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Author Topic: Pure Hammer  (Read 13347 times)

admin

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Pure Hammer
« on: December 31, 1969, 06:00:00 PM »
Ball NPS Score: 100.00
Coverstock: Urethane
Ball Color: Black All colors do vary somewhat from the picture shown.
Finish: Matte
Recommended Lane Conditions: Light Oil
Description: Whether you’re new to bowling or just want a straight trajectory, Pure Hammer is your answer. Pure Hammer is the choice for control in the Hammer line.
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Deadbait

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Re: Pure Hammer
« Reply #1 on: July 16, 2004, 10:28:17 PM »
14#, stacked 75 degree.   Box condition  longish houseshot.   Was a dud.   Rolled real early, like an old Blue.   Would play some oil though.   Sanded with 800 grit, put a good shine on it with Black Magic.   Now we have something.  Good length with a nice arc.  Hits very well.  Shined, it will need some dry.  If pocket hits are giving you backrow pins, this is the answer, hits just soft enough.  With a tamer drill, and a good shine, this could be sleeper of the year for dry or folks with big hands.
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adelphian

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Re: Pure Hammer
« Reply #2 on: July 19, 2004, 04:00:35 PM »
nothing like the old bnlack hammer of better days past. not for anything more than light oil, even if you dull it up. seemed to roll better with a shine on it than dull, as rolling dull, it seemed to bleed all it's energy b4 it hit the pocket leaving numerous corner pin leaves.
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http://www.allposters.com/IMAGES/ATA/24072DC_a.jpg
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anotherwindup

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Re: Pure Hammer
« Reply #3 on: August 27, 2004, 12:52:56 PM »
This is purely good.  

Layout: 51/4" pin to PAP distance.  75* layout.  

Polished highly.  

This ball is very clean through the fronts, revs hard in the mids, and makes a very predictable strong ARC to the hole.  

I will be getting another one so that I can complement this one.
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Jason Jenkins
"Nothing HITS like a Hammer"
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big_kev300

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Re: Pure Hammer
« Reply #4 on: December 09, 2004, 02:33:21 PM »
simply put.  If you are looking for something on light oil or tournament conditions with screaming backends, there is not a better choice on the market.  Great through the heads, a perfect controlled arc on the backends.  Reminds me of the old urethane hammer, which I still own to this day.  Pure and simple bowling.  No unexpected flips and odd spare leaves.  Just hit your mark and enjoy pocket shot after pocket shot.  However, if you have medium to heavy oil with carry down, better leave this one in the bag.  Corner pins all night long.
--------------------
Kevin Griffith
Town & Country Lanes
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perfect18x

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Re: Pure Hammer
« Reply #5 on: February 21, 2005, 03:11:41 PM »
Hello fellow bowlers... The Pure Hammer was a great surprise for me. I didn't expect this ball to hook as much as it does. I have it with max flare, and asked my pro how much he thought it would flare, and he told me maybe 4 to 5 inches. Boy was he wrong...  lol lol ...   He bowled right next to us the night I threw it for the first time and he watched me get 9 inches of flare from it, and shoot 796 the first set with it and a 279 the last game.

Love this ball for its versatility ( hope thats how you spell that lol) if you like to play deep inside on crazy conditions, and have high rev rate this ball will be great for you...   Very Happy with the Pure Hammer..
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stevieT300

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Re: Pure Hammer
« Reply #6 on: February 24, 2005, 05:26:30 PM »
Let me just say that when I look for a ball I have to be so carefull because I might only get maybe two a year , so its got to be right. I was looking for a urethane for the bag, for length and on fresh conditions with dry backends.

I bowl about 15-18 mph with high revs, but I wouldn't call myself a cranker.

The pure hammer is 3" pin and I drilled it with cg about 1/2" right of center, pin about 1" right of the center of the ring finger, then before chucking it I gave it a quick spin with black magic reactive polish.

I got up my bowl just in time to see a fresh condition going down, a THS, which is playing quick at the moment because of new oil they are using, found myself bowling straight up 2nd with a very controllable reaction, very smooth,very hard hitting, when I chucked it out this thing had no trouble coming back, had a quick four games 232,234,194,265.

