Buying Flights

Need to buy Dart Flights?
Dart flights are available in many shapes and figures at Darts Warehouse. The flights are an important part of the face of your dart. But the most important thing is that they greatly determine the flight of your dart. This blog will discuss the various shapes and sizes and their flight abilities, from which you will be able to find the flights most suitable for your game.

Shapes
The most common flight is the standard no2 flight. Almost every dart player plays with this kind of flight. Variations on this standard model are the smaller Standard no6 (for example the Bull’s Shark Pro Flight) or the wider Big Wing.
However, the world of flights contains many other different shapes. The best example is the flight used by Phil Taylor, which is a lot smaller and shaped differently.

 

            

                        Standard                                       Phil Taylor

Like with darts and shafts, the perfect flight is a personal thing that is different for every single player.

Standard Shape

The bigger the flight, the more flying capacity it possesses. The standard flight is therefore suitable for players playing with a heavy dart or with a somehow weaker throw, because the flight carries the dart. Every dart player’s goal is to make the dart land in the board in a straight fashion. The standard flight can help you with that, even when a player throws with somewhat of a curve. A great example of the correctional abilities of the standard flight is seen with two times Champion of the World, Gary Anderson. Gary throws his dart with the tip slightly tilted upwards. However, the flight makes sure the dart lands straight in the board.

An obvious disadvantage of big flights is the amount of space they need. They make you lose the sight on certain parts of the board and also a player has a higher risk of hitting the flight with a second or third dart, which will divert this dart from it’s original course. Furthermore, throwing a steel tip in a flight is not contributing to a long life-span. The solution to this is the so-called flight protector, an accessory that protects the flight and also leads the incoming dart along the sitting dart. The flight protector also makes sure your flight is ‘spread’ correctly. Darts Warehouse has a decent assortment of flight protectors.

Common variations to the standard flight, which might just be the cherry on the pie to your game, are the Big Wing and the Shield.

Smaller shapes
Obviously, the smaller shaped flights have an effect somewhat opposite to the big winged flights. This means fewer aerodynamic abilities and thus it requires more strength when you throw a dart with this kind of flight. When one uses a small flight, one needs a very direct approach to the board, so no curve. The dart will land straight in the board. The best example of a famous player who plays with kind of miniature flights is Phil Taylor; check the following youtube link to see an analysis of Phil playing darts: https://youtu.be/2bSADyr13AY?t=507.

Smaller flights will make you keep having a better view on the board after throwing the first and second dart. Furthermore you decrease the chance of hitting a dart in the board with a subsequent dart, which will damage or at least divert the dart. Some popular small flights are Slim, DXM, Fantail and Vapor. Playing with standard flights often is best when they are put on a longer shaft. With smaller flights, mostly also smaller shafts are used.

Material

Flights are also available in different strengths, differentiated in thickness using microns. The thicker the flight, the stronger it is. Flights thicknessess vary from 75 to 180 micron. Most common is the 100 micron flight, used in the famous Bull's Powerflite Range.

Lately there is an increasing number of players using hard plastic fligths that are shaped by the manufacturer. These flights are therefore always spread out correctly. The Robson Plus flight is one of the leading flights of this kind. The Robson flight has a plastic cover which is put over the shaft, protecting the shaft of incoming darts. The round top of the cover also makes incoming darts divert less, which will probably be an improvement to your score. The Robson Plus flight can be used on any shaft, is tight as a virgin and available in various shapes and colours. Try them now!

Darts Warehouse also offers a small amount of Nylon flights.

Like with the shafts, Darts Warehouse sells three special flight test kits, with which you can test which shape and which thickness are best suitable to your game.