Will The True Tweakers Please Stand UP
 

I'v Been Hearing So Much About Tweaking(tweak for speed,tweak for power)It Would Be Realy Helpful If Someone One Could Explain The Defferance Between The Two(science) & The Reasons Why + How. I'm Trying To Build 45 Chiefs,I'm Serious About My Tribe.I Have Plenty Of Bases Waiting To Be Born,But I Want To Be The Daddy.

Hi 2badjim,

Greetings to you my friend. I hope you are doing well.

Unfortunately I am not one of your better tweakers. If you are looking for power then try Geno H or Norbert Revels. As for speed try JIMBO, Kelvin Lomax aka Coach K-Lo, or Don Smith aka Old School. By the way always get bases tweaked to loop left and right as well.

Have a good day and feel free to ask any additional questions.

Coach J

check out the BuzzBall Youtubes
 

I have some tips on tweakin' for speed and the video shows you, many of our customers have told us how much it has helped them...:)

differences of note
 

tweaking is an art; a science; a kraft; a passion and above all the last thing that was discovered to advance the game from the orginators "out-of-the-bag" design.

With that being said, you can understand some of the difference in what is being tweaked and why......

For a newcoach starting his quest, you need to obtain some old transscripts about tweaking for you to get the basic skill set down....

...as you start to tweak a base, I will give you this advice:"start out slow and test the base after each 'attempt' at improving the base. By doing this, you will gain more understanding about the tweaking process thru this trail and error... trust me, there will be some errors you will lose some bases to the training level. That is okay, we all have and still do lose some to the process. As long as you are understanding what happens you will learn from it and be better for the them.

.... Strong vs. Fast

Everyone has "their" way of gaining the strong and the fast from the millons of raw bases out there. Most will not show you exactly what they do for fear of losing potential buyers of their stuff. I lost buyer a long time ago when it first became THE NEW THING so some concepts are available for teh beginner.

Team building, just using the "STONG vs FAST" ideal, you should decide if you want a running team or a passing team on offense. your O-Line will be the building blocks for all that your offense will be able to do. You don't have to start here, but they must be the strongest players possible.

fast is for all the skill positions on the field. Your RB, CB, WR, TE, LB, SS all need to have speed and quickness. Of course you have specialist that handle some special plays or provide blitz packages, etc.

OF all the positions on the field, RB and LB are the most active of all the players. You have your best bases on these guys because the are the main playmakers. Look at most games and you will either get a RB in space and BOOM - he makes some house-music... or on Defense, the OLB aka LOOPER streaks past a FB and OT to smash up a QB waiting for a WR to get open.

as for player choices here are some guideline to help build some of your team.

RB - they can be on any base. Should have at least 4-6 on your 45 man team.
1- for speed to run straight down the hashmarks for over 100 yds
2 - one to loop from left to right with an arc of 80-100 yds; one to do the same on the other side. This give the offense 2 backs that if they get to the outside will score from 80yds (line of scrimmage the 20yd).
2 - strong power runners - one fast but strong; the other not as fast but strong enough to push the pile.
1 - FB that has moderate speed and power. he can go both sides (L or R) and is the main lead blocker. But also good as a receiver out of the backfield.


LB - you will need 6-8 of them depending on your style (4-3 vs 3-4)

2 - MLB - one for run stopping and one for pass coverage. Both need to be fast and straight. I like TTC on this player so it can be used in a lot of my defensive schemes.

4 - OLB - 2 on the left; 2 on the right - with one being very fast the other being versatile to be both a run stopper and a pass coverage LB.

Hope this helps you get started.........

K-LO

Thanks For Putting Me On The Right Track,Lets See If I Can Put The Tribe In Attack Mode.

