INDEX

Equipment Equipment Q&A  [1-20]   [21-40]  [41-60]  [61-80]  [81-100]  [101-120]   [121-140]  [141-160]  [161-180   [181-200]  [201-220]  [221-240]  [241-260]  [281-300]  [301-320]  [321-340]  [341-360]  [301-320]  [321-340]  [341-360]  [361-380]   [381-400]  [401-420]  [421-440] Rodolfo November 7, 2004 Rio Rico AZ Hi walter im a fan of your bowling style but i want to know whats the drilling layout do you like more or what is the one did you use more Hi Rodolfo, I tend to use drillings that have the pin at 1 to 2 o'clock. Michael November 4, 2004 Austin TX Hi Walter Ray, my name is Mike. My question is about how long do you have to use a ball before it is "all rolled out". Both my Track balls seem to not hook as much and my mechanics are all still the same. Thanks. Hi Mike, Reactive balls tend to absorb the oil from the lane into their surface, so after awhile the balls don't hook quite as much. There are a couple of different ways to get the ball back to close to its original condition. Take your ball to your local pro shop operator and ask them about it. Randy November 2, 2004 Sabina OH I can't wait to make the drive to watch you bowl in the Uniroyal Tire Classic. I do have one question. Have you signed with a ball company this year? Clearly the companies do not rely on pro endorsments like they used to. In my mind this should hold true for about the bottom 80% of the pro bowlers ,maybe. I can't understand why they have not been beating down your door. After all you are not only the best bowler of all time, you are also one of the most fan friendly pro's out there. Looking forward to watching the master bowl in person Hi Randy, Thanks for the compliments. For some reason the ball companies aren't beating down my door for endorsement contracts. I guess if I was willing to sign for less money I could get a contract, but as of right now I am not. Harry October 31, 2004 Du Bois PA Walter Ray, When you were with Faball a few years back, what was you favorite ball from them that you had the most sucess with? I use Hammers exclusively, some newer ones, but mostly the older stuff and I think they made some of the best balls. Thanks, Harry Hi Harry, I liked the 2001, the 4D and Spike. Ryan October 18, 2004 Walla Walla WA I have a new columbia 300 yellow dot known as a bleeder ball, serial # 3x45024 brand new never been drilled. My question to you is , would you be able to tell me how much the ball would be worth? Hi Ryan, The ball is only valuable to a bowling ball collector. I really couldn't say what the monetary value is, maybe $100 except to a collector. If you really want you can use one of the auction places on line to sell it. Jeremy October 13, 2004 Alto MI Hi Walter Ray, Just have a question about pin placement on heavy oil conditions. I perfer to play the lanes outside, but always trouble encountering heavy oil patterns. My favorite ball is drilled with the pin just of the middle finger. This driling pattern allows me to really throw the ball hard on medium-dry pattern without worrying to much about 10 pins. Would a drilling a highly aggressive ball with the pin over the middle finger work just well on heavy oil? Dulling the surface? Any suggestions would be very helpful. Thanks Jeremy Pettenger Hi Jeremy, I can't say if a different drilling would be better for you or not on oily lanes. Sometimes, the reason bowlers have trouble on oily lanes is because there isn't the normal 'dry' area to on the outside, or it isn't as pronounced. The lanes might not be as easy. It is possible that you might need to make better shots to score well on oily lanes. Jake October 8, 2004 Vernon NJ Hi, Walter Ray and Paige! My name is Jake, and i bowl in a YABA sanctioned league in Northern NJ every saturday morning. I am 16 years old, and i carry a 170 average. My high game is a 245. i am also left-handed (the ONLY left handed bowler in the league) very strange! I throw a 13lb Ebonite Tornado Warning sanded (low-end reactive ball, 3 piece core, hits like a bomb, drilled for early roll). I have about 120 games on it. i have cleaned w/ simple green and used the water submersion method to extract interior oil from the ball with great success. ive had it since january. i dont think you have ever thrown this ball. by the way, if you must know, i bowl on a flat oil pattern oiled to 38 buffed out to 45 feet ( very challenging), but i am consistent. i play straight up the 10 board. I am thinking of buying a new ball, preferably a Columbia Flipside Fear( modified 3 piece core with offset puck below center for more track flare) drilled leverage for skid/snap. the only difference: 12 pounds, not 13. 13 is a little too heavy for me. i weigh 120 pounds. my concern is this: because im going from 13 down to 12, i would like to hear your opinion on what will happen, if anything, to the carrying power by going down a pound in weight. Thank you very much! I wish you the best of luck in the 2004-2005 PBA Tour. I am looking forward to watching you on TV at the end of the month! Your fellow fan, Jake! Hi Jake, Dropping a pound from 13 to 12 might hurt your carry, but that is a guess. But if you are more accurate, then your scores shouldn't suffer but might get better. If you feel the 13 # ball is too heavy then you should go to the lighter ball. Good luck. JP October 8, 2004 Honolulu HI Hi Walter Ray, I am a 11 yr old righty.I also throw wall shots.What balls by Faball do you recommend. See you in the Hawaii Regional(Schofield Bowl) Hi JP, I don't have any balls from Faball to recommend since they