50 Hook 14.5 Length 14.5 Breakpoint Shape

Core Design: The Quadfire symmetric core has a medium-high RG of 2.55 and a 5” flare potential Diff reading of .043. The shape encourages length, yet revs up rather easily.

Coverstock: This is Motiv’s second hybrid cover formula; the first was the Cruel C51 (September 2010). The MotivatorZ hybrid is colored in black with fire (orange) pearl. Response time was moderately quick off drier boards, yet was limited in oil. Factory finish is 2000 sanded with Gel polish.

Manufacturer’s Intent: “The new Motiv Backdraft QZ2 has the proven Quadfire core and a new MOTIVator-Z Reactive Hybrid coverstock. The result is a slightly earlier read than the previous Black and Blue Pearl QZ2, but with the same strong back-end motion on light to medium oil.“ Thanks to Motiv Bowling’s Scott Hewitt for the information.

Test Results: In its short history, Motiv has been known for producing products which handle oil transitions with ease. The Backdraft continues this tradition. The ball is controllable with a smooth breakpoint shape, almost regardless of layout choice. We drilled them with a 3” pin above, a 4” pin below and a 5” pin above. The 3 and 4” balls hooked the most and had the smoothest down-lane motion. The 5” pin had two boards less hook, but was the most angular off the spot. All three balls revved up quickly despite the higher RG core design, which we found true for all Quadfire balls.

When to Use: The core and cover match-up suggests use on light to medium volume oil patterns, and we found nothing to suggest the contrary. The Backdraft is a true benchmark-type design, and displayed no skid/flip motions on any test pattern. Heavier oil volume got the better of all three test ball layouts, even with sandings down to 1000 grit. The recently tested Cruel series is the obvious choice when in a heavy oil environment. Our best looks came when straddling the oil line and using a more forward roll/release style, playing angles right of board 12 or so. When venturing deeper inside, we had great looks using our regular release styles, which typically produce rotation of 50 to 90 degrees.