If you have never seen the inside a golf ball, it may make you question what is in there. Many golf players think that a golf ball is merely a shell that has a hollow centre that assists the ball with flying a long way. There is so much tech which goes into the golf ball and how it works as well as why it does what it does. To make sense of all of this, it is first important to know what a golf ball is made out of and whether or not there are options for different types of materials and golf ball makeups.

What Raw Materials Go Into A Golf Ball?

A golf ball is made up mainly plastic and rubber materials. A two-piece ball comprises a solid rubber core with a sturdy thermoplastic (ionomer resin) cover. The rubber begins as a hard block, which needs to be heated and pressed to form a sphere.

The three-piece ball comprises a smaller solid rubber or liquid-filled centre with rubber thread that is wound around it under stress, and an ionomer or – alternatively – balata rubber cover.

Throughout the 1970s the interior of the ball been further enhanced, thanks to a material called polybutadiene, which is a petroleum-based polymer. Although this material produced more bounce it was also too soft. Research determined that zinc reinforced the material. This type of polybutadiene soon became widely utilised by the rest of the manufacturers.

The Process Of Manufacturing Golf Balls

Three-piece golf balls are more challenging to make and can need more than 80 different manufacturing steps as well as 32 inspections, taking up to 30 days to manufacture one ball. Two-piece balls need about half of these steps and can also be produced in as little as one day.

The process:

1. The centre of the two-piece ball is a moulded core. It is a mix of a number of different ingredients, all of which are chemically reactive to produce a rubber-type compound. After heat and pressure are applied, a core of about 3.75 cm is formed.
2. Injection moulding or compression moulding is used to form the cover and dimples on a two-piece ball utilising a two-piece mould. In injection moulding, the core is centred within a mould cavity by pins. Molten thermoplastic is injected into the dimpled cavity surrounding the core. Heat and pressure cause the cover material to flow to join with the centre forming the dimpled shape and size of the finished ball. As the plastic cools and hardens, the pins are retracted, and the finished balls are removed.

3 With compression moulding, the cover is first injection moulded into two hollow hemispheres. These are positioned around the core, heated, and then pressed together, using a mould which fuses the cover to the core and also forms the dimples. Three-piece balls are all compression moulded since the hot plastic flowing through would distort and probably cause breaks in the rubber threads.

Polishing, painting, and final coating

4 “Flash” or rough spots and the seam on the moulded cover are removed. Two coats of paint are applied to the ball. Each ball sits on two posts, which spins so that the paint is applied uniformly. Spray guns that are automatically controlled are used to apply the paint. Next, the ball is stamped with the logo just like the ones you’d see for game companies when playing real money slots online in Canada. The final step is the application of a clear coat for high sheen and scuff resistance.

Drying and packaging

5 After the paint is applied, the balls are loaded into containers and placed in large dryers. After drying, the balls are ready for packaging in boxes and other containers.