* Lot has been updated

Here is a solid gutta percha golf ball that you won't see everyday, and its older than most solid mesh gutta percha balls. Unmarked and made from red gutta percha, this ball has, your choice, either large, raised squares or exceptionally wide, widely spaced recessed lines. It was made in a mold as it has a thin mold line around its equator. A very interesting ball.

* Update: According to “Morris,” as published in the April 9, 1880 issue of The Illustrated Carpenter and Builder, Golf Ball molds at that time were being “made from gun metal in two halves, both halves grooved out instead of hammering.”  It is to be expected that the lines “grooved out” on the inner surfaces of these patterned molds were not as refined as those in the moilds used to make the mesh balls of the 1890s.  The pattern on this ball, and the fact that it is made from red gutta percha are strong indicators that this ball was made in the 1880s. 

An examination of the ball reveals that it is red everywhere where the paint has worn off.  This is because the ball is made entirely from red gutta percha, not black as was typically used. 

During the late 18th century the gutta percha used to make golf balls began as a gum material extracted from certain trees in Cochin China, Cambodia, Straits Settlements, etc. During the course of being processed into its final, usable form, it would naturally become black due to oxidation, but it could be made red by using additives. Golf ball makers in the early 1890s offered both red and black gutta percha balls.  In the advertising section of the October 9, 1891 issue of Golf, Peter Paxton announces "Red and Black Gutta kept in Stock."  In the vast majority of instances, however, black gutta percha was used to make golf balls. It kept its shape better, especially with proper seasoning (typically 3-6 months).  

Red gutta percha, on the other hand, performed well initially with much less seasoning when compared to black gutta percha. So if a ballmaker needed to make and sell a ball fast, red gutta percha worked best.  However, it did not fly as far (by reason of its composition) and would deteriorate quicker in the long run, because it never became as strong/durable as seasoned black gutta percha—which explains why red gutta percha was rarely used by ballmakers. (For more on this topic see TCA2 v1 p330-331).