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Ball texture
korisu:
I got sick of the balls at my work table sliding out from under my guys (and lack of ball control in general), so I swapped them out for balls from my home table and brought the work ones home for cleaning. Now they're clean, but I'm noticing they're definitely smoother than the ones on my home table. I do want to bring these ones back to work so I can get my home ones back, but I don't want the same ball problems happening again within a week, and I definitely don't want to have to buy new balls for either table. I'm more than willing to do a little bit of work on them, though, since I have a few to spare.
So... is there any reliable way to manually add the fuzzy texture to these balls? I did a search, and found a little bit of information on what makes them textured or not. The foosball shop page on Tornado balls mentions that the amount of time spent "tumbling" adds proportionally to the texture. Does anyone know what exactly that "tumbler" uses to scuff the balls, and how I could recreate it to some extent at home?
I'd imagine the tumbler contains some sort of abrasive surface like sandpaper. I want to stay away from sandpapering the ball's surface directly by hand, because it'd likely cause grooves in the ball. Would it work to just line the inside of a can with some sandpaper, and shake until I'm satisfied with the results? I'd expect the results to be more uniform that way.
Anyone's experience here would help!
JSavela:
I haven't tried it yet, but I've read in a couple places that people have tied them in a sock and thrown them in with a load of laundry (whites so the balls don't change color). Then just let them air dry.
korisu:
That's the first thing I did, and while the balls are cleaner now, they're still more or less smooth on the surface.
I put together a sandpaper shake can a few minutes ago. Wish I had a paint shaker or something like that. :)
BillV:
The sock / washing machine is a great way to get them good and clean, but then you need some sort of sand paper tumbler / shaker to add the fuzz back to the older balls. I have heard of everything from old clothes dryers lined with sand paper to a coffee can similarly lined and shaken for a few hours. For the coffee can approach I would use 40 grit to get the fastest results. I think 60 is recommended for the clothes dryer for the most "factory" results.
By the way the really new balls, described as the 5 hour tumble by the web sales sites are what are used in major tournaments these days. They hold their texture much longer than the older version even if it is a little different texture.
jinhopark:
The hot washer trick definitely works...although through my experience I found that NOT putting them in a sock got better cleaning results...although made for a louder cleaning experience.
I always envisioned someone using a rock tumbler type setup and putting course sand/rock in their with the balls to get the uniformed textured. More industrialized versions of these:
http://geology.com/rock-tumbler/rotary-rock-tumbler.shtml
I'd be curious how it is actually done though... I've asked a few people who I thought would know and they had no clue, they purchased in the 2.5 and 5 hour tumble versions like the rest of us. I'd also like to know how many times you can tumble a ball before it is worn down too much and deemed inappropriate for play.
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