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| 04 May 2008 03:53:33 |
| malicioussmurf |
| Merits of various balls? |
Hi. I'm an amateur juggler (and newbie to this forum) working on juggling a 5 ball cascade. Unfortunately, my collection of juggling balls was recently destroyed (let's not go into that), and now I need to buy new balls. My previous set was pretty god-awful, and I have decided to spring for a nice, pricey set instead. My question: I assume there is some sort of guide for this already written, but what are the relative merits of various types of balls, esp. considering what I need them for. Could someone either provide me with a link (I have searched and am unable to find any information), or describe for me what the difference between suede, vinyl, silicone, filled, etc? Thanks in advance. -- ----== posted via www.jugglingdb.com ==---- |
| 04 May 2008 04:53:43 |
| Schuyler |
| Re: Merits of various balls? |
malicioussmurf wrote: > > Hi. I'm an amateur juggler (and newbie to this forum) working on juggling > a 5 ball cascade. Unfortunately, my collection of juggling balls was > recently destroyed (let's not go into that), and now I need to buy new > balls. My previous set was pretty god-awful, and I have decided to spring > for a nice, pricey set instead. > > My question: > I assume there is some sort of guide for this already written, but what > are the relative merits of various types of balls, esp. considering what I > need them for. > > Could someone either provide me with a link (I have searched and am unable > to find any information), or describe for me what the difference between > suede, vinyl, silicone, filled, etc? > > Thanks in advance. > Sadly, it's all about personal preference. Some people like the squishy feel of beanbags, while people like me prefer something nice and solid and hard. Some people like light props, others prefer something with a bit of heft to it. Really you just need to play around with different things until you find what you like. Silicone balls have amazing bounce, and a good texture, but aside from that I don't personally see what's so special about them. Filled balls (Russians)are about a third full of sand to steady them in the air (presumably) and to keep them from rolling when they drop. My recommendation is to get a bunch of road hockey balls for a dollar. They're light and big, and they don't bounce. If you don't like the light, fill them a third of the way with sand and see if that's better. If you want to try bouncing find some racket balls or lacross balls. Play around and find what you like before really committing money. -- ----== posted via www.jugglingdb.com ==---- |
| 04 May 2008 09:00:55 |
| PinkNigel |
| Re: Merits of various balls? |
Schuyler wrote: >. Silicone balls have amazing bounce, and a > good texture, but aside from that I don't personally see what's so special > about them. Highly visual and extremely easy to keep clean (and thus look professional while using) perhaps? (And quite a workout with more than three, and a complete pain to go chasing after following a collision...) Best bet is to go to a juggling store/festival with traders/local group and play with as many different balls as you can... -- ----== posted via www.jugglingdb.com ==---- |
| 04 May 2008 10:05:16 |
| Harm1 |
| Re: Merits of various balls? |
malicioussmurf wrote: > Could someone either provide me with a link (I have searched and am unable > to find any information), or describe for me what the difference between > suede, vinyl, silicone, filled, etc? Silicones: Easy to clean, professional look, great for bouncing on many different surfaces, not that bad for contact, nice feel, quite pricey. If you're not into bounce juggling I'd suggest you don't go for silicones (unless you like the thought of spending more time chasing balls then juggling them). Russians: Very cheap, take a little getting used to, great for stalls and catches on neck, feet etc., will not roll away when dropped. You might wanna try them, if it turns out you don't like them you have only spent very little money. Beanbags: Come in many different colours/styles/sizes. Good for toss juggling. There's large differences in quality, amongst others g-ballz and sportco make decent quality beanbags. I'd suggest you go for a hard to get dirty/easy to clean material like ultraleather (I think suede would be easy to clean to but I'm not sure). Underfilled beanbags: Same as normal beanbags, but a lot better for stalls and multiplexes. If you love multiplexing, go for these. DX/MX/MMX Look more profesional then beanbags, roll a little when dropped but not that much. Tend to get dirty but are not that hard to clean. So, I hope this gives you a basic idea of the differences between different kinds of balls. Please don't look at it as 'the ultimate guide for choosing props' cause a lot of it is up to personal taste. Therefore the best way to decide on new balls is to try before you buy. Good luck deciding! Harm -- ----== posted via www.jugglingdb.com ==---- |
| 04 May 2008 11:33:31 |
| Luke Burrage |
| Re: Merits of various balls? |
> My question: > I assume there is some sort of guide for this already written, but what > are the relative merits of various types of balls, esp. considering what I > need them for. > We went into this topic in a LOT of detail on the juggling podcast. Instead of going through ball by ball, we set up a situation or type of juggling and said what ball was best for that. Check it out: http://lukeburrage.com/audio/Juggling%20Podcast%2025%20-%20Juggling%20Balls.mp3 Have fun, Luke -- ----== posted via www.jugglingdb.com ==---- |
| 04 May 2008 13:47:30 |
| malicioussmurf |
| Re: Merits of various balls? |
Thanks for the help :) -- ----== posted via www.jugglingdb.com ==---- |
| 04 May 2008 14:49:12 |
| danielcoyne |
| Re: Merits of various balls? |
What everyone has said here is true. I, however will go out on a limb, and make a specific recommendation because having been in similar quandaries myself over the years, I suspect that what would be most helpful is someone just telling you what to buy. So, ready? Get 5 medium or large size sportco bean bags from Sport Juggling: http://www.sportjugglingco.com/us-orders.html I think gballz are comparable, but I haven't used them, so I'm going with Sportco. Reasoning: you want a nice, pricey set to start working on 5 with. These are them. (Actually, not too pricey.) I have a set of the large sportco bags in white, and everyone from absolute beginners to life-long pros loves them. (Even Viktor Kee who uses Russian balls, enjoyed practicing with them for a while.) They have held up well for almost a year of pretty heavy use, both inside and out, over grass, pavement, gym floors, etc. If you stay with juggling, you will try, buy, love, hate, many different sets of props over the years. Don't feel like you have to buy the ultimate perfect forever-set right now. That being said, I can't imagine that you wouldn't be pleased with these bean bags. I may get some flack for not touting the benefits and drawbacks of every type and brand of juggling ball. But if you met me at a juggling club, asked me for a recommendation, that's what I would advise. Let me know what you end up with and how it goes! Also, keep us posted on your 5-ball practice. I found this method of practice to be very helpful (start at the Maniac Drew reply): http://www.jugglingdb.com/news/thread.php?group=1&offset=0&thread=161769&id=177253 Good luck! -Dan -- ----== posted via www.jugglingdb.com ==---- |