Filling Tennis Balls
David P. Thomas
Any recommendations on what I can use to fill tennis balls to give
some additional weight.
dave
chicago
--
David P. Thomas
Outlook Technologies, Inc.
312.575.2736
Torbj|rn Andersson
> Any recommendations on what I can use to fill tennis balls to give
> some additional weight.
I filled mine with rice - as much as I could fit into the ball - using
a knife and a small funnel. I didn't seal the cuts so eventually they
started leaking, but it still worked a lot better than I thought it
would.
Torbjörn Andersson
Brett Mckenzie
stamina, but watch where your using them, tiles and other things like that
are not a good idea.
David P. Thomas wrote in message ...
d...@tiac.net.nospam
: Any recommendations on what I can use to fill tennis balls to give
: some additional weight.
Pennies - I didn't seal the hole either.
ejb...@user2.teleport.com
>
>Any recommendations on what I can use to fill tennis balls to give
>some additional weight.
Several methods work. Simplest is using a metal syringe and injecting
water into them. After that is putting a slit in a seam, inserting a
funnel, and adding rice. I like half full (about 3 tbsp), others like
them full. A strip of duct tape or a dab of silicon caulk or Shoe Goo
seals them nicely.
=Eric
dust...@qconline.com
<dth...@outlook.net> wrote:
>
>Any recommendations on what I can use to fill tennis balls to give
>some additional weight.
>
>dave
>chicago
>
>--
>David P. Thomas
>Outlook Technologies, Inc.
>312.575.2736
>
Have tried SEVERAL things for this task.
The cheapest, in terms of time AND money seems to be pennies.
Cut a small slit and slip in 15 pennies (unless you can get them free,
washers etc. cost more than pennies for an equal weight). No leaks
and mess like rice, corn, cat litter, etc. For $.45 you have 3 good
balls (nice weight, no mess, and less likely to roll away).
Dusty
kolle...@my-dejanews.com
"David P. Thomas" <dth...@outlook.net> wrote:
>
> Any recommendations on what I can use to fill tennis balls to give
> some additional weight.
>
> dave
> chicago
>
> --
> David P. Thomas
> Outlook Technologies, Inc.
> 312.575.2736
>
>
a nice funnel -- push the small end into the slit and pop
a kitchen funnel inside the bulb end.
-----------== Posted via Deja News, The Discussion Network ==----------
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d...@tiac.net
: Cut a small slit and slip in 15 pennies (unless you can get them free,
: washers etc. cost more than pennies for an equal weight). No leaks
Or go for 150 a ball and make them exerballs -- about 450 g (~1/4
lb)
Pete Lilja
I put about 50 BB's in some tennis balls and that seemed to be about
right.
Also, many ambulances (in the US, anyway) carry a supply of needles and
syringes. So, if you know a paramedic (or similar in your own neck of
the woods) you may try there...
Pete the Juggling Paramedic
Peter Bier wrote:
>
> David P. Thomas wrote:
>
> > Any recommendations on what I can use to fill tennis balls to give
> > some additional weight.
> >
>
> Use a syringe to inject water. The hole closes up and the balls don't
> leak. Your best bet in getting a couple (get more than one in case the
> needle breaks) would probably be a vet (doctors are less prone to giving
> needles out). If you have a friend who is a doctor they may be able to
> help.
>
> Catch ya
> Peter
Atticus
shove pennies in until the ball self seals.. 2 or 3 dollars i think is the
absolute max you could fill one with.. and that's a pretty heavy ball.
much cheaper than a set of dube exerballs.
atticus
Bill Giduz
Sorry Dusty, but we've got you beat here in this Southern corner of the world.
Several people have talked about filling balls with water via a syringe. I
tried that for a long time and it worked OK. But it's time consuming and
laborious, because you have to pull out the plunger and refill the syringe
several times for each ball. My juggling buddy Wallace Howard put on his
tinkerer's cap and came up with the ULTIMATE SOLUTION for filling balls. He
went to the hardware store and bought some plumbing supplies that he attached
directly to the end of the syringe (and use a big one, ours is 20 cc, with a
big hunker horse needle). The other end of the plumbing screws directly onto
the end of a garden hose. He controls the water flow with a hand-turned valve
right at the syringe. So, you stick an escape needle just under the skin of
the tennis ball, then jam in the injector syringe and turn the valve to get
the water flowing. In about 10 seconds water starts spurting out the escape
needle, so you turn the valve shut, pull out both pieces and move onto the
next one.
I timed myself when we were creating souvenir balls for the Hurricane Hugo
festival and I made 45 water filled balls in just under 15 minutes. I don't
think Wallace has a patent on his system, but he should! He's in the IJA
Roster, give him a call if you want to hear more about it.
