I use 23mm cosmo spinners white.

23mm Cosmo spinners for me as well - either black or two-tone

Plain simple Small, Black Nylon ones.

short laros for me. ranges from red, blue, smoke, black or white haha, yeah im a dart tart.

CanadianBacon wrote:

short laros for me. ranges from red, blue, smoke, black or white haha, yeah im a dart tart.

A man who can adapt with colors!

chrisbamb wrote:

Plain simple Small, Black Nylon ones.

Same here.

18mm Cosmo spinners

I use short custom snow white nylons with rings (hole punched flights).

Works for me and I have, in over 12 months of using the hole punch, never had a flight come loose from them.

Rebel wrote:

I use short custom snow white nylons with rings (hole punched flights).

Works for me and I have, in over 12 months of using the hole punch, never had a flight come loose from them.

I use to use them, and got to say they are top notch.

23mm Cosmo fixed

slik stiks currently.

Dalman wrote:

23mm Cosmo fixed

Same

x-short aluminum at the moment, but after this league season (another month if we make the playoffs) I'm going to switch to either the cosmo or l-flight spinners.

I love the action on them but the feel will take some getting accustomed to and I don't want to make a switch like that in-season as it will take a couple of weeks to get settled in.

It's funny that I'll change my grip or stance in a heartbeat and adjust in a matter of minutes but changing from a fixed to a spinner stem basically destroyed my whole throw for a couple of days so I had to switch back.

23mm cosmo fixed - worth their weight in gold (literally)!!

I use medium or extra nylon stems, I have tried many different stems. And the only other I like also are the Magnesium Sigma slikstik

I'm really surprised by these answers but certainly have become well informed. I'm kinda new to darts (after a 60 year hiatus) and just assumed that medium was the only way to go. I've experimented with weights and the like, but because of the answers here, I tried some shorts and even the tiny micros. I'm really pleased with the results. I've just about got it covered in dart sets (10) and so now onto stems. BTW I'm also an avid slim flight guy. Thanks all for the info.

ShadowNotes wrote:

I'm really surprised by these answers but certainly have become well informed. I'm kinda new to darts (after a 60 year hiatus) and just assumed that medium was the only way to go. I've experimented with weights and the like, but because of the answers here, I tried some shorts and even the tiny micros. I'm really pleased with the results. I've just about got it covered in dart sets (10) and so now onto stems. BTW I'm also an avid slim flight guy. Thanks all for the info.

I used mediums all the time until recently, I have been using short stems and they have been great so far. Now I am testing out the slim flights too, not made my mind up yet but they are going ok at present.

That's really good news to me Grip. In my old scrap box, I discover some 13mm and some more 19mm. The experiment is really telling something. So I'll settle down in a few days and decide where to go from here. Makes sense that there should be less wobble and other distortion with the teeny stems. I often change my mind though...we'll see. Thanks for the input.

Oh, one more thing: I'm fixed point all the way. Barrels, stems & flights. Don't like stuff wobbling around when I'm trying to concentrate.

Slikstiks at this moment. Will try to buy and check out aluminum slikstiks in the future.

31mm Cosmo Spinners and fixed......used the Sigma Titanium Slikstiks for the past four years....still like the look of them!!!

ShadowNotes wrote:

That's really good news to me Grip. In my old scrap box, I discover some 13mm and some more 19mm. The experiment is really telling something. So I'll settle down in a few days and decide where to go from here. Makes sense that there should be less wobble and other distortion with the teeny stems. I often change my mind though...we'll see. Thanks for the input.

Oh, one more thing: I'm fixed point all the way. Barrels, stems & flights. Don't like stuff wobbling around when I'm trying to concentrate.

Yeah I think its worth a little experimentation to find if something works better, also the stem length can be dictated by other factors such as the length of the barrels and even where you grip the barrel. It alters the balance point.

getagrip wrote:

ShadowNotes wrote:

I'm really surprised by these answers but certainly have become well informed. I'm kinda new to darts (after a 60 year hiatus) and just assumed that medium was the only way to go. I've experimented with weights and the like, but because of the answers here, I tried some shorts and even the tiny micros. I'm really pleased with the results. I've just about got it covered in dart sets (10) and so now onto stems. BTW I'm also an avid slim flight guy. Thanks all for the info.

I used mediums all the time until recently, I have been using short stems and they have been great so far. Now I am testing out the slim flights too, not made my mind up yet but they are going ok at present.

Same here! I experimented between med. and short years ago and settled on mediums. In the last few weeks, I decided to try shorts again as I see them so often from the pros. It wasn't much of a difference as I thought. They maybe give me a little more directness in my throw? And I feel I can bring the dart further into my sightline that with a medium stem on my long barreled Phase IIs.

I tried Sliksticks a few years ago and didn't like them because they seemed cheap and flimsy. I just got some Phase 5 side-loaders with the Phase 6 barrels and they seem to have greatly improved. Titanium base screws into the barrel then better made/ cheaply replaceable stems screw into that.

I used to use metal stems, but I got tired of finding out (often after a match) that they were bent; even the titanium ones. Tried bending them back, sometimes it worked, sometimes they got worse. Switched to nylon with rings and haven't looked back. I don't know why everyone has a problem with the flights popping off when they hit another dart. I think it may be an advantage. The flight gets knocked off instead of your dart getting knocked off course at the last instant. It just takes a couple seconds to push it back in. I've used them so long now, I automatically push on the flights as I'm walking from the board to keep them in snug. I don't think it distracts me.

My fixed Cosmos are the slim ones mainly because I like the look of them But what difference would their be between slim or normal shafts? The normal ones must be more rigid and less flexible but is that necessarily a good thing?

Guess what i'm really asking is just how important are the stems apart from their length which has an obvious effect?

Short nylon stems with punched flights for me all day long.

It's funny but if i ever put medium nylons on a long barrell the dart ends up looking way too long, like i'm gonna throw a javelin!! I can throw ok with mediums but i look at them and think oh no you just look so wrong, just too long haha! Just me? I guess i just think the look of a dart is also important

I'll get my coat.....

Dalman wrote:

My fixed Cosmos are the slim ones mainly because I like the look of them But what difference would their be between slim or normal shafts? The normal ones must be more rigid and less flexible but is that necessarily a good thing?

Guess what i'm really asking is just how important are the stems apart from their length which has an obvious effect?

I would think apart from the length the weight of the stem although only slight differences, may have some effect on the overall balance, I'm sure that there will be some aerodynamic effect from the shape of the stem too, how much any of this is noticeable I really dont know, I doubt I would notice the changes myself but seasoned players might.

I alter between medium nylon to short nylon, using short nylons at the moment. One thing that really annoys me about stems, in particular the Unicorn Gripper II is when they are not flush with the barrell, seems to be a slight lip when i put them on some of my darts, don't like it at all. Is this a common problem with these stems or is it just the darts i'm using them with? I generally use quite slim barrelled darts.

Ivefoundgod wrote:

I alter between medium nylon to short nylon, using short nylons at the moment. One thing that really annoys me about stems, in particular the Unicorn Gripper II is when they are not flush with the barrell, seems to be a slight lip when i put them on some of my darts, don't like it at all. Is this a common problem with these stems or is it just the darts i'm using them with? I generally use quite slim barrelled darts.

I have experienced that lip too with those stems, makes me wonder if they designed them for specific barrels?

Thinking going with short stems now.

Try no stems and see if that helps!