Punched up my Cutting Edge Hybrid 40x4.5x35 (pin over ring) with the intention of having something safe rolling to stay a little straighter than my Method.
On the lanes, I saw the even, arcy shape that I had expected, but the Cutting Edge Hybrid turned out to be WAY more ball than I had bargained for. The strong shell and dull surface prep have this ball handling much more oil than anything I expected to see at this price point. Its rare to see a lower end ball with a dull cover to begin with nowadays, let alone something so porous. That strong cover matched with the low rg melee shaped core gives me a surprising amount of traction and early revs, crossing an average amount of boards and a very controllable smooth roll on the backend.
My first experience with this ball was on a slick 44' Big Ben house pattern. My feet were aligned the same as they were with the Quantum Bias and I was still getting the ball to roll up into the pocket albeit with an earlier read and less response off the backend. I stuck with the Cutting Edge the entire set and chased the oil line left for 676 - not bad considering how l normally throw top shelf equipment in this heavy of volume.
Where this ball has really shined has been in my Challenge league on 3.5/1 37' Broadway. Broadway is a high volume med/short pattern that plays with some clean backend boards around 5-6-7 and some hold if you play a little swing around the straight players. This ball has been nothing but a monster giving me 892 and 991 in my 4 game league these last 2 weeks (however I used the Kingpin Max on fresh both weeks). The Cutting Edge has carried messengers, carried the 5 into the 4-7, dug out what I expected to be flat 10's and has given me the most miss room of any ball in the bag on this pattern. I've had the perfect blend of early revs to read the help in the front part of the lane, yet a controllable enough shape down the lane to still hold pocket and even carry on marginal shots.
Compared to other balls in my bag, the dull cover of the Cutting Edge Hybrid has me as deep in the oil as I would be with either my Method or Quantum Bias, albeit with an earlier roll and less motion off the dry boards. In terms of overall shape, I have really liked using this ball behind my pin down Kingpin Max or Tremendous as I can see similar down lane angles but with more length through the front of the lane. If there was a ball from years past that reminded me of the Cutting Edge Hybrid it would like a longer pinned Marauder Madness or even the Vintage Danger Zone with a slight scuff.
For those wondering, the Cutting Edge Solid (shiny out of box) rolls nothing like this ball. The Solid is a good 2 steps weaker with a very quick move off of the friction (my review will come once I get some games on it without the polish)
I recommend the Cutting Edge Hybrid to anybody bowling on medium-heavy oil. This ball will shine brightest for bowlers with lower tracks and on medium-shorter patterns as it rolls early and is very controllable down the lane.
I also recommend the Cutting Edge Hybrid for the price. I have never seen a ball at this price point or lower that can handle this much oil and is going to be my recommendation for newer bowlers looking for that upgrade from their Rhino to handle a little oil in league.
