Why Interchangeable Thumbs Are Better

As someone who was a late adopter to this technology, I can tell you that after two years of using it, it's absolutely the way to go if you're bowling often and want to compete. I wish I would have taken this step far sooner in my bowling game. There are a few reasons people don't take the leap to use interchangeable thumbs. The ones I hear most often are:

#1 - Cost

#2 - I tried those before and they broke

#3 - I don't really know much about those, so I'll stick with what I've got

In my opinion, reason #1 is easy to address. At Total Bowling Gear, we charge $20 for the outer sleeve, and $20 for the inner sleeve. In comparison, we charge $15 to install a Turbo thumb solid/slug. In the end, each ball will cost $5 more to have a Switch Grip versus a standard Slug (once you have paid for the inner sleeve). The cost of the inner sleeve is easily covered by the cost of tape that you'll use over time. If you're a competitive bowler who uses a fair amount of tape throughout the year, the interchangeable thumbs are by far the most economical solution.

In response to #2, they really don't do that any longer. Some of the early versions of these products were less durable and did break in rare circumstances. But that really is non-existent at this point. You can use these products with confidence.

If you don't know much about them, here's the best things about interchangeable thumbs. First and most important to me as a bowler, I can drill different sizes of inner thumb sleeves, and account for swelling/shrinkage in my thumb. We've all had those days on the lanes where your thumb feels like it won't even go in the ball (usually in the mornings). Wouldn't it be nice to simply switch out your thumb insert for a larger size? Interchangeable thumbs allow for that.

Second, interchangeable thumbs allow you to try new things without changing anything in your ball. For example, if you'd like to try a small span change, you can do that with a new inner sleeve and a re-positioned thumb hole. You can do the same thing with thumb pitches as well. Interchangeable thumbs make it really nice when you want to try something new in your grip. I'm actually doing this myself tonight with an 1/8" longer span!

Finally, and best of all, interchangeable thumbs give you the same feel from ball to ball. You don't have to worry about the feel of the thumb hole changing when you go to pick up a new ball. No matter how precise we are, there are subtle differences in thumb holes at times. Things like texture, bevel, and overall size can all vary slightly from ball to ball. Having one thumb that you move from ball to ball eliminates all of this inconsistency.

If you're interested in learning more about interchangeable thumbs for your bowling balls, email us today at totalbowlinggear@gmail.com, or call us at 913-258-8333.