never paid anywhere near that...most I think has been like $25-$30/ball at pro shops where I use to live.

And also...this "friend" does not own the pro shop...but rather has access to it and does work in it freelance.  I have another friend who will drill them up for free just to do it (he's been doing it for years though), but I don't trust his skills as good as the first guy.

Thoughts?

 

J_Mac

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Re: Price for Drilling up Blank Ball?
« Reply #16 on: April 30, 2007, 10:19:54 PM »
Here's a good story to relate why installing a slug or inserts shouldn't be based on the cost of materials...
quote:

There was an engineer who had an exceptional gift for fixing all things mechanical. After serving his company loyally for over 30 years, he happily retired. Several years later the company contacted him regarding a seemingly impossible problem they were having with one of their multimillion dollar machines. They had tried everything and everyone else to get the machine to work but to no avail.

In desperation, they called on the retired engineer who had solved so many of their problems in the past. The engineer reluctantly took the challenge. He spent a day studying the huge machine. At the end of the day, he marked a small "x" in chalk on a particular component of the machine and stated, "This is where your problem is". The part was replaced and the machine worked perfectly again.

The company received a bill for $50,000 from the engineer for his service. They demanded an itemized accounting of his charges. The engineer responded briefly:

One chalk mark: $1
Knowing where to put it: $49,999.

The bill was paid in full and the engineer retired again in peace.

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Smash49

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Re: Price for Drilling up Blank Ball?
« Reply #17 on: April 30, 2007, 11:15:28 PM »
$40 for fingertip and $30 for conventional.

Smash49
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Track_Fanatic

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Re: Price for Drilling up Blank Ball?
« Reply #18 on: April 30, 2007, 11:31:20 PM »
I can tell you that it costs more to bring in your own ball than it does to purchase one from your pro shop.  First off, the service you receive from your pro shop normally is far superior than buying stuff off of the internet.  Some sites won't allow you to request specific pin placement and top weights.  Also, when you buy locally from your pro shop, if anything were to go wrong with it they will do all the warranty work for you.  You buy it off the internet, you are playing with fire. Even though the pro shop you took the ball to drilled it, if there are any issues with it, your pro shop guy/woman won't take up on the warranty issues.  That is something the bowler must do.  The best thing is to purchase from your pro shop and not from an online retailer.  You will end up paying the same if not more for them to install the grips.  Just because you have your own grips, doesn't mean all it is is dropping them in the holes and thats it.  There is cutting them down.  Making sure your thumb is correctly done.  I would say it would cost about %65 bucks to bring a blank ball into a shop for drilling, grip installation and or grips and installation.

golfnutFL

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Re: Price for Drilling up Blank Ball?
« Reply #19 on: April 30, 2007, 11:50:40 PM »
if you only drill up a ball or three a year, ok.......but if you drill up 20-25 a year I have to disagree. my guy charges me $45, I supply slug and grips....and warranty (knock on wood) has never been an issue. It's a rare ball that reaches 100 games.


quote:
I can tell you that it costs more to bring in your own ball than it does to purchase one from your pro shop.  First off, the service you receive from your pro shop normally is far superior than buying stuff off of the internet.  Some sites won't allow you to request specific pin placement and top weights.  Also, when you buy locally from your pro shop, if anything were to go wrong with it they will do all the warranty work for you.  You buy it off the internet, you are playing with fire. Even though the pro shop you took the ball to drilled it, if there are any issues with it, your pro shop guy/woman won't take up on the warranty issues.  That is something the bowler must do.  The best thing is to purchase from your pro shop and not from an online retailer.  You will end up paying the same if not more for them to install the grips.  Just because you have your own grips, doesn't mean all it is is dropping them in the holes and thats it.  There is cutting them down.  Making sure your thumb is correctly done.  I would say it would cost about %65 bucks to bring a blank ball into a shop for drilling, grip installation and or grips and installation.

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Don't argue with an idiot; people watching may not be able to tell the difference.

strikestriketapped

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Re: Price for Drilling up Blank Ball?
« Reply #20 on: April 30, 2007, 11:52:23 PM »
Where I get my bowling balls drilled, it's $60 which included grips and a slug. Pretty good price.
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Going back to Storm.


ntruax

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Re: Price for Drilling up Blank Ball?
« Reply #21 on: May 01, 2007, 03:04:29 AM »
I just paid $55 with inserts.

charlest

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Re: Price for Drilling up Blank Ball?
« Reply #22 on: May 01, 2007, 04:37:35 AM »
quote:
well, in my opinion, if this guy has hooked you up with favors, such as drilled your balls for fairly cheap (10 bucks), do him a favor and pay him more. Friendship at times can be taken too lightly ... let him know you appreciate his friendship and the things he's done for you in the past with a couple 20 dollar bills ... Yeah... Pay him 40 or 50 bucks on your next ball..being he's saved you that much in the past....but to each their own..thats just my opinion.


BINGO! I agree!
Let it be a symbiotic relationship, not a parasitic one. Otherwise, it won't be a friendship for very much longer.

Normal blank drilling is $25 - $50, without inserts, depending on the shop, local competition, the economy of the location and general area. The overhead of the shop varies from Billings to Peoria to the SF Bay to New York City.

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"None are so blind as those who will not see."
"None are so blind as those who will not see."

laufaye

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Re: Price for Drilling up Blank Ball?
« Reply #23 on: May 01, 2007, 09:58:41 AM »
BOWL,
Think again before you say something like this.  You basically saying that you hire cheap labour to do cheap work. And apperantly your guy not spending much time with the customer, like watch them bowl, layout selections, discuss about customer arsenal, or does your guy even know the customer PAP?  You provide service you charge more, its a pro shop not gift shop.  Think !!!!

quote:
What I think is funny that Shops charge $10 and $15.00 for Grips and slugs. They cost shop under $1.00 each. We charge $40.00 including Grips.

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Laufaye