First Impressions
Typical Jackal ball, strong hit of an asym with the continuation of a sym.

Tamer Elbaga (Lefty)
Style: Tweener
RPM: 330 rpm
PAP: 5 & 3/8 up
Average Speed: 18.5 mph (at release)
Axis tilt: low
Axis rotation: medium/high
Test Equipment: 14 Pounds
Layout: 50 x 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: 50 x 5 x 45

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: 50 x 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: 42ft, 23ml
Sport: TBD

Specs
The Motiv Jackal Onyx uses the Predator V2 asymmetric core inside the Leverage HXC solid reactive coverstock.

15 pound = RG of 2.47 diff of .054 mb of .015
14 pound = RG of 2.51, diff of .049, mb of .014
Coverstock finish: 1000 grit LSS

Tweener’s Take
We’ve got a new Jackal called the Onyx and it fills the left top part of Motiv’s ball guide. I think that’s perfectly appropriate. The Jackal Ghost is very versatile ball but not the strongest top end ball. So there’s some give and take. That’s where a ball like the Onyx or like the Ambush before it come into play. It uses a diggy Leverage HXC solid coverstock. This ball clearly prefers more closed angles to impart the energy through the pins with how strong the cover is. But it isn’t the kind of ball you feel like you have to try extremely hard to get through the fronts. I’ll say it does feel like a bit too strong for the particular fresh house shot that’s out. I’d prefer to stay more closed but you can see how early it reads sometimes. Then there’s a sweet spot, then very quickly from there you go to flat hits. Not a dig on the ball but it’s the pattern’s shape. Despite that, all testers really felt this was a pretty strong offering which speaks to the nature of the Predator V2 core in general and most balls with the Jackal logo on it. This is definitely the kind of ball you’ll use to blend wet/dry and can make for a very nice sport shot option as well. I had a Jackal Legacy on hand to compare and you can see very clearly, it’s cleaner and a bit sharper downlane as you would expect. Way less diggy at its age than a brand new Onyx.

Power Player’s Persective
Tyler gives you a look into how the Onyx operates with a higher rev, slightly rev dominant style. Although I already mentioned that theoretically this ball is a bit strong for this pattern, it’s blending nature helps it a lot when you have a wet/dry cliff. Tyler of course is deeper than Bryan and I but it had good motion. Between the 3rd and 4th arrow was golden for Tyler. It’s open but not extremely so. Just enough where the Onyx reads and really continues through the pins. When he got to the 4th arrow, you start to see the chink in the armor. It does not store enough energy to open the angles a ton. However, in the zone, Tyler was very comfortable with it. He didn’t feel like he had to try and push it through the spot, i.e., it wasn’t reading extremely early. But the early revving core meant a consistent heavy arcing move back to the pocket. You can also see that if he gets it out too much, it doesn’t really recover. That’s mostly this pattern on these HPL lanes to be frank but the Onyx gave no support from there. Again, not surprising. Tyler also has a quick comparison to the Legacy and you can quickly see it’s cleaner and overall slightly weaker nature.

Stroker’s Stance
I should’ve put in Bryan’s first impressions which were simply, wow! He saw a strong ball that dones’t bleed out all its energy early. It’s 1000 grit so there’s plenty of traction but still created a strong arcing motion. Good shots looked good as you would expect, giving a consistent motion from shot to shot. Misses out didn’t die in the friction, making the move back and still finishing quite strong through the pocket. This gave Bryan a ton of confidence. He could easily continue moving 2 and 1 in and see good strong motion. He did eventually find when he got to the third arrow that coming in a bit behind the headpin was creeping in. But it felt very versatile for Bryan for a strong ball in that within his operating window, it gave him room and forgiveness. It’s a blendy ball that doesn’t hit like a wet noodle. Another quick look with the Jackal Legacy and Bryan sees the same thing, just a bit thinner reaction overall.

Bottom Line
The Motiv Jackal Onyx is a clear Strong ball that I like to put in Strong Defined. However, with the smoothness it imparts, you could potentially drop this into Strong Control but a step up from the Subzero Forge. When you compare them, you will see why I still put the Jackal Onyx in Strong Defined and Subzero in Strong Control. The bottom line is it’s the top of the bag ball when you need the big oil monster while still offering some usability on other patterns that can use some blending.

Thanks for watching.