Oh, a review after some long, long time?
About me: Style = Stroker/mild Tweener, right-handed
Speed = 13,5-14,5 mph
PAP = 5" & 7/8"^
Axis tilt = 18,7°
Revs = 250-300 RPM at release
For more details, check out my profile, please.
I got this ball almost accidently. I was looking for a (true) dry lane ball and saw it on ebay. Only 5 games to it, 1st drilling... I could not resist... Nobody wanted it... so I got this Urethane beauty for only EUR 5,50,- ($7!)! Deal of the year. Even postage was more expensive than the ball itself.
The ball:I was not sure what to expect from this ball, since it is my first Urethane ball, does not have a true core and nobody around would have a benchmark ball. A mild reaction, yes, but... how?
Well, consequently, the ball is 1" pin-in. The former owner placed the pin 1" below the ring finger, CG stacked below it. I decided to stick with it since I could use the former thumb hole and only minor span adjustments with the finger holes were necessary.
========
===o=o==
=====*==
=====#==
========
====O===
* = Pin
# = CG
Urethane thumb & silicone finger inserts, no x-hole. Surface is a kind of 1.000 grit polish, but it is not glossy. Maybe Abralon or a high grit compound?
Experiences on short oil:I tried and played it several times on a fresh and played-down medium 35' THS pattern with Brunswick synth lanes, oiled from 8 to 8 and bone-dry outside boards. It is the driest house around here, with poor lane maintenance and kids' bowling, and I needed the ball as a kind of ultima ratio when any of my reactive equipment burns up in the house league in the evenings.
My experience with it so far is much like Vlor's mentioned in a previous post.
Well, this ball is... funny. It's interesting and even challenging to play when you are used to swing reactives across the lane when there is not much oil and lots of dry outside boards. The Urethane Hammer works fine, better than expected, although it took me some time to get used to it and to adjust my strike shot and spare game: simply because I must play a completely different direct line and angle than usual.
Due to the lack of a core, the Red Pearl Urethane Hammer does not get into rolling or flaring. This is, IMHO, the big and only drawback for this ball. Yet, with the high RG and the mild coverstock, it maintains energy well throughout the back end into the pins, even on scorched conditions.
Without a dynamic core it just keeps spinning on the initial axis and bears only a low-flaring oil track, but with its mild urethane coverstock it still grips better than a polyester and steadily changes direction on its path, depending on your revs, speed and tilt. It is much tamer than even a mild reactive - a Power Groove is a hook monster against it!
The biggest problem (or better:
"thing to keep in mind") I found is that this ball will not recover to the pocket like even a weak reactive coverstock ball would do. You cannot rely on recovery on errant swing shots.
In the beginning I used to stand at 27th board with my right shoe tip, laying the ball down at 18-19 and playing over my favorite line across 3rd arrow with a slight swing out to the dry boards. The ball would go dead straight for 38 or 40', rotating, and then start a very smooth curve towards the pins. On the THS pattern, the dry outside boards helped it turn, but when I swung it out a bit too much it would not come back and hit very high. Consequently, in my first test games with this line I left several 1-2-4's or 1-2-4-10's, because the ball did not make it back to the pocket even with maximum revs.
However, I realized that this line only offers a small pocket with not much margin for error for this ball. Strike or split were very close. Therefore, I went further outside, playing 2nd arrow, straight down the 10th board with my normal release and speed. This opened up the pocket much wider, and since then this ball is a steady performer when all the oil is gone.
Straighter is greater with this kind of ball!
Another thing to mind is that you need to have a steady release to use it effectively, since swinging it out and hoping for it to return is not a good strategy. Additionally, you will not create a big entry angle with it. The innate lack of forward roll - unless you play it with an end-over-end roll - will leave you with weak hitting power when you try to make multiple-pin or double wood spares. Here, a reactive, even a mild one, or a ball with some kind of core is IMHO the better choice.
Besides those "special features", the Red Pearl Urethane Hammer's pin impact convinced me positively: the pin action is not much weaker than through a reactive ball or a ball with a true dynamic core. The ball keeps the pins as low as a reactive, not splattering like a polyester ball. As a "side effect", the Red Pearl Urethane Hammer is a
loud ball. When it strikes, you will hear it and surely all neighboring lanes will notice, too.
Spare potential:Finally, as a spare alternative... works fine, but covers more boards than a polyester would do. I break my wrist back completely for spares, and I tested the Red Pearl Urethane Hammer against my Blue Pearl Target Zone.
Typical line for the 10 with polyester: stand at 30 with my right shoe tip, play across 16th board at the arrows and have the ball curve in in parallel to the right gutter to run dead on the 10.
Result: I cannot use the same line 1:1. With the Urethane ball I need to stand with my feet 1 1/2 boards deeper than with the polyester ball, because the Red Pearl Urethane Hammer reads the lane in a wide, controllable curve. Excessive speed might prevent this, but since the ball reaction is very stable, the reaction is O. K.
Alternatives?Another ball this one must be compared with is Lane #1's XXXL, a polyester ball with a true dynamic core. IMHO it is a dead race between controversial technical philosophies for dry turf: I have seen the XXXL in action, even tested one, but I could not make out a winner. The XXXL rolls... that's its best asset, and this makes it easier to handle, especially when you are used to balls with a skid/roll/hook pattern. But it lacks pin action, does not keep the pins as low as the Urethane coverstock.
Some conclusions:
I am glad I bought this ball. For me it is a valuable addition for the dry, especially at the low price I got it for! This ball already saved my butt in league several times.
Lane utility for tested ball (pattern length vs. oil volume):
|S M L
|h e o
|o d n
|r . g
|t
_______
|X X +| Light volume
|+ 0 0| Medium volume
|0 0 0| Heavy volume
Legend:
X = Best suited with effective control & carry
+ = Fairly suited (works, somehow, but lacks control)
0 = Unsuited (ineffective, either slips or burns up)
The chart concept is borrowed from Storm's 2003 catalogue, modified. Surface prep and drillings may change the results, it is just personal experience with my styleIt is difficult for me to give it a rating on a scale, it is rather special. Compared to reactive balls, its performance must be described as "weak" or "limited", but that's not the point. It offers playability on conditions where anything reactive either runs away or burns up. With the drawbacks due to the missing core: a 7 out of 10.
With this in mind I do not consider the Red Pearl Urethane Hammer to be a beginner's ball, even if it is mild. You
must have a stable release technique to make use of the coverstock's and ball's non-core attributes. You will also need to have some training with it, because it reacts much different from aggressive, low RG balls. Remember: there is no roll or flare to it, it is best suited for a direct attack at the pins.
It is not a bad ball, it just fills a condition and usage niche, effectively. Consequently, the Red Pearl Urethane Hammer is not a must-have ball for everybody's bag, but a nice addition if anything else fails due to desert conditions.
It is a nice "secret weapon" to take out when condistions call for it, play down-and-in across 2nd arrow, and prevail. Winning without tons of hook – a new concept?! Consider urethane, and surprise your opponents with some
"old school" style
I wish there would be a current ball like this - the Red Pearl Urethane Hammer with a true core (the Hammer core from the Blades?), THAT would be a nice dry lanes ball!
--------------------
DizzyFugu --- Reporting from Germany
Team "X": http://homepage.mac.com/timlinked/
"All that we see or seem, is but a dream within a dream..." - Edgar Allen Poe
