Ok, last shot publishing a written review here, since it looks like no one is reading them anymore lol
We tried the new Iron Forge on our house shot pattern (Kegel Main Street, 41’) and this ball definitely surprised me.
The Iron Forge is an easy ball to read. As most pearlized balls, is very clean through the front part of the lane, but what makes the Iron Forge different is how strong reads the mid part of the lane. The Detonator core plays a huge role on this.
The Iron Forge never missed the breakpoint or went too long and somehow, it still saved tons of energy to make a strong move down the lane.
I started laying the ball around 13 with 6 as my breakpoint and the ball had a great reaction. The only thing I noticed is that at least for me, with my low/medium rev rate, misses inside resulted in the ball going high. The ball stores so much energy so when it hits friction, it makes a hard right turn. When I missed outside, the ball offered me great recovery down the lane and I was still able to hit the pocket nicely.
I started moving right with both my feet and my eyes and the Iron Forge surprisingly let me open up the lane and see enough recovery. I was able to move up to the third arrow, having 8 at my breakpoint and the Iron Forge always recovered with a strong backend motion.
Overall this ball allowed me to play from multiple angles, it is definitely a versatile piece.
This ball definitely fills a hole in the Motiv lineup. This is the first pearl in the Forge series and it fits perfectly into the current lineup. The Iron Forge offers a shape that Motiv didn’t have before. It is very clean through the fronts, but combines a strong midlane read with a strong and predictable backend motion.
It is a great complement to the Ripcord Velocity and strong solid balls like the Forge Flare and the Jackal Ghost. When these balls start to hook too early, the Iron Forge will be a great option to go to on most medium and heavy oil patterns.
On a house shot, this ball can be easily used both on fresh and on broken down conditions. On sport shot patterns, the Iron Forge will be a great option once there are some friction and you have to open up the lane.
Overall, The Iron Forge is a versatile piece that allows to play from different angles and on different conditions. This ball is the most angular piece in the Forge series and it will definitely fit into a lot of bowling styles.
Thank you for watching!
