Cheap "alternative" balls?
Allen Knutson
>mistakes (an understatement). Well, while the beanbags are nice and light and
>don't annoy my downstair neighbour, they tend to lose shape a bit all the
>time and this makes throws and catches difficult. I think that most of my
>mistakes are because of this, actually.
If you want cheap things that don't lose their shape, cut open some dead
tennis balls and dump in something cheap to weight them. You only need
to make about a 2 cm cut to be able to dump in the cheapest U.S. coin;
I imagine pennia will do as well. If you like them light, you should
probably only dump in perhaps thirty coins.
Besides adding weight, the coins will usually stop the balls from rolling
under furniture.
It is very important to encircle the balls with tape (about three orthogonal
axes), or else they will gradually split in half.
If you go on to serious numbers juggling (are there any numbers jugglers
in Finland? I only saw one 7-ball juggler in Sweden), you'll find these
too large, but as a 2-week old juggler you needn't worry about that much.
Allen K.
Harri Heinonen
Hello. I've been juggling with three beanbags for about two weeks now and
I've got most of the basic tricks down, although I still make a lot of
mistakes (an understatement). Well, while the beanbags are nice and light and
don't annoy my downstair neighbour, they tend to lose shape a bit all the
time and this makes throws and catches difficult. I think that most of my
easy just feel to slip through on occasion...
I checked out some "real" balls, but they _are_ quite expensive -- thus:
what (cheaper) alternatives would you suggest as for my next balls?
David Covin
>Well, while the beanbags are nice and light and
>don't annoy my downstair neighbour, they tend to lose shape a bit all the
>time and this makes throws and catches difficult. I think that most of my
>mistakes are because of this, actually -- especially catches that are dead
>easy just feel to slip through on occasion...
When you say you're using "beanbags," what do you mean?
The sort of beanbags that people normally juggle are very tightly packed--
not like beanbag chairs or the floppy beanbags one often sees in kids' games.
Fergie bags, for instance, are shaped like balls and will actually roll quite
well.
If you made your own beanbags, you might try making another set (I suggest a
cube shape because it's relatively easy and distinctive) and packing them more
tightly with whatever filler material you use. You also might try using a
smaller-grained filler: millet or rice will pack more tightly than dried beans
or popcorn.
>I checked out some "real" balls, but they _are_ quite expensive -- thus:
>what (cheaper) alternatives would you suggest as for my next balls?
Again, what do you mean by "'real' balls," here? Stage balls or silicones are
expensive; however lacrosse balls or "dog balls" are almost as good and quite
cheap. Go to drug stores and toy stores, and look in the aisles where they
sell cheap kids' games-- jacks and jumpropes and balls. Superballs are just
fine, though they tend to run on the small side.
Hope this helps...
--
David Covin co...@midway.uchicago.edu
B Case 02
co...@cs.uchicago.edu (David Covin) writes:
>If you made your own beanbags, you might try making another set (I
suggest a
>cube shape because it's relatively easy and distinctive) and packing them
>more
>tightly with whatever filler material you use. You also might try using
a
>smaller-grained filler: millet or rice will pack more tightly than dried
>beans
>or popcorn.
I would suggest plastic pellets (if you are willing to buy bulk from a
plastics company), you can make the balls out of courduroy (sp?), add a
layer for lining, and then it is washable, and the plastic pellets are
lighter, but can have the same feel as rice or millet.
†BC
Tomer Moscovich
: I know that some of you must have been in this situation before, so can
: anyone help me out - what should I juggle when I've forgotten my balls.
If it's only a temporary problem, just get a few oranges. I found that
grapefruit are very fun to juggle, but do it over a bed. You'll be
surprised at how much abuse an orange can take. You can drop them
many times, and they'll be ok. even edible.
I once was reduced to juggling 3 Yo-Yos, but they wern't very good.
-Tomer.