.
 

jIM- this might confuse you, or help you now, or in the future mgngcrz but....
K-LO!!!!
In your opinion, under most rule sets, can you have two different players in the same exact pose, number and name, who run lets say, the sweep left and the other, sweep right? this would confuse the opponent coach (atleast initially) into wondering how this "individual" can run sweeps to both sides.
ESPECIALLY IF HE IS ON A ROOKIE BASE.

you can do this (same player # on different figures/bases on the same team) and it will be cool, but after a couple of runs - the word would get out. I think in order to make this a success, you would have to make that player completely the same except for the base direction. you would need to usethe same base type for each of the same player.

My preference is to use different players altogether. For example, if I was using the Cowboy - no hate mail please it is only an example - and had an all time team, why wouldn't you have a Dorsett that does what Dorsett does...and have a M. Barber do what he does; and a E.Smith that does something different from both of them; then a R.Newhouse would block but can be used as a option QB on the trick play...etc

It's more fun for me to have a guy come off the bench and be the man for one game but team-wise he might be the 3rd or 4th RB off teh bench.

A COWBOY...WHAT THE......ONLY KIDDING :rtfl: :rtfl: :rtfl: POST ON BROS....THE NEW YEAR IS UPON US AND WE ARE ALL O-O-O..........KEEP BLESSING US WITH THE KNOWLEDGE...LO-LO :D :D :D

Times Have Changed, In My Day (1) Base Was Manipulated To Do It All.I'm Going With 3 Backs (1)every down(2)Speed(3)Power. Each Player Should Be Able To Run Both Direction & At Laest 50 Yards Straight,My Every Down Back Would Be The 100Yard Straight Guy.Am I Wrong Fellas?

Build the Team how you want to build it.
 

My friend get the tips and info on tweaking and do your thing but build your team how you want it to be, you can get advice all day, but bottom line you have to play with this squad, so build it for what you want to do, basically alot of coaches have a right and left side back a straight speedster back and a blocker type, but also you must consider what style and weight this team will be used in. Advice is cool and here youll get alot of it, but do your own thing so do some resarch (look at FF.com posts they will help) and Matriculate the ball down the field!

thanks i like that!!

2badJim

Here you go... I wrote this a while back, this post made some good tweakers out ;) ;) ;)

Tools:

1 Hobby sized pair of needle nose pliers

1 Lighter

1 Nail clipper (straight/ blunt edged not curved)

1 Fine pair of tweezers

Fact Number One:

The reason that the bases do not perform up to par is simple. In the manufacturing process flash is left on the prong. This flash inhibits the bases ability to perform. If you look at any of the older Tudor bases you’ll notice for the most part how well the prongs are formed. Take a magnifying glass and examine a Miggle rookie or ttc base. You will see the flash that I’m talking about. The question here now is how do you remove it?

Flash Removal:

Method 1:

1) One way of removing flash is to use a lighter.

2) What you do here is take a base and hold the lighter under it about one inch (experiment hear to see what works for you) away.

3) Position the lighter under one set of prongs (rookie base) or one prong (ttc base).

4) "Flick" the lighter on and off.

5) Let the prong(s) cool and inspect it.

6) See if the flash is removed. If not go to step 4 and repeat the process.

7) After you finish with the first set of prongs proceed on to the next grouping.

8) Repeat this process on the remaining sets of prongs.

9) Test the base

Method 2:

Get your straight/ blunt nose clippers
Take a base and clip off the very end the prong.
For rookie bases clip the two prongs at a time in each corner of the base.
Try to remove only a 1/32nd or less on each prong end. Just enough to remove the flash.
Cut all prongs straight!
Repeat this process on all remaining sets of prongs.
Test the base
Well if you followed the instructions above there is a good chance that your bases will be going anywhere but straight. But at least they will be moving. So let’s tune them up!

Take the needle nose pliers and a base.
Examine the base and "eyeball’ the prongs. Some will be shorter or longer than others.
Start on the back prongs.
Take the pliers and gently pull the prong from top to bottom.
The idea here is to stretch the prong out evenly. If you don’t the base is junk.
Slowly with very little pressure pull the prong from top to bottom allowing the pliers to slip down slowly as you pull.
This step will be repeated many times on each prong!
The goal again here is to stretch the prong evenly.
Another goal here is to try to even out all the prongs.
Work slowly and take your time.
Test the base until you get the desired result, a well moving base!
OK, I can hear you now. The base goes, but it doesn’t go straight! This is the next step in tuning.

