https://www.dropbox.com/s/lmy2xnldsl5ha0z/Motiv%20Jackal%20Fair%20Exchange%20Program.pdf?dl=0


uggg this has me a bit frustrated

I don't think I need a heavy oil ball during the summer, so do I wait for the LE ball, or get something I can use during the summer?

what if the LE is junk?

As a Jackal original owner, I'm hoping the LE will be a hybrid that will work well at  4000 grit.  My other option is to wait and keep the Jackal.

MOTIV/Staffer Question:  If we wait past the May deadline for replacement hoping the Jackal gets reinstated, but it doesn't, will there be another replacement program?  I am guessing that they would offer this, maybe they will have a new non-LE ball by then for the top of the lineup that fills the Jackal spot on the ball guide?  But how long before this would happen?

Should I take the LE and hope it matches the Jackal with a surface adjustment, or wait hoping the Jackal stays legal or get a chance at an even better replacement?

Any thoughts?

Todvan

I would not wait too long. If the deadline is approaching and nothing has been announced on the Jackals either being recertified or if they will 100% not be certified, I would move forward with submitting an exchange request. Worst possible situation would be for you to hold onto the ball, the redemption period ends and is not extended, the Jackals not get recertified, and you never submitted a request because you were holding out hope. You would then be stuck with a ball you cannot use in USBC competition.

I also think Motiv will know by May if the Jackals will be allowed or not. We shall see.

Motiv isn't asking a shop to drill every ball in their inventory for $20 dollars. Most shops have likely sold 2-20 of these balls, a small number compared to how many balls a shop sells as a whole. Motiv is providing a slug and grips, the shop just has to give a bit of their time to drill the ball and keep a customer happy. My PSO is pretty busy but there's time when nothing is going on. I'm sure the 5-10 minutes to drill out the usbc logo and take a couple pictures of all the balls at once isn't going to kill the shop. If you're concerned with your shop's bottom line tell them what you want and have them drill it when they aren't busy, I rarely am at the shop when my stuff is actually drilled.
It's obviously not an ideal situation but shit happens. There's likely a lot of people who play in unsanctioned leagues and don't play tournaments who are going to simply take the opportunity to replace a ball with a bunch of games on it with something new.

Apparently the last two posters have never been self employed, therefore they have no clue what it takes to run a successful business

I didn't say there's not a cost and that's it's a perfect solution, but having been involved in business my entire life there's one key and that's making sure the customer is happy. I would rather give up a few dollars especially when it is my time not material costs then I would about further annoying a customer.

If a shop is going to go under because they have to drill a handful of balls for less money then they need to look beyond Motiv for why their business isn't successful.

Keeping the customer happy because of a fault the PSO did not commit?

How about Motiv keeps the customer happy that THEY caused an issue with. It wasn't the PSO who manufactured the ball out of USBC specs. It wasn't the PSO that had the ball uncertified. It wasn't the PSO that had to offer replacement balls. So where in that equation does it equal the PSO is required to do something because he/she screwed up? NOWHERE.

15 minutes to drill a ball huh? You need to go to a different pro shop. Before a new ball is drilled, the PSO should look at your current bowling balls to ensure your PAP has not changed, which might require you to go out and throw a few on the lanes. Let's make sure your grip is still good because the human hand is not static. As we grow older, we normally become less flexible and we may need an adjustment in span length and/or pitches. Did you lose or gain some weight since the last ball we drilled? You might need different sized holes or grip sizes to account for the change. The PSO then maps out the ball based upon the specs and the reaction you want. Probably should also weigh the ball to make sure the after drilled ball conforms with USBC specs. Need that bevel hit a little because the cut is too sharp, yep, the PSO does that after drilling as well.

Bottom line...if you want someone to spend 15 minutes punching 3 random holes in your ball, no wonder everyone thinks it is ok to either give away free drilling or reduced drilling.

