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With over
80 performance releases in 2000, the rating numbers have had some
revisions-especially hook numbers to allow for higher hooking releases which may
come in 2001. All of the ratings are related within a manufacturers line based
on what we observed when the balls were tested. No advertising hype-just
performance on a variety of conditions -- Compiled by Mike Riggins
Ball
& Price
Cover Type
Box Lane Condition
Coverstock Aggressiveness
Coverstock Versatility
Core Design
Core Versatility
Overall Hook
The Skinny
KEY
---------------------------
Price:
1. $149 or less; 2. $150 to 199; 3. $200 to 239; 4. $240 and up;
Cover
Type: P-Plastic; PT-Particle Technology; R-Reactive Resin; U-Urethane.
Box
condition: Ideal lanes for “out of box” ball.
Coverstock
Versatility: the ease with which a bowler can alter the surface via sanding
and/or polishing.
Core
Versatility: The ball’s inherent drilling flexibility; re: bowler styles &
lane conditions.
Overall
Hook: A rating which combines the amount of flare and hook potential.
All
numerical ratings range from 1-100.
=====================================================
AMF
Angle
Evolution Reactive
(4)
R
Medium
80
78
2C
80
80
Clean up front; sharp hook; excellent carry
Angle
Evolution (Tour) (4) PT
Heavy
84
78
2C
75
84
Very aggressive ball; may have trouble finding enough oil
Angle
Evolution
(3)
PT
Heavy
82
80
2C
80
82
Versatile Core; Strong ball on oil
Night
Hawk Revenge
(3)
PT
Med.-Heavy 78
75
2C
75
79
Versatile ball; reads lanes nicely
Hawk
(2)
R
Medium 75
80
2C
78
75
Mid-lane roll and snap
TiHawk
(2)
R
Med.-Heavy 76
80
2C
75
76
Strong for lots of styles and big range of patterns
AZO
Little
Boy
(3)
R
Med.-Heavy 78
76
2
78
79
Very clean up front; sharp hook, hard hit
Fatman
(2)
PT
Medium 79
79
2C
78
83
Versatile cover with BIG smooth hook
Armageddon
Pearl (1) R
Med.-Light 65
70
2C
70
75
Clean up front - strong but smooth on the dry
BRUNSWICK
Zone
X Red Pin
(3) R
Light
68
70
2C
73
70
Great light oil ball for hi rev player
Zone
X Green Pin (3) R
Med.-Light 68
70
2C
76
73
Great lt. oil ball for average rev player
Command
Zone
(2) R
Meduim
65
75
2C
83
77
Skid/snap reactive has reaction like a Danger Zone
Command
Zone Arc (2) R
Meduim
65
78
2C
78
75
Great control resin for strong player; skid/arc
Danger
Zone HPC (2) PT
Med.-Heavy 78
80
2C
82
81
Length without a lot of effort; smooth hook
DZ
Millenium
(2)
R
Medium
73
80
2C
70
70
Danger Zone skid/snap with new moniker
DZ
Pro HP Distance
(2)
PT
Meduim
78
80
2C
83
79
Most lenghty and sharpest back end of Zone Pro line
DZ
Pro HP Hook
(2) PT
Med.-Heavy 80
80
2C
85
84
Very aggressive Zone Pro, needs lots of head oil
DZ
Red Alert
(2)
R
Med.-Heavy 73
80
2C
70
70
Mid-lane roll with strong hooking back end
Demolition
Zone
(2) R
Medium
73
77
2C
75
77
Back end like Danger Zone; pushes fronts easier
Monster
(2)
PT
Heavy 80
80
2C
83
82
Moster-hooking ball
Monster
Reactive
(2)
R
Med.-Light 70
70
2C
83
75
Very clean, economy ball with skid snap
Riot
Zone
(2)
PT
Meduim 76
70
2C
80
80
Skid/snap ProActive; use Trizact to modify shell
Attack
Zone Urethane
(1)
U
Med.-Light 35
50
3
40
35
Smooth arcing Zone; good 1st urethane
Attack
Zone Reactive
(1)
R
Med.-Light 50
60
3
40
50
Skid/snap reactive Zone; economy price
Attack
Zone MR
(1) R
Med.-Light 50
60
3C
55
53
Higher differential, turns the corner sharper on backend
Battle
Zone Bullet (1) R
Meduim
60
75
2C
60
62
Skid-hook econo resin; good for revs
Battle
Zone Cannon (1)
R
Med.-Light 65
70
2C
65
73
Nice skid/snap econo light oil ball.
