BallReviews
General Category => Miscellaneous => Topic started by: azncdawg on May 02, 2017, 05:07:18 PM
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I just bought a Storm 3 Ball Bag for $185 a Gauntlet for $230, a Timeless for $230 and a Pitch Black for $180 here in the Metropolitan NY area. They included finger inserts and thumb slug, no tax was the discount. Is this the going price everywhere? I had bought online before but always had to tweak the span which made it a bit uncomfortable when I visited my local pro shop, so I decided to just buy from them.
Is this around the price all around the US? Just Curious. Thanks.
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That's not far off, I'd say pretty comparable
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About the same for No. Cal/East Bay area.
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$218..... 2002 I got a V2 up in Tacoma, WA. I wonder how much balls are now up there....
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Those prices for the Gauntlet and Timeless seem kind of steep, even with the "discount". My teammate paid $160 out the door for his Timeless (ball purely recommended by the pro shop.) When the Timeless didn't work for him, the Pro Shop took it back and did an even swap for a new Forest Green Quantum. The shop might have taken a loss on the deal, but they have a happy customer.
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Anybody else find the last reply hard to believe? Any Pro Shop Operator have an opinion on this?
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Anybody else find the last reply hard to believe? Any Pro Shop Operator have an opinion on this?
I would be surprised if the Timeless for $160 out the door wasnt a package ball so the pro shop didn't actually pay full cost for it.
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I have lucked out and an awesome pro shop operator who drills for almost nothing for me....a timeless drilled for me would be $190
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Anybody else find the last reply hard to believe? Any Pro Shop Operator have an opinion on this?
Yes. It's one of two things. Very close with the PSO or they crummy work and have to deep discount or both.
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Yeah, the prices in the first post are pretty much identical to what I would pay in my area for the newest equipment. I'm liking the discontinued rack lately though. Significantly lower price for a brand new ball that was just released like 9 months ago. The bowling ball market is getting ridiculously flooded, but it's not hurting my wallet.
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I have a friend who paid 230 for a ball then the Pro Shop charged him 20 for thumb slug and 15 for inserts. Then charged him tax. He loved it, it was a Code Black and its working for him and he's shooting great scores with it but that's almost $290. Storm Balls cost a premium here in NYC.
The Pro Shop Owner had an a la carte price chart above the service area. $30 for Vise It on top of the Thumb insert, then $20 added if you want a customized thumb mold, that's $70 for an extra customized thumb mold if he wants one sized up or sized down.
If my friend had all that added to the ball, it would cost him $343.
In addition AMF owns most of the houses here so if you don't join a league to get the discount, it could cost $13 per game.
He's a doctor so he doesn't care but the difference between how much he paid to how much I paid was a shock.
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I paid $205 out the door for my no rules pearl and $155 for my dare devil trick. Military base pricing :)
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My PSO typically charges me $30-50 over his cost out the door.
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I paid about 220 including drilling and sales tax for a no rules pearl in Phoenix last month. Lots if competition down there but I could have driven all over the valley and not saved more than 10 or 15 bucks
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Those prices seem right on target. Luckily for me, i can drill my own stuff so all i pay is internet pricing and buy my slugs/grips online and im good to go. Only time i pay premium is when i buy overseas stuff lately.
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Everywhere else's in San Diego is charging around $250 drilled for top of the balls
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I pay $40 over what the ball costs. All I get is an IT and no grips. I lay it out, he puts holes in it.
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Using Storm as the example. Including IT and grips I'm usually right around these numbers out the door.
Premier - $204
Master - $188
Thunder - $155
This is in Ohio and being on the VIP list for the shop.
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Thank God I throw mainly lower-end balls. :o
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I never really pay more than $210-220 for a high end ball (Utah products).
I don't mind that though b/c the shop I go to has been super good to me through the years and I get exceptional quality.
Edit: NKY/Cincy area
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Really depends on if the pro shop you go to is a hobby and/or part time gig or a business for the owner. Most people who do it for fun or do it on the side don't generally need to generate the revenue that an actual pro shop business needs to. Sounds like you go to a pro shop business, in which case, yes, that's the going rate, and is a fair price regardless of what anyone else says. Considering the suggested retail of a ball like the Sure Lock is $299.95 BEFORE drilling, getting it for significantly less including the drilling is a good deal. Pro shops really can't afford to operate on the margins they're forced to by hobbyists and the internet companies, which is why you don't see many good ones around. Internet companies make their money on the dozens of advertisements and banners on the site, they really only sell the equipment so they can make money on the advertisements, absolutely zero way they could function or operate at those prices if sales were their only source of income.
