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Updated 01 Nov 09.

Since there are many that feel that we need a FAQ section I decided to start one in the form of a post that will hopefully end up as a permanent part of the site.
I will add more as time allows and questions arise.
If you have anything that you think should be added please post and I will add it. I do already have additions in mind though, it sure would cut down on my typing and would be greatly appreciated.


Once I have added your post please delete or PM them to me so we can keep this tidy THANKS



TO SEE THIS IN HTML FORMAT WITH QUICK LINKS CLICK HERE: 

http://www.bowling-info.com/index.php?template=FAQ




HOW TO WRITE A GOOD BALL REVIEW

Bowlers specs(see "Bowler Specs" section to determine)
Speed
Revs
Axis tilt
Axis rotation
Desription:
Weight (Pre-drill)
Top weight (Pre-drill)
Pin to CG distance
Surface prep
Drilling
Pin to PAP distance and Pin to grip center distance
CG to PAP distance and CG to grip center distance (up/down)
MB (either premarked or measured) to PAP distance and MB to grip center distance.
Clock or ° of drilling (see "Drilling" section).
Balance hole location, size, and depth.
Post drill weights (top/bottom, pos/neg side, finger/thumb) if known.
Conditions
I prefer to use a comparision to another ball or balls for this, because what one may consider heavy oil may be medium oil to another and vise versa.
List the length and type (tree, top hat, etc) of the pattern if known.
Lane material synthetic, wood, combination.
Line being played
Arrow board/Break point board @ x ft. (Examples: 15/5@45 ft, 10/6@45ft)
Again this is a good time to use a ball comparision.
Ball path shape
Backend Flip, Strong Arc, Arc, etc.
Midlane Straight very little midlane read, Late midlane read small move, Early midlane read strong move, etc.

I list this as a guide line in hope that we can cut down on the "ball good, hook big, hit like nuclear warhead, get 1" reviews that have been popping up at an alarming rate lately, because they are of no use to any of the members of this board except for a laugh.
 
BALL DYNAMICS

CORE TORQUE
Internal or core torque refers to the mass distribution within the core and the internal lever arms created by the core. Core torque is an assigned value of the balls ability to combat roll out, the complete loss of axis tilt and axis rotation. High torque balls are more effective than lower torque balls at delaying roll out. Core torque can also be one indicator of the type of reaction that a bowler can expect at the breakpoint with high torque balls having the propensity to be more "violent" and the lower torque balls tending to display a more even, predictable transition from skid to roll.
 
DIFFERENTIAL
It is the difference between the lowest and highest RGs. You compute the high and subtract the low from that and you have the differential. There is no minimum for differential. What differential tells you: RG Differential is an indicator of track flare POTENTIAL in a bowling ball. Differentials in the .01s to .02s would mean that a ball has a lower track flare potential, .03s to .04s would be the medium range for track flare potential, and the .05s to .080 would indicate a high track flare potential. These ranges above are not based on cardinal rules. They are BTM in-house rules of thumb because there are no published guidelines. Also, differential is a guide to the internal versatility of a ball. It can indicate just how much of a length adjustment can be made through drilling. A low differential will allow for only a modest variance in length (from shortest drilling to longest) which may translate into as little as a foot or two. An extremely high differential may translate into a length window in the neighborhood of eight feet.

DYNAMIC IMBALANCE
The planned apparent imbalance in balls due to high tech cores and drilling techniques. Many people claim that this has created balls that hook out of the box with a lessening requirement to have the skill to impart the hook and power by the bowler themselves.

DYNAMIC WEIGHTS
In the old days, before the advent of modern core design in balls, the center of the ball was, more or less, symmetrical. In todays high tech computer designed ball cores and multiple cores designs, you can have cores that are not evenly balanced and distributed within the center of the ball this allows balls to be drilled and designed in a manner that the apparent "weight" of the ball can shift depending on the drilling pattern i.e., it is not "static" it is "dynamic".