For me this ball seems to fit my set just right, great length and its true...
NOTHING HITS LIKE A HAMMER

Great work hammer keep it up.

any questions just post me.


--------------------
Perfection is NOT attainable, but if we chase perfection we can catch excellence...
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SHERMDOGG

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Re: Pure Hammer
« Reply #7 on: April 13, 2005, 06:44:44 PM »
Well I got this ball because I needed something to go long but had good backend
so my proshop recommended the PURE HAMMER and man he was right this ball is what
I take out of my bag first. This ball was hit with some Factory Finish and man it is the ball that lets me know what to throw if any next or stay with it. It is drilled to go long. HAMMER FOR EVER "HFE"!!!! My Arsenal INCLUDES, VICIOUS STRIKE, SLING BLADE, POWER DIESEL, VICIOUS PEARL REACTIVE, OLD BLUE HAMMER,
WHITE DOT, and last but not least PURE HAMMER get it it will complete your game.
--------------------
Hammer For Ever (HFE)
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dizzyfugu

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Re: Pure Hammer
« Reply #8 on: August 03, 2006, 05:49:38 AM »
The black Pure Hammer in a nutshell
  • Smooth, arcing ball; mocks urethane reaction well
  • Best suited for light oil conditions, up to mediums
  • Low RG lets ball roll early, length drilling recommended
  • Be careful with polish! Pure high grit surface seems to be best
  • Very durable coverstock (urethane blend)

    The Black Pure Hammer is another attempt of mine to find a remedy and go-to ball for summer league and my short 30-35' pattern THS house league, where I often struggled last season to deploy my normal, rather slow game.

    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.


    Why this ball?
    After several experiments with my Trauma, TPC Shooter, Sahara (all too much, unless the lanes are fresh - a rare occasion!) and a Red Pearl Urethane Hammer (the remake, not enough movement since it lacks a core) and no convincing results, I wanted a new ball to be a complement to my Reaction Rip, which is the best ball I currently own for the condition at hand. The Reaction Rip is drilled pin above bridge, CG stacked. It goes long and has a sharp, late hockey stick like hook. It hits very well even on dry ground, but at times the ball is either too much, burning up with its SuperFlex coverstock, or, on long oil and carrydown (many social bowlers before league play, no stripped lanes), it would not get into a good roll and hit like a wet donut.

    A reaction complement was IMHO necessary to have a dry/drier lanes combo for maximum diversity. So I started looking for a urethane ball or something similar, but with a dynamic core. I wanted this ball to arc and roll earlier than the Reaction Rip, yet be playable on drier conditions, not bleeding energy.

    Choices were few:
  • The "new" Burgundy Pure Hammer, the Black Pure Hammer's recently discontinued successor was out of discussion for me since it is a reactive ball and rumoured to be (even) stronger than the former black ball.
  • I have also seen in action and tried a team mate's XXXL from Lane#1 (the black, solid one), but it did not convince me. Its pin carry was erratic, just like a plastic ball, even my Red Pearl Urethane Hammer without a core beats this ball with carry and pin action. With oil in the backend the ball would slip and not be easy to control for me. Good thing was that the core created a nice reaction and a quite controllable roll, making it suited on desert conditions. Price is a matter, too, so I discarded this ball, since its utility "window" was too small for me to justify the money.
  • Another ball I had in my personal "evoked set" and my initial favourite was Visionary's Slate Blue Gargoyle (the only Urethane ball with a true core in production these days). But this ball is hard to get in Germany. Importing it might have proved difficult, expensive and time-consuming.

    Finally, I accidently found a lone Black Pure Hammer on display in my local pro shop's racks, in a very dark corner. To my surprise and pleasure, it was in the right weight for me - the last NIB of its kind around here! The solid (presumed) urethane coverstock, paired with a classic Hammer core (RG of 2,48" for 15 lbs.) and medium RG differential (0.039) were IMHO a good basis to start with.


    The ball and its setup:
    I'd like to thank BR.com members chi town, belch and k-dawg77 for sharing their Black Pure Hammer experience with me, as well as Brain Graham (Hammer product manager at Ebonite) for his quick answers to my questions about this ball. Further greetings and thanks to Florian Streppel and Michael Kraemer for their service and drilling support at Michaels Pro Shop in Duisburg, Germany.

