Michael Cousins Bowling Blog
Hammer Black Widow Bowling Ball Lineage – The Famous Gas Mask Core
The Hammer Black Widow’s Might Be The Most Iconic Bowling Ball Ever
[addthis tool=”addthis_inline_share_toolbox”]Last week we looked at the most iconic Quantums ever made, in honor of the release of the new Quantum Bias. So, for this week, we’ll be looking at another iconic ball: the Black Widow.
In case you were unaware, the newest Black Widow was just released: the Black and Gold.
And in honor of it, I wanted to take a look back at some of the best and most iconic balls to ever have the Gas Mask core in it.
Hammer Big Blue — the ball that introduced us to the iconic Gas mask core had to make this list. At the time, this ball was revolutionary. And it is amongst my personal favorite Hammer balls ever made. While the Widows are the balls most commonly associated with the Gas Mask, it was actually the Big Blue line that started it all.
Hammer Black Widow (OG) — those of you that were bowling at the time of this ball’s release will remember just how much hype surrounded it. It was truly one of the most iconic and hyped balls of all-time. And for good reason. It’s overall performance and success spoke for itself.
Hammer Taboo — much like with the Big Blue, though many times it seems forgotten nowadays, the Taboo line also featured the iconic Gas Mask core. And the first one, like its predecessors, was a hit. When this ball released, it had a ton of success. From league to the PBA tour, these balls were everywhere. Bowlers of all skill levels found success with this ball and it continued on the Gas Mask’s storied tradition.
Hammer Big Deal — though it isn’t remembered as fondly as the others on this list, the Big Deal did, in fact, feature the Gas Mask core. And while the success this ball had may not have been as universally or historically remembered, this ball was no slouch. It shared many characteristics — most notably the flare — that all of these balls share.
These are, of course, just three of the many great balls that featured a variance of the legendary Gas Mask core. I could go on and on naming and listing balls. And, sure, I could have just posted four Black Widows, but I wanted to enlighten people that, while today the core is most notably associated with the Widow line, its lineage is much deeper. #FBF
Did we forget your favorite Gas Mask ball? If so, tell us below what it was and why it was your favorite.
