You in a way answered your own question. As you use the tape it will get smoother and smoother. Putting that fresh piece in gets the texture back to the new tape.
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Kyle

I like the bare feel of a thumb slug on the front so all my adjustments are to the back of the hole. And many times after I fill the space with white, I will top it off with a single black piece for the smoothness.

answer: oil or grease.
The human skin always has some degree of oil coming to the surface. It easily gets in/on the back of the thumb hole. It is also the reason why you should change your tape at least once a month, more often if you bowl often. Oil builds up and gets deposited on all surfaces you touch. It's why white tape turns yellow with age. Oil also attracts dirt.

Clean the back of the thumb hole and all surfaces inside thumb and finger holes that you touch regularly. Even sand the thumb hole back with 400 grit sandpaper lightly to clean the surface.
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"None are so blind as those who will not see."

Charles is right, blame it on your skin.

Here''s a solution that worked for me, wash your hands throughly with hot water and soap about 15-20 minutes before you bowl. No matter what you do, oil does buildup on your thumb, and you may find that just washing evertime before you bowl will eliminate the need for the tape. It will eliminate that slick feeling on your thumb more than likely, and your tape should last a little longer too. I also use white tape on both sides of my thumbhole, and encountered the same thing you spoke of.

And, to help with callous buildup from the tape on your thumb, i was taught along time ago about Corn Huskers oil. Using this after bowling will help with callous build up on your thumb, and helps with the swelling from using the tape on both sides.


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Taking your lunch money, one strike at a time....

Edited on 6/3/2010 10:10 AM

Edited on 6/3/2010 10:13 AM

Thanks.  

I never really considered the presence of oil on the back of my thumb, especially since I generally do not have a problem with sweat or moisture on my hands. Can be sweating like a pig all over, and yet somehow the skin on my hands remains relatively dry (so much so, that in the winter I have trouble with my skin cracking from the dryness).  But what Charlest says does make sense, especially about the white tape turning yellow.  Just cause I dont see any oil on my thumb, doesn't mean it's not there.

And I did consider using Ron's Magic Carpet awhile back, and am familiar with the design. But if it was a success, I would then have to have about 20+ balls redrilled, or at least the thumbs opened up, and I dont want to go through that process again.

Oh... one more question...  about the thumb slugs.  I believe the shiny yellow ones that I have from a few years ago are Vinyl, and the more porous looking flatter colored ones are Urethane, but not sure.  The Urethane actually feels less slippery to me then the Vinyl, but maybe I'm just weird.

:-)

Well whether it''s velcro or white tape, I''m thoroughly convinced it''s helping me now. Went to the lanes today just to practice/let off steam, and believe it or not had completely forgotten about the "tape at the back" topic.

First game was horrid. Granted the lanes were very dry, but it felt again as if I had no pop on the ball.  Not loose like it would fall to the ground. But "un-snug" if there is such a word. Threw a 153 ....or something like that.

Only felt on the loose side when delivering. Ball does not feel so loose that I am [conciously] squeezing it. But I need my ball to feel snug while swinging it, to deliver it with confidence, or I am all over the place alternately losing it or yanking it past the head pin.

Anyway, I finally remembered the tape, and not wanting to make the hole too tight, actually removed a piece from the front and placed it at the back. And suddenly, I was so much more comfortable and totally on fire.  2nd game which started a little slow, finished as a 233. Then a 267, and a 269. Switched to another ball (with tape at the back) that was a little too much for the dry lanes, and still managed a 225.

I am a 200 average bowler in one house and aabout 180ish at other houses. Yeah... kind of a hack. But I admit it.  Anyway.... despite having bowled my share of 279''s, and a couple of 280''s, 290''s and even a 298 and 299, I had never before (league or otherwise) bowled two consecutive 260+ games before this, so it was an excellent practice session.

Now... if I can just remember to put that damn tape at the back of the thumbhole at the first sign of trouble instead of waiting until after I''ve cost my team and/or myself multiple frames or game of pins, I should be doing better.

Oh... by the way... although the hook portion of the velcro sounds like it would tear up the fingers, I HAVE been putting a one small piece of white tape in the front of each finger hole for about a year now, for traction. Doesn''t affect the feel as far as the size of the hole, but avoids the sensation that the ball is about to slip off my fingers before I''m ready to release it.

Thanks again to everyone for their suggestions, and even knowing that it''s not that uncommon to have that slipping sensation or to put textured tape (or the felt part of velcro pairs) at the back of the thumbhole to combat it, is reassuring.

Edited on 6/3/2010 11:05 PM

Hi Yanker,

Yes, I do know that tape at the front of the hole is changing (lengthening) the span. This is one reason I try to limit the number of pieces to 2 or 3.

Have had balls on occasion where I needed 5-8 pieces, and that was definitely throwing things off.  Fortunately I had those thumb holes plugged and redrilled smaller (and more accurate).

I've also noticed if I put too many pieces in the front, that it becomes difficult to turn the ball or put much rotation on it. A bad thing for someone like myself who is already rev challenged.

In this post I was talking mainly about 1 piece at the back versus zero. But one experiment I'm going to try in the future will be to add more tape at the back vs the front and see how that goes (i.e....1 in front, 2 in back vs current 2 in front and 1 in back).

Thanks.