Faball 3D Offset Blazing Violet Hammer Bowling Ball

After a bunch of 160-190 games with the Hammer after gettin it, I finally bowled 237 with it. I beat my dad that game and the one before it 195. I'm 13 and that was the second time I beat him. The games before that the lanes were oily so I used my sanded Brunswick Punisher and Power Groove. Nothin hits like a Hammer. I like those classic hammers. I'd like to get a Jack Hammer. I have bowled six 200 and I have only been throwing hook for 10 months. I throw from board 10 over to board 5 or ten depending on the lane conditions. My Hammer on oily lanes can be thrown on board 10 and it will hook rite into the pocket . Got Inserts put in the Hammer. Got my release to were I can control the hook, my release is the oldie hand shake style. Bring hand back flat with the thumb at 12 o'clock, bring it forward like that until release and have a hand shake with the pins. I shot 183 highest game while the lanes were still med oily. Then the lanes got dry and I had to use the house balls. I avged

Although a very old ball, the 3D Offset Violet Hammer is still useful in my bag. Much older equipment comes and goes but this ball should not. That is why the High Rev is being sold today, same core but more modern and stronger cover. On a fresh shot, most of my reactives were skidding to much in the heavy oil and my particles were not very readable and did not recover well on the backend. I decided to just see what the old 3D Offset could still do. After cleaning it with Clean N'Dull, the Hammer was ready to go. It went down the lane very easily as is should being polished but it created friction fast and had a very strong arc to the pocket just as I remembered it when I first bought it. I have not used the High Rev, but I imagine it is very similar only a little stronger and more durable. Even though useable, you could tell that the 3D Offset is an old ball. When the lanes became spotty, this ball overflipped and had a very serious over/under reaction to it. Versatility w

on medium to heavy oil i have to play up second arrow and a little more direct. as the lanes break down then i can start moving in more towards third arrow. but there is only one draw back is that it can't handel real heavy oil with alot of head oil. by the time i see that type of shot again i'll have either a hammer real deal or a hammer hawg. also when throwing this you can't throw it down the lane you stroke it it can get itself in a roll. it doesn't have a lot of backend so try not to send very wide. overall it is a very good ball for being so old. i can't wait until i try the hammer high rev.

when polished it gives good length and strong backend but it skid to far down the lane in heavy oil. in this surface it allows for a more direct and straighter line to be played. polished also allows for you to play deep inside lines when the lanes break down and dry out. one thing you have to do for this ball to work it you force or over-power the ball. you have to be soft and stroke the ball. but then once the lanes breakdown then you can start throwing a little harder. will post another review next week after i try this ball sanded.

I found one of these that a friend of mine had bought in 1998 as a backup and had never drilled, so it was NIB condition. It was a light 16 lb ball (15# 12oz) with a 3" pin, since he injured his wrist and now throws 14# balls he was willing to part with it for $50 (what a steal). I had my pro drill it to go long and arc strongly back into the pocket. It is drilled with the pin about 3/4" above my ring finger with the CG about 1" below my ring finger. The mass bias mark (HOT) is 1/4" to the right of my thumb. There is a 1/2 " weight hole about 4-5" to the right of my ring finger. I took this ball to the alley this morning and threw it on a freshly oiled pair of lanes. I was simply blown away by the performance, I have never thrown a ball with this much control that hits the pins this hard. I was able to stand on the third dot and throw the ball straight between the 1st and 2nd arrows and just watch as it cruised through the midlane hit the dry back end and exploded into the rack. Wh

The first time I used this ball was when there was a tremendous amount of carry down on the lanes. I struggled a bit at first but then I slowed this ball down and let it do all the work. I was stand around 40 and getting this ball out to about 5, and this ball was coming back and crshing the pins. the one problem about playing this kind of line with the ball was that it makes it very speed sensitive. If your throw the ball a bit too fast it wont snap at the end and if youo throw it too slow it will flip over too hard. Once you settle down and find a line this is definitely a go to ball if your want high scores. I can only imagine what this ball will do on fresh oil conditions. I will update this review when that time comes.

This is truly an all time ball. The first introduction into the 3-d line. I remember in 98 when this ball first came out on league night there were at least 2 on every rack in a 40 lane house. The only reason I gave it a nine was because it will leave 10 pins like there is no tomorrow. The ball can't compete with todays coverstocks that are able to keep pins close to the pin deck. The ball will leave a lot of true no-taps on the 9 pin. I have thrown 3 299's with this ball. Shanked one and left a 4 pin.1 left a 7 and the most heart breaking one was the buried 9 pin.

This has got to be the pinnacle of Faball history. Have owned NOTHING but Faball since I got into bowling in 1986, beginning with original Black urethane. Just got back into bowling seriously 2 yrs ago and had to rebuild my aging arsenal. This ball completes it. Got it used (very gently) from a Hammer brother in Texas (thanx again G!) Pin was 3 3/8 from MY PAP, CG kicked out in a 10:30 drill with void hole on PAP. Ball gets through the heads with ease and has a strong recovery with more snap than I expected. Carry is best I've ever seen in ANY Hammer. Have had ball just 4 weeks and have already thrown my high game and high series with it in league this yr. This ball is a MUST have for ALL Hammer fans! Pick one up, if you can. You will NOT be disappointed! Spike

I bought this ball used, advertised as a Norm Duke ball. The ball was in very good condition and once cleaned and plugged (and now drilled), it looks almost new. Nice for $45 delivered!! The ball is drilled the same as anything else I own, leveraged with 3 3/8 to get max hook. This may be a little different setup since I specifically wanted an earlier break. I can play a variety of shots with the ball and either maintain same release or alter it a little to give me something different with the ball. I do not find the ball hard to control on drier lanes, actually I prefer those lanes. No matter, the ball rolls smooth and has a consistent roll right into the pocket. Solid hit reward with the atypical Hammer sound, and the light ones sent the pins scattering. This was to be the 6th I own currently, but I gave away a relatively unused Nova that I really liked...so I'm back down to 5. But....I will be out for more. Overall, a 10 out of 10 for the ball. The Vicious was

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This was the ball that brought me back to FAB in '98. Drilled this one for Nationals in Reno and ended up falling in love with it. I drilled it with 5 inch pin to pap, with 12:00 cg to pin configuration, and cg to pap of approximately 4 inches. The condition I normally bowl is a 7 to 7 box. This ball gets down the lanes very well with a strong backend. Not as violent as my 4D reactive action and much more forgiving. I just heard yesterday that this line is being discontinued so I need to go and order another. I would recommend this ball to anyone and any style. By the way, it was the BTM Ball of the Year in '97.

I bought this ball back in the day.It is drilled at 2 oclock and I am a crancker.I stand at the 20 board and throw it out to about the 5 board and it comes back with no problem. This ball is all about back end.What I really like about this ball is that it plows over them pins as if there was nothing there.This ball sokes up the oil, but if you take a heat gun to it, it will be just like brand new. If you come across one of these balls I advise you to take one while you can. later.....

This has to be Faball's best reactive ball ever, and they discontinue it. I've always been a Hammer fan, and I was hoping they don't fall prey to the ball-of-the -month stuff like Brunswick, Ebonite, & Columbia. Sadly, they're headed in that direction. This ball hits very hard. Grab one if you can!! I resurfaced mine at least 4 times, have used it on both wet-dry (fresh league), and a late shift since 1997. It's still going strong, and I know it won't last forever. I just hope I can find an adequate replacement once it's retired.