Acid Adjustments

[hammeredinkansas]

I'm having a little trouble adjusting from the skid/flip sisters (BWS & BWP) to my new Acid. I usually stand with my left toe on 20 and throw over the 10 board (typical stroker). If I get left more than 4 or 5 boards with my feet, which is what I have to do with my ACID, I get a lil nervous. Am I just gonna have to suck it up and get over my fear of the inside? :eek:

[thegoldenchild]

I'm going through the same thing (with the Acid, also) just remember to make all your movement towards your target. For me, that means angling my feet a little to the right (how much depends on how deep I'm trying to play) and push away towards my target and walk towards my target. Here's a great article http://www.bowl4fun.com/ron/tip24.htm

[idlehourlegend]

I'm going through the same thing (with the Acid, also) just remember to make all your movement towards your target. For me, that means angling my feet a little to the right (how much depends on how deep I'm trying to play) and push away towards my target and walk towards my target. Here's a great article http://www.bowl4fun.com/ron/tip24.htm

Do not walk towards your target, your closing off the lane on yourself and affecting a lot more than you think, its a bad habit to get into. The push away and feet is right, but do not walk towards your target, it will lead to many bad habits because your getting in your own way. Meaning your getting in the way of your backswing and causing yourself to have to divert your backswing around your body to hit your target. Just work on walking straight to the line and keeping your shoulders and hips open towards your target. I was having the same problem a while back and Tom L. from Ebonite Int. helped me with it.

[idlehourlegend]

I'm having a little trouble adjusting from the skid/flip sisters (BWS & BWP) to my new Acid. I usually stand with my left toe on 20 and throw over the 10 board (typical stroker). If I get left more than 4 or 5 boards with my feet, which is what I have to do with my ACID, I get a lil nervous. Am I just gonna have to suck it up and get over my fear of the inside? :eek:

Practice, practice, practice. Having a "B" game is always a good thing for when your down and in shot isnt there, if the acid is that strong then just trust the ball and get confident with knowing it will come back. Just remember to focus on your target and breakpoint, keep your shoulders and hips open towards your target line and trust yourself.

[thegoldenchild]

So you turn your feet and push away towards the target, then (in an exaggerated example) side step to walk perpendicular towards the foul line. By doing that you keep yourself out of your own way? It doesn't make sense to me. It makes more sense to me to keep everything squared up with your target, whether your angle is open or closed.

[idlehourlegend]

So you turn your feet and push away towards the target, then (in an exaggerated example) side step to walk perpendicular towards the foul line. By doing that you keep yourself out of your own way? It doesn't make sense to me. It makes more sense to me to keep everything squared up with your target, whether your angle is open or closed.

If you walk towards your target your closing off the lane, what I do when Im playing a deeper line is I keep my feet straight but I put my left foot half way behind my right foot (lefty), this keeps my hips open towards my target the entire approach, my pushaway is straight and my backswing is straight close to my body but because my hips and shoulders are open towards my target everything flows nicely and the target is hit. Not only are you closing the lane out on yourself by walking towards your target but your also disrupting your backswing because your body is getting in the way of it so your backswing wont be straight, you also wont be able to make adjustments because if your walking towards your target your going to wind up in the same part of the lane on the approach basically no matter where you start out.

[thegoldenchild]

I think i see what you're saying. I'll have to give it a try next time I'm at the lanes.

[hammeredinkansas]

Practice, practice, practice. Having a "B" game is always a good thing for when your down and in shot isnt there, if the acid is that strong then just trust the ball and get confident with knowing it will come back. Just remember to focus on your target and breakpoint, keep your shoulders and hips open towards your target line and trust yourself.

Thanks Idle. I actually stayed after league last Tuesday and threw a couple practice games (which I should've done prior to using the new ball during league!). I moved my left foot to 25 and threw between the 2nd and 3rd arrow...did mucho better.

My pro has always drilled my balls to go long, but for some reason he drilled the Acid to pick up the roll early by moving the pin below my fingers and the CG about 1 1/2" to the right. I thought it was odd, but I trust his judgement. It's not on any of the layouts for this ball, but he said he stumbled across it and it's worked great for the few guys using it. Starting 2 weeks ago (the beginning of the 2nd half of our league season) the lane guy has been putting down more oil due to several complaints of dry lanes. Based on this, I think I'll try to get used to it as opposed to making him redrill it for length. Like you said Idle, I need a B game.

