BallReviews

General Category => Miscellaneous => Topic started by: bullred on August 11, 2015, 05:27:51 PM

Title: bowling ball cost
Post by: bullred on August 11, 2015, 05:27:51 PM
Since bowling balls are petroleum based, wonder why price doesn't go down when crude prices fall.  A lot of plastics are LPG based and it's price is rock bottem
Title: Re: bowling ball cost
Post by: JOE FALCO on August 11, 2015, 05:33:32 PM
If prices EVER go down again it will be a miracle!
Title: Re: bowling ball cost
Post by: Crash7189 on August 11, 2015, 05:34:00 PM
Obama Care

LOL
Title: Re: bowling ball cost
Post by: Juggernaut on August 11, 2015, 07:41:14 PM
Since bowling balls are petroleum based, wonder why price doesn't go down when crude prices fall.  A lot of plastics are LPG based and it's price is rock bottem

 It isn't about that. It NEVER has been.

 Bowling ball prices have not been based on material prices in a LONG time now.

 It's about what the market will bear. They sell it for whatever price they can, and if people keep buying, the price will continue rising.

 Stop buying if the stuff is too high, and it will go down.

 Several years ago, it was stated that it didn't cost too much more production cost to make a reactive ball VS a plastic ball, but the expense came from all the R & D it took to design and test the higher performance balls. Nobody ever disputed that, so I always figured it was close to the truth.

 As long as people are supporting the market prices, they will not go down. EVER.
Title: Re: bowling ball cost
Post by: bullred on August 11, 2015, 11:44:53 PM
I always thought the ball companies had to buy their resins.  Didn't realize they got it free.
Title: Re: bowling ball cost
Post by: charlest on August 12, 2015, 05:41:13 AM
I always thought the ball companies had to buy their resins.  Didn't realize they got it free.

How did you get that from anything posted above????
No one said that nor implied it.
Title: Re: bowling ball cost
Post by: bullred on August 12, 2015, 12:06:30 PM
Guess they don't factor in production costs either.   Must be some high paid folks designing balls.   The statement that largest costs are r&d is ridiculous.  An operator sitting at a computer using a cad design program is probably one of the minor expenses.  A tweak here and there on already established cores to get around patents is not much in the way of r&d
Title: Re: bowling ball cost
Post by: milorafferty on August 12, 2015, 12:51:54 PM
I think shipping and handling cost would be a major part of the cost of a bowling ball. From the raw materials to the finished product, bowling balls are dense and require almost a cubic foot of space.
Title: Re: bowling ball cost
Post by: michelle on August 12, 2015, 05:02:32 PM
My guess is that there isn't THAT large of a volume of petroleum product being used in the production to where even fifty to eighty dollar swings per barrel have a huge impact when viewed on on a per-ball basis.   

Title: Re: bowling ball cost
Post by: bullred on August 12, 2015, 06:54:36 PM
Michelle, you're probably right about a one ball production.  Multiple ball productions would take a bit more material.      I doubt if Brunswick moved to Mexico over high R&D costs.
Title: Re: bowling ball cost
Post by: Aloarjr810 on August 12, 2015, 07:19:18 PM
Here's quote that's basically about why you don't see the plastic prices change like a gallon of gas.

Quote
It's all about demand. Fuel demand fluctuates with the economy. When spending goes up, more gas is used shipping goods, People get out and shop, they go places, they vacation. 4

    in 2010 we only used 2.5% of our oil on plastic.

    A gallon of crude makes about a quart of multiple grade lubricating oil. For every quart of motor oil, you're using hundreds of gallons of gas.

    43% goes to Gas, 23.5% to diesel, 9.2% to Jet Fuel

This means that we use very little oil on plastic and motor oil and loads of oil on Fuel. As demand changes to fuel, the demand and supply changes massively on oil. Demand on fuel changes very frequently and if you don't follow the trends, there can be tons of money lost.

Plastic and lubricant demands are much more relaxed and they rely more on a healthy markup and deal with pricing averages.
Title: Re: bowling ball cost
Post by: Strider on August 12, 2015, 08:09:17 PM
Yes and no.

When demand for oil goes up, we may pay more at the pump, but it's the small users of petroleum products that really pay.  When oil is at it's most expensive, the oil companies want to maximize their sales to the high volume (gas) guys.  That means that the small guys really pay through the nose for whatever is left.  Companies that rely on petroleum products other than gasoline have to fight over (and pay for) whatever is left.