First off Justin, that story about the ball losing its hook in about three weeks could be any of these: That person was either neglent in cleaning their ball and probably didn't post that they bowl about 9-12 games a week in league and who knows how many others in practice. Or it was someone who was ignorant and doesn't understand that it takes about 9 games to get a ball's true reaction to show. Also it could be that the person altered the surface or changed something in their approach and blamed the ball and not themselves. Regardless, try not to hold too much stock in reviews and posts like that.

On the weight issue, I definately agree with Coach Jim and you should move up in weight only if your wrist can handle it. And I agree with Erin about having your balls all be the same weight. It definately helps when it comes to timing, balance and release.

As for the ball choices, it seems like everyone hit the major companies if you couldn't stay with Ebonite. And if you don't I would suggest The Odyssey, the Illusion or some of the balls in the planetary line from Roto Grip. Perhaps, the Uprising or I think the Tantrum or Temper from Track would be good. And i think it's Chubbs that absolutely loves the 900 Global Break and Break Pearl.

Although it seems like you've mad up your mind on those three from Ebonite. I think the One is the strongest of the three. But it sounds like the Gamebreaker is more of what you're looking for.

By maintaining it you mean just cleaning after each round I play?

And thanks Demolitionman, I think that I have decided to go with 13, 14 may be just a little bit to much for my wrist to handle, so hopefully I will still be able to get more carry with the 13 than the 12

Right. Another note, using a strong ball on dry lanes will make the ball hook less than it would with more oil. The expert whose ball died after 9 games may have run into that.

By maintaining we mean cleaning after every session they are used, whether its practice, league or tournament, deep cleaning after every so many game depending on the ball, in the case of duller balls around 20-30 games and polished or pearls around 30-40 and also taking them back to OOB condition.

That's very interesting cgeorg. I didn't know that could happen. Could that be the possible explaination behind why my Black Widow moves more on house shots than my Cell?

cgeorg, So bowling on the wooden lanes I normally bowl on that are only oiled half the time could tae the hook out of my ball? Would that mean it just wouldn't hook then, or would lose its hook for good.

And Infernocal, when you say deep clean exactly what do you mean?

Justin, it's not that it will permanently kill your ball, it's just that a super strong ball will not hook that much on dry lanes. A weaker ball will actually hook more. However, dry lanes will increase the wear on your Track area, so you will need to resurface the ball more often.

any of those Ebonite balls are about 100 bucks online, personally I'd throw another $20 and get a BW bite or Venom for $124 shipped + drilling. What does that extra $20 get? A well know ball throughout any house and alot more on deck pin action.

and yah you gotta clean them after every set/night of bowling. cleaners can be bought for the Pro Shop or online. I like Ebonite Powerhouse, works well and havn't seen any life drop from any of the new balls I got.

How is a venom or BW bite going to get more pin action?

And I just checked into, its 124.99 then you have to pay extra for the drilling. But I'm probably getting whatever ball I get from my local bowling alley anyways.

Typically, Hammer's stuff leans more toward the skid/Flip reaction while Ebonite's reaction signature is more even. It comes down to what suits you best. If you need a wicked snap from your equipment to generate good entry angles and prevent weak corner pin leaves, then Hammer might suit you beter. If you ring alot of ten pins or leave other solid back row pins, then an Ebonite ball that starts up a little sooner with a more gradual move on the backend might be what you need.