[Lonewolf300800]

hammeredinkansas, click on the link in my signature and take a look at my arsenal. i think my Acid is drilled similar to yours. I had it drilled like my Psycho, just had him move the weight hole to give it a little more punch on the backend.






My pro has always drilled my balls to go long, but for some reason he drilled the Acid to pick up the roll early by moving the pin below my fingers and the CG about 1 1/2" to the right. I thought it was odd, but I trust his judgement. It's not on any of the layouts for this ball, but he said he stumbled across it and it's worked great for the few guys using it. Starting 2 weeks ago (the beginning of the 2nd half of our league season) the lane guy has been putting down more oil due to several complaints of dry lanes. Based on this, I think I'll try to get used to it as opposed to making him redrill it for length. Like you said Idle, I need a B game.

[hammeredinkansas]

hammeredinkansas, click on the link in my signature and take a look at my arsenal. i think my Acid is drilled similar to yours. I had it drilled like my Psycho, just had him move the weight hole to give it a little more punch on the backend.

That's it! Not sure where the weight hole is in relation to yours, but that's the same layout. It's a little hard for an old stroker to adjust to, but I'm going to try. How do you like it? What's your bowling style and does this layout work for you?

[Lonewolf300800]

it's a drill i first tried on my Psycho when i bought it last July. someone on this forum posted a pic of thier Psycho drilled like that and i thought i'd try it and liked it enough that i had the Acid drilled the same way. the pin under helps the ball rev up sooner and read the middle portion of the lane sooner. it's a great 1-2 punch for me. I consider myself a stroker/powerstroker depending on the conditions, so it won't take you to long to get used to the ball. good luck and let me know how it works for you.




That's it! Not sure where the weight hole is in relation to yours, but that's the same layout. It's a little hard for an old stroker to adjust to, but I'm going to try. How do you like it? What's your bowling style and does this layout work for you?

[Gnarly]

Do not walk towards your target, your closing off the lane on yourself and affecting a lot more than you think, its a bad habit to get into. The push away and feet is right, but do not walk towards your target, it will lead to many bad habits because your getting in your own way. Meaning your getting in the way of your backswing and causing yourself to have to divert your backswing around your body to hit your target. Just work on walking straight to the line and keeping your shoulders and hips open towards your target. I was having the same problem a while back and Tom L. from Ebonite Int. helped me with it.

I dont agree with this. If he is a Stroker I dont see anything wrong with walking to your target. If your foot work is correct and you are crossing your slide step properly in front of your other foot, then you will open up the hip and allow the arm to stay close to your ankle. Norm Duke talked about this on a past Lets go Bowling show. If you have to open up your hips on the back swing then you are probably holding the ball more to the center of your body in your stance. Hold the ball where it is more in line with the shoulder and you eliminate this problem. LOL Anyway to each his own. Now if I could only do this consistently!!!! We could probably ask 10 different coaches and get 10 different answers.

[idlehourlegend]

I dont agree with this. If he is a Stroker I dont see anything wrong with walking to your target. If your foot work is correct and you are crossing your slide step properly in front of your other foot, then you will open up the hip and allow the arm to stay close to your ankle. Norm Duke talked about this on a past Lets go Bowling show. If you have to open up your hips on the back swing then you are probably holding the ball more to the center of your body in your stance. Hold the ball where it is more in line with the shoulder and you eliminate this problem. LOL Anyway to each his own. Now if I could only do this consistently!!!! We could probably ask 10 different coaches and get 10 different answers.

No matter where you hold the ball you are going to have to alter your swing to make up for your hip getting in the way because your drifting so far towards your target and getting in your own way, it would be pitch out city if this happened. This is very common in lefties(no offense to lefties as I am one) but even Tom from Ebonite said this, stroker lefties have a tendency to walk towards there target and get in their own way. I had this problem also and once I fixed it I saw a tremendous amount of accuracy, also one of my lefty friends had did this too and Tom worked with him and fixed it. Most coaches work on making sure you dont walk towards your target so that you have a straight swing and are in good form. But like you said if it works, do it, just passing on the info I got.

