Author Topic: Ball plug and redrill... (Read 9714 times)

MTD300 · « **on:** December 18, 2008, 01:54:22 AM »

Hi everyone,

As a pro shop operator I feel that when a customer comes in to my store and pays $60 for a full plug (balance hole if neccessary) and redrill that not only do I match the colour perfectly to the ball with any swirl pattern or colour scheme but I finish the ball on the haus so it looks as new as possible.

I feel that $60 is a fair charge (including grips and slugs) for this and most of the time I will tell my customers that I can have the ball ready within 2 days.

A lot of time goes into this process and the end result I feel HAS to be professional.

So, how many of you would be happy with a ball finished like Nerco's? I'm sure most of you saw it?

Basically he waited 3 days for a ball that took 45-90 minutes to completely finish and was happy with the colour match of grey on a red/blue/purple gravity shift.

I'm not knocking the shop I just want feedback. The fit at the end of the day is the only thing that matters, and that it does in Nerco's case.

Thanks

Edited on 12/18/2008 11:40 AM

thirtyclean · « **Reply #1 on:** December 18, 2008, 10:08:20 AM »

Some people can be very picky about color matching, etc. We charge $30 for a full plug and redrill, and 10 for finger grips and 12 for a thumb slug, total cost = $52. We never get complaints about clor matching, but some balls are impossible to match with the swirling etc. !
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Thirtyclean (Well maybe 29, or 28, most of
the times !)

Smash49 · « **Reply #2 on:** December 18, 2008, 01:10:28 PM »

It's amazing what people will accept. The shop that was in the center before we bought it either clear plugged everything or used food color dye or maybe craft paints. Resurface a ball??? The only sand paper I found was 150 grit and people bring in balls that have the labels sanded off them. The quality was ZERO. We take pride in the work we do as pro shop owner/operators. Our reputation is stamped on every ball we do. Right now we are fighting the reputation of the old pro shop operators and it's a battle. Another issue is that some people flat do not know what to expect or accept.

Smash49
--------------------
Smash49

Slick, tacky, wood or synthetic it does not matter your slide is correct with SLSM Designs Bowlers Slide Sock. The Finest Slide Sock on the Planet!!!
www.bowlersslidesock.com
Striking Cat Bowling Pro Shop inside Chisholm Trail Bowling Lanes of Duncan Oklahoma!
www.chisholmtraillanes.com

Necromancer · « **Reply #3 on:** December 18, 2008, 01:49:32 PM »

MTD300,

Keep in mind though I am not your average normal person. I am the type of person that can go for months straight of eating daily the same meals over and over (tilapia, steak, eggs, milk, green beans, and then repeat). I am not picky about stuff that is insignificant. People will b**** about the weather, I stare at the sky and say "bring it on!". People will get pissed about their favorite sports team, and I will say "who gives a f***". And since I am a bodybuilder, it amazes me what people will cry about when it comes to food. I haven't been able to eat candy or junk food in years. So when it comes to a bowling ball and having 3 gray dots on a bowling ball that is otherwise perfect, you will see me just

--------------------
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H: Brunswick Fury, Columbia 300 EPX T1
M-H: Storm Shift Gravity, Hammer Black Widow
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M-L: Storm Recharge
S: Brunswick Target Spare Zone, Ebonite 14 Fun Ball

GEMS: Brunswick Quantum Helix, Brunswick Quantum Double Helix

2008-09 Year 215.000 2008-09 Tourney 177.360 Last Tourney 182.667
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MC · « **Reply #4 on:** December 18, 2008, 03:14:37 PM »

MTD,
I would expect it to be done to your standards, no matter how much I paid to have it done. If it is "your" profession to do that job, it should look "professional" when it is done.
--------------------
"Don't Give Up... Don't Ever Give Up." -Jim Valvano

"Perfection is not attainable. But if we chase perfection, we can catch excellence." -Vince Lombardi

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bluerrpilot · « **Reply #5 on:** December 18, 2008, 03:27:17 PM »

quote:
MTD,
I would expect it to be done to your standards, no matter how much I paid to have it done. If it is "your" profession to do that job, it should look "professional" when it is done.

Agree 100%

Pride in Workmanship.
--------------------
"USBC is concerned that technology has overtaken player skill in determining success in the sport of bowling"

MTD300 · « **Reply #6 on:** December 18, 2008, 03:34:12 PM »

quote:
MTD300,

Keep in mind though I am not your average normal person. I am the type of person that can go for months straight of eating daily the same meals over and over (tilapia, steak, eggs, milk, green beans, and then repeat). I am not picky about stuff that is insignificant. People will b**** about the weather, I stare at the sky and say "bring it on!". People will get pissed about their favorite sports team, and I will say "who gives a f***". And since I am a bodybuilder, it amazes me what people will cry about when it comes to food. I haven't been able to eat candy or junk food in years. So when it comes to a bowling ball and having 3 gray dots on a bowling ball that is otherwise perfect, you will see me just
--------------------
Current Arsenal Gallery
H: Brunswick Fury, Columbia 300 EPX T1
M-H: Storm Shift Gravity, Hammer Black Widow
M: Storm X-Factor Vertigo
M-L: Storm Recharge
S: Brunswick Target Spare Zone, Ebonite 14 Fun Ball

GEMS: Brunswick Quantum Helix, Brunswick Quantum Double Helix

2008-09 Year 215.000 2008-09 Tourney 177.360 Last Tourney 182.667
2006-07 League Champions, Southern Comfort Winner
2007-08 League Champions
2008-09 Three-Peat???, Courvoisier Winner

Hall of Fame BR Member Since: April 3, 2001

Its cool that your so laid back, but don't you have pride over your equipment? That ball looks UGLY lol I would never let a ball leave my shop looking like that UNLESS they needed it done within the hour and I had to quick plug it even then the ball would still look as close to the main colour of the ball as possible.