A shop that can afford to offer quality at a cheaper price than that and is actually ok putting in that kind of effort for that little return is truly rare, and you should definitely patronize them. There are a lot of benefits of purchasing through a pro shop that definitely make it worth the few extra bucks. Obviously I'm biased LOL, but I can also make numerous points and defend them all in favor of purchasing at a shop rather than online, even if the shop is more expensive IF IF IF that shop has service and quality worthy of the extra bit of cost. Pro shops should cost a bit more than you can get it for online, but they should also make it worth the cost.
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Really depends on if the pro shop you go to is a hobby and/or part time gig or a business for the owner. Most people who do it for fun or do it on the side don't generally need to generate the revenue that an actual pro shop business needs to. Sounds like you go to a pro shop business, in which case, yes, that's the going rate, and is a fair price regardless of what anyone else says. Considering the suggested retail of a ball like the Sure Lock is $299.95 BEFORE drilling, getting it for significantly less including the drilling is a good deal. Pro shops really can't afford to operate on the margins they're forced to by hobbyists and the internet companies, which is why you don't see many good ones around. Internet companies make their money on the dozens of advertisements and banners on the site, they really only sell the equipment so they can make money on the advertisements, absolutely zero way they could function or operate at those prices if sales were their only source of income.
A shop that can afford to offer quality at a cheaper price than that and is actually ok putting in that kind of effort for that little return is truly rare, and you should definitely patronize them. There are a lot of benefits of purchasing through a pro shop that definitely make it worth the few extra bucks. Obviously I'm biased LOL, but I can also make numerous points and defend them all in favor of purchasing at a shop rather than online, even if the shop is more expensive IF IF IF that shop has service and quality worthy of the extra bit of cost. Pro shops should cost a bit more than you can get it for online, but they should also make it worth the cost.
online shops get a better deal than brick and mortar through distributors. So they still make more money than you'd expect. About and extra 5-10 per ball. I have a friend that opened an online shop and uses the same distributor as I do. They get balls cheaper than I, And the product drop ships from the distributor straight to the customer. Win-win for the online guy. Sucky ducky for b and m's.
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High end 170 --- mid 150 -- includes grips / thumb slug
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There was a comment on price depending on how many Pro Shops in the area. That kind of makes sense why prices are so high here in NYC. Bowling centers are all becoming CVS or Walgreens. So with less centers we get less Pro Shops and thus less competition which results in $300+ for high end bowling balls. Ughh
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Metal_rules where in the country do you buy your equipment? Is it a Brick & Mortar Pro Shop? Those are incredible prices.
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Thanks ITZPS for the valuable input.
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It's pretty tough to compare the price of a ball in NYC to some places in Indiana or Ohio for example. I would consider the price you paid a bargain for the location.
Luke, you couldn't be more wrong about the internet guys. The money generated for site banners doesn't even pay the google bill. The discount figure TKK gave is low for the big guys. When you pay single digit points above cost, ship from multiple locations across the country with the biggest shipping discounts available, with somebody else eating your shipping mistakes, and have private label products there is money to be made.
Things have gotten much leaner for them lately, but I haven't talked with anybody that has been in in the bowling business for a decent amount of time that isn't a little concerned.
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Anybody else find the last reply hard to believe? Any Pro Shop Operator have an opinion on this?
Yes. It's one of two things. Very close with the PSO or they crummy work and have to deep discount or both.
My team mate went to the PSO and basically said "you know how I bowl, get me something you think will work for me," The PSO originally was going to go with the Forest Green Quantum, but jumped on the Timeless bandwagon and went with that instead. The Timeless was a mismatch for the bowler from the beginning, so the PSO took it back and swapped it for the Forest Green which has been a much better ball for the bowler. It had nothing to do with quality of work. It was all good will and customer satisfaction. The PSO will sell the Timeless used and be able to recover a little but not everything.
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Those are some decent prices Alonzo Harris!
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I have a friend who paid 230 for a ball then the Pro Shop charged him 20 for thumb slug and 15 for inserts. Then charged him tax. He loved it, it was a Code Black and its working for him and he's shooting great scores with it but that's almost $290. Storm Balls cost a premium here in NYC.
The Pro Shop Owner had an a la carte price chart above the service area. $30 for Vise It on top of the Thumb insert, then $20 added if you want a customized thumb mold, that's $70 for an extra customized thumb mold if he wants one sized up or sized down.
If my friend had all that added to the ball, it would cost him $343.
In addition AMF owns most of the houses here so if you don't join a league to get the discount, it could cost $13 per game.
He's a doctor so he doesn't care but the difference between how much he paid to how much I paid was a shock.
What shop in NYC charges that much? Not to put a shop on blast but I have not seen that.
The most I ever paid for a Storm high-end ball in the NYC area was 5 years ago and it was $220, drilling, grips, and thumbslug all included.
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You say I'm paying cheap due to my area I beg to differ haha, $240 is $240 which is alot in my book. But I understand your view that its a bigger percentage of medium income depending on where one lives.
