Received a used ball today with scribes lines on it.  Is this normal.  The ball is goughed.  The guy said it was normal.  Pros do it all the time.  I assume they re finish the ball when done cause I don't see any lines on tv.  Looks like a dumb idea to me.  Why not just use a sharper pencil.

I don't see the guys balls on tv that have scribe marks on them.  So they do get sanded out.  The guy above said the scribe mark stays in the ball. 

Again, my balls all roll great and they are NOT scribed. There is no real reason to do it and I think it looks like garbage. Laugh at me all you want. I know I am not the only who feels this way. If your ball driller cares about accuracy, they can do just fine with a colored pencil.

When do you ever have a chance to see the grip center on tv?  They absolutely do not get sanded out, why would they?  Ball rep lays out ball, scribes layout on ball, guy in the truck drills it, that's how it happens.  On tour it's necessary.

In a regular pro shop, scribing a ball shouldn't be necessary.  However, caring whether there are scribed lines on a ball or not is a lot of attention and focus wasted in the wrong area on the wrong things.  Those are the same people who take a ball up to the front counter to complain when they get a couple scratches.  Give the ego a rest. 

I will say this though, if someone scribes, it says to me that they have a high attention to detail and are very confident in their abilities.  No one is going to scratch lines on a ball, miss those lines, and then hand the ball across the counter to you.  I feel it's unnecessary, I personally prefer not to, but wouldn't care whether mine were scribed or not.  Never ceases to amaze me how picky and finicky and pissy bowlers can be over the most insignificant things. 

I don't see the guys balls on tv that have scribe marks on them.  So they do get sanded out.  The guy above said the scribe mark stays in the ball.

Anyone who has been in the proshop business would tell you there are lots of customers that would be P.O.d if you scribed their new $200 ball. Or even their new $70 plastic ball.

As ITZPS said, you can drill accurately with a wax pencil, simply measure to edges of lines not to centers.

Again, my balls all roll great and they are NOT scribed. There is no real reason to do it and I think it looks like garbage. Laugh at me all you want. I know I am not the only who feels this way. If your ball driller cares about accuracy, they can do just fine with a colored pencil.

I'm not laughing at you, but I question your priorities. In the end, how the ball performs should be worth much more than how it looks. Now, you claim you're getting great reaction out of balls that aren't scribed, and that's great. Nobody here is saying that you must scribe in order to drill accurately; they're simply explaining the reason why it's done (to attempt to be more accurate) and stating that that should be the main focus, not how the ball ends up looking. That being said, I do think it's in a PSO's best interest to let a buyer know that he or she intends to scribe the ball rather than just doing it. If the bowler objects, the PSO should let him or her know why they would prefer to scribe but be willing to use pencil if that's truly what the bowler wants. In the end, it's a customer-service thing, so you do need to be concerned with giving the bowler what he or she wants.