    My Black Pure Hammer is 15 lbs. 3 ounces, with 2 ¾ ounces top weight before drilling, and a 3 ¾" pin distance. With BR.com members' info in mind and my own ideas how to set up the ball and some long discussions and measurements at the pro shop, my Black Pure Hammer was drilled 5 ½ x 4 ½.
    Pin was placed full 1¼" above the bridge for ultimate length, CG was put at grip center height, kicked out ½" towards PAP from grip center. The idea was to give the ball a late but arcing, controllable back end move for late games and drier lanes in general. No X-hole was necessary.

    ====*======
    ===========
    ===o=o=====
    ===========
    =====#=====
    ===========
    ====O======
    ===========

    * = Pin
    # = CG

    When discussing desired reaction and overall setup, my driller warned me that the ball, with its matte OOB finish, would probably tend to read the lane quite early, despite the weak coverstock. This observation was confirmed by BR.com members and by former personal observations of Black Pure Hammer users on local lanes who cursed the ball's surprising strength and hooking potential. Therefore, the ball was lightly polished before I even made the first shot (I suppose with Brunswick High Gloss polish over the 1.000 grit OOB surface). Silicone oval finger inserts and a urethane thumb slug completed the setup.


    The black Pure Hammer in action
    A comparison video between three urethane classics: the Pure Hammer, a Slate Blue Gargoyle and a vintage Faball Blue Hammer from 1993:




      />



    The testing program in detail:

    Well, I split this part of the review in 2 parts, because I made dramatic and surprising experience when I tried the ball…

    a) Polished

    I start my impressions with the ball's "maiden flight" at my club house, because it was dramatic. Pattern used to be a 38' long oil tongue, buffed to 40-42' and to the gutters with a total of 22 units of oil and on 1994 Brunswick AnviLane. The lanes had not been refreshed from the day before.
    When I pulled out the Black Pure Hammer, the lanes were scorched... a dozen games had been made by me and training pals. There had not been much play since the day before, but I think the buffed areas of the pattern had dissipated over night and our earlier, aggressive balls had soaked up anything that would allow "normal" playing. Balls generally started to jump after 30-35', reaching the 1-3 pocket became a challenge. At that time I was even struggling with my Sahara, standing at 30th-32nd board and playing across 16th, without a consistent reaction. Nothing to lose, I decided to unleash the new black beauty to save the day (and my good training average so far...).

    Enter the Pure Black Hammer: Initially, I lined up with my feet at about 22, aiming for 2nd arrow, for a more or less direct shot down the 10th board. I expected the ball to go rather straight for 40+' and then gradually make it to the pocket, with a little more action than my coreless Red Pearl Urethane Hammer.

    I was SO wrong... the ball started hooking after about 30' and curved relentlessly into the 2-4 pocket! What a surprise... In my initial game I went ever deeper with feet and visual target, but the ball always broke early, after 30-35', hardly ever reaching the 1-2 pocket. I was about to chime in into the cursing choir about this ball's strength... BUT, I did not have the impression that the Black Pure Hammer bled energy – it worked properly on the lane, it just broke that early and hooked all the way down in a wide belly curve. Very smooth and continuous, much like a strong particle ball on heavy oil, with a powerful final roll. But too much overall movement in any way!
    "Pure Hammer"? Better call it "Pure Hook"! As a reference, the ball moves overall earlier and more than my Sahara(!) which is drilled more aggressively - and I initially considered the Sahara to be the stronger ball!

    I was puzzled, also because the ball only showed 1" of flare. Finally I tried more speed, holding the ball at shoulder height in my approach position – and this finally did the job. I found a deep line at 29th board across 3rd arrow with excessive speed. The ball would still break early and move close towards the gutter, but now I was able to suppress the overall amount of hook and get the ball into the pocket.
    Once I figured out what the ball wanted me to do, the results were impressive: after a so-so 164 with many line experiments mentioned above, a 231 with only 1 open frame was a nice and surprisingly high next result. No spilts and very good carry once it got to the pocket - but I had to battle it down the lane, with more force than I’d like for my A game. So I had mixed feelings about the ball. Did I buy a dud missile?

