Well I am back..... No pictures this time
I purposely went with the intention on getting a regular customer experience (I was told before hand that if I mentioned the forum I may get the tour etc) as I fully intend to return again, maybe I will mention it next time.
So, it took me 20mins to get there and upon arrival I noticed the door was locked, as it was lunch time I thought I was in for a bit of a wait but no, there's a sign on the door asking to knock or ring bell.
A member of staff let me in and I was immediately surprised how small it is inside, small but stocked from floor to ceiling with products, darts, boards, memorabilia - in fact anything you could possible imagine, its all there somewhere!!
As I entered there were maybe half a dozen 'customers' stood around chatting with Karl and a member of staff, within 30 seconds of me producing my list (hahah, always take a list whenever I go shopping) the room emptied, a couple went in the back, a couple left and Karl went upstairs... leaving me with the full attention of the guy behind the counter - and I have to say, he was extremely helpful, a big plus for me.
So top of my list was a new board, the Target Play Vision.
[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]It is much more high definition IMO that the Unicorn HD (there was one invitingly hung in the shop) but whilst the Blade 4 looks very well made I have to say from a personal point of view the Play Vision from Target is my favorite.
My old one has lasted well over 12 months, and so after being informed the one I got was the last one I may have to look to the Blade 4 or unicorn HD for my next board.
Moving on to a few questions I had, and a couple of the lads in the darts team asked me to look into.
I asked about the Darts Angel door hanging device, they dont sell them but do the Unicorn on tour hanging device.
This is basically a travel case and strap that adjusts around a door, top to bottom, enabling you to hang the board.
I asked how stable it is and was told that it is very stable, they normally have one hung on the door in the shop for customers to see but someone had taken it when they ran out, so they hadn't got round to putting another up - I will try before I buy one of those next time.
[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]I also asked about the flight printing service and shirt printing, again the member of staff was very helpful.
Moving onto the darts, I explained I use 23g Lewis' but would ideally like more grip at the front, so began my dream, trying lots of different darts!
This is truly an incredible part of the shopping experience, the helpful staff will recommend darts that may meet your requirements and proced in letting you throw them from their oche into the previously mentioned Unicorn HD board.
1st up was the Carerra's, now i explained that they were above what I was willing to pay for a set of darts but was allowed a throw anyway - incredible grip!
I have heard alot about them on the forum but to actually try a set was brilliant, I don't think you can really appreciate the grip until you throw them - they literally stick to your hand!
Next up, very similar however a bit cheaper and a bit less grippy, the Target Scott Rand's, again, incredible grip (not as much as the Carerra but similar to a Purist IMO).
A nice dart to be fair but not for me.
Next a dart was presented that seemed to tick the box, 22.5g, straight barrel, loads of front end grip but for some reason it didn't feel balanced like my Lewis', seemed a bit odd to me, anyway, it turned out to be a Brian Woods dart so I passed on it.
Next I asked about the old style Dean Winstanley darts that were made by A180, whilst no longer on sale they checked the store for me to see if they had any left - unfortunatley not - I was informed that Karl had a set but as with may of the A180 players, he quite rightly won't sell his own set.
Finally when I was about to just take the board, the member of staff grabbed a set from the top shelf! I immediately saw Barneys image on the box and thought, been there done that, I have tried many Barney darts from Triple B's, Bull's, Unicorn and whilst I like them I much prefer the Lewis darts.
However these were Barney Unicorn Hero, I had a feel and a throw, incredible grip, 5+ on the scale of 1-5, I said I will have them!
http://www.a180.co.uk/product.php?xProd=2879&xSec=384So after having a final look around at the incredible selection of flights, shafts, memorabilia and the shirts I left, very happy with my Play Vision board and a very grippy set of Barneveld Hero.
Overall experience was 9/10 (would have been 10 if I got to chat with Ste Bunting and Karl
), the shop is absolutely crammed full of top quality stock without feeling cluttered, from what I could tell, everything you would want is there, you can try your darts before you buy them, you can see first hand the different boards and their quality and the staff are very helpful.
Any questions I had were thoughtfully answered and the recommended darts whilst not all for me, were chosen based on my specification.
So, I am already itching to go back and buy the unicorn strap for the bathroom door, I know that next time I need to stock up on flights and shafts etc i'll be paying A180 another visit.