FLARE (TRACK FLARE)
The migration of the ball track from the bowlers initial axis, the axis upon release, to the final axis, the axis at the moment of impact with the pins. The more flare created by the core the more hook potential for given coverstock.

MASS BIAS
Simply put, the mass bias in a bowling ball occurs when the mass (weight block or portion of weight block) is bias (more dominant) in one direction inside of an object (in this case a bowling ball). If you took a bulb shaped, single density core and positioned it dead center from side to side inside the ball, there would be no mass bias. You also would have a ball that is a pin in. In order to kick the c.g. away from the pin to create a pin out ball, you have to "tilt" the core inside the ball, or place the entire core slightly off center. This became a common practice among manufacturers as the demand for pin out balls increased. When this is done however, you create a "dynamic imbalance" inside the ball because the mass is more dominant or "bias" in the direction of the "tilt" or "offset". That is the most important factor when discussing the mass bias, it is a DYNAMIC POINT ON THE BALL. Positioning the mass bias in different positions when laying out a ball will have a great impact on the "motion" the ball will make as it is going down the lane. (even arc, hook/set, skid/flip and so on) There are people who will argue that static imbalances (finger weight, side weight etc.) are more important than dynamic imbalances. My reply to that, is that a dynamic imbalance is a real point in the ball, it is constant and does not change unless you alter it by drilling into it with a drill bit. A static imbalance or the c.g., will change as soon as you put one hole in the ball. It will change again with each additional hole you put in the ball as well. While static weights can be used to "fine tune" the reaction of the ball at the break point, it is the dynamic lay out that dictates the roll of the ball. If a pro shop operator truly understands the principals of the mass bias and how to apply them, they can greatly increase your overall satisfaction with the ball you purchase.
On a ball that does not have a premarked MB its theoretical position can be found by measuring from the pin through the CG 6.75".

PIN PLACEMENT (Pin to CG)
A Pin-in ball (when the pin is located within two inches of the CG) is excellent choice for control and less hook a Pin-out ball usually can be made to hook more and flip more dramatically than pin-in balls they often give the driller more options.

PREFERRED SPIN AXIS (PSA)
This is the final position of the axis after the ball has lost all axis rotation and tilt. The length of time it takes for the ball to reach its PSA and its post drilling PSA are influenced by the amount of friction, the drill layout, and bowlers specs.

RADIUS OF GYRATION (RG)
The measurement that tells us the cores impact on the skid potential of the ball. "Identifies how fast a ball begins to rotate once it leaves the bowlers hand. Three designations for RG balls are low, medium, and high. A high RG ball goes longer because it takes longer to begin rotating and stores its energy on dryer conditions. A low RG ball revs up early and is a more evenly arcing ball used on wetter conditions. There are three axes on a bowling ball used to measure RG (radius of gyration). The lowest RG axis (usually denoted by the letter Z) is the axis through the pin. The highest RG axis (usually denoted by the letter X) is located 6-3/4 inches from the pin through the center of gravity (CG or heavy spot). The intermediate RG axis (usually denoted by the letter Y) is located 6-3/4 inches from both the low and high RG axes.
Even though all bowling balls of a given weight are about the same size (minimum diameter of 8.500 inches to 8.595 inches), these balls are constructed differently. Some use two materials (one shell and one core), others use three or four or five or more pieces to construct the shell(s) and core(s)
Each of the materials used has a density (which roughly translates into weight per unit of volume). Zirmonite (as used in the Columbia pin) is denser (heavier by volume) than Bismuth Graphite (used in the core of the Brunswick Zones) which is denser (heavier by volume) than the fired ceramic that is used in the Columbia and Track cores. These and the other dense-material cores used by other manufacturers are all heavier by volume than the material used in the main cores. The main core material is denser than the foam-like material used as outer cores or inner shells, the purpose of which is to keep some balls in compliance with the ABC/WIBC weight limitation and to help pinpoint a certain RG value. Then there is the urethane used for the outer shell of the ball which by density fits in between the core materials.
Even though you may have a bowling ball with as few as two parts or as many as five or more, all balls have one characteristic. They will act as if all of their weight is located at a point some distance away from the rotational axis. This distance is the radius of gyration (RG). For example, a bowling ball has a maximum allowable diameter of 8.595 inches (maximum radius = 4.2975 inches). Theoretically, the RG could be any distance from just over 0 inches--by placing ultra-dense materials in the center of the ball and extremely lightweight filler beyond--to just under 4.2975 inches by placing ultra-dense materials near the outer shell and filling the inner areas of the ball with lightweight foam.
In the first example, the ball would be as center heavy as possible. In the second, it would be as shell heavy as possible. The problem with unlimited RG is that the two extremes would produce variations in ball performance that would be enormous. One would roll immediately and the other would "lope" all the way through the pin deck.
The ABC/WIBC, in an attempt to limit the amount of variation in ball performance that could be achieved through construction, placed minimums and maximums on RG. The rule states that the minimum RG can be no lower than 2.430 inches and no greater than 2.800 inches. This means that every ball must act as if its entire weight (mass) is rotating at a distance of not less than 2.430 inches or more than 2.800 inches from the axis. Since the total span of RGs ranges from 0 to 4.2975 inches, technically all bowling balls fall within the overall medium RG range. However, when anyone in bowling talks about RG, they are not referring to the total range of possible RGs, but instead only to the RG range allowed for the sport--2.430 to 2.800.
In the At a Glance chart and in ball reviews and comparisons in BTM, the following scale is used for low flare potential balls:

