The only thing I can add is that Brunswick stuff to me DID change when the move was made to Mexico. However, that has been more than a decade ago and the stuff that has come out lately from Big B, DV8, and Radical has been very consistent and pretty good quality.
What I can tell you from years of drilling is that certain people match with certain brands better than other brands. I myself matched so well with AMF stuff when Columbia was pouring for AMF it was unreal. I had every iteration of the original Nighthawk series, Angle Evolution, etc. I also matched very well with Track stuff and eventually moved over to Track during the Rule days. I also tossed the Classic Rock very well.
However, Storm...not at all. I hated the reaction I got, etc. Just wasn't for me. Same drills, different drills, same surfaces, different surfaces, didn't matter.
The materials in the covers and the supplier can have a large effect on the bowler. I have always been speed dominant and thus, stuff that is aggressive in the shell and has a tendency to roll early has always been my friend. Take the same drill and slap it on any Storm ball that everyone else loves and the ball pukes for me. Storm's stuff (for me) has a tendency to lope and when it does turn, it is the hockey stick reaction that just does not do well for me. I hate it.
Although I am always tempted by the newest and greatest, I also know what brands I have to stay away from because the newest and greatest will be a turd in my bag. Sometimes, as much as we hate to admit it, we just do not match up well and have to move on and chalk the loss up to experience no matter how much you want something to work.
Been there, done that. Too many times.
