I came across an oldie the other day from a man that is no longer able to bowl. Its an old 15# HPD with a 3" to 3.5" pin and is in great shape for its age. The span is a little long and I was wondering what pattern (s) it could be used on these days. I've heard it was a really versitile piece in its day and I'd appreciate any advice I can get. Thanks in advance.

It was a dull particle ball. As such, even small amounts of oil would soak into it easily. I'd suggest it probably needs an oil extraction AND a surface refreshing before it will perform to its best, but those early Brunswick particle balls were all but indestructible.

FYI It's called a Danger Zone HPD and and there was also a DZ HPH. "D" was for HPD used a White Trizact pad for its finish. Those Trizact pads were the ONLY abrasive that affected the early Brunswick Particle balls. Next hardest abrasive after diamond dust.

So with "distance" in its name, it's not going to handle a ton of oil, but should give you a great controlled reaction on wet/drys and handle true medium oil with the right drilling for your release, ball speed, rev rate. Polish will make it have more backend, but I doubt it will ever get anywhere near flippy.

Here's Brunswick's web page for its pecs:
http://www.bowlwithbrunswick.com/downloads/info-sheets/Danger_Zone_Pro_Distance.pdf

Here's one place where you can get all the Trizact pads:
http://woodworker.com/5-hl-a5-orange-trizact-film-268x-mssu-132-215.asp?utm_source=google&utm_medium=feed