Hi everyone, I am looking for a heavy oil to medium ball. I want something cheaper not a 240$ ball. I plan on using a strong drilling as well. 18 mph 500+ revs high axis tilt. Current arsenal: hammer saw blade, virtual gravity(inconsistent reaction), storm frantic, storm t road(drilled really weak), brunswick danger zone hpd, brunswick danger zone(original).

With that said, you may want to look into strong symmetrical equipment for heavy oil. Something like an !Q solid, Frieght Train, Omen, Arson will do the trick for you on heavier patterns with drilling and proper surface.

Righty,

I wonder with his 500 rpms, if those suggestions might be too strong to cover medium to heavy oil??? They might be closer to medium-heavy to true heavy oil candidates.

2handedrook12,

These days few balls will allow you to cover both medium and heavy oil. BUT, of course, on house patterns (vs tougher sport conditions) will often hide the difference between balls. PLUS most often, house patterns are blends that allow you to move left and right with the same ball, but some of them do use wet/dry patterns. It's hard to know how your house (or houses) will play with any single ball.

I'd suggest one ball for medium to medium-heavy oil and the rare stronger ball for medium-heavy to heavy oil. VERY, VERY few house put down a heavy oil house pattern; even fewer tournaments do so.

I think medium to medium heavy oil balls (in the inexpensive range) might be the Storm Victory Road Solid, Brunswick Maxxed-Out, Motiv Venom Strike, 900Global Sure Thing, DV8 Marauder Madness, Roto-Grip Disturbed.

18mph and 500+ revs = rare that you probably need a true heavy oil ball.  The iQ was already mentioned and that could work.  I could also see you going possibly with the Roto Grip Disturbed. 

Well I am a high school bowler so I am looking for a ball that handles medium heavy sorry not heavy I should have worded this better earlier. But most of those balls are too strong and too high in price ( my pro shop charges 180 for a victory road) so maybe between a manic, shooting star etc. So can you try again. Remember, these tournaments have about 44 ft of oil n schorching backends in the last 7ft.

A little FYI you can still purchase a Victory Road solid on buddies for 79.95. I doubt your pro shop can match this deal and charge you that much for drilling.

As far as medium-heavy balls are concerned, the 900 Global Sure Thing, AMF Cobra remake, AMF Green Mamba, Columbia Oath, and the new Storm Reign of Power looks like a very promising release for your needs and price range. Hope this helps.

The thunderline is miles and above hotline. The Crossroad and Fireroad are extremely strong and angular; however, they are also surface specific. The Fireroad is a 3000 pad away from being probably the best in anyones bag; the box surface makes the ball go 60ft. I can tell you how many we've drilled in the shop, people come back and say the ball doesnt hook, we hit it with a 2000 or 3000 pad and the ball comes to life. My best friend (power stroker, 16mph, 450 rpms) has one and loves it after he hit it with the pad.The same can be said about the Crossroad. I have 2 of them, my best friend has 3. All with different drills and different surfaces and they all work. Those two are awesome balls.

The manic and frantic are two great entry level balls that have bred success. However, you are again confusing backend motion with hook. The frantic can out-backend almost any ball, however, it need friction to do so. Whereas, the Victory Road solid will not need as much friction to hook and the motion will be earlier. Thats the trade off for a stronger ball, an earlier motion and less backend. The manic might suffice but in true oil the ball will skid because there is not enough friction, and the core and cover are not strong enough. The Victory Road Solid can be a ball that is great for medium heavy, but I dont like the core/cover combo. The cover wants the ball to hook early and the core wants it to push downlane. It can be a matchup nightmare at times, but at 80 bucks, its worth a shot.

If you are looking for bang for the buck, $80 for a Victory Road Solid isnt a bad idea. That was a great recommendation by JP. Understand that the ball is early and strong off the spot. This is the type of reaction being replaced by the Reign of Power, a mid-price ball that can handle oil.

The Crossroad is my recommendation if you want to spend the extra money. Its a really good ball especially with surface. It will roll a little heavier than the VR Solid its a harder rolling ball. The FireRoad, I would not recommend for heavier patterns. Even with surface, the ball still needs friction. That would be defeating the purpose of what you are looking for.

I would however like to see a pic and know what you PAP is to get a better understanding of you VG. I think that is the ball for you on the heavy stuff, you just have to learn how to use it. Maybe it just needs surface, a 3000 or 2000 pad might be the ticket.

Ok thanks for the help. I will probably buy the victory road solid if I get a ball before the reign of power comes out. That virtual gravity is not drilled very strong. Whenever I need to move to about 27on the boards with that ball I get pocket splits, ten pins, and just all around terrible consistency. Sometimes it doesn't even move. But I have one last question. Isn't there a bit of a gap between a victory road solid and a frantic? The reason I ask is because my frantic would be perfect to start a tournament if it wasn't a polished hybrid. So what is the difference betweem the hotline and thunderline? I have seen my friend throw a fire road that doesn't EVER make a move. And I've also been told that the frantic and manic outhook the vctory road. So has anyone thrown the victory road solid and a manic. Or a crossroad and the frantic. I realize I am asking a tall order so I really appreciate all the recommendations thus far.

You just told us part of the issue and I dont think you realize it.  You stated that when you get in towards 27 at the arrows your reaction is terrible.  Thats because the VG is a very early rolling piece.  The only way you are going to get any carry from that deep is you would need to put some polish on it and/or you would need alot of axis rotation to conserve some energy and create angle into the pocket.  Balls used that deep on the lane typically need to be angular on the backend in order to have a high carry percentage. 

Now we just need your axis point.  Me also being a two hander, my axis point is 5 1/2 over by 0.  When I get that deep, I typically take something, put the pin at 4 1/2 - 5 inches from PAP, kick the cg/mb out, and put a weight hole in P3 or even P4 if the diff is lower on it.  The pin up distance helps the ball through the heads and the weight hole down helps with midlane transition and backend continuation.  I have a Violent Eruption drilled like that and it is my go to ball when I get deeper and I rarely leave 10 pins with it.

Just as an FYI to gauge from, I am 18.5 - 19 mph at release, 540rpm rev rate, very little axis tilt, and about 35 degrees axis rotation.  As I get deeper, I increase my axis rotation to closer to 55 degrees if I need to in order to help increase my angle into the pocket.