# Rubber Band Ball Maintenance **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 22, 2010, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rubber-band-ball-maintenance/530043 "2010-02-22T22:38:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Meeko](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e495f1/32.png) [@Meeko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Meeko)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2010, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rubber-band-ball-maintenance/530043/1 "2010-02-22T22:38:36Z")
The weekend before Valentines Day in 2006 [Possibly 2007] I started building a rubber band ball. It was more or less spur of the moment, as I was just playing with a few bands. I made the ball myself, from scratch, so I know it is 100% rubber bands. I built it up to the size of a Softball, perhaps slightly larger. It measures about four and half inches in diameter. I stopped working on it, and put it on display. I just caught a glimpse of it today, and a considerable number of the bands on the outside layer have popped or broken. In short, my ball needs a hair cut. The bands look old and over stretched. What is the right move here for the integrity of the ball ? Do all rubber bands have a 4 year life expectancy? ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2010, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rubber-band-ball-maintenance/530043/2 "2010-02-22T23:10:34Z")
The only advice I can give is to keep it out of direct sunlight. Humidity probably also plays a part, but I don’t know if you want high humidity or low. ---
**Author:** ![Meeko](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e495f1/32.png) [@Meeko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Meeko)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2010, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rubber-band-ball-maintenance/530043/3 "2010-02-22T23:16:51Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > The only advice I can give is to keep it out of direct sunlight. Humidity probably also plays a part, but I don’t know if you want high humidity or low. :eek: Of all the people to respond to this. Wow. I would pay money to see how much in common us Mafia folk actually have. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2010, 11:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rubber-band-ball-maintenance/530043/4 "2010-02-22T23:21:18Z")
CULT OF MAFIA, **Meeko**. It’s weird but whenever I notice another mafia player, I can’t resist the urge to kind of nod. One of us, man. I also thought it was a really awesome, surreal topic, mafia aside. I love the phrase “integrity of the ball.” ---
**Author:** ![fiddlesticks](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiddlesticks/32/18129_2.png) [@fiddlesticks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fiddlesticks)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2010, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rubber-band-ball-maintenance/530043/5 "2010-02-22T23:23:22Z")
[My rubber band ball](http://www.flickr.com/photos/27108728@N07/2532382939/). Born around 1986 or 87 or so. Yes, rubber bands do get brittle with old age. I think the constant stretching such as when they are on a ball weakens them faster than a rubber band left untensioned in a drawer. Keep applying “fresh” ones regularly and you never see the frail and tattered old ones. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2010, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rubber-band-ball-maintenance/530043/6 "2010-02-22T23:27:22Z")
My rubberband ball (about the size of a basketball, estimated to have 10,000-12,000 rubberbands on it) doesn’t have any problems with the current outer layer. A few years ago, every once in a while one would snap and fly across the room, but I’ve found that as long as you put a fresh layer on from time to time there’s no problems with it. ---
**Author:** ![Meeko](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e495f1/32.png) [@Meeko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Meeko)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2010, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rubber-band-ball-maintenance/530043/7 "2010-02-23T01:37:41Z")
Yeah. I searched the only bag of bands I had in house for wider bands… put them on, and then just snapped the edges off. ---
**Author:** ![Isamu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/7c8e57/32.png) [@Isamu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Isamu)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2010, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rubber-band-ball-maintenance/530043/8 "2010-02-23T02:01:43Z")
Do not taunt rubber band ball. ---
**Author:** ![Meeko](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e495f1/32.png) [@Meeko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Meeko)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2010, 4:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rubber-band-ball-maintenance/530043/9 "2010-02-23T04:02:16Z")
> [@Isamu](#): > > Do not taunt rubber band ball. This actually came up with my parents this past weekend. My mom was wooshed. ---
**Author:** ![Methyl\_Ethyl\_Death](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Methyl\_Ethyl\_Death](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Methyl_Ethyl_Death)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2010, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rubber-band-ball-maintenance/530043/10 "2010-02-23T19:58:54Z")
I started one in '97. It’s bowling ball size and in need of a fresh layer. I just came in here to echo what **Chronos** , **Joey P** , and **fiddlesticks** said. Best of luck. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2010, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rubber-band-ball-maintenance/530043/11 "2010-02-23T20:02:27Z")