Low RG = 2.430 to 2.540
Med RG = 2.541 to 2.690
High RG = 2.691 to 2.80

There is a slight upward adjustment for high flare potential balls. Determining the RG: For BTM fellow ball geeks, the formula for finding the radius of gyration (usually denoted by the letter k) is: the square root of the balls moment of inertia divided by its mass (k-squared = I / m)."* What RG tells you: Like with everything else in bowling, RG--in and of itself--tells you very little. It is ONE indicator of length. The characteristics of the three types of balls are as follows:
A low RG ball will be easier to "rev up" and it will rev faster quicker because most of the mass is located relatively close to the center of the ball. Since it revs faster sooner, it also wants to hook sooner. Medium RG balls are intermediate-length balls. They are a little more difficult to spin (takes more power) so most bowlers will see a slight loping characteristic through the heads and early midlane followed by a faster revving action and later hook--than you would get with the low RG ball. High RG balls are the hardest to rev up since the mass is concentrated farthest from the center and therefore bowlers will see longer lope, much later revving up, and the latest hook from these balls.

BOWLER SPECS

TRACK LOCATION DEFINITIONS (Generalization) :
Full Roller: Goes between thumb and finger holes
High-roller/High-tracker: Within a half inch or sometimes hits the thumb
Semi-roller: .5 to 3 inches
Low-roller/low-tracker: 3 to 5 inches
High-spinner: 5 to 7 inches
Low-spinner: more than 7 inches
NOTE: Above is a generalization and does not work in every case. You should still measure your track diameter.

STYLE
In terms of rev rate (less to higher revolutions):
Stroker - Tweener - Power Player (can be power stroker or cranker)
In terms of wrist and elbow manipulation (less to higher):
Stroker - Tweener - Cranker

