Author Topic: Buddies and Lanemasters ? (Read 6010 times)

charlest · « **on:** February 12, 2009, 03:54:19 AM »

ALl of a sudden I see only one LM/L ball on their website in the LaneMasters section: an XS Power.

I wonder why.
- Are they not selling for Buddies?
- Is Buddies going to discontinue carrying them?

I do know that most times when I ordered an LM ball from them, it came directly from Lane Masters in Stockton, CA. Almost every other ball came directly from Buddies in Connecticut.
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"None are so blind as those who will not see."

urbanshaft · « **Reply #16 on:** February 28, 2009, 07:16:36 AM »

is that a fact or a joke?
y did they need a new owner
i dont like that sound

mrbowlingnut · « **Reply #17 on:** February 28, 2009, 07:20:13 AM »

Dont know why?? But these come from a great source they are real.

Scraps Z · « **Reply #18 on:** March 06, 2009, 06:53:02 PM »

That's good news...as long as he keeps manufacturing in the USA and does not move it to Korea. Hmmm, the only big ball manufacturer that I heard was in financial trouble was the big "B".

Atochabsh · « **Reply #19 on:** March 07, 2009, 07:29:10 AM »

They have fantastic equipment. Great ball cleaner and polish. Their bags are top notch. But their balls are not as dynamic but they last. They really really do. But finding a customer base that wants a ball to last years these days is tough. Getting them to pay over $200 for it, even more. They took all the perks out of the ball packages. You used to get a ball cup, cleaner, ball see/saw, and CD, they no longer do that. Due to cost cutting efforts. But it was one way for us to help sell the balls. It was a cut above in class, to be able to give the customer all these other things they got when buying the ball. Made the extra cost almost worth it. It also made some repeat customers, until they started giving too many balls away locally in "promotion" and clinics, destroying their local buying base.

They still have a great product. But now need to build back up a customer base. Their lower priced balls were total duds. And without this niche in the market they will not make it.

Erin

Big Jake · « **Reply #20 on:** March 07, 2009, 11:44:18 AM »

quote:
....But their balls are not as dynamic but they last.

I have to disagree with you on that point I think that they are just as good if not better.

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Join a PBA Experience league, it will make you or break you...you can count on it!

Gazoo · « **Reply #21 on:** March 07, 2009, 11:50:53 AM »

"Their lower priced balls were total duds."

You can't be serious. The Sure Strike and XS Power are two of the best balls on the market.
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"I don't want to be remembered, I want to be forgotten"

j1kjvan · « **Reply #22 on:** March 07, 2009, 12:01:57 PM »

Atochabsh I,m afraid I disagree also. I took a glance at your profile and noticed that there was not any Lane Masters equipment included in your favorites. I can certainly understand why you would not push their equipment especially since you want people to come and buy a new ball from your business every 4 to 6 months. Some of us who have been around for a while like the idea of not having to replace balls as often as the big manufacturers would like for us to do. I do not know where you live but I guarantee you that when I put on a Lane Masters clinic in my home town I personally wrote the check for 47 Lane Masters balls that the people got from the excellent clinic that they attended. Yes I got the balls at the pro shop price but you do the math and figure out how much that is. It aint free.

Zef Olantar · « **Reply #23 on:** March 07, 2009, 12:29:17 PM »

LM and Legends are the best made balls on the market......hand made, cores are great and the coverstocks last longer than anything out there.

The Legends "World Class" line is simply OUTSTANDING!

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"You may not like it now........but you'll LEARN to like it!"

Canadian SAWhead

Zef Olantar · « **Reply #24 on:** March 07, 2009, 12:50:15 PM »

As a pro shop owner / operator, I can tell you without a doubt that Lane Masters / Legends covers stand up much better than the rest when you compare their original Out of Box reaction.....YES...you are correct, if you clean your equipment after every use, all balls should last. BUT...most people don't do that, so I'm speaking from experience when I say that with limited to NO ball cleaning after use, LM / Legends balls hold up better than the rest.

That is the feedback & complaints that I get from my customers.

Great to know for those that are lazy or just don't believe in cleaning their equipment after each use.
--------------------
"You may not like it now........but you'll LEARN to like it!"

Canadian SAWhead

akt22 · « **Reply #25 on:** March 09, 2009, 03:33:02 AM »

4PinHatesMe

Disregarding that lane masters' equipment longetivity, compared to other companies, due to proper maintenance is like saying it doesn't matter what kind of ball you have: it's all about technique. Both completely ignore the other half of the equation: the ball dynamics themselves. Just like a brunswick twisted fury would outhook an ebonite maxim due to how its constructed, lanemasters balls will last longer compared to other big companies due to the fact they construct their balls with the best resins available as well using no fillers whatsoever. This assumes all the other remaining variables are constant: if the maxim was thrown with enough revs on a dry lane while the fury was thrown straight, of course the maxim would outhook fury. Similarly if the lanemasters ball not treated well, of course it's going to die in comparison to any ball that is properly maintained.