are no longer in business. I am sorry, but I am not planning to bowl in the regional in Hawaii. Best wishes. George September 13, 2004 Hi there i was just looking on the web for bowling stuff and came across your site. i thought to sent you a message. i have a throttle-r and it rolls fine on dry lanes, but when im in a compitition and the lanes are very, very wet my ball doesnt roll the way i woould like like it to. every body says that i should do well on wet lanes, even my couch. i cant get it to turn in i use the same line. I stand on 20 - 25 board and roll over 15 bourd (third arrow). it comes up short and hits 3 or 6 pin.do i need to get a new ball or my ball re-drilled so that i have more side weight and stuff.if i need to get a new ball what ball would i get? I've tried moving boards but i have to work too hard to get the ball to turn.i use a wrist band called gladiator, which allows you to move your wrist in a cupped persition or lets you flaten your wrist. having it cupped all the way still dosent help. kind regurads george Hi George, When lanes have a lot of oil, it is often necessary to move your feet more right to get the ball up to the pocket. Imagine that you were lining up to pick up the 2 pin or even 4 pin if the lanes are that tight. I am not overly fond of bowling on really slick lanes either, but if I pay attention I can bowl really well on those conditions also. Ryan September 7, 2004 Rome NY dear,walter ray my ball i have sometimes don't fit my tumb and i can't bowl that great what should i do? Hi Ryan, You should see your local pro shop operator to help you get your ball to fit properly. They should also be able to give you lessons to help your game along. Dan August 25, 2004 New York NY Hi Walter Ray... I hope you and Paige and Billie Sue are doing well. I was wondering, do you know the lightest weight ball used by a pro bowler (for strikes)? Do you have any thoughts on the lightest weight that would carry sufficiently (at the pro level)? I always watch you guys bowl and wonder about the weights... Thanks! ~dan Hi Dan, There have been touring pros that used 14 pound balls. I think that over 50% use 15. However the Taiwanese bowlers (non PBA members) who use the helicopter release use around 11 and from what I understand are very good bowlers using deflection to their advantage. Richard August 23, 2004 Cleveland OH Dear Walter Ray, I am wrtiting to you because I have a question that you might be able to answer. My situation is that i would like to get my columbia pulse redrilled again somewhat llike might my brunswick zone. My question is would i go to a pro operator?; secondly, should he watch me throw my zone to see how he would have to drill the pulse? The reason why I asked that question is becuase I'm looking for a ball that would work on the lanes when they start to break down and cause me to play the 3 arrow around 25 or deeper on the approach. Please keep in mind that like yourself I'm a right-handed bowler with medium revolutions but I can hook the ball as much as needed or I can go directly down 10 with very little hook on the backends. Thanks for your time and consideration of reading my e-mail. I look forward to your response. Sincerely Yours, Richard Black, Jr. P.S. Keep up the good work and look forward to seeing you win the pba Player of the Year award this year. Hi Richard, I would recommend having your pro shop operator watch you bowl and telling them what you would like your new ball to do. Rodolfo July 18, 2004 Rio Rico AZ Excuse me walter please answer this cuestion how can i put more hook in a ball i bought one ball very agressive but it doesnt work for me you think if in the pro shop put a weight hole in my ball can be work better ? Hi Rodolfo, Buying a ball that is very aggressive will only help somebody hook the ball so much. If the ball doesn't hook as much as you would like, then you would need to learn how to hook the ball more. This takes a lot of work. Some players have even gone to throwing the ball without putting their thumb in the ball. Normally to get more hook, you would need to cup your wrist more and learn how to put more side spin on the ball. The problem is that doing something new will be more difficult to control. Good luck. Donnie July 6, 2004 New Albany IN Mr. Walter Ray, Just wanted to start out and say that you have been my favorite since i started watching bowling. now to the question I was wondering what is the drilling is the "hottest" on tour? and would it be good for a pearl ball? and good luck to you in this up comeing season. Hi Donnie, I don't really pay attention to how other guys are drilling their equipment. You need to ask somebody who works for a ball company or drills balls for the PBA. My guess is that it depends on the bowler and what it is they are trying to do with that particular ball. It would also depend on what lane condition you are bowling on and how you are trying to play those lanes as to the best drilling for you. I would ask your local pro shop operator. Christopher June 29, 2004 Modesto CA Dear Mr. Walter Ray, I have written to you before about what type of equipment I should get and then again about my success with my new equipment. After my great success with the new equipment, my ball started to dull out and hook too much. To solve this problem I shined it with high gloss ball polisher so it would hook like normal. Now that I have it I wanted to ask you what kinds of accessories you use for your bowling game. Like easy slide, tape inserter tool, ect. I have a Brunswick