Graham Constantine
Apart from the obvious fruit I juggle my Blundstone Boots [of course
borrowing one more from a friend to make up three]. Sometimes it's a
kick in the face but it's better than some audiences I've had.
Cheers
Graham
In article <3155E1...@ee.mu.oz.au>, p.gu...@ee.mu.oz.au says...
>
>Here is a similar problem to the original thread (cheap "alternative
>balls").
>
>When I attended a conference recently, I forgot to pack my juggling
>balls. I usually juggle every day, and felt quite lost without
>something to juggle. I tried balled-up socks, but they weren't the
>right weight, and putting those little sachets of coffee and the milk
>containers in them didn't help much.
>
>I know that some of you must have been in this situation before, so can
>anyone help me out - what should I juggle when I've forgotten my balls.
>(let's keep this clean as well).
>
>Phil
Todd A. Claxton
>
> If you want cheap things that don't lose their shape, cut open some
> dead tennis balls and dump in something cheap to weight them. You
> only need to make about a 2 cm cut to be able to dump in the cheapest
> U.S. coin; I imagine pennia will do as well. If you like them light,
> you should probably only dump in perhaps thirty coins.
>
> Besides adding weight, the coins will usually stop the balls from
> rolling under furniture.
>
> It is very important to encircle the balls with tape (about three
> orthogonal axes), or else they will gradually split in half.
>
> If you go on to serious numbers juggling (are there any numbers
> jugglers in Finland? I only saw one 7-ball juggler in Sweden), you'll
> find these too large, but as a 2-week old juggler you needn't worry
> about that much.
> Allen K.
I agree with Allen about using old tennis balls to make good
inexpensive juggling balls. I make them to use when teaching new people
how to juggle who don't own any props yet. I would suggest that you
experiment a little with different "filler" material to see what gives
you the weight you desire. I fill them with clean kitty litter but have
also used rice or unpopped popcorn. I make a small cut in the tennis
ball and then insert a small funnel into the cut to make it easier to
fill up the ball. I would recommend filling them as full as you can
get them so that they are all the same weight. You can put some glue on
the cut opening to seal them shut. Then, if you want a really good
practice ball, cover them with balloons. Use standard 10" or 12" round
party balloons. You'll need two per ball. Cut off the nozzle of the
balloons. Strecth the first balloon over the ball, stretch the neck of
the balloon out a little and cut it off such that when it snaps back it
is flush with the surface of the ball. Then, stretch the second balloon
over the ball in the opposite direction such that the second balloon
covers the circle left from where the neck was on the first balloon.
When you're done with you will be surprised at the nice rubbery feel of
these practice balls. When the outer balloon gets dirty, torn, or
boring, cover it with another balloon. You can do this same thing with
racquet balls if you prefer a smaller juggling ball. You may need to
use a smaller (8" maybe?) balloon to cover these.
The nice thing is that these are very inexpensive to make, so,
if you lose one, you're not out much. The balls can usually be gotten
for free at most court sports clubs or ask one of your friends who plays
tennis or racquet ball to give you their old balls that have lost their
bounce. Have fun, and good luck with your juggling.
Todd A. Claxton
todd.a....@att.com
Huub Nijs
tne> I know that some of you must have been in this situation before, so can
tne> anyone help me out - what should I juggle when I've forgotten my balls.
Last summer I did some volunteer work in a centre for the elderly. They found
out I could juggle and I had to perform on a show next day. I hadn't brougt
anything to juggle with me. In search for some attributes I found some
tennis-balls, a big yellow foam ball and a few empty wine-bottles (this was
in France). With the hoolahoops the old people use for excercises I could do
some air & ground juggling. Further I used a knive, a broom and a chair for
balancing (No, not all at the same time...). But the idea I was most proud
of, was to ask the cleaning-lady to lend me some new WC-brushes. They are
surprisingly good to juggle and there are some tricks you can't even do with
normal clubs.
Amities, Huub
.sig prefers to juggle paper-rolls over brushes when sitting down.