(I do not and will never calim to be a guru. So pardon me if I replied when I shouldn''''t have. I have some information to offer which I believe to be correct as I type this. So FWIW ...)
INTRO: Please realize that unless the manufacturer tells us or someone what the ball is made of, all we can do is guess. At times in the recent past, all the manufacturers, have not exactly been forthcoming with exact contents of coverstocks. This was especially true after many people blamed particles in a resin base for being responsible for excessive oil absorption and consequent loss of some or much of a ball''''''''s performance. Some manufcaturers even said a ball was "plain" resin, when it did contain particles of some sort.
* All resins, urethanes and polyester balls are in the family called plastics.
* AFAIK, resin is urethane with a special additive.
* If a ball is called reactive resin or reactive urethane, we assume it is all resin, be it solid or pearl, unless the manufacturers indicates something else.
* There have been ball with a combination of resin and urethane. One example is the Hammer Black Pure Hammer.
* AFAIK, theoretically pearlized resin balls are created when very small particles of mica are added to solid resin. They make the shell less elastic, NOT softer. So less of the ball''''''''s surface is in contact with the lane. Less surface = less friction = more length.
* When particles, which can be anything from rubber to diamonds, are added to resin or urethane, solid or pearl, they provide traction, like studs add traction to winter snow tires. So you can have
Solid particle resin,
solid particle urethane (Visionary Midnight Scorcher),
Pearlized particle resin (also called particle pearl), or
Pearlized particle urethane. (Visionary Purple Ice Executioner)
{I believe in the 80s, Columbia actually put some form of particles in one or two of their polyester or urethane balls. Orange Dot??)
* When larger sized mica are added to solid or pearl resin, they act like particles. Storm has done this in the past and does this now (2nd Dimension)
* Hybrids: combinations. Can be combinations of almost anything. Most often are the solid/pearl resin hybrid. The cover can be polished, dull or matte. Others combinations I have seen and remember:
- Solid resin with particle solid resin
- pearl + solid resin, both with light load of particles.
Any resin can have any strength, that is, degree of friction. So can particles, from Mica to super hard ones in the original Brunswick "proactive" particle balls and Lanemasters diamonds (really industrial diamond dust).
So a ball''''''''s strength in the midlane or the backend or on oil depends on both the coverstock''''''''s resin base''''''''s strength, as well as the hardness or how many particles were put into the resin (or urethane) base. So the percentage "load" of the particles, from 1% to 6% or higher, also affect a ball''''''''s friction.
(If I think of anything else and someone has not yet added it, I will.)
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"None are so blind as those who will not see."
Edited on 10/7/2009 4:00 PM
