Golf ball incorporating transition color region and method of making same
A golf ball comprising a subassembly such as a cover and a coating layer disposed entirely about an outer surface of the subassembly; wherein the coating layer has a first color region, a second color region, and a transition color region that is transitionally disposed between the first color region and the second color region. The first color region has a first color appearance; the second color region has a second color appearance that is different than the first color appearance; and the transition color region has a transitional color appearance that is comprised of the first color appearance and the second color appearance. The transitional color region may be disposed circumferentially about the outer surface of the cover.
1 . A method of making a golf ball, comprising:
providing a subassembly, the subassembly comprising at least one core layer and at least one cover layer comprising a plurality of dimples and having a shape comprising a first pole and an opposing pole;
setting up a first colorant spray gun with first colorant spray gun settings, including a colorant spray gun pressure and a nozzle-to-golf ball distance, to achieve a first degree of coverage;
setting up a second colorant spray gun with second colorant spray gun settings, including a colorant spray gun pressure and a nozzle-to-golf ball distance, to achieve a second degree of coverage; and
applying a coating layer to the subassembly, comprising:
spraying, by the first colorant spray gun, a first colorant comprising a first color onto an outer surface of the subassembly at the first pole of the subassembly such that the first colorant provides the first degree of coverage, wherein the first degree of coverage of the first colorant progressively reduces in a first direction from adjacent the first pole toward the opposing pole as a result of the first colorant spray gun settings; and
spraying, by the second colorant spray gun, a second colorant comprising a second color that is different than the first color onto the outer surface of the subassembly at the opposing pole of the subassembly such that the second colorant provides the second degree of coverage, wherein the second degree of coverage of the second colorant progressively reduces in a second direction from adjacent the opposing pole toward the first pole as a result of the second settings and thereby partially overlaps the first colorant,
wherein the first colorant creates a first color region of the coating layer on the outer surface of the subassembly that includes the first pole and is the first color, and the second colorant creates a second color region of the coating layer on the outer surface of the subassembly that includes the opposing pole and is the second color,
wherein the first colorant and the second colorant, in combination as a result of the progressively-reducing first and second degrees of coverage, create a transition color region that is transitionally disposed between the first color region and the second color region and comprises a combination of the first colorant and the second colorant, wherein said combination produces a plurality of transitional colors that are each a spectrophotometer-measurable different color than both the first color and the second color,
wherein the transition color region extends circumferentially about the outer surface of the subassembly, and
wherein the transition color region: i) has a greater surface coverage of the first colorant than of the second colorant adjacent the first color region; and ii) has a greater surface coverage of the second colorant than of the first colorant adjacent the second color region.