The Jackal Rises Again…
First Impressions
At first, I remembered how much I liked the Ghost and I can’t imagine any Jackal being a bad ball. Enter the Rising. It’s an amped up Ghost. It’s more cover. It’s more core. This is one rolly beast. Think super strong Revolt Havoc.
Our Testers:
Tamer Elbaga (Lefty)
RPM: 380 rpm
PAP: 5 & 3/8 up
Average Speed: 18 mph (at release)
Axis tilt: low
Axis rotation: medium
Test Equipment: 14 Pounds
Layout: 65 x 5 x 40
Intent: Slower roll with a quicker transition at the breakpoint
Greg Bickta (Righty)
Style: Cranker
RPM: 450 rpm
PAP: 5 & 1 up
Average Speed: 20 mph (at release)
Axis tilt: medium
Axis rotation: medium
Test Equipment: 15 Pounds
Layout: 75 x 5 x 40
Intent: Later roll with a quicker transition at the breakpoint
Sean Jensen (Righty)
Style: High Rev
RPM: 475 rpm
PAP: 4 3/4; 3/8 up
Average Speed: 20 mph (at release)
Axis tilt: low
Axis rotation: medium
Test Equipment: 14 Pounds
Layout: 65 x 5 x 40
Intent: Slower roll with a quicker transition at the breakpoint
Thanks to Greg Bickta and Perfect Aim Pro Shop for drilling our equipment.
Thanks to Limerick Bowl, Limerick, PA for providing the test lanes.
“Keep in mind that coverstock accounts for 70% of ball reaction, but the core creates the dynamic shape of the reaction. Your driller will alter the shape to suit your game.”
Buy the Motiv Jackal Rising at PerfactAimBowling.com.
Test Patterns:
40ft THS, 26ml
46ft Sport shot, 24.5ml, 3:1
Value: B
This can be tough for high end balls. The Jackal Rising is an aggressive ball that will have limited use to situations that call for this aggression. However, when you need it, you will be glad you had it.
Specs
The Motiv Jackal Rising uses the Predator™ V3 weight block along with a new coverstock known as Coercion™ HV2 Solid. Cover is finished with a 2000-grit LSS pad out of box.
15 pound = RG of 2.47, diff of .055, int diff of .019
14 pound = RG of 2.50, diff of .052, int diff of .018
Overall
THS: B
Sport: A
Where to begin? The Jackal Rising was released with a stronger cover, a more aggressive finish, and stronger core specs than the Jackal Ghost. Motiv was trying to give you max ball and they succeeded. To me, this is what Motiv does really well and it fits exactly where they say it does. The Rising is a super heavy rolly ball. It’s just a lumbering beast. It has a very aggressive 2000 LSS finish which just really allows the ball to be grippy and torquey in the midlane and it smoothly transitions to the pins. It really transitions extremely smoothly but still with a big move. It is like a Revolt Havoc on steroids. When thinking back to our test with the Jackal Ghost, I think the Ghost cover gave it a little more ability to have recovery with huge swing. This Rising is just a bit earlier and smoother.
I start off the test on a house shot. Everything I already indicated is clearly visible in the video. This is a heavy house shot and this ball eats up heavy oil patterns clearly. It’s so smooth, it’s deceptively capable of covering boards. There is a threshold where you can keep the pocket but start to leave flat corners. That’s when you know you’ve reached the limit. I ran into that a bit where I felt like the ball could cover the boards but I just don’t quite have the hand to carry. Even on this heavier pattern, I personally would rather use an aggressive pearl or hybrid cover than a snow tire as house shots can typically benefit from balls that pop more downlane. Quick comparison to the Ghost and you can see that the Rising is definitely a bit earlier and smoother. Again, there are slightly different surface finishes Out of box that may come into play as well.
Greg was next and with his speed, rev rate, and tilt, he killed with this ball. He threw strike after strike as the ball just seemed to match up. He was able to get it naturally down lane with his speed and tilt and the ball still smoothly but heavily rolled through the pins. Now interestingly, it seems that the ball burned in its own line pretty quickly as he started to see a different reaction after the first 10 throws or so. This would be a ball he could easily start with and then drop into something less aggressive once the lanes settle down.
Sean is not typically one for aggressive solid asyms but he was pleasantly surprised by how good the reaction was for him. He could play direct, in, and everything in between. The ball smooths out the midlane and yet has a strong roll. He could keep chasing in with the Jackal Rising. The risk with these balls can be early read that noses up or the flat roll out for plac corners. When comparing to the Ghost, he saw the same as I did. He got a touch more length and a bit more downlane pop.
Sport Shot
On to this 46ft sport shot and I have to say I was instantly in love with the motion. I filmed this straight through. The ball gets through the heads and it churns up hard. However, it had this interesting motion where it looked like it stood up, paused for 3 or 4 extra feet and then made the really strong but smooth motion through the pindeck. Think of it like this. The rising is on a trajectory away from the pins but the hook phase with the aggressive cover is fighting the trajectory. They find this balanced dance for a few feet and then ball takes over. It was a thing of beauty. When comparing to the Ghost, the Rising controlled the midlane better. The Ghost looked a bit lazy in the midlane and downlane compared to the Rising.
For Greg, the Rising was a little more tricky to use on this pattern but he could find a shot. He had to get deep enough to allow the cover to see oil but also had to be much more cognizant of keeping the breakpoint in. Due to his speed and tilt and the length of the pattern, there’s less time for the ball to make it’s turn and this isn’t a flippy ball. However, he was able to find the shot and the Rising was playable for him.
Lastly Sean tests the Rising on this longer sport pattern and he saw similar control like I did but he also saw really good versatility. He could comfortably find a consistent line to the pocket playing pretty direct, way in, and in between. There was a little bit of a zone where he would leave 10 pins but a left or right of that and he was in good shape. No surprise, the Ghost was just as we said previously but still relatively easy to strike with.
Final Thoughts
The Motiv Jackal Rising is a strong addition to the line up. It fits exactly as Motiv says. If you were a fan of the very rolly Revolt Havoc and you still have it, this is a great step up in terms of roll shape. Everyone found something they really liked about this ball. I found it superb on the longer sport pattern. Greg found it very effective on house. Sean had it working everywhere. He rarely looks at strong solids but this one has him rethinking this as a compliment to the Trident Quest and other strong asym pearls.
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