If you want someone to know your game and the person to take time making sure that this next ball, that for some people might be the only ball bought new this season, is the right ball with the right fit, then find a qualified PSO that has an hour or more of time.

As for profit...there is overhead with the bowling alley...have employees? need to probably pay them a wage. Every pro shop I have ever went to, if you bought a ball from the PSO, future surface changes, quick cleaning on the spinner, coming out to watch you bowl with the new ball, and countless other items is included in that "profit". If being a PSO was so profitable, the industry would not be losing PSOs at an alarming rate.

More often today, the PSO is just a guy that can drill 3 holes in a ball, not a trained professional because everyone thinks the PSO should be able to live off of $20 a ball and feed his/her family and pay his/her bills.

Spm,

I do NOT think a manufacturer should pay for a cracked ball, because we do no tknow why the crack occurred and who is responsible. Was it dull drill bits in the pro shop causing excess heat, how about the pro shop operator drilling too fast, was the fingers or another hole drilled too close to the pin? Was it a manufacturing error or issue that caused the ball to crack, maybe a hole got caught on a screw in the pit at the bowling alley...

Many reasons I have seen a ball crack from. We cannot pinpoint the issue as to why the cracking occurred.

However, every other ball of the same model is still USBC certified and can be used in any competition.

The Jackals had a manufacturing issue occur at the factory that caused the entire model to lose certification. Nobody's error other than Motiv. Motiv sold a ball that we thought was sanctioned for use in competition, but in reality, the ball was out of spec.

Large difference to me.

Fair enough.  Perhaps the reason for cracked balls is more of an unknown.  But of all the causes you posed, only one was manufacturer's fault.  In my opinion, I think 99% of cracked balls are not the fault of the manufacturer.  Yet they are willing to replace the ball anyway.  How many times have manufacturers replaced balls with finger holes close to the pin?  How many times have manufacturers replaced balls that were left in extreme temperatures?  Oh, but the bowler didn't do anything wrong.

Also, do you think manufacturer should replace a ball beyond the warranty?  Motiv is doing that.

This is a special case where the fault is 100% on Motiv.  I personally don't think it was intentional.  I could see issues with core molds or density differences being the issue.  I could also see application of the testing procedures as an issue also. 

So should Motiv do more than just hand out new balls?  Yes, I agree and they are doing that.  Should Motiv refund all aspects of ball ownership?  No, I don't think they should be required.  My opinion.  Plus, if a shop knows Motiv is covering the bill, how many less than honest shops are going to up the price a bit?  Just a thought.

As for profit...there is overhead with the bowling alley...have employees? need to probably pay them a wage. Every pro shop I have ever went to, if you bought a ball from the PSO, future surface changes, quick cleaning on the spinner, coming out to watch you bowl with the new ball, and countless other items is included in that "profit". If being a PSO was so profitable, the industry would not be losing PSOs at an alarming rate.

You keep the customer happy no matter what. If it's a very small cost to make sure they're happy you do it. You're acting as if this is make or break for most shops. The shop I go to drills 30+ balls a week which is impressive as he's not even in a bowling centre. He drills a lot of heavy oil balls and I'd be willing to bet he's drilled around 10 of these balls.
 If they normally charge $50 to drill including grips and slugs and you're getting a ball which you all value at about $20 a person they are losing less than $30 of their time. If you estimate the grips and slugs at $5 dollars the shop brings in $25 less dollars. So they make $250 less on redrilling these 10 new balls but the customers are happy and I doubt the shop is losing money as they are likely covering the costs associated with drilling the balls. When it comes to the overhead issue you fail to consider whether these 10 balls would have been drilled at all, if the people would have kept using the jackals and not bought new balls then the fixed costs of the shop don't change nor does profitability. Many of these shops have down time so it's unlikely they are giving up other profitable work to redrill these balls. Where a shop would have lost out is if these 10 people were going to buy new balls at full pop and instead are getting a free replacement that the shop has to drill for less.