Keep something in mind...pitch is more of an angle than pitch. Pitch is what is drilled into a flat object.
If you drill a hole at 0 'pitch' into a round object, the farther you move the hole from the starting point, the more angle is created, eventhough it may still be drilled towards the center of the object. So if you drill a hole at 0 pitch and have a 4" span, how much angle is created compared to a 5" span from hole to hole?
Too much is based upon the pitch and not the angle. If you have a 5" span and have 1/2" away or reverse in the fingers, the pads will more than likely lay flatter in the holes, irregardless of flexibility.

As Lane so eloquintly borrowed from me, Span Dictates Pitch, not the opposite. Make sure you have the correct starting span and then adjusting pitch to acquire the proper feel. What is right for one will not or more than likely not be the same for another. Merely having an excessive amount of away or reverse pitch in the fingers does not automatically mean you need less reverse pitch in the thumb. It all depends on what the hand dictates.

When dealing with lateral pitches between the finger and thumbs, conflicting pitches can hamper release ease. If you have an excessive amount of right lateral in the fingers and left lateral in the thumb, it can create a cork screw effect at the release or the angles are fighting themselves or against each other.

And finger laterals have lesser affect on overall release than most think. It is more comfort than performance.

Pitch with the proper span allows the bowling ball to stay on the bowlers hand and allows it to release and/or clear at the correct or proper point in the release.
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Formerly BrunsRico

As posted by Steven..."None other than our esteemed JustRico!!"

1/2 reverse in Brick's fingers is not too excessive.  His fingers are very stiff.  They are crooked too if I remember correctly.

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I have examined Brick's hand, but it was around a year ago.

I drilled one guy's middle finger at 1 1/4 reverse.  He was an ex baseball catcher in the minors, ex boxer for money, ex brick mason, and who knows what else, this guy's hand was terrible.  Yikes...
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1. For smash...what is the effect you believe of the 3/8 3/8 lateral split in lateral pitches and what should they be? WHY?

The Lateral pitches in the fingers do a couple things.  Comfort is one thing that laterals do.  Many people have fingers that are bent or angled.  Proper lateral pitch eliminates pressure and rubbing.  3/8 , 3/8 you may see quite often and is used as a generic setting.  This many times is not the correct measurement.  A second thing lateral pitches do is keep the finger holes from meeting at the bottom of the bridge.  If the fingers are straight I will start with a 1/4 left middle finger and 5/8 right ring finger. This is depending on the size of the hand and the conditions of the fingers ie...  jammed, bent, damaged, smaller, larger I can adjust as needed.

For Smash/Rico.... all this // \ Is that referring to the lateral pitches of the fingers versus the lateral pttch of the thumb? Are you saying they should be in similar directions?? Thumb finger?

Fingers and thumb pitches are independent of each other but generally if they are away from each other you will drop the ball.  If they are pointed inward toward each other you will most likely squeeze the ball.  The // \ you are seeing is for reverse in the fingers and thumb only it has nothing to do with laterals.  Unfortunately it is hard to draw on this forum.

For smash....and others....are you saying that if one adds more lateral one should move the thumb more forward thus preserving the same original angles that one started with when they might have been 0 forward reverse on the fingers and 1/4 reverse on thumb.....Sort of this....if now 1/4 reverse on fingers then 0 forward reverse on the thumb?

I use laterals in the fingers for comfort and to keep the pressure off the joints and put the feel back onto the pads of the finger.  As for lateral in the thumb this is set to help come out of the ball cleanly.  The thumb lateral depends on the side to side flexibility of the thumb.  It depends on how much inward the thumb maybe moved toward the palm.  Rarely do I ever drill right lateral in the thumb.  

Even though the fingers and thumb are independent, if you move one forward or reverse you should also adjust the other as needed.

Smash49





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Smash49

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If lateral pitches in the finger and thumb are conflicting, you will not drop the ball, you will more than likely cork screw it into the lane or create unneccessary callousing. It will also hinder the release or make inconsistan.
When the fingers are going in one direction and the thumb lateral is going in the opposite, they are fighting each other.
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Formerly BrunsRico

As posted by Steven..."None other than our esteemed JustRico!!"