Today I was sent the latest edition from Darts Performance Centre, their Elite Darts. The darts come supplied with white Dimplex stems with white grip rings and white Dimplex flights and a very nice white darts holder/caddy that has a carabina clip to attach them to your belt buckle or a neck cord as some like to do these days.
[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]On first inspection I was struggling to see the improvements made from the previous version of the High Performance darts until I started throwing with them. The barrel felt straighter and longer and I had more control over the dart. Such a lot of changes I thought but well worth it for me as I always played with a straight barrel. After an hour of practice I decided to put the NEW Elite darts next to the High Performance ones to see the changes for myself and was shocked at my findings.
I could see that the Elite’s had 2 more rings added to the grip, and I like this as it created the impression that the barrel was straighter and longer, but to my surprise upon checking the dimensions further the shape and length were still the same.
[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]The darts throw equally well wherever you hold them on the barrel, I tested them holding the front, the back and in the middle of the barrel, and my throw was still smooth with the darts flying true and straight. The Elite’s have a balance point just dead centre of the rings between the 4th ring from the front or back, but this is not dead centre of the dart as the length of the barrel is 50.9 mm the balance point is at 29.5mm.
[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]The Dimplex stems are an excellent addition to these darts not only for their aesthetically pleasing looks but they are a good fit with the barrel with no lip or overhang. Harrows state that they have used Golf ball technology to make these shafts and that the dimples act as turbulators and induce a stabilising layer of air around the shaft which in turn reduces drag and increases lift . Although I would not dispute this to be true I could not find a lot of difference between these and my normal Trulon Revgrip stems, but they are a good solid stem that stood up well to wear and tear during my use. The white rings help to grip the flight well and are nicely colour-coded with the stem so they blend in extremely well and can hardly be noticed. I also found the flight stays in very securely without the rings, so again the choice to use them with or without rings would be down to your own preference of set up. I know these stems also come in Black as I have used those before but that is your limit at the moment for colours.
The Dimplex flights look equally as pleasing and will probably suit the majority of players, but I found them to be too thin and flimsy, the fins of the flight were slightly warped and I struggled to straighten them, this affected the flight of the darts as they were spinning and not flying as straight and true as I released them. Once I changed them to my preferred flight it was business as usual. To be fair it may just be the way they were stored but also being white I could see it more clearly against the darker background of the board. As a flight they look nice and boast the same Golf ball technology as the stems but were just not for me, but we all have our preferred set up so as I said they will suit others.
The holder/caddy is a nice touch and the darts sit in it very well when set up. It has 2 storage compartments for extra flights and stems and looks and feels well put together. It is made of a soft PVC material with a webbed edging all stitched with white cotton that oozes class.
[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]The darts are super quality and throw very well, the shape of these darts has been well researched well and the taper to the nose allows you to put 3 darts in to a very small space, so grouping is not an issue. I have said it before but will reiterate that these darts will suit any level of player from a total beginner to a seasoned Pro.
[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]As a package this is a lovely set up and everything is well made, it looks and feels top of the range. Darts Performance Centre is really moving forward with their darts and has created a set up that would rival any of its competitors including the big brand named companies like Unicorn and Target.
Something I will point out that does not affect me but is worth mentioning is that the nose of the darts has the micro grip right down to the tip and although I like this as I grip the full length of the barrel it does mean that I was going through more flights than usual (a couple of sets a week based on 1-2 hours a day practice) as it does tear up your flights more than a smooth nose would, but with flights these days costing very little it’s a small trade off for the extra grip.
The Elite's only come in a 23g at the moment but more weights will be rolled out shortly. Price wise they are £21.99 or £25.99 with the case which is an absolute bargain, the link to their website is below.
As a personal preference I would like to see the grip go one more ring towards the back of the barrel for those who grip the full length and I would like to see one or possibly two rings on the front to really define the tapered nose further also deeper or wider rings but that is just my personal preference.
I truly believe that these darts are excellent quality and value and will be using them now for all my games. I am proud to be using the Darts Performance Centre Elite darts and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future.
Once again I cannot praise highly enough the service and the support that is offered by the staff at The Darts Performance Centre and from Paul Gillings himself they all do a wonderful job and are fully committed to improving not only your game but the game of Darts in general.
Thanks Guys
http://www.dartsperformancecentre.comKev ‘Big Gun’ Brown
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