EBONITE Products

Particle Ball Death Theory
It’s a combination of plasticizer saturation and particles breaking apart

Particle ball death can be largely attributed to the migration of the plasticizer as well as degradation of the particle, specifically glass bubble particles.

Not all particles are the same. Therefore, not all particles degrade. As a ball is thrown, the particle breaks and spreads over the entire surface of the ball (see diagrams 6 and 7).

Diagram 6. Sanded Particle Coverstock

Diagram 7. Polished Particle Coverstock

Since these particles are typically not reactive, they actually reduce reactive contact between the ball and the lane. The result is that the ball loses reaction primarily in the backend. Standard resurfacing techniques cannot adequately remove broken particles. Instead, the broken particles must be removed by using the following steps for a ball that is going to be finished in a dull state. First, you must resurface the ball from 220-grit or lower to remove the worn track area and prepare a fresh surface. Then use higher and higher grits (i.e., 320, 400, 600, etc.) until you get to 800-grit. Next, the ball must be polished. Once the ball is polished, the final sanding grit, such as 800-grit or 1000-grit, can then be applied.

For balls that are resurfaced and are left in a polished state, the final polishing step will remove the buildup of broken particles.

The intermediate polishing step is very important. It removes the build-up of broken particles and exposes the reactive material. When the final sanding grit is applied, there is not a build-up of broken particles to inhibit contact with the lane. Therefore, reaction is restored. The reactive ball death theory may be the true cause for particle ball death if proper resurfacing techniques were used and hook was still not restored.