Discontinued Balls

[Street Racer]

Just jumped onto buddies to see if there is any new videos

and seen some hammer balls being discontinued

Both No Mercys
blue vibe
toxic

they are still keeping in the first black widow?

ebonite has
total nv i think?
NVS
Raid


so what could be next?

[Crusher279757]

Kinda surprised about the Beat'n.

[TenPinSniper]

Makes you wonder if we are getting that Whup'n... if they get rid of both NM. That is a shame.

[slap]

I wonder if we're going to see an updated Hart core. The hart core was a totally new concept, I'm sure Hammer R & D has made improvements on that original design.

[JaraTo]

R & D, correct? Sorry engineer here.

[BubbaRay]

Hammer still has them listed on their product section of the site. Just because Buddies discontinued them doesn't mean Hammer is discontinuing them. The Toxic is supposed to be disctontinued also but is till available.

We just have to wait and see what the story is.

[slap]

R & D, correct? Sorry engineer here.

darn anal engineers... :D

[hbhammerhead]

that IS a surprise that the beat n' is being discontinued, i wonder why?

[Rowdy]

This might be the first sign that Ebonite and Hammer are getting ready for some tough economic times ahead. That plant in Hopkinsville might be able to crank out 5000 balls a day,but what good does it do to flood the warehouse with balls that will never be sold?

I wouldn't be at all surprised if the next No Mercy ball is the last in that line if it doesn't sell well. You gotta have high numbers of balls being sold to justify pouring that line of balls. Some of you don't like the Widow series of balls,but the mold on that Gas Mask core was paid off a long time ago. Those balls now have a low cost per ball to manufacture.

Here's a prediction:The next big seller in bowling balls will cost around $100-125. And it will be a high performance ball. I just don't know who's going to make the thing. It'll take a forward thinking company to realize that bowling balls are bought with money thats left over after all the bills,grocery and gas have been paid for. Oh,and league dues. It's gonna be tough to justify a $225-300 ball to the better half anymore.

[slap]

very good points Rowdy.

[Rowdy]

Thanks. I'd love to be wrong on all of them,but unless the magic genie waves the wand and gas goes back to about $1.50 a gallon things are only gonna get a lot worse before they get better. (Insert your favorite cuss word or combinations of words here.)

[TenPinSniper]

I wonder if we're going to see an updated Hart core. The hart core was a totally new concept, I'm sure Hammer R & D has made improvements on that original design.

Quite possible, but they did not discontinue the Doom when they released the Toxic with the updated core. Maybe we'll get two new HART cored bowling balls, this next season. (Things that make you wonder.)

[TenPinSniper]

The Gas Mask core took some time to really pay-off, but the Widow sure made it a slam dunk.

Think the Original No Mercy did fine as well, the Beat'n sells I'm sure where off.. compared to the original. I think it hard to get a line to take off when you release one ball in the line. JMO

Look at the Widow Line:
BW Summer 06
BWP Summer 07
BWC Winter 07
BWB Spring'ish 08

BW was the best selling ball of the year, then the Pearl sold well, but off the bat just did not continue the same. The Clear got some attention for some, it kept interest up. The Bite is much better than the Pearl... more predictable roll, definately get through the heads clean and bites like crazy on the backend. Honestly I like the Bite much better than the Pearl. Did not own the original.

Took 4 try to get a ball with Gas Mask core to sell like crazy.

It would be cool to see the Vibe get some attention. Between the Cherry and get a good dull solid, talk about a good one-two combo.

[Rowdy]

You forgot where the Gas Mask core got it's start. The old Big Blue and Big Blue Pearl both had the Gas Mask core in them. I still pull out the BBP when the time is right.

[kchays]

I think that balls really need to be released in "blocks" by having more than just one ball in a line out at a time. i.e. two or three of a series. Get a "step ladder" of balls to choose, so bowlers can have a larger choice. I'm sure manufacturers have an assortment of shell compounds to choose both existing and in development. So, multiple balls in a series can be released at once with minimal cost increase.

[thetick]

:eek: The toxic is really discontinued? Say it isnt so

[Rowdy]

I think that balls really need to be released in "blocks" by having more than just one ball in a line out at a time. i.e. two or three of a series. Get a "step ladder" of balls to choose, so bowlers can have a larger choice. I'm sure manufacturers have an assortment of shell compounds to choose both existing and in development. So, multiple balls in a series can be released at once with minimal cost increase.

Great idea in theory,but we'd all just buy the ball at the top of the "step ladder",and leave the rest on the shelf in the pro shop.

Case in point:Black Widow balls. Pro shops around here are selling the Bite and can't get anyone to even try a BWS or a BWP.

[Street Racer]

Great idea in theory,but we'd all just buy the ball at the top of the "step ladder",and leave the rest on the shelf in the pro shop.

Case in point:Black Widow balls. Pro shops around here are selling the Bite and can't get anyone to even try a BWS or a BWP.

because the world has grown up thinking, if you have the new gear, you will score... and you will look cool:cool:

but that is tottally wrong...

[hbhammerhead]

i think that the no mercy beat n' probably didn't sell as well as the original no mercy because they are both for med to heavy oil conditions. i have never rolled the original no mercy but from videos they looked similar. hammer probably should have just released a pearl ball with the hart core instead of the beat n'. that's kinda why i never got the black widow bite. it was too similar to my black widow solid...and yes i have rolled a black widow bite i bought one for my father and he has about the same span and thumb size as me. both balls are at oob.