I drill some plugging out if it dont finish perfect.

You know I wish every customer was as laid back as you

my job would be a ton easier.

DukeHarding · « **Reply #7 on:** December 18, 2008, 03:41:13 PM »

I pay $25 for a re-plug of the fingers and re-slug of the thumb, when I buy used LH drills...

I don't care if the plug matches the cover...

I care if there are air bubbles, or cracks in the plug material.

Only matters if I re-sell the ball and the new owner is picky.

--------------------
Duke Harding

www.dukeharding.com

jls · « **Reply #8 on:** December 18, 2008, 04:22:24 PM »

mtd300, I must say that sounds great. It's nice to see that you take pride and do that type of work.

However I must say, that with all of today's wild colors, matching a ball perfectly is hard. And I don't see many bowlers using plug balls that are matched perfectly.

Now most shops I know of, try their best to use a color as close as possible, but I would not call it perfectly matched.

I think fitting and laying out the ball and drilling it are just a little more important.

But your service sounds "outstanding"

Keep up the good work
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jls

sdbowler · « **Reply #9 on:** December 18, 2008, 04:34:34 PM »

Everyone I know in the pro shop business does their best to match the color of the ball. I agree that some are near impossible to match due to the odd color or the swirling of the color. I would rather have clear plug instead of a color that sticks out on the ball. If the pro shop person can't take a few seconds to add color to match the ball then I wonder what other short cuts they could be taking.
--------------------
Kyle

raiderh20boy · « **Reply #10 on:** December 18, 2008, 05:43:41 PM »

AGREED 100% We also will put a swirl as close as possible when we think that the next drill will be in a different spot!!

tenpin477 · « **Reply #11 on:** December 18, 2008, 05:53:51 PM »

My local shop charges 40 bucks for a full replug, grips and thumb slug which I think is a fair price.

I am also another one that doesn't care if the color of the plug matches the color of the ball, to the point that I don't even look. If the ball strikes, Im happy lol.

Edited on 12/18/2008 7:50 PM

Mike Austin · « **Reply #12 on:** December 18, 2008, 10:53:16 PM »

I have to say that I am on the very high side of this pricing issue. I agree with MTD. Many goobers can bang 3 holes in the bowling ball. But there is a skill, craft, method to doing good plug work, the right way. No flat spots, color matching, finish surface. I think it says a lot about how much pride you take in your work as to how bowling balls looke when you get finished with them, whether plug work or drilling.

I charged $22.50 for thumb or fingers. $45 for the whole ball, +$5.00 for an extra hole. Grips and slug were extra. Most of the time I got the ball done next day, two days max. Resurfaced. I had a Cooke Sphere Machine and a Haus Machine, and two balls spinners. Kind of an assembly line. We started at $15. My shop was so small, it was kind of a supply and demand thing. It back fired in a good way I guess. The more I raised the price, $18, $20, $22.50, we just got more. There never was a day in over 10 years that I did not pour plug, ever.

The only craftsmanship/workmanship issue I ran into was with scribing balls. I scribed the lines on balls. There were a few people that didn't like it, but I wouldn't do it if they didn't want it. Usually when they found out why, they were fine with it, AND no other shops in Houston did it. So if you saw a ball on the rack during league with the scribe lines, 95% chance it came from me.

sorry rambling....

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blacknois · « **Reply #13 on:** December 18, 2008, 11:05:53 PM »

You sound like you do an awesome job, but personally, i like my balls to look ugly going down the lane. as long as they do a good job with no flat spots, they could put lime green plug in my ball, and i usually plug my own stuff, so i make exotic colors once and a while just cause i like to be different

DP3 · « **Reply #14 on:** December 18, 2008, 11:31:38 PM »

I take as much pride in my plugwork as much as drilling. I have even gone as far to redrill a hole in the same spot and go back to get as close of a colormatch as possible. That's the first thing I have always looked at in a pro shop starting from customer to now an operator. If you don't have pride in crafting your plugwork, I don't want to even know if you're as carelss or not when it comes to mapping out an exact 4x4 or hitting that span 4 5/8ths exactly and not "4 11/16ths, what's the difference?"

Now for some plug FIGJAM's.....

This is the type of quality I try to strive for with every customer's ball I plug.

http://www.putfile.com/pic/7583557
http://www.putfile.com/pic/7583558
http://www.putfile.com/pic/7549736
http://www.putfile.com/pic/4641364

It's just as important as that perfect fit IMO
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-DJ Marshall
...The Twelve In a Row Pro Shop. AMF Bowie Lanes -- Bowie, MD

Author Topic: Ball plug and redrill... (Read 9714 times)

MTD300

Ball plug and redrill...

thirtyclean

Re: Ball plug and redrill...

Smash49

Re: Ball plug and redrill...

Necromancer

Re: Ball plug and redrill...

MC

Re: Ball plug and redrill...

bluerrpilot

Re: Ball plug and redrill...

MTD300

Re: Ball plug and redrill...

DukeHarding

Re: Ball plug and redrill...

jls

Re: Ball plug and redrill...

sdbowler

Re: Ball plug and redrill...

raiderh20boy

Re: Ball plug and redrill...

tenpin477

Re: Ball plug and redrill...

Mike Austin

Re: Ball plug and redrill...

blacknois

Re: Ball plug and redrill...

DP3

Re: Ball plug and redrill...