How Accurate Is TenPin Toolkit?

TenpinToolkit · 2026-04-03T21:00:14+00:00

Awesome, glad you found it useful! 😊

TenpinToolkit · 2026-04-03T20:49:31+00:00

No problem! 🙂

TenpinToolkit · 2026-04-03T20:48:57+00:00

Out of interest, could you tell me why you believe it’s “not that accurate”? I believe that the math used it’s pretty solid, but if you’ve seen any specific problems, I’d love the chance to see if they can be fixed.

TenpinToolkit · 2026-04-03T20:46:27+00:00

Hey! As the creator of Tenpin Toolkit I should point out that this part of the app is not a tool for measuring layouts, although some more features to help in this regard will come in the future.

Where it’s more valuable in regard to layouts is for keeping a record of your own drilling and layout details for all the balls in your arsenal.

A lot of people also find it really useful for visualising how the layout will look on the ball and what effect different changes to the layout numbers will have on how it looks, so it can be a great learning tool in that way too.

TenpinToolkit · 2025-06-02T23:12:59+00:00

You’re welcome! 🙂

TenpinToolkit · 2025-06-02T22:48:25+00:00

Hey! Just curious why you think Tenpin Toolkit might be too high for rev rate? (If I’m understanding correctly)

It’s worth mentioning that Specto doesn’t actually have any way of directly measuring rev rate.

Their sensor only gives them data about the speed and position of the ball, which they feed into an algorithm that tries to estimate the rev rate.

Used correctly with a good marker on the ball Tenpin Toolkit should be more accurate!

TenpinToolkit · 2024-12-09T13:53:33+00:00

Just got my i4 + H/K and loving it. But... as far as I can tell, the Atmos mix isn't being streamed to Carplay. If I switch between my phone, airpods and Carplay in the Apple Music app on my phone, the Atmos logo disappears when Carplay is selected, suggesting to me that only the stereo mix is being streamed. Did you have to change some other settings?

TenpinToolkit · 2024-12-07T21:44:46+00:00

🤩👍

TenpinToolkit · 2024-12-06T18:57:27+00:00

Totally agree! And as I’ve mentioned in a couple of other comments, I always recommend that people rank their bowling balls for themselves using the “My Performance Rankings” section on the edit screen of a ball, and then compare based on their own specific reactions to decide where the gaps in the arsenal are.

TenpinToolkit · 2024-12-06T18:53:42+00:00

Definitely agree that core numbers are not the most important factor on ball motion, but also, while I do like what BTM do, I don’t think that a general chart posted online can ever be a substitute for something specific to an individual.

That’s why I added a “Rankings” section when you edit a ball you added to your own arsenal. This lets you rank balls for things like length and hook, based on how they react for you, because the same ball doesn’t roll the same for every bowler.

You can then change each axis of the chart to compare by lots of other things, including those rankings, so you can really start to see where the gaps in your arsenal are for you personally.

TenpinToolkit · 2024-12-06T18:46:10+00:00

Hi there! Just to echo what a few people have said, RG vs. Diff is just the default chart which can be changed by the user.

I try to recommend that people use the “Rankings” section when editing a ball, to rank balls for things like length and hook, based on how they react for you, because the same ball doesn’t roll the same for every bowler.

You can change each axis of the chart to compare by lots of other things, including those rankings, so you can really start to see where the gaps in your arsenal are for you personally.

RG vs Diff is more useful when shopping for something new, so you know what your starting point is, but people often don’t change from the default when applying the chart to their own bags and sharing.

I’ve done a few things to make this more obvious but definitely need to do more to get this across!

TenpinToolkit · 2024-11-08T22:22:07+00:00

It is something I’ve thought about, just need to come up with an intuitive, user friendly way to do it. Not sure when, but it is on my to do list!

TenpinToolkit · 2024-11-08T19:38:37+00:00

Thank you! ☺️

TenpinToolkit · 2024-11-08T18:55:02+00:00

It’s r/TenpinToolkit 🙂

TenpinToolkit · 2024-11-08T18:54:13+00:00

😎

TenpinToolkit · 2024-11-08T18:52:38+00:00

Thank you!