[kchays]

Great idea in theory,but we'd all just buy the ball at the top of the "step ladder",and leave the rest on the shelf in the pro shop.

Case in point:Black Widow balls. Pro shops around here are selling the Bite and can't get anyone to even try a BWS or a BWP.

if that's the case then why have more then one ball per manufacturer just have one ball that hooks out the ying-yang and be done with it all. some people like to have equipment that they can switch to as the lanes break down that has predictably less hook. I don't know about you; but, I put more on the ball than 5 rpm's.
as far as the pro shops only selling the bite, the one's buying the bite might already have one or both of the others. if not, they may be looking for a big hook. I for one have the tendency to replace my equipment with multiple balls and drill them so I can change balls as needed and have predictable reactions from them.

[Rowdy]

if that's the case then why have more then one ball per manufacturer just have one ball that hooks out the ying-yang and be done with it all. some people like to have equipment that they can switch to as the lanes break down that has predictably less hook. I don't know about you; but, I put more on the ball than 5 rpm's.
as far as the pro shops only selling the bite, the one's buying the bite might already have one or both of the others. if not, they may be looking for a big hook. I for one have the tendency to replace my equipment with multiple balls and drill them so I can change balls as needed and have predictable reactions from them.

Whoopee.

Tell me,do you even bother to read the post or do you just run off at the fingers to see yourself type??? I offered up whats happening with actual balls being bought by real bowlers out of the six pro shops I do business with.

Everybody else ain't you. Most guys can't afford to,"replace their equipment with multiple balls",they have to get the most bang for their buck. So they buy the big hook ball first. As is evident by the fact that the BWBite is selling out and they won't touch a BWSolid or a BWPearl.

As for revs,I have a lot more than five.:p So there.

[kchays]

Whoopee.

Tell me,do you even bother to read the post or do you just run off at the fingers to see yourself type??? I offered up whats happening with actual balls being bought by real bowlers out of the six pro shops I do business with.

Everybody else ain't you. Most guys can't afford to,"replace their equipment with multiple balls",they have to get the most bang for their buck. So they buy the big hook ball first. As is evident by the fact that the BWBite is selling out and they won't touch a BWSolid or a BWPearl.

As for revs,I have a lot more than five.:p So there.

I think you have the same tendency to just spout off. The point of the comment I made was that the bite is completing the triage of balls in the black widow line. More people see the black widow line on TV than the no mercy line. which may contribute to the sales difference and the fact they are now discontinued. The black widows react better on the pro conditions than the No Mercy's. When I bowl regionals I rarely pull out the No Mercy or Beat'n I will use the BW's or even My Big deal since they react better. But, on house conditions, I will use the No Mercy more often.

[BubbaRay]

I will say this again. To have a great ball , two things must co-incide with each other. You have to have a coverstock and core that match perfectly along with the physics of the ball. The BW series is ine example of that. This core and coverstock work together as designed.

The NM series was a good line but all in I believe they just didn't sell.

And also one very very important thing to consider is a ball must match the bowlers style . What works for one may not work for another no matter how it's drilled or how much they change thier axis tilt and rotation.

[Street Racer]

I will say this again. To have a great ball , two things must co-incide with each other. You have to have a coverstock and core that match perfectly along with the physics of the ball. The BW series is ine example of that. This core and coverstock work together as designed.

The NM series was a good line but all in I believe they just didn't sell.

And also one very very important thing to consider is a ball must match the bowlers style . What works for one may not work for another no matter how it's drilled or how much they change thier axis tilt and rotation.

and you gotta know how to throw the ball decently as well!

lol!

[TenPinSniper]

You forgot where the Gas Mask core got it's start. The old Big Blue and Big Blue Pearl both had the Gas Mask core in them. I still pull out the BBP when the time is right.

Did not forget about those balls just stated the other where duds in comparision, by sell numbers and performance at the time of release.

I did own the Big Deal and it wasn't all that good. (Owned worse.) Really never liked the BWP. The Bite is a much better version for skid-flip.

Honestly, I have wondered what the Gas Mask core would be with a weaker cover, since the core is so strong.

[can-ham]

Buddies always has the news first! They list new balls before they come out and when buddies list a ball as discontinued hammer takes it off their website a few months later.

I remember when I bought my Strom. I actually went to a hammer demo day, I really wanted a Viscous Strike, I wanted to demo it but the guy told me it was discontinued. They let me throw the big blue and big blue pearl, but I didn't like how they reacted so I went for a storm. Should have saved my money cause the big block I got a year later was and still is a better ball.

http://www.bowlingballreviews.com/images/balls/2344-1.jpg

[TenPinSniper]

Yeah overall the Big Blue series was a dub, as well. The Gas Mask core ruined the DEAL series. Honestly, I've owned 3 balls with this core and they all been touchy... whether its surface or condition.

I was buying a few Blades, when the Diesel series was going strong... wish I would've gotten a Big Block Diesel.

[mongoliantreesloth]

....the bite is completing the triage of balls in the black widow line....
Err, there are four actually - the original, the pearl, the Bite and the clear. Not that I'm pedantic or anything;)

[BubbaRay]

Originally Posted by kchays
....the bite is completing the triage of balls in the black widow line....

I would be suprised about that. I really do not think they would discontinue the hottest ball in that line at this point in time.