CALCULATION OF REV RATE
From Brian Pursel: Product Manager, Ebonite
RPMs, or revolutions applied, is the speed of the revolutions. The faster the revs, the greater the turning force is at the breakpoint. To measure RPMs you will need a low flare ball (spare ball is good), a piece of tape (4 to 6 inches long), and a video camera. Place the piece of tape running from the bowlers PAP to above the fingers. Film from behind, with a close up of the hand at the release point. As the ball is being released, stop the tape. Assign the tape a position on a clock (i.e. the piece of tape points to 10:00). In slow motion, click off 10 frames and freeze. Count the amount that the tape rotates as hours, as if it was the hour hand on a clock. Multiply the amount of hours by 15. (For example, the ball started at 10:00. After 10 slow motion frames the tape ended at 5:00, passing 10:00 once). One complete rotation around (10:00 to 10:00) counts as 12 hours. 10:00 to 5:00 (the ending position) equals 7 hours. This is a total of 19 hours of rotation. Multiply the amount of hours (19) by 15. This equals 285 Rpms. The other way to measure revolutions is called hand revs. You will also need the piece of tape and a video camera for this. Repeat the steps for measuring RPMs, however let the ball travel 15 feet down the lane. This is the distance of the fourth arrow. Note the starting position of the tape and count the amount of times the ball has rotated using fractions, not hours. Take the total amount of rotations and multiply by 4. This equals hand revs. For example, the ball started at 9:00 and ended at 3:00, passing past 9:00 three times. This would result in 3 1/2 rotations. 3 1/2 X 4 = 14 hand revs. Why do we not count the total amount of revs the ball rotates all the way down the lane until it hits the pins? Because friction will slow down the ball speed and create additional revolutions. By using the first 15 feet, we are counting the rotations in the presence of lane oil, a very low friction environment. In our Surface Friction Selection Chart, we use hand revs rather than RPMs.

AXIS ROTATION
The point that your PAP is facing at release (facing gutter 0° facing foul line 90°). Higher degrees of Axis Rotation promote skid and delay ball reaction.

AXIS TILT
The vertical inclination of you axis at release. This can be determined by measuring your track diameter (for every 1" < 13.5" = 6 2/3° of tilt) The less axis tilt you have, the sooner the ball will go into a roll. Higher degrees of axis tilt promotes skid. Being able to change your axis tilt using your release style is a very important tool in your scoring arsenal and in your ability to be able to play the lane condition.

https://www.buddiesproshop.com/34/How_to_Measure_Track_Diameter.htm

https://www.buddiesproshop.com/36/Asymetrical_Layout_Guide.htm

PAP (POSITIVE AXIS POINT)
The axis of the ball during the first few revolutions that is created totally by the bowlers release style. The point on the ball that is equidistant from all points of the release ball track.
Ways to find it:
Least accurate: Draw a perpendicular (90°) line 6.75" from your track through grip center the end of the line will be close to your PAP.
Very accurate: Use an Armadillo Axis point locator tool. Place the Armadillo on your track using the line that most closely represents your track arc and mark the spot indicated by the Armadillo.
Exact: Roll low flare (spare) ball down the center of the lane where the highest concentration of oil is then using a grease pencil trace your track. Place the ball in a spinner with the track down and orient the ball to where when it it spinning the trace line does not wobble up and down. Then take the pencil and place it on the top of the ball and move it around until it goes from making a circle to a defined dot, or use a quarter scale/pro sect tool and draw a line connecting your track at points that are 180° from each other and repeat the step at a point near 90° from the first line where the 2 lines intersect is your PAP. If you do not have a low flare ball you can use any ball as long as you use the track that is closest to your thumb and farthest from your fingers. This is the release track, because as a ball flares the track migrates away from the thumb and towards the fingers.
If anyone would like reasons for why one is more/less accurate than the other I would be happy to explain.

REVS/REVOLUTIONS (Hand/release)
The number of times the ball rolls over its axis in the first part of the lane before it encounters friction or starts to migrate towards it PSA. Usually converted into Revolutions per Minute.

REVS/REVOLUTIONS (total)
This is the total number of times the ball rolls over its axis from the point of release to the pin deck. This is not as accurate a representation of revs because it can be influenced by when the ball goes into a roll and the bowlers speed.

SPEED CALCULATION
With a stop watch check the time it takes from release to head pin. I suggest at least five times to get a more accurate average.
40.91 divided by ave/time = MPH

Notes to BR-TECH:

The original FAQ as posted in the Misc Bowling forum is missing some articles, probably because of the 20000 word limit.  Even trying to post only half of the FAQ exceeds that limit.  Most of the old coding seems to work, except for the old hyperlinks.  Inputting the new hyperlinks clears that issue.