The Big Time Special Edition is a modernized version of the Big Time, a ball that was a huge success story for Ebonite in 2005. It features an updated Big Time core, and the cover is now an HK22-based version of the GB 13.7 Pearl coverstock. This ball is finished with 500/1000/1500 SiaAir out of the box, leaving the surface very dull and allowing it to create traction in the oil. We found this ball to start early and provide a very continuous motion at the back end. This combination allowed our testers to start with more open angles and see a strong motion downlane, even as they moved deeper inside.

Cranker easily had the best reaction out of the three testers on the fresh heavy oil pattern. Despite the rough box finish, he was pleasantly surprised at how easily the ball cleared the fronts, while his high rev rate allowed the ball to pick up and drive through the pins. The dull surface had no trouble handling the higher concentration of oil in the center of the lane when he needed to start moving his laydown farther left as the track area started to break down. Cranker’s carry wasn’t as good on the medium oil pattern as the other two bowlers. He had to start the ball farther left to get it far enough downlane before it turned over, and it was a bit too smooth going through the pins. He took the ball to the spinner with a 2000 and 4000 grit SiaAir pad to smooth out the surface and increase the length. This gave him a better overall reaction on this pattern, with more total hook than his Game Breakers and a smoother downlane motion ...