Ballselector.com

The Ebonite Vital Sign breaks the mold on previous Ebonite upper-mid priced products. Ebonite has designed a new core, that is asymmetrical, with a Flexol Super Plus veneer. The result is an extremely versatile ball, for all styles of play.

The Vital Sign has a pretty low RG with a medium high differential, it definitely needs some oil on the heads and has a very short and quick transition.

As always, we test all balls on 2 different patterns, the first being the typical house shot, and the second on the PBA Shark pattern. The shark pattern is a long 43ft and has to be played deep inside.

Ball Test - House Pattern 40'

The Vital Sign is really a good versatile ball on the typical house shot, especially during league play when the right side of the lane burns up. You can pretty much get deeper than everyone else and not worry about throwing it through the breakpoint. The quick transition makes the ball stand up quickly and turn to the pocket pretty aggressively.

Out of the box, the Vital Sign comes with an 800 grit finish. If you have any kind of hand, you will have to polish it up.
The Vital Sign is a great ball to play deep with. How easy it gets through the heads is dependant on the surface. Too dull and it will hook and roll-out, too much shine, and you’ll need a dry patch to make it stand up. But once you find the right surface, the ball has a great reaction and allows you to use it for a longer period of time during your league.  On the typical house pattern, I lined up playing deep, crossing 20, and swinging it out to 10, all I did to my surface was add alittle bit of polish, giving it that dull, light-shine look. I was able to get it through the heads with good speed, and it skated right to the breakpoint and turned over quickly.

Ball Test – PBA Shark Pattern

The Shark Pattern is a very long pattern, that forces players to play deep on the lane, and demands a premium on execution and repetition. The scoring pace is considered medium.

Since the Vital Sign seems most at home deep inside the lane, I figured this would be a great sport pattern for the test. With the ball brought back to its 800 matte surface, I started out playing 30-12 with the ball which is a lot deeper than I would normally start. This ball actually had an awesome recovery even from that deep. Make no mistake, this pattern is tough, but I had a really consistent reaction playing unusually deep. The ball never quit and gives you confident to keep the speed up, even though it seems your way to deep.

When to Use this Ball

This is a great ball when you have to get deep and swing a lot. On a house shot, you can cover the whole lane and still get substantial backend.

The drawback is that this ball needs oil, and alot of it. If your breakpoint is REALLY dry, and the surface too dull, the ball will roll-out at the breakpoint.

Conclusion

With the Vital Sign, Ebonite has added a heavy hitter to their line. If you ever come across long patterns, or heavy oil, the Vital Sign will be your savior.

I would be interested in hearing other comments if you have this ball, what you like and dislike. Login and Comment below!