    This notorious tendency to read the lane as soon as the ball would touch any dry ground showed on other, similar summer occasions, too. Only a deep line with my feet around 30th board, played across 3rd arrow and even deeper and/or extra speed could help, otherwise the ball could not be brought into the 1-3 pocket. Any inside line is a no-go area for me with this ball.
    On the other side, when I tried the polished Pure Hammer on a fresh medium shot, the ball skidded in any oil it found, hardly finding any grip at all and becoming easily victimized by carry down. Over/under reaction was a constant problem for me, anywhere I tried the ball with its polished surface. Really strange...


    b) Sheen

    Well, after some weeks, trails on several lanes and consistent but slightly disappointing results I decided to scuff the polish off and try a high grit sheen finish. So I put the ball on the spinner and took it to a 4-sided 1.500 grit surface.

    Et voilà: the Black Pure Hammer immediately worked much better for me. The ball would still grab the lane surprisingly early, still at about 30-35’, but the over/under reaction in the oil buffer zone and its skidding tendency on any oil was completely gone now. Additionally, the breakpoint was even smoother than before and the overall hooking action tamed down a bit to a controllable amount. Ahhh… at last!

    At my club house, again on the fresh 39’ pattern, I was able to stand now at 28th board, play across 3rd arrow and belly the ball to the pocket without force and excessive speed (ball at normal waist height).

    In early August 2006 I also fielded the ball in my club's championship at 1.500 grit, and it justified the expectations I had. When the inside lines across 3rd arrow became after 8 games too dry and the backend started to suffer from carrydown, I switched to the Pure Hammer, stood at 24th board and sent it down across 12 board at the arrows in the still fresh buffer zone. The ball would still already break early, but the following arc was long and smooth, never overreacting and still hitting with full force despite the late game situation.

    Lovely piece of equipment now! That’s what I wanted, and the ball feels much more assuring now!

    Even though with some surface to it now, the Black Pure Hammer still does not show any tendency to burn out. Even though it works pretty well now, I might take it to 2.000 or 4.000 grit with an Abralon pad to see what happens. But with the non-polished sheen surface, I think I found the right formula with this ball for me


    Some conclusions:
    This ball is smooth, any way you set it up. Overall, the Black Pure Hammer has a nice, soft breakpoint and a rather arcing hook shape. Even with polish the ball will not become "jumpy”. On the right condition, e. g. a classic clean THS without carrydown, it is a nice control piece, and I think this is what the ball is best suited for. There, it "mocks" the reaction of a classic urethane piece or that of a matte particle ball perfectly.

    Surface changes seem to have huge impact on ball performance, at least for me and my style: Polished, it tended to skid even on small amounts of oil and carrydown, while once hitting dry ground, it moved a lot, more than I ever expected or would have been to my liking.
    With polish I found the ball to have only a very small condition window where it would work properly, with a bad tendency to show over/under reactions. The polish even did not yield that length I was originally looking for. So, with a glossy surface, I give it only a personal overall 6 out of 10.

    With my later surface adjustments to a sheen finish, the ball became much more versatile and predictable, and I give it an overall 8,5 out of 10. It works much better, but its usability is still limited to light oil and the ball is still touchy concerning oilier lane conditions, beware!


    Lane utility for tested ball at 1.500 grit sheen (pattern length vs. oil volume):

    |S M L
    |h e o
    |o d n
    |r . g
    |t
    _______
    |+ X X| Light volume
    |+ X +| Medium volume
    |+ 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 print catalogue. Surface prep and drillings may change the results, it is just personal experience with my style and the reviewed ball

    Some confusion came up since the ball's box calls the coverstock material "Reactive", even though Hammer advertises it as “Urethane”! Huh? No one knows for sure what it really is – BR.com members assumed a urethane/reactive blend.

    Additionally, after trials on half a dozen lane conditions, I "blame" the pathologic early breakpoint and strong movement rather on the core than the coverstock. IMHO, a core with a higher RG, something taller, would have been a better fit for the ball's task, helping to delay hooking action and the breakpoint further down the lane especially on dry conditions. An idea could be the classic Hammer core or the Raw Hammer core with either a low-density nucleus inside or 2 small, heavy flip blocks on top and bottom. More differential is not necessary at all, just better energy retention.

