15#4, 3" pin, 2.54 top. I did something close to a label shift with this one. About a 4 x 5+, with the pin about an inch right and on line with the ring, and the CG on the midplane line below the ring, out about 1/2" from the grip center. Mass bias in the track next to the thumb.
Short summary: Smooth roll-arc reaction, covers a good range of oil, good on weird shots, exceptional on carrydown. Can't think of another look quite like it on the market today.
Longer than a Tour Power, slightly stronger, a little more on the backend. Longer than a Deuce, not nearly as strong, much less backend. Shorter than a Hot Wire, not quite as strong, somewhat less backend. It's readily distinguishable from any of the above. Razor Wire's specs - a mildish solid cover over a medium RG core with a bit of differential - are indicative of the reaction.
One of the early reviews said "Second coming of the Tour Power". Razor hasn't quite got the same low-RG roll and it gets turned a little easier, but, yeah, it is only a hair stronger overall. The resemblance is in their controllable sport-ball character. You could force either of them snap, but by nature they both want to arc the lane. For me, I think Tour Power is somewhat better on ordinary league shots, whereas Razor is only at its best on tough shots.
Given what I'd seen of the Barbed Wire, I thought this would lope more in the heads but it wasn't like that. Like nearly all Storms, if you have a whiff of oil in the heads it will get through cleanly. Razor has a good strong late midlane roll and continuation. The coverstock is a little softer off the dry than Accutread and seems to retain energy better.
I anticipated that it would want to arc and had it drilled accordingly. This is a valid layout, but if you wanted it for a league shot I would not hesitate to add some length and backend. The biggest surprise in this ball is how well it handles carrydown. It is better than either the Tour Power or Hot Wire in this regard. When throwing it, you are very aware of the big flare working for you on the backend. To give you an idea: I was bowling on a wet carried-down condition today. Sounds amazing, but Razor Wire was handling the backends a lot better than a friend's stacked V2 Strong.
Odd thing about this ball for me - it seems to work better on the weird shots, the sport shots and breakdown conditions than on something clean and normal. I didn't care for it as a first ball out on a fresh league shot. It was too strong and wanted to setup too quickly to play outside, was too little too late to play inside. I felt deprived of area, but I think a hit of polish would make that problem go away.
So, for me, this isn't a ball I'll lead off with on league. If there's a good bit of oil, maybe it isn't the second. I think it's a resin for when the track breaks down and you have some carrydown. It plays well hitting a tube or track; there's plenty of ball here to get turned. I found it very obedient to release and speed changes.
I believe it will have an important place as a stepdown ball from my beloved Hot Wire on a league shot. It will also be an alternate look from my Tour Power on middle-length sport patterns.
Control: 9.5. Control is a big strength. Plays smoothly off a dry track or tube. If you have a rev or two to your name, a control drilling on this would make a fantastic cheapo sport or PBA pattern ball.
Responded very well to speed and release changes for me. I could shape the backends to be whatever I needed. Oddly, in this regard, it reminded me of the Granite, which is obviously a totally different ball.
Versatility: ?. I don't know how to rate it. I think of it as a 5-trick pony. Razor Wire is going to be a unique and misunderstood ball, like people who bought the Visionary Purple Ice for league shots and disliked it.
So far, it's a good sport ball, a good 2nd or 3rd ball out of the bag, excellent on carrydown, good for near-breakdown. Every serious bowler needs something like this in the bag. Yet I have trouble with it on a clean league shot. I think all my troubles here would disappear with a coat of polish.
As far as how much oil it will work on, it is not a weakling in any sense. I think you could make it work on a good range from medium light up to a heavier medium. Because it's nice and rolly, you feel like if you could find the least wrinkle with it, you could finesse a shot with it on quite a bit of oil.
Hit & Carry: 8. I thought it was a little below average among the Storms I've used. The big problem with arcing balls is they sometimes don't generate enough backend to get out the 10. That was my experience with Razor.
