Bowling Balls An In Depth Overview. The bowling ball is the single most important piece of equipment in the sport of bowling. Bowling balls interact with every other main physical element of the sport the bowler, the lane, the oil pattern, and the pins. They represent the biggest chunk of equipment investment for top bowlers and, most importantly, bowling balls have the potential to truly make or break each and every shot we throw. For these reasons, it is extremely important for serious bowlers to develop a deep understanding of the modern bowling ball so they can best use it to their advantage on the lanes. Unfortunately for todays bowlers, bowling balls just arent as simple as they used to be. Gone are the days of buying one bowling ball and using it for 1. Gone are the days of each manufacturer having one or two balls to choose from. Gone are the days of one bowling ball being suitable for all lane conditions. Technology has changed the sport of bowling and no single piece of the game has advanced as much and become as complex as the modern bowling ball. Below, well take an in depth look at bowling balls from every imaginable angle. Well start with some basics, just to get us all on the same page. From there, well dive head first into some of the more complicated aspects of bowling balls. By the time you read and understand the information in this entire article, youll have as much or more bowling ball knowledge as the vast majority of the worlds top bowlers, coaches, and pro shop professionals. Introduction. A brief history of bowling balls. Bowling has existed in some form for many thousands of years, but the modern era of bowling as we know it today has only existed for approximately the last 1. The primary mark of the modern era is standardization bowling balls, bowling pins, and bowling lanes were all given precise specifications and the overall rules of the game were finally put into writing and widely adopted. Cigarro Electronico Guadalajara. Throughout this modern era, however, there have been continuous and important enhancements and improvements to the bowling ball itself. Bowling balls were originally quite primitive. Many early balls were so primitive, in fact, that they didnt even have gripping holes bowlers instead were forced to palm the ball. The earliest modern bowling balls were made of wood, primarily lignum vitae. From the early 1. Rubber was the material of choice for bowling balls for approximately 5. Somewhere in the vicinity of the late 1. Bowling balls have experienced significant technological evolution from the 1. On the outside, polyurethane coverstocks came into popularity in the early 1. These covers produced significantly more friction with the lane surface than the polyester and rubber balls that came before them. This allowed bowlers to generate more hook on the lane and more entry angle into the pins than they were able to with anything prior. Around this same time, manufacturers began experimenting with advanced cores, or weight blocks. These newer advanced cores were dynamically imbalanced and they also played a significant role in increasing the amount of hook that bowlers could generate much more on this later. Following the advent of polyurethane was the introduction of reactive resin in the early 1. Reactive resin is basically an advanced form of polyurethane that contains additional additives that increase the balls porosity and allow it to create even greater friction with the lane surface. Reactive resin coverstocks remain the most popular coverstock in the modern game to this day. How Much Does One Game Of Bowling Cost At Amfirst' title='How Much Does One Game Of Bowling Cost At Amfirst' />How Much Does One Game Of Bowling Cost At AmfmphAny fun ideas for mom and teen to do together Moms of Teenagers. JP Cycles Senior Technician and Blogger Scott Holton writes about a potential issue in the HarleyDavidson TwinCam engines. Law and lawyer cartoons, written by a Harvard lawyer. This post was originally published back in 2006 and had such a huge response, I had to take it offline as it was causing problems with the server. Its now been. In the late 1. This type of cover is similar to reactive resin, but with the addition of tiny particles dispersed throughout the cover. Bowling Balls An InDepth Overview A guide to bowlings most important piece of equipment. Last Updated March 31, 2017. Wondering where to have birthday parties for your children Check out our comprehensive lists of the best birthday party venues in the Richmond area Kilauea Mount Etna Mount Yasur Mount Nyiragongo and Nyamuragira Piton de la Fournaise Erta Ale. Music/v4/85/30/fc/8530fca8-5cd9-ec89-4e8d-e9e304e9d4a1/source/500x500bb.jpg' alt='How Much Does One Game Of Bowling Cost At Amf Drink' title='How Much Does One Game Of Bowling Cost At Amf Drink' />These particles essentially gave the ball teeth and allowed them to achieve higher friction, particularly on the heavily oiled portion of the lane. Particle coverstocks have faded in popularity in recent years for a variety of reasons, but they are still occasionally produced, usually being marketed under a different name. Current bowling ball manufacturers. Bowling balls are made today by a handful of manufacturers who develop and market a fairly large number of bowling ball brands. There are currently five major manufacturers of bowling balls in the United States. Uninstall Apache Service Windows 7. These five collectively share the majority of the US domestic bowling ball market. In no particular order, the five major ball manufacturers are Brunswick Headquartered in Muskegon, MI, Brunswick manufactures balls in the Brunswick, DV8, and Radical brands. Brunswick is one of the bowling industrys oldest and biggest brands and they have a large following in the bowling community. Ebonite International Located in Hopkinsville, KY, Ebonite currently produces balls under four brands Columbia 3. Ebonite, Hammer, and Track. Ebonite International has been around for many decades and their products remain very popular today with bowlers of all skill levels. Storm Storm is currently one of the biggest and most popular manufacturers in the premium ball market. They operate out of Brigham City, UT and their two main brands are Storm and Roto Grip. Install Programs Using Wine Ubuntu. Motiv Relatively new as a major brand, Motiv has experienced rapid growth in recent years. Motiv balls are designed and manufactured in Muskegon, MI. Global Also relatively new, 9. Global manufactures and markets bowling balls under both the 9. Global and AMF brands. Global operates out of San Antonio, TX. In addition to these major manufacturers, there are a growing number of smaller boutique brands that have sizable followings among todays league and tournament bowlers. Some of these smaller brands have their own manufacturing facilities, but many of them have their equipment manufactured by one of the five companies listed above. In no particular order, here are some of the smaller brands that are currently available to bowlers Much like the larger brands, each of these smaller brands has its own unique twist on how they design and market their equipment. You can learn more about their products by clicking the links above. A quick word about the house ballIf youre brand new to bowling, your only experience with a bowling ball has likely been with a house ball. These are the balls that are owned by the bowling center that are freely available for use by bowlers who do not own their own ball. If youre looking for information about house balls, youre in the wrong place  This article is primarily about high performance bowling balls. But, you can click here to read more information about house balls, including how to pick one, what theyre good for, and what they arent good for. The modern bowling ball landscape. Its definitely an interesting time to be a bowler. Todays bowlers have literally hundreds of bowling ball options available to them. They come at all different price points, with a wide variety of different types of coverstocks, with a wide variety of different types of core types, in a huge variety of different colors, and all designed to tackle a wide variety of different lane conditions. Unfortunately, it is also a very confusing time to be a bowler. Most bowlers really have no idea what theyre looking at when they evaluate different bowling balls, different drilling layouts, and different coverstocks. Additionally, they really struggle when they attempt to assemble an arsenal of bowling balls that suits their game.