subject: How to work out the correct croquet ball replacment for you [print this page] How to work out the correct croquet ball replacment for you
If the worst has happened and you have a damaged croquet ball in your set, you do not need to throw out your perfectly good croquet set and start again, even if your set was not that expensive. Replacement balls are very easy to get hold of.
The key things to know before you start to look for the replacements are pretty simple.
First thing to know is if thecroquet setyou own a tournament or competition standard set? If you have this set you should be able to identify the CA (Croquet Association) certification. The balls with in the set should have been approved not just for size (5/8" diameter is the current standard requirement) and weight (16oz ), but also for regulation bounce. These balls are more likely to be composite plastic though there are very rare instances of wooden regulation balls. In the UK there is only one set with the regulation wooden balls currently on sale these are the Townsend Longworth balls.
If you require tournament standard balls as a replacement, I really believe that the best place to source these would be through the Croquet Association.
Knowing the size of your existing balls is a key thing to know prior to starting your search. The easiest way to do this is to weigh one of the undamaged balls. Full sized sets should have balls that are 16oz in weight and most balls of this size are a composite plastic.
Garden croquetsets tend to have 12oz balls and these can be either a painted wooden construction or a composite plastic. 12oz composite balls may not look dissimilar to 16oz composite balls so if you set has composite balls it is a great idea to weigh these as purchasing the wrong weight will put the player at odds with the rest of the game.
If you have a smaller /cheaper set these may come with a lighter weight ball and it is really best that you go for a similar weight though this may be harder to track down and an alternative may be to go for a full set of smaller balls instead, but be warned it is best to go for the lightest balls you can and avoid the full sized balls as your mallets may not be up to the impact.
In short before you go on the hunt get to know what you have Weigh and measure the diameter of the balls. This will help you identify that replacement with ease.