Battle
Zone Missle (1) R
Med.-Light 65
75
2C
70
67
Econo 2-piece with arcing/hook
Mike
Aulby MVP (1) R
Medium
73
80
2C
70
65
Danger Zone reborn; skid/flip
Parker
Bohn III MVP (1) R
Med.-Light 70
80
2C
70
60
Great skid-hook ball; comes alive on lighter oil
COLUMBIA
Cuda
2000
(3)
R
Medium 74
76
2C
75
77
Great skid; sharp backend reaction
Cuda/C
2000
(3)
R
Med.-Light 74
76
2C
77
77
Strong on med. Oils-will work for lots of styles
Rock
(3)
PT
Heavy 82
80
2C
75
83
Big hooking heavy oil ball
Rock
Pearl
(3)
PT
Medium 79
76
2C
75
81
Covers broad range of conditions-too much for light oil
Rock
Star
(3)
PT
Medium 80
80
2C
76
81
Heavy roll; plenty of hook; reads back end smoothly
Messenger
TEC
(2) PT
Med.-Heavy 82
80
2C
75
79
Big hooking mid-price particle ball
Messenger
Titanium
(2)
R
Medium
74
75
2C
73
72
Tweener in Messengers; plays more conditions
Messenger
Titanium Pearl
(2)
R
Med.-Light 74
70
2C
73
73
Cleaner up front and sharper back end than Ti Messenger
Beast
w/Mica
(1)
R
Med.-Light 70
80
2C
55
55
Smooth hooking entry into 2-pice resin; great control
Messenger
(1)
R
Med.-Heavy 75
80
2C
75
70 Strong
hook out of the box in mid-price
Messenger
Pearl (1) R
Med.-Light 73
70
2C
75
65
Super priced ball; for length smooth hook on light oil
Pearl
Beast w/Mica (1) R
Light
68
69
2
55
58
Nice entry-level reactive; control for power styles
Scout/R
(1)
R
Med.-Light 73
70
3C
45
55
Strong 3-piece entry type ball--skid hook
DYNO-THANE
Elixir
(3)
PT
Med.-Heavy 80
78
2C
78
82
Big hooking versatile particle D/T ball
Rev-X
Pearl
(3)
R
Med.-Heavy 77
77
2C
77
75
Quick revving - big hooking resin ball
Crisis
(2)
R
Med.-Light 75
75
2C
75
78
Playable length with readable hook
EBONITE
Matrix TPS
(3)
PT
Heavy 80
85
2C
80
80
An Ebonite “active” with length and strong hook
Matrix TPS
II
(3) PT
Heavy
79
83
2C
80
81
More length and sharper hook that Purple TPS
Matrix TPS
III
(3) PT
Heavy
81
83
2C
80
84
Strong hook on oil; cover tunes easily
Matrix
Trimax
(3)
R
Medium
79
80
2C
80
77
Strong reactive, yet very playable
Matrix
Trimax II
(3)
R
Medium
78
80
2C
80
78
Cleaner & sharper than orignal Trimax
Matrix
Trimax III
(3)
R
Medium
79
80
2C
80
80
Very strong on med.-light patterns
Vortex I
(2)
R
Med.-Light 78
80
2C
78
75
Skid/snap-great for lighter oil patterns
Vortex II
(2)
R
Med.-Heavy 79
82
2C
78
77
Reactive with heavy roll and strong hook
Vortex III
(2)
R
Heavy 81
85
2C
78
79
Econo Particle with mid-lane roll and big continued hook
Pantera
(1)
R
Med.-Heavy 76
80
2C
65
68
Early roll and big hook
Stinger
Two-Piece (1) R
Med.-Light 75
75
2C
70
65
Long and quick move for lighter patterns
Stinger