--
Bill Giduz
IJA Director of Clubs & Affiliates
Box 443 * Davidson NC 28036
704/892-1296 * bgid...@idt.net (h) * big...@davidson.edu (o)
Giduz Family home page http://www.davidson.edu/administrative/relations/Giduzhp/giduz.html
Participate in World Juggling Day -- June 19, 1999 & June 17, 2000!
http://www.juggle.org/wjd
Peter Bier
Barton Chittenden
> My juggling buddy Wallace Howard put on his
> tinkerer's cap and came up with the ULTIMATE SOLUTION for filling balls. He
> went to the hardware store and bought some plumbing supplies that he attached
> directly to the end of the syringe (and use a big one, ours is 20 cc, with a
> big hunker horse needle). The other end of the plumbing screws directly onto
> the end of a garden hose. He controls the water flow with a hand-turned valve
> right at the syringe. So, you stick an escape needle just under the skin of
> the tennis ball, then jam in the injector syringe and turn the valve to get
> the water flowing. In about 10 seconds water starts spurting out the escape
> needle, so you turn the valve shut, pull out both pieces and move onto the
> next one.
I am much impressed! I have an improvement tho: set up some sort of brace
for holding the tennis balls while you puncture them. I have something
like a cross between a cherry pitter and a drill press in mind. Thus you
could put a tennis ball into the indentation, pull a lever to insert the
injector and escape needles at the same time, then turn the valve.
I suspect that it's probably more work than it's worth, but if you ever
needed to crank out filled tennis balls on a really large scale...
--Barton
\ /~
~ / ====================================================
~ O ~ Barton Chittenden Necessity is the invention
\/|\ ti...@iglou.com of all mothers.
/ \\ ====================================================
/ \~
Jani Ilari Kyllönen
: Several people have talked about filling balls with water via a syringe. I
: tried that for a long time and it worked OK. But it's time consuming and
: laborious, because you have to pull out the plunger and refill the syringe
: several times for each ball.
BZZZT - do not use the syringe - just push the needle in a bit under
the skin. Then put the ball under water and squeeeeze. Let it settle
and squeeze again. When no bubbles come out of the ball, it is full.
jani
Gerald R. Martin
> David P. Thomas wrote:
>
> > Any recommendations on what I can use to fill tennis balls to give
> > some additional weight.
> >
>
> Use a syringe to inject water.[snip]
I once was booked to perform at a bar mitzvah dinner, and was told that
the honoree liked tennis, so I put together a tennis-themed set, and
finally got around to trying to water-fill tennis balls. It's illegal in
Minnesota to sell syringes without a prescription from a doctor, so I
thought I'd try an honest, direct approach. I confidently strode up to the
prescription counter at a large pharmacy, and informed the young clerk
there that I was a juggler in need of a single syringe to enable me to add
ballast to my tennis balls. She responded with a truly magnificent
dumbfounded blank stare, shook her head, and told me to wait. The store
manager responded to her call, and asked me how he could help. I repeated
my requirements, honestly and forthrightly, and, after a briefer (but more
considered) blank stare, said, "All right", and sold me a syringe.
I sure wish I'd known about the horse syringes or the
dunk-the-ball-and-squeeze trick - it took *forever* to fill those suckers
with a dinky little syringe...
-Jerry M.
Michael Mahoney
easier.
David P. Thomas <dth...@outlook.net> wrote in article
<Pine.LNX.4.02.981003...@unique.outlook.net>...
>
> Any recommendations on what I can use to fill tennis balls to give
> some additional weight.
>
Brian Webb
also fly pretty nicely, not wobbely.
I liked the heavier balls because it build up arm strenghth and
endurance.
just a thought
Dutch Driver
I can suggest that you try squirting silicone caulking compound into a
previously made slit to fill the tennis ball. Just remember the balls will
need a day or so to cure and it is easier to add caulk than to substract it.
Overall it is a very quick process.
______________________________
Great Optimism,
Dutch Driver
mailto:AskCh...@yada-yada.com
Katie & John
David P. Thomas wrote in message ...
>
>Any recommendations on what I can use to fill tennis balls to give
>some additional weight.
>
>dave
>chicago
>
>--
washers or bb's. Pennies are allright if you are only going to use the balls
for a little while. Unfortunetly, I found that after a short period, the
pennies were turning into dust from constantly rubbing against each other
and hitting each other when the balls were thrown.
Metal washers I think are excelent, because you can make the balls
identical in weight and pick the size washer that works best. Plus, they
dont fall out, so you don't have to seal the hole.
BB's are ok, but if you drop one of the balls the bb's will fall out . A
friend who did the same thing said that he sealed his with superglue.
I think in all, washers are probably the cheapest alternetive I've come up
with.
Cheap, fast, and easy.
Keep Juggling,
Thumper
Alan Mackenzie
Rot...@hclib.hcl.lib.mo.us says...
>BB's are ok,
That's a Bit Brief isn't it?
Are they Big and Bold?
What is a BB, please?
Alan Mackenzie (Munich, Germany)
Email: ayes...@emmyousee.deeeee; to decode replace "aye" by 'a', "see" by
'c' etc.
MJMSONGS
>What is a BB, please?
A "BB" is the "bullet" for a target gun powered by compressed air or a recoil
spring. The "BB" is normally a very small, round ball, less than an eighth-inch
in diameter, and copper plated. Due to their very small size and composition,
they seem very heavy, almost as heavy as lead shot. They are also very cheap...
Mind you, I've never juggled a BB filled tennis ball, but I'm sure it would
make an excellent "excer-ball", if the opening is properly sealed... Good Luck!
Mark
mjms...@aol.com
http://members.aol.com/mjmsongs/index.htm
o
o
o o
O Always remember: You're unique! Just like everyone else!
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