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Author Topic: NO one is suppossed to use a tapered thumb sleeve! Right?  (Read 6595 times)

LuckyLefty

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NO one is suppossed to use a tapered thumb sleeve! Right?
« on: October 30, 2005, 02:07:43 PM »
BUT ...I did my best bowling with one.

BUT all the experts say it makes one grab???

BUT ...I have a tapered thumb from front to back(extreme).

BUT I put one in again today and bowled well...real sweet!

Any ideas gurus??

REgards,

Luckylefty
PS Note TGOD a true guru on this site claims a thumb hole should be shaped like a funnel!  That implies taper right?
PPS In looking at these thumb sleeves from Contour/Prosports I conclude that they are about 1/16 total taper.  Say top is 61/64... Bottom diameter is 57/64.
This means each side is about 1/32 taper the lenght of the sleeve which is 2.5 inches.  This actually adds slight side pitch and reverse pitch if the same pilot hole for the thumb is used in relation to round non tapered sleeves.
PPPS say my thumb is near 1 inch front to back at top of thumb(before joint) at last joint it may 2/3 of an inch high and from front to back at nail 3/8 of an inch front to back?

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Proud owner of a 140 first game average this year!  Don't bowl me the second two games though!  (two warm up balls in league..thanks proprietors)

Edited on 10/30/2005 11:01 PM
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LuckyLefty

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Re: NO one is suppossed to use a tapered thumb sleeve! Right?
« Reply #1 on: October 31, 2005, 06:57:12 AM »
gurus???

REgards,

Luckylefty
--------------------
Proud owner of a 140 first game average this year!  Don't bowl me the second two games though!  (two warm up balls in league..thanks proprietors)
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It takes Courage to have Faith, and Faith to have Courage.

James M. McCurley, New Orleans, Louisiana

Pinbuster

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Re: NO one is suppossed to use a tapered thumb sleeve! Right?
« Reply #2 on: October 31, 2005, 09:08:47 AM »
I could never use the standard thumb inserts, oval or round, because they were not tapered. It would cause me to knuckle the ball as I could bend the tip of my thumb downward.

I always started with a 29/32 hole and shaped it to fit my thumb which is close to 63/64 wide. This always produced a tapered thumb hole.

Today I have a mold of a hand shaped thumb that fits perfect and I use custom made inserts off that mold in all my balls.

Some of it depends on the shape of your thumb. Flatter thumbs will require more taper than round thumbs, in my opinion.

Tapered for me is the way to go.
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JohnP

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Re: NO one is suppossed to use a tapered thumb sleeve! Right?
« Reply #3 on: October 31, 2005, 09:33:33 AM »
I use the Pro Sports tapered sleeves in the sizes they are available.  Customers like them, and I've had no complaints.  I personally use a straight sleeve, but only because the Pro Sports are not available in my thumb size.  --  JohnP
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LuckyLefty

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Re: NO one is suppossed to use a tapered thumb sleeve! Right?
« Reply #4 on: October 31, 2005, 09:46:55 AM »
NOw these are tapered evenly and are round.

My thumb is tapered primarily front to back(extreme).

I think that Pin buster is saying his thumb is tapered from side to side?
Is that right?

I have very little side to side taper.

Bevel is just the amount of rounding along top edge and can also go down in to the ball (usually less than 1/2 inch but sometimes more).

These tapered sleeves have both moderate bevel and then taper all the way from top to bottom in the exact amount I described 1/32 on each side.

I have in the past used a thumb straight which is essentially adds some taper front to back ad has worked well.

REgards,

LUckylefty
--------------------
Proud owner of a 140 first game average this year!  Don't bowl me the second two games though!  (two warm up balls in league..thanks proprietors)
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It takes Courage to have Faith, and Faith to have Courage.

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Pinbuster

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Re: NO one is suppossed to use a tapered thumb sleeve! Right?
« Reply #5 on: October 31, 2005, 10:16:49 AM »
Tapered is saying that the hole is bigger at the top and gradually gets smaller as you go down the hole.

Bevel is mostly how sharp the edge of the hole is.

LuckyLefty –  I probably didn’t describe it well. The sides of my thumb are tapered some but not as much as the top/down portion. My thumb is very flat. I do have quite of bit of taper to my thumb from the base past the knuckle.  

I started with a small hole, one that was the size of my thumb a little short of the first knuckle. I would then work out the sides at the top (with a 3/8 inch drill and a small sandpaper drum like a Drimel tool) until I could start my thumb in. Then I would use a bevel sander to work out the hole from top to bottom until my thumb would insert all the way in.

This would create an oval thumb hole and the hole would be tapered on all sides (somewhat like T-god’s funnel) to the bottom. My thumb has contact with the hole on all sides down past my knuckle (till the pad of the thumb turns up sharply).

This process would take me over an hour to get it feeling right. With the custom thumbs it is there from the start.
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LuckyLefty

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Re: NO one is suppossed to use a tapered thumb sleeve! Right?
« Reply #6 on: October 31, 2005, 10:26:31 AM »
I have custom thumb...have made copies of my ovals.

But it seems for me tapered with tape front and back makes an easy tapered oval that I don't need to do much too.

(I do have to account for some additional reverse and lateral when drilling by backing off the pilot hole about 1/32 more forward and lateral about 1/32 from a straight (non tapered sleeve to get the same feel!)

The front to back taper seems to be an important thing for me due to the shape of my thumb.

REgards,

Luckylefty
--------------------
Proud owner of a 140 first game average this year!  Don't bowl me the second two games though!  (two warm up balls in league..thanks proprietors)
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Brickguy221

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Re: NO one is suppossed to use a tapered thumb sleeve! Right?
« Reply #7 on: October 31, 2005, 10:54:05 AM »
I want to be clear what the definition is when you say "tapered"....Are you saying the thumb hole is a larger size at the top than it is at the bottom. Sort of like a funnel, but not that severe?

If that is the case, how would taper ever work on a thumb like mine of which the knuckle is wider than my thumb is towards the web of thumb, so I have to have the top of hole the same size as it is down deep? Does anyone understand what I am saying here?

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Brick

Edited on 10/31/2005 11:47 AM
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Pinbuster

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Re: NO one is suppossed to use a tapered thumb sleeve! Right?
« Reply #8 on: October 31, 2005, 11:01:01 AM »
Brickguy221 – That is my definition.

In all cases you have to make the hole as big as the largest part of the thumb that will go to it or past it. In you case the knuckle being the widest then the hole will have to be big enough to let the knuckle past. It should be tight (how tight is relative to the bowler) where the knuckle rest. And the hole past the knuckle shouldn’t be any wider than the thumb is there.

So it would be like a lumpy funnel.

As I said earlier the tip of the thumb will be smaller than the hole and you can’t stop that.

The thumb straight mentioned will fill in that area and make it nearly impossible to bend you thumb.  
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