1. Number one reason is they bend easily.
2. They become loose too easy
3. To keep tight buy little o rings (hassle)
4. Expensive ones you can bend back but usually not straight.
5. Break off in barrel you got problems.


Nylon,
1. cheap
2. wears very good
3. don't need O rings
4. stays straight better
5. If break in barrel easier to remove.

Agree with everything there Larry, the thing that finally made me stick with nylon's was spending a fortune on 5 sets of Titanium stems only to find they bent just as easily as alloy ones, lost confidence in them as I was always wary that stray darts could be down to bent stems - no such problem with nylon.

also they are usually awkward to get flights in

getagrip wrote:

also they are usually awkward to get flights in

good point Grip

i despise aluminum shafts-floggin roosters too.
-nearly impossible to straighten
-installing flights are a hassle
-once i started nylons i never went back to Al. ones
nylons all around better component IMO.

I used to use the Harrow's Carbons and found I was robin hooding them a couple of times a week, and at £3 or so a set it was working out more expensive than the Cosmo's cost.

I switched to nylons with pigeon rings and got very few robin hoods, and only a couple of stem breaks through bounce-outs, but was going through flights like nobody's business lol

I stopped using aluminum stems, and use nylons instead because they are cheaper. I also agree that it is easier to put flights on nylons, I damaged several flights when I was fitting them on aluminum stems.

Whilst I agree with the above points, I still use aluminium stems. I`ve used them since all my life and don`t feel comfortable using anything else.

Does anyone know where i could buy them in bulk for a decent price?

Bigshow wrote:

Whilst I agree with the above points, I still use aluminium stems. I`ve used them since all my life and don`t feel comfortable using anything else.

Does anyone know where i could buy them in bulk for a decent price?

I know Pure darts often do a bulk buy discount, not sure if anyone is cheaper though.

Which brand has the most reliable nylon stem (seldom breaks)? I recently used medium Unicorn Gripper II stems because they were free when I bought a couple of Unicorn darts. Twice they broke at the end of the barrel. I've used Target nylon stems, Laro stems and non-branded generic ones, and not one of them has been broken.

Metal shafts blow.

Been using nylon for as long as I can remember.

Buy them in bulk at Muellers for 35 cents a set.

Hard to beat that.

I have used the deflectagrips from Pure Darts a lot, using Cosmo's now but they always seemed to last well:

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I group my darts pretty close most of the time and when I used to play with the alumn. shafts I would bend or break them all the time it gets expensive. 4 years ago I switched to nylon and it was the best thing I ever did. I've got a set of nylon stems on now that I have been using for over 6 months and they are still in perfect condition. Of course having either the target storm points or using the trident 180's makes all the difference in the world they save your flights and shafts sooooo much!!! Highly reccomended products!!

Hat

i use the deflectagrips, last order I done I bulk bout from puredarts because it was cheaper to buy 50 sets than it was to buy 35 or something like that.

Deflectagrips are popular I think

Haha! Funny that so many of us have had the same conversion experience! Had same experience with gripper 2s as cutter, so won't be using them again. Still like regular unicorn nylons. Currently using harrow supergrips and no complaints. Will get some deflectagrips to try.

completely agree Larry. Plus, metal stems rattle when they loosen.

I have to say... I have no idea what a deflectagrip is.

Off to Google i go...

There is a link to them above JD

I've never used metal stems for any length of time, just don't like em. I use either the Gripper IIs or the deflectagrips. The Gripper IIs are great as long as you don't use any Extra Strong flights. If you use those, they push the prongs outward which get caught and snap off when hit by an incoming dart. If you leave the extra strong flight in for any length of time, the prongs will be permanently bent outwards. So stick to Standard Polys or Unicorn flights (not recommended ).

Bizarrely, I love the Unicorn logo on the Gripper stems and generally prefer them, I think the colours are a lot brighter than Deflectagrips too. Thats just me being a dart tart though and the fact I like to use either pure white or odd coloured stems.

Don't really care for the unicorn grippers- I slot my flights and they still don't hold as well as the deflects grips. They are too tapered. I do like their lengths,their medium shafts are a little shorter than others. I prefer an inbetween shaft - wich are hard to find in many colors. The joker drivers are my favorite just pricey. My friend in Japan sent me 3 sets for x- mas

Got to agree with most. As I use the deflectagrip stems.
Also punch my flights and use springs instead of rings.

Did use the super spin metal stems a few years ago. But got sick of bending the stems on bounce outs. Stem always coming loose. Also bending the tops after doing a robin hood.
Also the flights/tops tended to shake/move when I was aiming.

The new Target Pro Grip Shafts may be worth a try.

Ive been using the cheap stems from dart attack , Ok they are a little brittle and i do break several but only where the flight fits in if you know what i mean , Never broken one off at the barrel but i have a soft throw so i suppose the chances of this are reduced anyway , I think they are about 15p a set so are cheap as chips and do the job

is it just me that thinks this?
i think aluminium stems reck the points of the flights and ends up blunting them?

I also find they wreck your flights and bend out shape, alloys are rubbish IMO, nylon stems for me, 10 a penny, robust, keep their shape and dont damage flights.

Out of anything I have tried there is nothing IMO better than nylon stems and slot rings.

yeah they just wreck your flights tbf i also use nylon stems and slot rings and i dont think theres anything better

They blow.

i think there pretty good tbh

They are all I use. They are more expensive and less durable but they feel right to me. Perhaps a mentality issue but when it feels right what can you do.