Bringing a Bowling Ball Back to Life

[GQbowler]

I went to my local Pro Shop a while ago and picked up a Hy-road Nano. At first, the bowling ball had great hook potential and drove through the pins nicely. Currently, I am at about 100 games on the ball and I am having a hard time getting the ball to move anywhere near where it used to. What should I do? Get a resurface, or an oil extraction or both? How do I know when I need one or the other?

[charlest]

You're overdue for a surface refreshing by about 90 games. You are overdue for an oil extraction by about 50 games.

YOu need to learn to take of the investment yo made in a new ball. Ask the pro shop for a good ball cleaner. Clean it thoroughly after EVERY use; it takes maybe 60 seconds.

Dull balls will have their surface changed after 6 games. Whatever the outer surface grit is needs to be refreshed manually after every 6 - 12 games (maximum). Buy a fresh Abralon or Siaair pad, dampen it with water and go over the ball by hand for 45 -60 seconds. Wipe it clean with a damp paper towel and then a dry one. Another 1-2 minutes lost from your life. Big deal. Use the pad for 3 - 6 times, then spend another dollar or two to buy a new one. They wear out  with use.

Every 30 - 45 games have the pro shop for a total resurfacing from scratch.

Do some similar process and most ball's will lose so little for most people that you may not even be able t tell the difference.

Other balls will die no matter what you do. Such is life.

[j1kjvan]

Jeff, I have another way of maintaining bowling balls.  I have been struggling for the last year and a half with my average dropping 15 to 20 pins.  I have tried different balls,  different lay outs, different surfaces and quite simply I have not had any real good luck and/or success.  I finally decided to take my really old Lane Masters Black Pearl out of the TIME OUT CLOSET yesterday and shot a really nice 257,256,209 for a 722.  I know this is not earth shattering news but for a 76 year old man, I kicked some butt and I actually feel that I may still be able to bowl decently again.

All of you bowlers who are struggling think about that TIME OUT CLOSET!

[Brandon Riley]

Correct me if I am wrong but isn't the Nano cover particle?
Charlest is right.  The first thing I would do would be to put that ball on the haus or spinner and put some tread back on that coverstock. 
A trip to the detox/reviver ball oven may also be a good idea. 

[charlest]

Jeff, I have another way of maintaining bowling balls.  I have been struggling for the last year and a half with my average dropping 15 to 20 pins.  I have tried different balls,  different lay outs, different surfaces and quite simply I have not had any real good luck and/or success.  I finally decided to take my really old Lane Masters Black Pearl out of the TIME OUT CLOSET yesterday and shot a really nice 257,256,209 for a 722.  I know this is not earth shattering news but for a 76 year old man, I kicked some butt and I actually feel that I may still be able to bowl decently again.

All of you bowlers who are struggling think about that TIME OUT CLOSET!

Congrats!!
But then the Black Pearl should never have been just sitting there all alone in the dark. Most of those original LM balls, you can't kill them with  stick.

[Bigpoppa3000]

Having a nano ball myself, you really need to bleed the oil out, whether it be a dishwasher or air based rejuvenator. Then, you need to keep the surface touched up. My marvel S is at 3000, I dont know what the hyroad nano is supposed to be factory wise, but just doing a good surface touch up and oil extraction will make a massive difference to you, I can assure you that.

[otaku13]

ive been having a similar issue with my gamebreaker 3 pearl. whats the best DIY method for cleaned/resurfacing a hybrid pearl stock cover?

[BowlingForDonuts]

ive been having a similar issue with my gamebreaker 3 pearl. whats the best DIY method for cleaned/resurfacing a hybrid pearl stock cover?

You can scuff up a ball by hand pretty easily with scotch brites (paint section at Home Depot is your friend) but polishing by hand is blister city  Find a buddy with a spinner and buy him a beer.  I guess there are DIY spinner solutions on Youtube but have no experience with those.

[Bowldozer]

Correct me if I am wrong but isn't the Nano cover particle?
Charlest is right.  The first thing I would do would be to put that ball on the haus or spinner and put some tread back on that coverstock. 
A trip to the detox/reviver ball oven may also be a good idea.

It’s a solid reactive coverstock.
Btw, what’s the difference between solid reactive and reactive coverstock?
Solid = dull or there’s an additive in it?

[MI 2 AZ]

Correct me if I am wrong but isn't the Nano cover particle?
Charlest is right.  The first thing I would do would be to put that ball on the haus or spinner and put some tread back on that coverstock. 
A trip to the detox/reviver ball oven may also be a good idea.