Navy Shiny (1) R
Light
75
80
2C
55
70
Great light oil skid-snap ball
Tiger
(1)
R
Medium 76
78
2C
65
68
Mid-lane roll and strong arcing hook
Wildcat
Blue
(1) R
Medium
76
80
2C
75
74
Heavy roll with a strong snap/hook
FABALL
3D Violet
High Rev (2) R
Medium
78
80
2C
75
74
The original still does a great job
3D Violet
Pearl
(2)
R
Med.-Light 78
78
2C
75
73
Cleaner up front and sharper hook than Violet 3-D
4D
Reactive
(2)
R
Medium 80
80
2C
80
77
Almost makes 3-D offset look like a spare ball; Big move
4D-HPT
(2)
PT
Heavy 82
80
2C
80
83
Heavy rolling/hooking Hammer for oily conditions
4D-HPT
Tour
(2)
PT
Heavy 82
78
2C
80
79
More length than HPT with strong hook
Reaper
(2)
R
Med.-Light 72
75
2C
70
72
H ammer for length and smooth power
Reaper 2
(2)
R
Med.-Light 72
75
2C
74
75
Great length on light patterns; sharp hook
Blue
Hammer
(1)
U
Heavy 63
50
2
50
61
Most urethane hook on oil; bear to polish
Burgundy
Hammer
(1)
U
Heavy
60
50
2
50
60
Clears heads better than Blue Hooker
Claw
Teal/Blue Pearl (1)
R
Med.-Light 70
60
3
40
55
Good first ball for reactive
ClawPearl
(1)
U
Light 45
40
3
40
40
Good for light oil and control
Claw
Purple Sand (1) U
Medium
63
50
3
40
45
Solid entry-level urethane
Nail Blue
Sand
(1) R
Medium
75
70
2
55
60
Great entry-level reactive
Nail
Purple Pearl (1) R
Med.-Light 70
65
2
55
58
Skid/arcing hook
Nasty Nail
Solid
(1)
R
Med.-Light 76
80
2C
65
65
Strong economy 2-piece Reactive; versatile ball
Nasty Nail
Pearl
(1)
R
Med.-Light 76
70
2C
65
65
Nice introductory 2-piece reactive or for use on light oil
Spike
(1)
R
Med-Light. 75
70
2C
78
75
Go long 2-piece with strong snap
Spike HPT
(1)
PT
Heavy 81
80
2
78
75
Econo particle Hammer; Big hooking ball
LANE #1
Buzz
Saw/C2
(4)
R
Med.-Heavy 70
75
2C
75
78
Quick revving and big hooking, yet smooth
BuzzSaw C2
Pearl (4) R
Med.-Light 65
70
2C
80
75
Longer and straighter than C2; great for drier heads
BuzzSaw/C
Carbide (4) PT
Med.-Heavy 75
81
2C
80
83
Big smooth hook; conves a lot of conditions
BuzzSaw/C
Carbide Pearl
(4)
PT
Med.-Light 73
79
2C
80
81
Great carry; mid to light oil ball with “hockey stick” look
Pro Purple
BuzzSaw
(3)
PT
Medium
70
76
2C
75
78
Easier through heads than Carbides; sharp back end
MO-RICH
ENERPRISES
Labyrinth
(3)
PT
Med.-Heavy 78
81
2
82
82
Versatile big hooking ball from the ball “Guru”
NU-LINE
Excalibur
Legend (3) R
Medium
74
76
2C
78
79
Easy up front with powerful hook; reads dry well
Gauntlet
(3)
R
Medium 70
75
2C
75
73
Smooth skid/hook from the Nu-Line folks
REVOLUTION
Rebel ECX
(3)
R
Med.-Heavy 75
80
2
80
80
Very versatile core; can give many different looks
ROTO GRIP
DefCon I