> [@](#): > > Do not taunt rubber band ball. But do taut rubber band ball, or it’ll fall apart. ---
**Author:** ![Jimmy\_Chitwood](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f475e1/32.png) [@Jimmy\_Chitwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jimmy_Chitwood)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2010, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rubber-band-ball-maintenance/530043/12 "2010-02-23T20:52:08Z")
And don’t tout it until it gets at least the size of a volleyball. Or so I was taught. ---
**Author:** ![Ichini\_Sanshigo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/d9b06d/32.png) [@Ichini\_Sanshigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ichini_Sanshigo)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2010, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rubber-band-ball-maintenance/530043/13 "2010-02-23T21:21:42Z")
> [@fiddlesticks](#): > > [My rubber band ball](http://www.flickr.com/photos/27108728@N07/2532382939/). Woah. And just how often do you add layers to the ball? Weekly? Monthly? ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2010, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rubber-band-ball-maintenance/530043/14 "2010-02-23T21:25:26Z")
> [@Meeko](#): > > … a considerable number of the bands on the outside layer have popped or broken. The battle of the bands. So many rubbers, so little twine. ---
**Author:** ![fiddlesticks](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiddlesticks/32/18129_2.png) [@fiddlesticks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fiddlesticks)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2010, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rubber-band-ball-maintenance/530043/15 "2010-02-23T21:54:14Z")
> [@Ichini\_Sanshigo](#): > > Woah. > > And just how often do you add layers to the ball? Weekly? Monthly? Its hardly the basketball size boasted by Joey P. Right now its somewhere in the continuum between a softball and a volleyball. 🙂 When that picture was taken, the last time I had put some rubber bands on it was probably a few months prior. It still pretty much looks like that today. These days I don’t add rubber bands all too often…in days gone by, my mother saved every rubber band that came into her presence for the ball…most of the rubber bands in the ball are from her. 🙂 These days I only seek out a bag of new rubber bands if the outer layer is looking bad. I don’t get a free rubber band with my daily newspaper anymore. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2010, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rubber-band-ball-maintenance/530043/16 "2010-02-23T22:14:41Z")
Would it help to massage your balls periodically with oil? ---
**Author:** ![tr0psn4j](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/958977/32.png) [@tr0psn4j](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tr0psn4j)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2010, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rubber-band-ball-maintenance/530043/17 "2010-02-23T23:14:07Z")
> [@Tom\_Tildrum](#): > > Would it help to massage your balls periodically with oil? I think he only has one! 😉 ---
**Author:** ![parthenokinesis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/cc9497/32.png) [@parthenokinesis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/parthenokinesis)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2010, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rubber-band-ball-maintenance/530043/18 "2010-02-24T01:04:15Z")
> [@tr0psn4j](#): > > I think he only has one! 😉 Singing _ **Meeko** , has only got one ball…_ ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2010, 1:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rubber-band-ball-maintenance/530043/19 "2010-02-24T01:33:06Z")
> [@fiddlesticks](#): > > Its hardly the basketball size boasted by Joey P. Right now its somewhere in the continuum between a softball and a volleyball. 🙂 When that picture was taken, the last time I had put some rubber bands on it was probably a few months prior. It still pretty much looks like that today. These days I don’t add rubber bands all too often…in days gone by, my mother saved every rubber band that came into her presence for the ball…most of the rubber bands in the ball are from her. 🙂 These days I only seek out a bag of new rubber bands if the outer layer is looking bad. I don’t get a free rubber band with my daily newspaper anymore. ☹ Here’s mine. The picture really doesn’t do it justice like this, I just wanted to show how much it weighed. [http://i44.photobucket.com/albums/f44/JoeyJoeyPP/2010-02-23\_192653.jpg](http://i44.photobucket.com/albums/f44/JoeyJoeyPP/2010-02-23_192653.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Methyl\_Ethyl\_Death](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Methyl\_Ethyl\_Death](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Methyl_Ethyl_Death)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2010, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rubber-band-ball-maintenance/530043/20 "2010-02-24T03:27:46Z")
**fiddlesticks** , your rubber band ball is beautiful. Where did you get those wide purple and blue bands? Your’s is the same size as mine and I need to add a fresh layer. Adding wider rubber bands like on your’s would make the task less time consuming. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rubber-band-ball-maintenance/530043.md?page=2)