Atochabsh · « **Reply #26 on:** March 09, 2009, 06:29:07 AM »

quote:
I do not know where you live but I guarantee you that when I put on a Lane Masters clinic in my home town I personally wrote the check for 47 Lane Masters balls that the people got from the excellent clinic that they attended.

I live "down the street" from their manufacering location. And I can tell you positively that they gave away too many balls to local "pro" bowlers both adult and youth. Those "pro" bowlers then went on to put on clinics and provide balls cheaper then we could through the pro shop. The clinics were so frequent at one time, that it just didn't make sense for us to carry the balls any longer. Also out price went up on the balls. If you were a shareholder, no matter how small or in debt, you got a break on the ball price and could buy them directly from Lanemasters. Once that shareholder perk was no longer in place we had to buy from our local dist. which also raised the price of the balls.

Plus I never said they had a bad product. In fact I stand behind them and always have and say they have a great product. But it is a tough sell for us at the price we have to pay for the balls. The main problem in our area is that if you want a Lanemasters ball there are ways to get it cheaper then buying from a pro shop.

Thankfully the give away balls have stopped. From what I heard too many of them were ending up on Ebay.

Erin

j1kjvan · « **Reply #27 on:** March 09, 2009, 04:49:20 PM »

4 Pin

I re-read my post 4 or 5 times and I guess I should have put an IMHO before the BLATANTLY FALSE statement because there is no place in the post that states that L/Lm balls out last all other equipment manufacturers bowling balls.

I, for one maintain my equipment on a regular basis and my wife will confirm that as she really likes the smell of the Lane Masters ball cleaner.

How many people do you know that maintain their equipment as you do? IMHO I suspect that you do not know 5 people that take the time to clean their equipment after they bowl every day or night. You are probably 1 in a 1,000.

charlest · « **Reply #28 on:** March 09, 2009, 06:20:58 PM »

quote:
4 Pin

I re-read my post 4 or 5 times and I guess I should have put an IMHO before the BLATANTLY FALSE statement because there is no place in the post that states that L/Lm balls out last all other equipment manufacturers bowling balls.

I, for one maintain my equipment on a regular basis and my wife will confirm that as she really likes the smell of the Lane Masters ball cleaner.

How many people do you know that maintain their equipment as you do? IMHO I suspect that you do not know 5 people that take the time to clean their equipment after they bowl every day or night. You are probably 1 in a 1,000.

j1kjvan,

I would no longer put that figure at 1 out of 1000. More and more people are listening to "our" preaching and cleaning their balls after using them and BEFORE putting them back in the bag at more and more centers.

If they don't care and can afford to buy a new $200+ ball every 4 - 6 weeks, then fine. No amount of preaching and suggesting will change their minds. Those who prefer not to throw good money down the drain in these less than propitious times will clean their tools regularly.

A good mechanic always takes care of their tools, if they understand what their tools do for them. A slacker does not take care of their tools and it shows.

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"None are so blind as those who will not see."

charlest · « **Reply #29 on:** March 10, 2009, 01:17:33 PM »

quote:
I don't know where you're getting your information from, but of the 15 or so resin balls I own, I've only had ONE die on me and that was an Ebonite particle piece.

I've got gear 8 years old that is still going strong. I don't use it, but if I want to, I know it's going to give me the look I'm used to. Maybe you don't clean and maintain your equipment, maybe nobody you know does, but if you take care of your gear ANY ball can last a number of years.

My newest piece is two years old almost, I haven't baked or resurfaced a ball in just as long and all my equipment still reacts like it did when I got it. It's all about proper maintenance.

Unfortunately, it's not just about proper maintenance. Your personal experience does not reflect that of many other people who have had Ebonite-made balls die and have not been able to "resurrect" them. ANd, no, it's not due to poor maintenance because many of them have rigorously maintained their balls. In fact, Ebonite is trying to address this problem by the introduction of the Magic which they now claim absorbs less oil and keeps its performance longer. This only means they are now following the lead of makers like Lanemasters, Visionary and Dyno-Thane & 900 Global Soaker coverstocks.

quote:

On Edit: I'm currently using two-three year old Brunswick gear and one 7 year old Hammer piece, all work just fine. Point is, saying L/LM is the only equipment that lasts compared to "big" manufacturers stuff, is a blatantly false statement.

Yes and no. The only companies that have been proven through experience to last are the ones mentioned above, Lanemasters, Visionary and Dyno-Thane & 900 Global Soaker balls. All others experience normal loss of performance because of oil absorption. They have be cleaned more rigorously and have to be "rejuvenated" more often.

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"None are so blind as those who will not see."

Author Topic: Buddies and Lanemasters ? (Read 6010 times)

charlest

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urbanshaft

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mrbowlingnut

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Scraps Z

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Atochabsh

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Big Jake

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Gazoo

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j1kjvan

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Zef Olantar

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Zef Olantar

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akt22

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Atochabsh

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j1kjvan

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charlest

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charlest

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