[TenPinSniper]

You have to worry about clearing the hip twice in your approach if we are going to be technical about this issue. The first time is on the second step of a standard fourstep approach and the other time in going into the slide, but this should be a non-issue if you get your non slide leg out to the left for a righty.

[bluerrpilot]

Am I just gonna have to suck it up and get over my fear of the inside? :eek:


YES.....you must learn to adjust your feet and target. If you cannot adjust more than a couple or few boards, then you will be in trouble. You have 3 balls and plenty of lane to play. Learn to move around a little and I guaranty you will break 700 by summer

[hammeredinkansas]

YES.....you must learn to adjust your feet and target. If you cannot adjust more than a couple or few boards, then you will be in trouble. You have 3 balls and plenty of lane to play. Learn to move around a little and I guaranty you will break 700 by summer

You're right. Last weeks practice helped me feel more comfortable with moving left because it showed me that the ball will come back. Guess living this close, and actually working in Missouri, has rubbed off on me. :rolleyes:

I have league tonight, so I'll see how the Acid is reacting in warmup. If I'm still not comfortable, I can always fall back on the S/F Sisters. If the Acid is workin' like she did last practice, I'll let you know how we do.

The new ball isn't he only adjustment. A few weeks ago, they started laying down a bit more oil due to complaints of dry lanes. My avg has dropped from 208 to 201 in that time. :( Maybe this is where the Acid will show what it's made of.

Thanks for all your suggestions!

[VmsTopGun]

If I get left more than 4 or 5 boards with my feet, which is what I have to do with my ACID, I get a lil nervous. Am I just gonna have to suck it up and get over my fear of the inside? :eek:

the other issue is that you need to move your target as you move your feet also. I believe the accepted practice is to move the target about 30% to 50% in the same direction as your feet.

If you start on 20 over 10 and move to 25 then you should be targeting about 12 to 13ish.

[hammeredinkansas]

Yeah, in practice I moved to 25 and started throwing between the 2nd and 3rd arrow (12-13ish). That line worked well. I'll start with that tonight and adjust from there.

[bluerrpilot]

the other issue is that you need to move your target as you move your feet also. I believe the accepted practice is to move the target about 30% to 50% in the same direction as your feet.

If you start on 20 over 10 and move to 25 then you should be targeting about 12 to 13ish.


That would depend on the amount of angle needed in the front part of the lane for the given condition.




A few weeks ago, they started laying down a bit more oil due to complaints of dry lanes. My avg has dropped from 208 to 201 in that time. :( Maybe this is where the Acid will show what it's made of.

Thanks for all your suggestions!


You definitely need to learn to move around on the lanes. You cant rely on ball changes as adjustments. Them adding more oil should mean all you have to do is move your feet and target to the right

[hammeredinkansas]

You definitely need to learn to move around on the lanes. You cant rely on ball changes as adjustments.

Agreed. You can still teach this old dog a new trick...just takes longer to learn. :rolleyes:

[mongoliantreesloth]

i think my Acid is drilled similar to yours. I had it drilled like my Psycho, just had him move the weight hole to give it a little more punch on the backend.
Both those look similar to the drilling on my Big One. First ball I've had drilled like that and it won't be the last.

[hammeredinkansas]

I've tried and tried to get used to this ball and the drilling, but I'm just not feelin' it. I'm afraid I never will. It's just too different and doesn't fit my game. When I finally get to where it'll stay right of the headpin, it just doesn't hit like the S/F sisters. In the rare instance I happen to nail the pocket, there's the 10-pin standing there mocking me. I know this is a good ball...others on here love it...but this may be a case where it's not a ball for a tried and true, down and in stroker like me.

I'm not sure why my driller layed it out the way he did. He's always been dead on before. I told him I wanted a ball that I could still throw down and in, but with a smoother, more controlable arc. The way it's drilled now it picks up the roll way too early for me. I'm not sure why he didn't use the length layout like all my other balls. I hate to plug and redrill a brand new ball, but what other option do I have? As it is now, I feel I've thrown $200 down the drain. :(

[excalibur]

Hammered
Have you tried polishing it up to try and get it to go longer ? Not positive this will work for you but it worked for me on my BWP. I am having problems getting used to my sauce, I read about how strong it is and how great it is on heavy oil and I havent been seeing it and I think I finally figured out where I need to throw it last night and did pretty good with it, I think I had been used to the skid flip and wasnt putting it in the right spot. The BWP I had to polish up because it wasnt going nearly long enough for me. I sometimes throw down and in stroker shot, but I can crank it up and usually that is more my shot. Anyway you have probably thought of polish but thought I might mention it.

