Why Would You Want to Buy a Used Bowling Ball?
There are really a few reasons that I would consider buying a used bowling ball, and you may want to think about the same.
There have been a few times when a completely new class of bowling balls has been introduced, for example when "urethane cover stocks" first hit the market, and again when "reactive Resin cover stocks" arrived.
A lot of new balls all at once, and of course the marketing hype, each company claiming that their ball will almost bowl for you.
And each company has their tier one bowling balls, and then a second, less expensive tier, so how do you decide which one you want to try? Is a second tier ball as good as a tier one? When the "urethanes" came on the scene about 1982-1983, I bought a new first tier ball, and it worked okay, however I wanted more, a friend had a Columbia Torq that he did not like, he only had a few games on it, and it had a very slight blemish.
This was a $180 ball, he sold it to me for $30, I had it plugged and redrilled to my specs for another $20, and I used that ball for about 2 years as my go to ball and averaged 210-220 with it.
A few years later I started having trouble with my right shoulder after bowling and decided to investigate going to a lighter 15# ball.
This would be a major expense, as I would need to buy 3-4 new balls to have a complete arsenal.
The bowling pro who drills my bowling balls had a second tier Storm ball that he plugged and redrilled for me to try out, total cost for this $100 ball was $20.
What I found was, not only did I not lose any hitting power with the lighter ball, but this second tier ball was as good as the top tier ball I also bought! I have been in the habit of trying a new ball every 2-3 years, on the theory that the new ones are really better, and that "reactive resin covers" do lose a little punch after 300-400 games.
Last year I picked out the ball I thought I wanted and went to see my bowling pro, he did not have the ball I wanted in stock as a new ball, however this gentleman is a touring regional professional, he had tried this same ball for himself, he was not real happy with it, he only had 6 games on it, he is left handed, I am right handed, so he plugged and redrilled it for me, this is a $200 ball, total cost $65, averaging right around 200 with this ball.
Believe me, I have nothing against new bowling balls, and have still bought an average of 2 a year.
But the used ones that I have tried have worked very well, and with what they cost today, this is one way to save money, when making a change.
Check around your league or your bowling center pro shop, there may just be a diamond in the rough waiting to be found.
There have been a few times when a completely new class of bowling balls has been introduced, for example when "urethane cover stocks" first hit the market, and again when "reactive Resin cover stocks" arrived.
A lot of new balls all at once, and of course the marketing hype, each company claiming that their ball will almost bowl for you.
And each company has their tier one bowling balls, and then a second, less expensive tier, so how do you decide which one you want to try? Is a second tier ball as good as a tier one? When the "urethanes" came on the scene about 1982-1983, I bought a new first tier ball, and it worked okay, however I wanted more, a friend had a Columbia Torq that he did not like, he only had a few games on it, and it had a very slight blemish.
This was a $180 ball, he sold it to me for $30, I had it plugged and redrilled to my specs for another $20, and I used that ball for about 2 years as my go to ball and averaged 210-220 with it.
A few years later I started having trouble with my right shoulder after bowling and decided to investigate going to a lighter 15# ball.
This would be a major expense, as I would need to buy 3-4 new balls to have a complete arsenal.
The bowling pro who drills my bowling balls had a second tier Storm ball that he plugged and redrilled for me to try out, total cost for this $100 ball was $20.
What I found was, not only did I not lose any hitting power with the lighter ball, but this second tier ball was as good as the top tier ball I also bought! I have been in the habit of trying a new ball every 2-3 years, on the theory that the new ones are really better, and that "reactive resin covers" do lose a little punch after 300-400 games.
Last year I picked out the ball I thought I wanted and went to see my bowling pro, he did not have the ball I wanted in stock as a new ball, however this gentleman is a touring regional professional, he had tried this same ball for himself, he was not real happy with it, he only had 6 games on it, he is left handed, I am right handed, so he plugged and redrilled it for me, this is a $200 ball, total cost $65, averaging right around 200 with this ball.
Believe me, I have nothing against new bowling balls, and have still bought an average of 2 a year.
But the used ones that I have tried have worked very well, and with what they cost today, this is one way to save money, when making a change.
Check around your league or your bowling center pro shop, there may just be a diamond in the rough waiting to be found.
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