All you have to do is remember, if a base is turning to the left the prongs on that side of the base are shorter.
Likewise if the base is turning to the right the prongs are shorter on the right side.
To fix this problem, just lengthen the prongs on the side to which the base is turning.
Always work on the one set of prongs at a time.
Always work first on the prong(s) that appear to be shorter.
Test the base after each pull until you get the desired results.
Be patient!
If you followed all the steps listed above you should have a fairly good running base. The trick now is to give it some strength or speed!

For Strength - Rookie Base

Pull both rear sets of prongs out a little more.
The base, when put down on a game board should be "jacked up" in the rear.
This will give the base more strength.
If you want more strength gently curl the front prongs on the very end of the prong. Use the fine set of tweezers to do this.
Also set the back prongs so that they look like this " \ " straight but angled. Again use the fine set of tweezers to do this.
The final step to get more strength is to flatten the rear prongs.
Take the pliers and squeeze the rear prongs until they’re flat.
On step 7 there are two schools of thought.
Flatten the entire prong or
Flatten just the last ¼"
Both will work and this is something you can experiment with.

For Strength – TTC Base (just a slight difference)

Pull both rear sets of prongs out a little more.
The base, when put down on a game board should be "jacked up" in the rear.
This will give the base more strength.
If you want more strength gently curl the rear prongs on the very end of the prong. Use the fine set of tweezers to do this.
Also set the front prongs so that they look like this " \ " straight but angled. Again use the fine set of tweezers to do this.
The final step to get more strength is to flatten the rear prongs.
Take the pliers and squeeze the rear prongs until they’re flat.
Remember to re curl the rear prongs after step 7 is complete.
On step 7 there are two schools of thought.
Flatten the entire prong or
Flatten just the last ¼"
Both will work and this is something you can experiment with.
For Speed – Rookie/ TTC Base

Pull both front and rear sets of prongs out a little more.
The base, when put down on a game board should be "jacked up" evenly.
This process will give the base more speed.
If you still want more speed in a rookie base cut out the inside prongs.
Also position the rear prongs in a more upright manor.
Final step here is to hit the base again with the lighter for a little more speed.


The Keys to Success!

Take your time.
Be prepared to ruin some bases.
Be patient.
Test after each step.
Be as exacting as you can be.
Experiment.
Don’t get frustrated and have some fun!

p.s.

The best way to understand how prongs work is to think of them as shock absorbers on a car. The prong is there to absorb the vibration from the game board. By stretching the prong it makes the plastic more supple. Therefore it enables the base to maintain contact with the board and produce forward movement. This fact alone is why many coaches boil their bases as it produces almost the same result. It makes the prong soft and supple, a very good combination!

This leads us to how do you make a base stronger or faster. Start off by using either the pulling or boiling techniques on a base. If you are looking for strength you want to increase the friction between the game board and the prong. The simplest and most legal way is to increase the contact area of the prong. Take a set of needle nose pliers and flatten the bottom half of the prong by squeezing it. Work the back prongs first whether you are using rookie or ttc style bases. Make sure that the bottom edge of the prong is flat, as we want to have maximum drag. To do assure this you might have to trim the bottom edge of the prong(s) flat with a straight edge clipper. You can gain some additional strength by using this same technique on the front prongs but in many cases you will loose the bases mobility (it will be slowww).

To manipulate a base to gain more speed we need to decrease the contact area. Which again is between the playing surface and the prong. There are a couple of methods that can achieve the desired results.

Trim the lower edge of the prong with a clipper. That is to say cut the prong vertically so the prong contact area is reduced
Remove the inside prongs (rookie base). (This step can work with both items 1 and 3)
Shape the prong in the "pulling" stage. This is done by not only pulling the prong on the wide flat side but by the narrow side as well. This will allow you to shape the prong to have a very small contact patch.