[hammeredinkansas]

Hammered
Have you tried polishing it up to try and get it to go longer ? Not positive this will work for you but it worked for me on my BWP. I am having problems getting used to my sauce, I read about how strong it is and how great it is on heavy oil and I havent been seeing it and I think I finally figured out where I need to throw it last night and did pretty good with it, I think I had been used to the skid flip and wasnt putting it in the right spot. The BWP I had to polish up because it wasnt going nearly long enough for me. I sometimes throw down and in stroker shot, but I can crank it up and usually that is more my shot. Anyway you have probably thought of polish but thought I might mention it.

Yeah, I polished it up, but it hit like a marshmellow. I'm no expert, so I'm guessing on this next statement...since it's drilled pick up its roll early, I think it may have lost it's down-lane energy even with polish. I'm thinkin' that's why it hit like it did. Took polish off to get it back to OOB. I just can't seem to use the ball as it is with my style. Emailed my pro this morning for suggestions.

[hammeredinkansas]

Yeah, I polished it up, but it hit like a marshmellow. I'm no expert, so I'm guessing on this next statement...since it's drilled pick up its roll early, I think it may have lost it's down-lane energy even with polish. I'm thinkin' that's why it hit like it did. Took polish off to get it back to OOB. I just can't seem to use the ball as it is with my style. Emailed my pro this morning for suggestions.

Ok...my pro got back to me and said it is drilled to go long and come in smooth...hmmmm. :confused: I thought pin under fingers picked up it's roll early and pin over gave the ball more length. Guess that's why I'm not a pro. He wants to play with the coverstock before we do anything else, so I'll meet with him next week. Hope we can figure something out.

[bluerrpilot]

I thought pin under fingers picked up it's roll early and pin over gave the ball more length.

Pin height from grip center or distance from VAL determines response to friction. Pin distance to PAP will determine flare and length.

5" from pap under your fingers would be long and smooth. 5" from pap over your fingers would be long and snappy.

Hope I don't offend but.....your comparing apples and oranges here. The 2 widows are pearl and solid asymmetric higher rg balls. Both designed to have natural length. The Acid is a symmetric, lower rg ball with a medium strong cover designed to pickup sooner and in the mid-lane. Even with identical layouts, you will need to move into more oil with the Acid. That should have been the purpose of purchasing it in the first place. The purpose behind having multiple balls is to have the ability to play different parts of the lane when conditions and cover strengths dictate. NOT to be able to play the same part of the lane and just use a different ball.

[hammeredinkansas]

Pin height from grip center or distance from VAL determines response to friction. Pin distance to PAP will determine flare and length.

5" from pap under your fingers would be long and smooth. 5" from pap over your fingers would be long and snappy.

Hope I don't offend but.....your comparing apples and oranges here. The 2 widows are pearl and solid asymmetric higher rg balls. Both designed to have natural length. The Acid is a symmetric, lower rg ball with a medium strong cover designed to pickup sooner and in the mid-lane. Even with identical layouts, you will need to move into more oil with the Acid. That should have been the purpose of purchasing it in the first place. The purpose behind having multiple balls is to have the ability to play different parts of the lane when conditions and cover strengths dictate. NOT to be able to play the same part of the lane and just use a different ball.

Not offended in the least. I still have a lot to learn, and I appreciate you taking the time to explain. Based on what you're saying, I got what I asked for. I said long and smooth...and that's what he set up for me. Problem is, when I do move inside, the ball isn't hitting the pins with much energy...and I'm constantly leaving 10 pins. I'm not kidding, every pocket hit in practice left a 10. The only strikes were Brooklins. I did ask my pro about that and he said the ball is going into the pocket too smooth. As I mentioned in my last post, he wants to experiment with the surface to see if we can take care of this. Of course, I leave a few 10s with the S/F sisters, but I guess the "snappy" action helps keep the number of them down.

