O.k., true to my word, I am going to give a brief synopsis of the Massacre from what I have thrown with it thus far. I have been able to bowl on two different patterns with the ball, which is a normal THS, 41ft. and on the Scorpion pattern. The Massacre I have is drilled 4.5 x 5 with no x-hole. Pin is about 1" above, and slightly to the left of, my ring finger (lefty). I drilled this ball for length and decent recovery, which seems to be what I have from my limited experience with it thus far.
THSI bowled on a fresh THS 41ft. pattern, and had the Massacre, Perfect Rival, and Swarm in my bag at the time. Massacre was OOB, Swarm is 2000 w/RB, and the PR is 4000 abralon, no polish. One thing I noticed right off is that the Massacre, for a pearlized cover, bites incredibly strong through the mid-lane on a fresh pattern (typical Lane #1 ball reaction). This ball actually checked up a touch earlier than my PR, which surprised me, to be honest. The only good thing about this, though, is that the Massacre still retains enough energy to continue stronger down lane than the PR does. The Massacre gave a strong violent-type of flip in the dry, where as the PR was more length and smooth transition. The Massacre had the same basic hook shape as the Swarm, only about 3-4 feet sooner down lane than the Swarm. I could see these two balls being a good 1-2 punch on a normal league night. Here are my scores with each ball:
Massacre: 227, 249 (before PR), 268 (after PR).
Swarm: 217, 235 (end of set).
Perfect Rival: 248, 229, 258.
ScorpionI had a feeling that the Massacre may struggle for recovery on Scorpion until I broke the pattern down, and I was right on the money with that assessment. This ball really labored for a couple of games, giving me scores of 192 and 198. I had almost zero recovery when missing out, and the ball had a small amount of hold when I tried to tighten the line up. The strong early-rolling characteristic of Lane #1 balls seemed to be rearing it's ugly head with the Massacre once again. So, I pulled out the PR and shot a couple of games with it, to hopefully open the pattern up and give the Massacre another go at it. I shot games of 228 and 219 with the PR, concentrating solely on grooving out the pattern, and then I pulled the Massacre out again for another go. What a difference with some play out there! The Massacre, with some new found "area" really shined. I was able to get a few boards outside to let the ball breathe, and the recovery was much better. Also, I was able to move into the lane, and trust that the ball would make the corner. I shot 237 and 239 the next two games with the Massacre and was very impressed. I think that the Massacre may not be a great choice on a fresh tight pattern, but once it breaks down a little, it can be a very effective piece in your bag. I shot the Swarm the last two games, once the lanes started to go away for the Massacre, and shot 208 and 212, which put the Swarm just under the Massacre in terms of hook strength, with the extra length I needed to finish the set. Here are the games with each ball:
Massacre: 192, 198 (fresh) 237, 239 (after PR)
Perfect Rival: 228, 219
Swarm: 208, 212
So far, I have mixed emotions about the Massacre. It has surprised me in the fact that the backend reaction is much stronger than I anticipated, but the room for error and semi-early rolling characteristic of the ball are two things I worry about. It has less room for miss than both my PR and Swarm, but seems to carry a little better than each, but that is with limited experience with the ball, so we'll see if that holds true as I progress with it. The carry is very good, which has never been a concern of mine with some of the older Lane #1 balls, just some of the newer pieces. Overall, a great first session, with many more to come. Once I figure out my issue with photobucket, I will have pics of the whole arsenal up in my profile. Thanks again to Chuck at Lane #1 for getting involved with this challenge, and as I progress with the ball into the fall season and tournament time, I will have more updates as to how the Massacre is doing compared to the other balls in my lineup. This is my honest assessment thus far. I give the ball a B+ at this time. Stay tuned......
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James Goulding
Moores Pro Shop
Bowler 2 Bowler Blog: http://bowler2bowler.wordpress.com
State Site: http://www.msusbc-maine.org
Local Link: www.lausbca.org
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