GOLF-BALL MAKING

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXIII, 22 November 1928, Page 6

GOLF-BALL MAKING

AN EXACT SCIENCE X l!.\\ S AND MERCURY Although few goll'er.i probably n\n lisu it, tho testii.g of it ..oil' ball is .ilic.n.l .in <-\,tcl science, in which X rays find ini'ivurv baths pla\ important parts. When the rubber and liquid core is lilted into ils cover it is placed in a uld an.) pressure of MUOIb In the The core, however, mav not be kviiimetrieal, and (he hali is therefore lloated is a bath of mercury. Immediately the heavy part comes in contact with the 11 nid the ball I urns, swavs for :i second, and then set lies with I lie heavy pari :,i (he bottom. The ball is marked at the poinl where ii is heaviest ami then lested again in .moth,.i- bath of iiiereiirv. Should the same defect be revealed it is X-raved to dolermiim the extent of the flaw in the i ore and the operation necessary to mve it coi reel- balance.

TESTfNC FI.ICIiT OF RALLS

■ A golf ball can be as big as a loolhull, bul it must not lie less than 1.62 in in diameter or weigh more than 1.620 z. In actual process manufacturers make the weight a trifle less mid the size a trifle more, the (inished product, being weighed in the most, delicate balances and measured in micrometer gauges. The flight of balls is tested by means of ;i special mechanical driving machine, which consists of a tripod with a revolving arm into which is fixed a gold drivei'. The ball, says the London ".Daily Mail," is placed on a rubber tee, and, by slighl adjustments of the driver, it can be made to slice, pull or toil a shot. The peculiar markings on a golf ball hold the secret of its (rue flight, and ;in expert can tell whether a ball will carry well simply by looking at the markings. A smooth ball rarely goes straight and tends to ''peak" instead of making a curve, whereas the little indentations and protuberances un the cover give the ball a grip on the air and steady if in ils flight.