[Thepainscoming]

The purpose behind having multiple balls is to have the ability to play different parts of the lane when conditions and cover strengths dictate. NOT to be able to play the same part of the lane and just use a different ball.

THANK YOU we dont buy different bowling balls to stay in the same spot for 7 games and then get angry when were not carrying.

[OmegaRed]

Also keep in mind that the ball doesnt carry the ten pin, the entry angle does.

Its pretty easy to blame the ball/lane/oil/people bowling next to you.

I dont know how many people i have seen blame everything but themseleves when the ten pin stands. You have to be able to see why you are leaving the ten and accept it make the move and carry it next time youre up there.

[hammeredinkansas]

THANK YOU we dont buy different bowling balls to stay in the same spot for 7 games and then get angry when were not carrying.

I wouldn't say "angry"...more like disappointed and frustrated in my ability, or lack thereof, to adjust to this ball. I know how to adjust for the equipment I have now, and have no problem moving up, back, left or right depending on the conditions. I wouldn't be carrying a 200 avg if I didn't. We just need to tweak this new ball to do what I need under certain circumstances w/o changing my entire way/style of bowling. I'm too old for that at this point. This is why there are hundreds of different balls, with many different drilling layouts and adjustable coverstocks. We'll get there.

By the way, I thought one of the purposes of this forum was to be able to share bowling related things with kindred spirits and get support, advice and encouragement. Funny, every time I come back to the Forum after being away for awhile, it's not long before I'm reminded why I left.

[hammeredinkansas]

By the way, I thought one of the purposes of this forum was to be able to share bowling related things with kindred spirits and get support, advice and encouragement. Funny, every time I come back to the Forum after being away for awhile, it's not long before I'm reminded why I left.

Sorry...between work and lack of sleep due to this cold I've been fighting since Christmas at the in-laws, I'm a little cranky. :o

I need a drink! :rolleyes:

[bluerrpilot]

NProblem is, when I do move inside, the ball isn't hitting the pins with much energy...and I'm constantly leaving 10 pins. I'm not kidding, every pocket hit in practice left a 10.

Then it was the wrong ball for the condition. Like Omega said, entry angle is whats needed to trip the corners. If the ball or surface is not allowing the right angle then you need to change lines, covers, release whatever is needed at the time.

Let your driller do what he suggested and play with the cover. You might end up finding that ball is not right for the condition your currently on. But it may be lights out on a different shot or with a different cover prep.

[TenPinSniper]

THANK YOU we dont buy different bowling balls to stay in the same spot for 7 games and then get angry when were not carrying.

By the way, I thought one of the purposes of this forum was to be able to share bowling related things with kindred spirits and get support, advice and encouragement. Funny, every time I come back to the Forum after being away for awhile, it's not long before I'm reminded why I left.

Sorry...between work and lack of sleep due to this cold I've been fighting since Christmas at the in-laws, I'm a little cranky. :o

I need a drink! :rolleyes:

Don't think anyone expects the to ball and stand and roll in the same place. If they do it pretty naive of them. Especially for 7 games. For some it might be possible to play a similiar line for 3 games of league, if the truely are switching to something weeker, generally speaking of course.

Hammered I thought your comment was spot on and funny! Don't take it to seriously. (We have all days... some just more than others!)

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u52/bugeyedfrenzy/internet-serious-business.jpg

[idlehourlegend]

Don't think anyone expects the to ball and stand and roll in the same place. If they do it pretty naive of them. Especially for 7 games. For some it might be possible to play a similiar line for 3 games of league, if the truely are switching to something weeker, generally speaking of course.

Hammered I thought your comment was spot on and funny! Don't take it to seriously. (We have all days... some just more than others!)

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u52/bugeyedfrenzy/internet-serious-business.jpg

Getting like Can with the animations :)

[TenPinSniper]

Getting like Can with the animations :)

He has not being doing them recently... so someone has to pickup the slack.:D

[Thepainscoming]

hammerd, my comment wasnt really meant towards you but other people here have been saying thats why we buy different balls, to stand in the same spot all through league and blue brought that point up. sry if i sounded rash