This, for me, is one of the most exciting reviews I’ve written to date. I’ve written plenty of reviews about existing darts, but writing a review for a new set of darts? Now that’s something that rarely comes up, and that’s what made reviewing these darts so much more special for me.
So, these are the new Supreme darts, from Performance Darts. Starting from the front, the grip is a simple ring grip, that to me, looks and feels identical to the front grip featured on the Target Adrian Lewis G1 darts. This grip continues along the length of the barrel, ending at the midpoint. For me, the most intriguing part of the dart is the subtle scallop, which you can use to feel where to place your fingers, rather than feeling for the two subtle grip styles at the front and rear of the barrel. Moving on to said rear grip, the darts feature the typical micro grip featured on nearly all sets of Performance Darts. This grip style allows for a fluid release, and subtle feel, while still maintaining a high level of grip to allow you to stay on top form in high pressure situations.
The darts come in 24g and 26g, with both variations measuring at 52mm long. The 24g version is 6.4mm in width, while the 26g is slightly wider, measuring in at 6.8mm. They are packaged in a clear plastic casing, with stylish Performance Darts graphics. The darts are contained in a black thick darts case, along with containing a set of intermediate stems, and a set of stylish Performance Darts flights. The darts themselves are fitted with a standard 32mm black point, which, thanks to the black coating on the point, helps to grip the board. If you find you prefer a different coating, or perhaps a grooved point, Performance Darts sell a wide range of points, starting from as little as 50p, as well as offering a free repointing service with darts bought direct from them!
Now to the fun bit – for me anyway! My first impressions of the dart was just… wow. The first thing that struck me was the coating in the grooves of the dart. The blue coating looked striking, which I was later told by the designer was “mainly to make the dart stand out a little more while in the board”.
I wasted no time in testing that out for myself. First dart… T20! Review over, 10/10!
The next two darts were slightly anticlimactic – single 5… single 5… ah.
While throwing, one thing that struck me was the comfort of the rear grip. For me, I found that the rear grip felt like it stood out from the rest of the barrel. It felt a lot thicker on the rear grip than any other part of the barrel, helped by that micro grip I mentioned previously, as well as deep grooves on either side of the micro grip section. As a rear gripper, the micro grip was in the perfect position for me, and I found my forefinger sat comfortably in the scallop. One thing I did notice was that due to where I had my forefinger rested, it seemed to encourage my thumb to shift positions to join it in the scallop, which caused some darts to lie flat in the board, rather than standing up at a 45 degree angle as they usually do. I found, however, I was able to get more power on the dart by using the scallop to propel the dart, giving them an ‘effortless’ feel to throw.
I spent time attempting to throw with the front grip, and found that when using it as the focal point of the grip, the grip was more noticeable. The grip features a dual ring grip, which has an almost sticky feel to it. When holding the front grip, the dart refused to shift in my hand, and while the grip didn’t feel very aggressive to me, I felt I had complete control over where I wanted the dart to go. While throwing from the front, I used the point as a support, as I like to use as much of the barrel as possible. The black point meant my fingers weren’t slipping off, and it just added to the sense of control I felt I had over the dart.
Final Thoughts:
Appearance: 10/10 – Visually, I believe these to be one of the best looking darts I own. The two contrasting grip styles, with the central scallop and intermingled blue coating in the grooves create a dart that, to look at, are just breathtaking. I cannot fault anything at all about how these darts look. They literally took my breath away when I first opened the package to get my first glance. A quick mouthed ‘wow’ was all I could muster. They’re stunning. End of.
Balance: 8/10 – I didn’t expect these to feel well balanced. I worried the scallop may have thrown the balance of the dart off – I even asked the designer about this, before he informed me it was for the “feel” of the dart, rather than the balance. To my surprise, they had very little effect. From the front, the dart felt perfectly balanced. I could hardly notice there was another 50% of the dart behind my fingers, as well as a set of flights and stems. From the rear however, when not using my fingers to support the front of the dart, I found it had a tendency to feel top heavy, and that the front dropped too early when flying to the board, which resulted in darts standing too high up for my liking.
Grip: 8/10 – The front grip at the front of the barrel is subtle, but still refuses to let your fingers budge when using it to throw. The scallop, while smooth, offers a unique grip of its own, locking your fingers in place thanks to the grooves within the scallop itself. But for me, if you’ve read any of my reviews in the past, you will know by now that including a micro grip is an instant high mark. The rear grip felt comfortable, and I really loved the thicker feel to it. I felt I had a lot more control over how I held the dart, a theme I’ve highlighted a few times during this review. Everything about this dart, from the point to the grip, is about control, and it’s a unique sensation to throw a dart where you feel such a high level of command.
Quality: 9/10 – As per every set I’ve owned, made by Performance Darts, the quality is exceptional. After hours of use, I could make out next to no damage to the barrels, with none of the grip beginning to chip away. I found the flights began to wear quickly, but using a 24g dart, you come to expect this owing to the sheer force the barrels are crashing into the flights. Overall, a very solid set of darts, exactly what you’d come to expect from a brand that prides itself on quality products.