I keep hearing $40 above cost, now is that online ball cost or $40 above the Pro Shop cost and if that is the case, the pro shop is giving you his price? That is interesting.
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Sometimes it feels like I'm chasing my own tail. I need fresh equipment for good carry to score well to win some money so I could buy more stuff and practice so I could win to buy more stuff and practice. Then if I don't do well I need to still spend to chase to good stuff to try and win again.
BALLS ARE JUST TOO EXPENSIVE. It's very hard to spend the cash when there's little ones at home, but we keep chasing the win. Why? BECAUSE WINNING NEVER GETS OLD!
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Sometimes it feels like I'm chasing my own tail. I need fresh equipment for good carry to score well to win some money so I could buy more stuff and practice so I could win to buy more stuff and practice. Then if I don't do well I need to still spend to chase to good stuff to try and win again.
How often do you do surface maintenance? It helps to keep the grit level fresh. A ton. I got on the Mirka Mirlon + Sandbagger (or make your own) train and haven't looked back since. Deoiling, regular cleaning, and wiping the ball after each shot will help your equipment keep reacting and carrying like it's fresh. Without the cost and hassle of constantly buying new equipment. Maintenance itself can be a bit of a chore but you will be saving money.
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Sometimes it feels like I'm chasing my own tail. I need fresh equipment for good carry to score well to win some money so I could buy more stuff and practice so I could win to buy more stuff and practice. Then if I don't do well I need to still spend to chase to good stuff to try and win again.
BALLS ARE JUST TOO EXPENSIVE. It's very hard to spend the cash when there's little ones at home, but we keep chasing the win. Why? BECAUSE WINNING NEVER GETS OLD!
Do you own a ball spinner? If not, it would be a great investment for you to help keep the surfaces fresh. Cheaper than buying two new balls.
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I wipe after every frame, clean with ball cleaner at the end of every league and practice session. I have an original Donkee 2 speed ball spinner that is still running strong; except when I am resurfacing where it sometimes overheat and stops. After a cooling down I'm off to the races again.
I have every grit of abralon from 360-4000 and I've tried Br Siaair pads, which are pretty good. I've used cleaners from Storm, Powerhouse, Kegel and a few others, I've also used Simply Green, 409 and made my own degreaser with industrial grade degreasers. I don't always do this but I sometimes refresh the desired grit finish when I plan on bowling a tourney. I've used almost every ball polish and still use Finesse It on occasion.
I do most of my ball prep now at the pro shop because I don't bowl as much as I used to. I know about ball death and I'm afraid I've been a victim of it as early as the Columbia Chaos, which is about the time when ball death first reared its ugly head.
I believe there is legitimate proof of balls losing performance otherwise you would see pros using the same balls throughout the tour season, which is what they basically did in the old urethane/plastic/rubber days.
From all the input it appears that ball prices are pretty uniform throughout the country. I thought we just paid this much here in NYC.
I guess with these prices my next question is how many balls do you buy in one year?
When I buy balls I usually buy 2-3 at one time probably twice a year. I try to keep my bags and shoes as long as possible which can last as much as a decade. I've been doing this for 20+ years and I really don't know how much longer I can do this. Ball prices keep going up but my income isn't
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Ball prices have gone up about 10% in the last 20 years. If you aren't making 10% more than you were 20 years ago you need to look at other employment.
Consumers have a false sense of the value of a bowling ball because ball prices on the internet went unprotected for so long. Pro shops don't have part time hours because they make so much money in the 4 hours they are open that they don't need to be open more.
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In 2002 I spent $218 dollars for a premium ball (V2) after taxes and out the door - Washington state. I bought a new premium ball 6 years later around the same price, but few bucks less in another state (CA). A proshop outside the bowling alley.
Then in 2011 or 2012, I got a premium ball for $197 plus tax. The only difference with this ball is that I didn't get grips. With taxes it's $214 and change. Grips at this shop were $10, so that's $224..
Prices for me hasn't change much with moving to different cities. Of course online premium balls were/are cheaper online with coupons and such....
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Interesting . . I knew they got stuff for cheaper than pro shops did, I just didn't know it was THAT much cheaper and have been told before that they're basically just in it for the advertising dollars. Good to know, thanks.
It's pretty tough to compare the price of a ball in NYC to some places in Indiana or Ohio for example. I would consider the price you paid a bargain for the location.
Luke, you couldn't be more wrong about the internet guys. The money generated for site banners doesn't even pay the google bill. The discount figure TKK gave is low for the big guys. When you pay single digit points above cost, ship from multiple locations across the country with the biggest shipping discounts available, with somebody else eating your shipping mistakes, and have private label products there is money to be made.
Things have gotten much leaner for them lately, but I haven't talked with anybody that has been in in the bowling business for a decent amount of time that isn't a little concerned.