| Show THE MAKING OF BOWLING BALLS shaping and modeling of the spheres requires great skill and most careful workmanship the popularity of bowling has biown to such an extent in all parts of the united states that the manlutac ture of bowling balls pins and alleys has become an industry which gives employment to thousands of men while the work of constructing the alleys does hot require any great amount of ingenuity it is in the shap leg and modeling ot of bowling balls that great skill and careful workmanship are required bowling balls are made almost ex elusively out of a wood from the west indies and central american countries known as lignum vitae one of the hardest woods known there are sev eral agents in these countries buying up this wood all the year round it is shipped in the rough tor for the factory in chunks about four to six feet in length and varying in diameter from six to twenty inches the logs are put into a specially constructed cylinder and cut into b after which the edges are rounded with a band saw the rough balls are then turned over to expert mechanics who with the aid of turn ing lathes gradually plane ithem down to the required size the balls are then smoothed with a sandpaper turner receive a coat of shellac and oil and are complete with the exception of the finger holes which are frequently bored to meas ure while you wait A similar proc ess Is used in the manufacturing of 0 pins which are turned out of georg a pine and maple blocks tor for the most part these pins being considered the best by reason of their durability and fir eness old balls can be turned down once but after that they are useless the pins do not last as long as the balls and an average of five sets a year are used to an alley the regulation bowling ball weighs about sixteen pounds and Is twenty seven inches in circumference in a set of four teen balls tour four of them are of the regu lation size and ranging from that size down to the smallest size used in the cocked hat game A ball of the regu lation size coat from 3 to 3 50 jut but many extra fine ones are made to order which sell tor for fancy prices |