(3)
PT
Med.-Heavy 85
80
2C
75
83
Strong hookin‚ oil particle Roto Ball
DefCon II
(3)
PT
Med.-Light 82
78
2C
75
81
Medium pattern pearl Roto Particle-Strong
SD73
(3)
R
Med.-Heavy 75
75
2C
75
75
Very strong ball froma well-known name from the past
SD-73
Pearl
(3)
R
Medium 77
77
2C
75
78
Versatle length & big hooking ball; tunes easily
STORM
PRODUCTS
LaNiña
(4)
PT
Heavy 80
80
2C
80
83
Good cover-to-core match; aggressive ball
El Nino
2000
(4) PT
Med.-Heavy 79
80
2C
80
79
Skid/hook particle ball that works great on oil
El Niño
X-It
(4) PT
Med-Heavy 81
82
2C
80
81
Nice match on core/cover-covers lots of boards smoothly
El Niño
Gold
(3) R
Medium
78
82
2C
80
77
Very strong Storm ball on a big variety of conditions
Fire Power
(2)
R
Med.-Heavy 75
75
2C
70
75
Good length, strong snap
Lightning
Flash
(2)
R
Medium
77
80
2C
60
73
Econo 2-piece w/great skid/hook; cover tunes easily
Power Bolt
(2)
PT
Med.-Heavy 79
78
2C
70
78
Reactive type skid and smooth big particle hook
Super
Power
(2)
PT
Med.-Heavy 80
80
2C
75
78
Works well on many patterns; smooth read, lots of power
Thunder
Flash
(2)
U
Med-Light 40
50
2C
65
60
Urethane control; core delivers power, big hook control
Eraser
(1)
R
Medium 80
76
2C
68
75
Skid/flip reactive; strong with backends
Hot Shot
(1)
R
Med.-Light 75
75
2C
60
55
Very long - smooth hook
Lightning
Flash
(1)
R
Med.-Light 77
80
2C
60
73
Econo 2-pice w/great skid/hook cover; tunes easily
Meteor
Flash
(1)
R
Med.-Light 75
75
2C
55
65
Tremendous length and big snap hook
Orange
Pearl Flame (1) R
Light
78
70
3
40
55
Nice entry 3-piece reactive; great length for big hand players
Thunder
Flash
(1)
U
Light
40
45
2C
70
50
Urethane control; core delivers power; big control hook
Thunder
Flash Pro (1) U
Light
40
45
2C
70
55
Strong 2 piece Urethane for newbies; good control
TRACK
Assassin
(4)
PT
Med.-Heavy 76
80
2C
75
80
Track particle with length and big hook
Avenger
(4)
PT
Med.-Heavy 79
80
2C
76
80
Big back end Track Ball; reacts off wet/dry very smoothly
Champ
(3)
PT
Heavy 80
80
2C
80
81
Heavy hooking Track ball, yet turns early
Code Red
S/E
(3) R
Med.-Heavy 74
80
2C
70
70
Strong simple core delivers excellent hook and hit
Contender
(3)
PT
Heavy 78
79
2C
75
79
Strong hooking ball from Track; look for oil
K.O. Punch
(3)
R
Med.-Heavy 76
80
2C
83
77
New cover/simple core. Great hook and hit
Enforcer
(3)
PT
Heavy 77
80
2C
75
82
Good length; more aggressive hook from Track
Silencer
(3)
PT
Heavy 79
80
2C
77
83
Add another hook notch to Track’s belt; clean up front too
Black/Gold
Stomp (2) R
Med.-Heavy 80
80
2C
83
75
Strong core; versatile cover; big backend
Stomp (2)