Inferno and I don't slide too much, I get a reasonable amout of revs, and I throw it about 17-18 mph. What kinds of sugestions do you have about accessories I will need for my game. Thanks for your time. I hope your vacations is going well and I hope you continue to succeed in your career. Christopher Davidson Hi Christopher, I have many accessories for bowling. Most of them I hardly ever use. I think that it is a good idea to have bowling tape for use in your thumb holes. I use a little pen knife to put tape in and take it out. It is much easier to add a piece of tape or take it out as opposed to going to the pro shop to get your ball refitted every time your thumb changes size. I don't use easy slide or baby powder. I have Dexter shoes which have interchangeable soles and heels to create different slides for different approaches. Jason June 13, 2004 Hartselle AL I am a new upcoming pba member and was wanting some advice on bowling balls. I am on a tight budget and want to simplify my approach to the game. Can you recommend three or four types of balls or surfaces or reaction abilities that might be good for most conditions as far as options? I noticed that most pros move inside alot, especially on the long oil pattern. I don't put but medium revolutions on the ball so I have a hard time swinging out and in on long oil patterns. Thanks, Jason Hi Jason, I don't think that it is necessary for a pro to get a brand new ball every month or so. Taking care of the surfaces of your favorite bowling balls should keep your game competitive. You should want something polished (maybe reactive) and something dull (particle) and a ball or two that is in between with maybe a different drilling. Most of the pros move left on the longer oil pattern since there isn't much hook outside, but there is usually oil left of where most of bowlers have been throwing their ball. It is a good thing to practice on so that when you see that type of condition you will be more comfortable with it. David June 12, 2004 Lansing IL I now realize just how good you are after bowling on a major tournament oil pattern, and after seeing what your ringer percentage is! Some of the oil patterns don't seem very difficult but i'm having trouble with the more oily ones. I've developed a heavy roll from years of practicing on brokendown lanes. Mabey I might do better if I use the first arrow rather than the second to third area What I wanted to ask you is do you think its a good idea to practice getting side revs with a plastic ball or should should I try to learn to control my strike ball from deep angles? I have a low rev rate but good control and if I can learn to play the lanes a little better I would like to bowl some regional events if I feel I can win some money. Thanks for the help! David Hi David, I would recommend practicing a deep inside line, but also an outside line at other times. Learning how to rotate the ball more would also be a good thing. The more different lines and releases that become comfortable to you, the better off you are going to be. Versatility is very important! Good luck. Vince June 10, 2004 Wooster OH WRW, I had a rough season this past year after having the best ever the year before that. We tried changing my span, dropping my ring finger, shortening overall span, pitches in all holes, but nothing ever felt good during the year, lost my focus and confidence. Now just recently I have dropped to 15lb balls and went back to my slightly longer span and old pitches, and it feels pretty good over the last week. I know it is different for everyone, but I know alot of bowlers no days are going to a shorter span. Has yours changed in the last couple of years or has it remained relatively the same? It looks like you use a slight dropped ring finger, is that true? Do you have a recommendation on grip? Maybe with my style, the shorter grip will just not work? Sometimes I wonder that instead of trying to work through my slump, I jumped to conclusions and started changing everything and now have created more bad habits. Any recommedations on going through a slump? Thanks a bunch! Vince Hi Vince, I usually practice more when I am in a slump. But if you have developed bad habits, you need to get rid of them before you can improve. I don't know if your span would be the cause of your problem, but it could be. I haven't really changed my span over the years and do have a slightly dropped ring finger. Hang in there and good luck. Lyle June 4, 2004 Clermont FL Hello, what pitches do you use in your thumb hole. Thanks Lyle Hi Lyle, My thumb hole has 3/16 right with no forward, but there is probably a slightly different pitch on the thumb hole in the grip itself as I use a customized thumb grip which has a slightly different pitch. Dave May 30, 2004 Grandville MI You've said you like to setup your pin in the 1 or 2 o'clock position. I've talked it over with others and am still confused. Some tell me that's in relationship to the ring finger..others tell me to the cg ( pin in position). Do any of them know? Hi Dave, The clock on a bowling ball usually has the thumb at the bottom or 6 o'clock position with the fingers at the top or 12 o'clock. The pin position is usually referenced to the fingers and thumb. But I am not a ball driller and could have been doing it wrong. : ) Equipment Q&A  [1-20]   [21-40]  [41-60]  [61-80]  [81-100]   [101-120]  [121-140]  [141-160]  [161-180  [181-200]  [201-220]  [221-240]  [241-260]  [281-300]  [301-320]  [321-340]  [341-360]  [361-380]   [381-400]  [401-420]  [421-440]