It’s a solid reactive coverstock.
Btw, what’s the difference between solid reactive and reactive coverstock?
Solid = dull or there’s an additive in it?

Reactive is a urethane coverstock that has been modified to be more sensitive to friction and the lack of it. 

Solid refers to a plain coverstock (urethane or reactive), whereas Pearl infers that a mica type additive has been added to increase length and the name came by the fact that it looks like a pearl surface.  Hybrid is some combination of solid and pearl, whether it is 50/50 or some other fraction, does not necessarily mean it is equal parts solid/pearl.

Additional comments or corrections welcome.

[BowlingForDonuts]

Correct me if I am wrong but isn't the Nano cover particle?
Charlest is right.  The first thing I would do would be to put that ball on the haus or spinner and put some tread back on that coverstock. 
A trip to the detox/reviver ball oven may also be a good idea.

It’s a solid reactive coverstock.
Btw, what’s the difference between solid reactive and reactive coverstock?
Solid = dull or there’s an additive in it?

I would just add surface finish has nothing to do with if its a solid or pearl.  Plenty of polished solids being sold and if anything majority of my pearls are fairly dull as scuffed them up with scotch brites.

[milorafferty]

Correct me if I am wrong but isn't the Nano cover particle?
Charlest is right.  The first thing I would do would be to put that ball on the haus or spinner and put some tread back on that coverstock. 
A trip to the detox/reviver ball oven may also be a good idea.

It’s a solid reactive coverstock.
Btw, what’s the difference between solid reactive and reactive coverstock?
Solid = dull or there’s an additive in it?

Reactive is a urethane coverstock that has been modified to be more sensitive to friction and the lack of it. 

Solid refers to a plain coverstock (urethane or reactive), whereas Pearl infers that a mica type additive has been added to increase length and the name came by the fact that it looks like a pearl surface.  Hybrid is some combination of solid and pearl, whether it is 50/50 or some other fraction, does not necessarily mean it is equal parts solid/pearl.

Additional comments or corrections welcome.

I thought Hybrid was a combination of any two different coverstocks, not just pearl and solid. But I could be wrong.

[MI 2 AZ]

Correct me if I am wrong but isn't the Nano cover particle?
Charlest is right.  The first thing I would do would be to put that ball on the haus or spinner and put some tread back on that coverstock. 
A trip to the detox/reviver ball oven may also be a good idea.

It’s a solid reactive coverstock.
Btw, what’s the difference between solid reactive and reactive coverstock?
Solid = dull or there’s an additive in it?

Reactive is a urethane coverstock that has been modified to be more sensitive to friction and the lack of it. 

Solid refers to a plain coverstock (urethane or reactive), whereas Pearl infers that a mica type additive has been added to increase length and the name came by the fact that it looks like a pearl surface.  Hybrid is some combination of solid and pearl, whether it is 50/50 or some other fraction, does not necessarily mean it is equal parts solid/pearl.

Additional comments or corrections welcome.

I thought Hybrid was a combination of any two different coverstocks, not just pearl and solid. But I could be wrong.

Milo, interesting.  Never thought of that combination.  That may be true on some balls.

I thought when I had examined some hybrids of mine, that at least one color was solid and at least one other color was pearlized.  Don't have any bowling balls with me to examine.

I just looked up the Katana Slash online which was the last hybrid I bought and it states:
Color: Dark Red Pearl/Light Red Solid, so at least it is true for this ball.
https://www.ballreviews.com/radical-155/katana-slash-315983/

[MI 2 AZ]

I looked up another hybrid, the Radical Grease Monkey Whack which was one of those with a 2:1 hybrid ratio:

Color: Red Pearl/Turquoise Pearl/Purple Solid
In this case, two colors are pearl and one solid, so 2/3 pearl.
https://www.ballreviews.com/radical-155/grease-monkey-whack/

I can only comment on balls that I have thrown.

[Bowldozer]

I looked up another hybrid, the Radical Grease Monkey Whack which was one of those with a 2:1 hybrid ratio:

Color: Red Pearl/Turquoise Pearl/Purple Solid
In this case, two colors are pearl and one solid, so 2/3 pearl.
https://www.ballreviews.com/radical-155/grease-monkey-whack/

I can only comment on balls that I have thrown.

I have a GB3 hybrid... anyone knows the its ratio pearl/solid?