GB1 Pickleball Balls

Over the last year, I have made it a bit of a mission to play with as many kinds of pickleballs as possible as I personally think this tends to be an extremely overlooked piece of equipment. Far too often it seems like players will drop hundreds of dollars on a new paddle or other gear, but then just play with whatever ball is available. This relationship seems backwards as the right investment in a comparatively low cost item can conceivably make a much bigger impact on play than a huge investment in paddle technology. That said, I have been doing my best to objectively evaluate the myriad of balls on the market. Everything from low cost balls to the premium level, and of all the balls I have tried so far these Gearbox GB1s are my absolute favorite.So how do they stack up to the competition and what makes these so great?First, these balls are heavier than most. Not quite as heavy as a Selkirk or a Dura, but heavier than a Vulcan or Franklin, and ranked 6th among the 30 or so balls I have measured to date. In terms of diameter, these balls fell pretty much in the middle of the pack, but when you couple that average diameter with an above average mass, you get a ball that plays great in a breeze.Next, the machining of these balls is definitely top notch. From what I have found, one-piece rotomolded balls usually suffer from inconsistencies due to their manufacturing process. Put simply, not all one piece balls are created equally, and the differences in the molds and rotation used during their manufacture can create inconsistencies in their roundness and wall thickness. That said, these balls are amazingly excellent. Of all the balls I have tried so far, these came out of the box almost perfectly round. For the sake of comparison, the Vulcan VPro...which is the Official Ball of the PPA Tour...and costs 34 cents more per ball...was found to be .2mm out of round while the Gearbox GB1 was 0mm out of round. The walls on the Gearbox ball are also extremely consistent in their thickness. Not absolutely perfect, but at only .2mm of difference between the thickest and thinnest portions of the wall these were definitely among the best one-piece balls I have tried, and were more consistent in their thickness than the Dura, Franklin or Selkirk.Third, these balls have a higher than average material surface area. Almost 91% of the surface of the Gearbox ball is material and not holes. Not as much as the Selkirk ProS1's 93.4%, but easily in the top 10 of all the balls I have tried to date. This higher material surface area yields two great benefits - greater receptivity for spin and more consistent bounces.Speaking of bounce, these balls are lively! They ranked in the top five for bounce. The material is pretty dense, and the Gearbox balls I received had a greater density than the Dura, Franklin, Selkirk or Vulcan balls I tested. They are also harder than most balls I tested, and are harder than a Dura, Franklin or Vulcan but not quite as hard as the Selkirks.In terms of durability, these balls have held up very well over multiple sessions of play. No breaks. No warping.And last...they are fun! They offer great pop off the paddle, consistent and predictable bounces, play well in the wind, while still being controllable.All in all...MY FAVORITE PICKLEBALLS BY FAR!!!!Second,

Better than franklin x40 and selkirk balls. These work great for 4.5 level and up. They are especially good in warmer weather where the Franklin becomes mush and it is hard to put away. Selkirk s1 balls just suck and they should give up and stick to making paddles. Gearbox balls maintain a good bounce and are a good value because they hold up well and don't warp or crack too quickly.

FINALLY - A REPLACEMENT TO THE DURA THAT HOLDS UP WELL!We play in a 4.0/4.5+ group with some local Sr Pros mixed in. We used to be 100% DURA ONLY, but as PPA and others have sold out to lower quality balls in a chase for sponsorship money, people keep showing up with Franklins, SLKs, etc. They all play slower, and softer than the DURA, and it turns the game into a mush ball festival.The problem with the DURA is it doesn't hold up well. In the spring / summer heat, they last maybe 6 - 12 games before we get star cracks developing around the holes.We started testing the GB1 balls this winter playing in Hawaii in the 80 degree heat and they were fantastic. Our test group included some exceptionally hard hitting players (former NCAA Div 1 Tennis players,, 5.5 rated ex-tennis players, two former pro racquetball players, etc.). The play group can truly hit hard. The GB1s were lasting 8 - 12+ hours of play in that group. We could use them for 3 - 4 days.They play consistently, they feel fast & light like a DURA, and don't decay into mush like the "softer balls" that social rec players like to use.

These balls have been a real good surprise. They have great spin and seem to be very durable. I have not cracked one yet!! They have gone out of around after a few days of playing with them. But, a lot games, drilling drives and punch returns.

These seem to play more similarly to Dura Fast 40 balls than Franklin balls, which are the two most popular in my area. They play somewhat similarly to Selkirk S1 but without the quickly going out of round issue those balls have. They are just a little less poppy that Dura Fast 40, so if you have Franklin die-hards you might still get them to play with it.I haven't had any issues with early cracking before the point when you should be retiring the ball anyway. I also do not live in a cold area. I don't like to play with balls past 8-10 or so games due to how balls lose their life (similar to tennis balls). They usually go on to ball heaven, or hell, depending on how they played for me.

I've played with X40's, Selkirk S1Pro, Dura's, and other lesser know brands of pickleball. This is the ONLY ball that cracked after 4 games. Not good.

4.0 banger-player and instructor, so need a bucket of balls. I like how these balls play, nice bounce, better than Franklins; harder to break, but not indestructible. Not cheap, but seems any brand is getting more expensive these days.

I didn't by them for pickleball, but as an exercise in therapy. Excellent quality.