Just because you've never seen a person clean their equipment doesn't mean they aren't resurfacing them at home and doing less frequent deep cleaning...

I will agree with Jmac. Just because  you don't see it does not mean he is not doing it. I have to admit I never clean my bowling balls after each use. Every 3 months or so I will do a hot water bath and maybe every 6 months to a year have my pro shop bake it. I never have any issues. Still throw a mission domination aka 250k most nights in league.

Jmac, only talk of what you know. I know this guys personally and he does not own a spinner. His equipment looks dirty all the time. What he says is the truth. Trust me on this one!

Then be a little more clear when stating your case. Say what you mean and mean what you say. We can't read minds.

Ok, Jmac I'll spell out everything exactly and leave a road map for you to follow, next time. The only "real" thing I left out was the fact he is a friend of mine. I guess if I would have said that you would have understood I knew what I was talking about.

Steven, I agree with you that a ball should be cleaned after each use. I disagree somewhat about the performance from coverstock degradation. If you bowl on wood or old synthetics, then, yes it would come into play. I bowl at a house with synthetics, that is five years old and no such harsh wear occurs. I freshened up the coverstock, over the summer, on the two balls I used exclusively there last year and I'm just now starting to get the same strong reaction back. I would be hesitant to do that again anytime soon. I still maintain I own a couple of balls that react far stronger after five or so frames than they do freshly cleaned. I'm not sure what that's about?

One other thing Steven, this guy doesn't jam the ball into the dry on a THS shot. He can swing the ball or bring it in from the corner if he has to. The main place he bowls would be characterized as having a less than bowler friendly shot over the years.

Either, they start with very little movement and then get stronger and stronger. I tried leaving them uncleaned and they were stronger from the beginning. It baffles me.

Either, they start with very little movement and then get stronger and stronger. I tried leaving them uncleaned and they were stronger from the beginning. It baffles me.

If you're cleaned ball is cleaner thru the heads and the midlane and then makes a later break that could hit weak or provide less carry, it is possible that the dirt and crap your ball picks up allows it to grab the lane earlier and provide a better overall reaction.

If your clean, new ball doesn't work well on your house shot, but after 5 or 10 uses or outing, it does, then something is obviously not right with the clean ball; probably it's the surface. (If it's a "Soaker", they require 20 - 25 games to perform at their optimum.)

If you don't want to clean the ball, then don't. No one is forcing you or your friend to do so. You're not a bad person or bad bowler if you don't clean the ball after every use.

Thanks Charlest, for the comments. I've often wondered if it wasn't the dirt or grime the ball picks up in the pit area or ball return that makes it grab more since the ball surface seems (tacky, sticky) compared to the clean surface. I don't get that as much as places are cleaner overall. I plan to continue to clean my stuff after every outing. My main question was how my friend who refuses to clean his stuff is able to maintain the performance of his equipment over the long haul.

The final answer could any number of possible combinations. Two of the most obvious may be one, that the house pattern often hides huge differences between balls, and, two, we all make adjustments over the periods of time as small as over the hours of a league to years at the same house. Over any those periods of time, small and large adjustments we make often without thinking where we stood and what mark we hit 2 days ago, 4 months ago or 4 years ago.

A good bowler doesn't care what he did in the past; he just learns from it and makes the adjustment in the here and now. Oil amounts change, lanes wear, pins get replaced, polish wears off a ball, managers buy new oil, humidity changes - but the bowler does what he must. Do you know for sure that he stands in the same place and hits the same target with the same ball and the same release and the same ball speed as he did 5 months ago or 3 years? possibly yes, possibly no.

I wouldn't worry about it to much. He does what he does. If you want, leave one ball untouched for a few weeks or months, if you can. Maybe just an old practice ball that you use only in practice. See what happens for yourself.