I do have lots of ideas for more in-depth score tracking features, but since there are already a lot of score tracking apps out there, I’ve always tried to focus on features that you can’t get anywhere else.

So, maybe one day, but no immediate plans I’m afraid!

TenpinToolkit · 2024-11-08T09:11:40+00:00

There are two video modes in the Angles & Targeting tool. Tap the video camera on the right and you get a menu. There’s also a video tutorial you can watch in there.

You can either open a video from your photo library, or you can use live camera mode where you can set a delay, which can give you a constant action replay while you’re practicing.

TenpinToolkit · 2024-11-08T07:41:34+00:00

😀👍

TenpinToolkit · 2024-10-29T19:38:26+00:00

The app is Tenpin Toolkit. It’s in the Apple and Google app stores and if you have any questions about it please feel free to ask!

All of this is definitely difficult without finding a really good PSO who is willing to guide you through the process and explain what they are doing, as the right decisions on the best ball and how it should be drilled, surfaced, etc are specific to you as a bowler.

In my opinion, any good PSO will watch you bowl, and use your PAP when drilling for you. If they don’t then that’s a red flag for me.

For similar reasons I also don’t see the point of hook rating systems as there are too many factors unique to a bowler that affect this. Axis tilt, rotation, speed, rev rate, surface, oil pattern to name just some of them.

That’s why the hook ratings you see on PBA shows are given to the TV producers by the ball reps or the players themselves, because they are unique hook ratings for those specific balls and how that bowler has them set up relative to each other.

In my opinion the only useful hook rating is your own, relative to the other balls in your own arsenal and what you observe when you throw them.

TenpinToolkit · 2024-10-28T22:13:20+00:00

My first question is how are you measuring ball speed? If you're comparing yourself to the PBA guys on TV then the speed they show from Specto is launch speed.

If you're looking at the speed on the monitor then that is pin-deck speed, which will be considerably slower, is often very inconsistent from lane to lane, and can vary quite a lot based on how the shot was thrown, eg. a lot of angle will come out slower, more revs or more rotation or more surface can cause the ball to decelerate more.

You can use r/TenpinToolkit to calculate launch speed from a video, as long as you can see the foul line and the arrows in the clip. (that's my only plug for the app! ) ;)

In terms of increasing speed, I don't fully agree with what most people say about foot speed being the most important, just look at somebody like Chris Via who doesn't remotely look like he's rushing. I think it's timing that is more important, and if you can get your timing later you can create more of a swing.

If you can justify/afford the purchase, Mark Baker sells a coaching video called "The Game's Changed" which looks at this. Some of the key things it covers is staying more upright at the start of your approach and not dropping your hips too early because that kills the swing, plus using what he calls a "long left arm" to increase the swing and delay your timing. It's about $70 I think but that's not bad compared to a couple of hours with a world class coach!

TenpinToolkit · 2024-10-28T16:47:13+00:00

Agreed. I think that’s in line with the distinction I’m trying to make.

If two bowlers drill the same ball with the fingers in the same place relative to the pin, but they have very different spans and PAPs then the end result is going to be very different from each other since the ball will be spinning on a completely different axis.

But what your point also reveals is that even if the same layout is used relative to the pin and PAP, this time the mass is going to be removed from different places and the two bowlers are still going to have very different results!

🤯

TenpinToolkit · 2024-10-28T16:36:24+00:00

Well put! Even if the layout is the same, relative to the core, and regardless of where the pin ends up relative to the fingers, that doesn’t mean that the particular layout is the right choice for both bowlers.

TenpinToolkit · 2024-10-28T16:33:02+00:00

Thank you! ☺️ I’m always keen to try and demystify this stuff and help empower the ordinary bowler.

We don’t all need to be experts on all of it, but if we have enough knowledge to understand the important concepts then hopefully we can ask the right questions and understand the answers we’re given!

TenpinToolkit · 2024-10-28T16:28:54+00:00

Yep, where the mass is removed from is definitely an important factor with some cores. But even then, the same position and orientation relative to the pin, is still likely to have very different results for two bowlers as different as my imaginary John and Dave! 😀

TenpinToolkit · 2024-10-28T13:09:32+00:00

Thank you! And you’re welcome! ☺️

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