There is no cut and dry explanation for the question you have. Depending on many factors, a ball can die quickly, or last for years.

 Different oils have different effects on different balls.  Also, the amount of oil you bowl on can have an effect as well.  Then, add in your personal cleaning regimen for the ball, and you start to get an idea of all the factors involved.

 I have seen the same type ball, owned by two separate bowlers, have significantly shorter lifespans because of these factors.

That being said, I have only seen ONE ball that has actually "died" completely and would not hook anymore, so it does happen.  I was even somewhat successful at bringing it back to life, but had to use some extreme, "nothing left to lose", not recommended techniques to do it.

 Long story short, how long does a bowling ball last?  As long as you can find some condition to use it on, no matter what that condition is.

ive used balls effectively for 1000+ games....as long as you properly maintain it and rejuvenate/resurface when neccessary the ball will last on a house shot for the better part of 10 years. i still use one of my blue vibes....7 year old technology still averaging almost 230 on the house shot. with all the free friction on those things is hard to find a ball to not work as long as its not too strong. its a lot easier to make a ball work if its too weak for the pattern than then making a ball thats too strong to work.

on sport patterns the ball is a bit more sensitive but still has an effective place in my bag. 

its all about what the ball is designed for/what cover they have. super strong balls lose reaction a whole lot faster than more medium or weak balls. something like a black widow solid or virtual gravity which were intended for heavy oil are more medium or medium heavy balls today while blue vibes and furiouses which were medium light/medium balls are still medium balls today on THS

Quote from: L3nn0n on November 21, 2014, 08:00:29 PM

I clean the balls after every bowling session, I never leave my bag with my balls in the garage or in the trunk of my car and every 40 to 50 games I take them to my pro shop to have them cleaned and resurfaced, so I think I'm being everything but cheap.

- How I'm gonna know when is required? I will know when I fell like the ball needs service, isn't it?
- I don't understand the term "maximum service" what do you mean?
- I always try to see how my ball reacts on practice and during the game to see if it's me or if its the ball or the lane conditions...
- I know it, that's why I'm asking how long does a ball last, because I don't want to get rid of it yet.

By "Maximum service", I mean you've gotten all the ball has to give. Best way to tell is when the ball has had the surface refreshed and has had an oil extraction and its performance was restored to some useful degree. You have to know that changing lane and oil conditions are not the reasons for the lack of restored performance.

The type of ball cleaner can have a lot to do with how well the ball is maintained. It should be as strong as possible, not just any one off the shelf. It should be able to readily remove oil shine (rings embedded into the track area that seem like polish but are actually wear covered by oil. There aren't a lot of cleaners that can easily remove this type of "dirt". (LMB International ball cleaner, Hook-It and Clean and Dull are 3 that will do this properly. FYI "Clean and Dull" does not dull a ball.)

Periods of time for refreshing a surface vary wildly with the the actual coverstock, the bowler's rev rate and ball speed, the lane surface and the amount of oil he's bowling on.
Polished balls usually need refreshing every 12 - 25 games. It varies with rev rate, lane surface, etc.

Dull or matte finished balls vary in their time frame. All are changed by use. Some coverstocks are affected quicker than others. You need to be observant of the track area AND the ball's performance. Finer (higher grit number) surfaces, like 4000, usually need to be refreshed more often than duller balls, like 1000 or 1500 grit. It varies again from 6 games to 20 games.

Both polished and dull balls need to be resurfaced from scratch about every 50 games more or less. If a ball's finish is 500/1000/2000/4000, then a resurface needs to start with the base grit, 500 and work it's way up to 4000 grit. If it's 500/2000, then the same applies. If the ball is polished, it needs to be sanded from scratch say 500 grit, taken to the appropriate base grit, before polish is applied. The polished should be applied to the same degree as it was when the bowler started using it.

Oil extraction: again, The bowler needs to watch the ball's surface and the ball's reaction over time. These days, some of these strong coverstocks (Storm, Roto-Grip) are major oil suckers. They may need oil extraction in 25 games. Some covers absorb oil slower (Brunswick, Lane Masters) and may need oil extraction after 50 - 75 games or more.

The better you clean the ball IMMEDIATELY after every use (before putting it in the bag) the longer it will last between oil extractions.

Quote from: charlest on November 22, 2014, 01:00:59 AM

Quote from: L3nn0n on November 21, 2014, 08:00:29 PM

I clean the balls after every bowling session, I never leave my bag with my balls in the garage or in the trunk of my car and every 40 to 50 games I take them to my pro shop to have them cleaned and resurfaced, so I think I'm being everything but cheap.

- How I'm gonna know when is required? I will know when I fell like the ball needs service, isn't it?
- I don't understand the term "maximum service" what do you mean?
- I always try to see how my ball reacts on practice and during the game to see if it's me or if its the ball or the lane conditions...
- I know it, that's why I'm asking how long does a ball last, because I don't want to get rid of it yet.

By "Maximum service", I mean you've gotten all the ball has to give. Best way to tell is when the ball has had the surface refreshed and has had an oil extraction and its performance was restored to some useful degree. You have to know that changing lane and oil conditions are not the reasons for the lack of restored performance.

The type of ball cleaner can have a lot to do with how well the ball is maintained. It should be as strong as possible, not just any one off the shelf. It should be able to readily remove oil shine (rings embedded into the track area that seem like polish but are actually wear covered by oil. There aren't a lot of cleaners that can easily remove this type of "dirt". (LMB International ball cleaner, Hook-It and Clean and Dull are 3 that will do this properly. FYI "Clean and Dull" does not dull a ball.)

Periods of time for refreshing a surface vary wildly with the the actual coverstock, the bowler's rev rate and ball speed, the lane surface and the amount of oil he's bowling on.
Polished balls usually need refreshing every 12 - 25 games. It varies with rev rate, lane surface, etc.

Dull or matte finished balls vary in their time frame. All are changed by use. Some coverstocks are affected quicker than others. You need to be observant of the track area AND the ball's performance. Finer (higher grit number) surfaces, like 4000, usually need to be refreshed more often than duller balls, like 1000 or 1500 grit. It varies again from 6 games to 20 games.

Both polished and dull balls need to be resurfaced from scratch about every 50 games more or less. If a ball's finish is 500/1000/2000/4000, then a resurface needs to start with the base grit, 500 and work it's way up to 4000 grit. If it's 500/2000, then the same applies. If the ball is polished, it needs to be sanded from scratch say 500 grit, taken to the appropriate base grit, before polish is applied. The polished should be applied to the same degree as it was when the bowler started using it.

Oil extraction: again, The bowler needs to watch the ball's surface and the ball's reaction over time. These days, some of these strong coverstocks (Storm, Roto-Grip) are major oil suckers. They may need oil extraction in 25 games. Some covers absorb oil slower (Brunswick, Lane Masters) and may need oil extraction after 50 - 75 games or more.

The better you clean the ball IMMEDIATELY after every use (before putting it in the bag) the longer it will last between oil extractions.

My god! Thanks for your answer... I might need to print it out so I can remember how often should I go to the pro shop for oil extraction, resurface, etc...

I thought it was about every 50 games or so when I had to take them to service, but I've been noticing that my older ball lose its polish and its reaction faster than my newer balls, not to mention the dull one I have, which soaks oil like crazy!

Thanks again for the info, noted and printed