    Nevertheless, trying surface adjustments with the Black Pure Hammer is recommended in any way, since it seems to work very differently for different players and styles – a fellow Pure Hammer user can only use his one with polish!

    High-speed bowlers, tweeners and even crankers will like this ball on light to medium oil. Slower players like me better know how to play deep lines. Much/long oil does not work together with this one at all. With its mellow lane reaction and low RG I would also recommend the Black Pure Hammer as a beginner's ball. With low speed and some minor revs, rookie bowlers should like what they get from this one because it works well on anything from medium-dry to medium-oily conditions and is quite easy to handle. It is an ideal ball to learn how to hook and control a ball.

    Finally, about the looks... I am not a fan of solid black balls, but this one is pretty because it is so simply designed. The thin white engravings and the clean lettering make this one pretty (for my taste, a bit Bauhaus?), and with the overall performance potential the Black Pure Hammer comes with visual understatement. Only downside is so far that the engravings started to fall apart after only a few games – might be due to the longer time the ball sat in the pro shop's shelf?

    Addendum Nov. 2006:
    I really love this ball! After a shaky start with polish, the 1.500 grit surface and the length drilling are a perfect match for my game to play across 2nd arrow (mostly standing at 21st board and scoring at will!), almost straight down and then arc into the pocket, rarely leaving splits and never burning out.
    This ball is money, and a very good light oil/late games ball. With ongoing experience I can confirm that this ball does not handle medium or more oil at all.
    The season is still young, but my black Pure Hammer has bailed me out of tough (dry) situations both in house league and tournament several times, and I am surprised how good this piece reacts to hand and speed changes. It also appears to be very durable - major scratches so far came through machines, but the track area stays clean. Wow!

    Addendum Apr. 2007:
    I love this ball. It is SO versatile and does not overreact - except for really dry lanes. But if anything fails, especially in tournaments and league, I take out this piece, search a direct line around 2nd arrow and can easily feed the pocket while playing around the deeper oil in the lane's middle. It has become an arsenal centerpiece for me, and would highly appreciate a remake
    --------------------

    DizzyFugu - Reporting from Germany
    Team "X" website & more about me: http://web.mac.com/timlinked/iWeb/X/Thomas.html
    "All that we see or seem, is but a dream within a dream..." - Edgar Allen Poe
    •  
    Edited on 26.10.2011 at 11:26 AM
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    DizzyFugu ~ Reporting from Germany

    Gene J Kanak

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    Re: Pure Hammer
    « Reply #9 on: April 02, 2007, 01:02:02 PM »
    Burgundy Pure Hammer
    Pin under ring, cg kicked right, slight shine

    Pros: Smooth movement
          Solid hit/carry

    Cons: Stronger than advertised

    Overall: I owned the Black Pure as well, and while this one is a bit better than that, I'm still not 100% thrilled. Hammer set out to give players a urethane-like reaction. Well, I'd just as well like to see them re-release some of their old urethane stuff, it that would be possible, because this Pure is still much stronger and snappier than any of the older stuff.

    The ball pushes down the lane fairly well, but it will still check up early and go darting left when the lanes are truly drying out. I find this ball to be more of lighter medium ball.

    The one big positive is that the ball sets up nicely through the pocket. Even if it's charging hard, it seems to get the proper amount of deflection to keep from blasting solid 9s or 4-9s.

    I'm not saying this is a bad ball in the least; I just find it stronger than what it was said to be, just like the black Pure Hammer was. If you want a ball for truly dry lanes, you'd be better off going with something else.
    --------------------
    I've only bowled 300, but I've benched 345

    http://members.bowl.com/FindAMember/memberView.aspx?mp=519&ms=9130&s=2006-2007

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    larryburpo

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    Re: Pure Hammer
    « Reply #10 on: October 18, 2010, 08:56:01 PM »
    HAD THIS BALL DRILLED  WITH A ONE INCH PIN TO PAP. VERY SMOOTH AND GREAT FINISH ON THE BACK END. (299)  TRYING NEW DRILL PATTERNS SO FAR I LIKE THE ONE AND TWO INCH PIN VERY Controllable.TRYED IT ON A JIGSAW CORNER CANT WAIT TO TRY IT.
    --------------------
    LARRY BURPO
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