First Impressions
Motiv appears to have acquitted the Crimson Jackal with a slightly bigger ball.
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Tamer Elbaga (Lefty)
Style: Tweener
RPM: 365 rpm
PAP: 5 1/8 & 3/8 up
Average Speed: 18.5 mph (at release)
Axis tilt: low
Axis rotation: medium/high
Test Equipment: 14 Pounds
Layout: 4 x 20
Tyler Church (Righty)
Style: Power Player
RPM: 425 rpm
PAP: 5 1/2 & 1/2 up
Average Speed: 19 mph (at release)
Axis tilt: med
Axis rotation: medium
Test Equipment: 14 Pounds
Layout: 5 x 45
Bryan Hoffman (Righty)
Style: Stroker
RPM: 280 rpm
PAP: 4 1/2 & 1 1/2 up
Average Speed: 18.5 mph (at release)
Axis tilt: high
Axis rotation: medium
Test Equipment: 14 Pounds
Layout: 5 x 45
“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.”
Pattern
THS: 44ft, 25.8ml, 12:1 ratio
Sport: TBD
Specs
The Motiv Apex Jackal uses the Apex Predator™ asymmetric core inside the new Propulsion™ MXV Pearl Reactive coverstock.
15 pound = RG of 2.52, diff of .055, mb of .020
14 pound = RG of 2.55, diff of .052, mb of .020
Coverstock finish: 5000 Grit LSS
Tweener’s Take
As you may know by now, I am currently in recovery mode from my second hip replacement. When I’m back on my feet, I’ll likely come back and give you my take on the Motiv Apex Jackal. I’m looking forward to testing it myself as the Crimson Jackal is one of my personal favorite shiny asyms.
Power Player’s Perspective
That said, let’s jump into Tyler’s perspective. A little on the new ball, as you probably heard, they amped up the Predator V2 core making it a dual density weightblock. It increases the RG to get a bit more length but also increases the differential to .020. Tyler noticed the stronger asymmetry fairly quickly. The Apex Jackal felt like a fairly strong shiny asym ball. We noticed a relatively sharp and forward motion. I must say this is the most forward we’ve ever seen from any ball with Jackal in its name. This may have been more noticeable due to a couple of factors. Firstly, the pair seemed to be playing with a bit more friction than normal. Second, the cover is pretty quick responding. So the combination of the cover responding sharply plus the high asymmetry seemed to right the core and have it look pretty forward off the end of the pattern. The Apex ultimately felt like a lot of ball for the pattern for Tyler and that extra quick response and core turn created a bit of inconsistency through the pins. If it rolled out, it deflected. If it rolled out high it barreled through the pins. What’s interesting is we tested another ball during the session which was a stronger solid piece but it was a better match up because the solid burned it’s energy a little more smoothly.
Stroker’s Stance
Bryan is up next and the Apex Jackal looked pretty good for him. It didn’t look as forward with his very different roll than Tyler. However, Bryan benefitted from the punchier nature of the quick response and strong core. Generally speaking, if you’ve been following, shiny asyms rarely look great for Bryan. They tend to be not enough cover to read the lane even if the core is big but when the core is big and he needs to give it room, they also rarely make it back because the read is too late. He usually has a good look in a pretty defined narrow window and he can get away with that with his accuracy. But I want to call out the limitations. I’d say the Apex Jackal had a slightly above average look for him in this shiny asym category where he can use the length with the added punch it offers plus a big core for a bit better carry.
Bottom Line
The Apex Jackal is an interesting one. My initial take here is based on only seeing Bryan and Tyler throw it. For someone with Tyler’s style, it had a strong motion but had a bit of inconsistency. Sometimes it looked incredibly strong and forward and at times it kind of deflected making us feel like it might have been a bit too much for the pattern. For Bryan, it was as reasonable a strong shiny asym option could be but it’s generally not a type of ball he keeps in his bag as they don’t tend to be continuous enough for him. I’m really looking forward to taking some time myself and seeing how I feel since I was the one who kept the Crimson Jackal in the bag.