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Darts Equipment: Darts Darts are one of the two key ingredients of the game. The picture below demonstrates the four key parts of a dart: the tip, barrel, shaft, and flight. All darts have all four sections, but depending on the type of dart there may be differences in the makeup and functionality of these pieces.  There are two different types of darts: steel tip darts and soft tip darts. Steel tip darts have the traditional sharp metal tip (sometimes called a point) that allows the dart to stick in a bristle dartboard. Bristle boards are made of tightly bound "sisal" (a strong durable plant fiber). The bristle board has been a classic for decades and can be found in homes and pubs around the world. Soft tip darts have plastic tips which are designed for use with electronic/soft tip boards. These boards are made of plastic and filled with a grid of holes that the dart tip sticks into. Electronic boards are convenient as they keep score for the players, but they are also more expensive. One of the other benefits of soft tip darts is that they have less potential for damage than steel tips, although they are still potentially dangerous if used incorrectly. On steel tip darts, the tip and barrel are almost always sold as one piece. Soft tip darts have tips that can be unscrewed and replaced, because the tips can break fairly easily. Dart barrels are usually made from one of three types of metals, either brass, nickel-silver, or tungsten. The stronger the metal used in making the barrel, the thinner it can be. The thinner the dart the closer they can be grouped together without bumping each other out of the way, something that can be critical for experienced players. Tungsten is the strongest metal and makes the thinnest darts. Nickel-silver falls in the middle and brass generally has the largest barrel. On the other hand, tungsten darts tend to be the most expensive and brass the least expensive, with nickel-silver again somewhere in the middle. Darts come in a wide range of weights, primarily due to the barrel. Most darts are between 16 and 32 grams. Darts at the lower end of this range take less effort to throw to the board but are subject to even the slightest influence during release. Heavier darts take more effort to get to the board but are less susceptible to slight misdirection during the throw. Aside from coming in a variety of metals, barrels are available in either smooth or knurled finishes. Darts that have a knurled finish have ridges that aid in gripping the dart. Which you choose is a matter of preference. Dart shafts are often made of aluminum, though they can also be composed of plastic. Shafts come in a variety of lengths, which can affect the balance and flight properties of a dart. All shafts are threaded on one end to be screwed in to the barrel, and the other end has an X-shaped slot where the flight can be inserted. Dart flights are made of a variety of materials, and can come in a number of shapes and sizes. The primary function of the flight is to stabilize the dart; larger flights provide more stability but also make it harder to group darts close together. It is generally recommended that beginners start out with larger flights, while experts are more likely to use the smaller versions. For beginners, almost any dart should be usable. Weight, more than anything else, should be the main consideration. The dart should fit within a range where it is comfortable to throw and can be accurate. As players improve, they may want to invest in higher quality materials to sharpen their game. On the high-tech end, there are darts like Hammerheads and Powerpoints with retractable tips that reduce the chance of a bounce out when the dart hits a wire on the board. Return to the home page, order now or see more samples from the book:
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