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It can take several sets of darts,
shafts and flights before you find the ideal set for you. When you do
find a set it is very rare that you will want to change as each set of
darts are marginally different. Even the same make and style of dart can
vary a bit.
Keeping your points sharp is
also important. A cheap sharpening stone from and builders merchant or
DIY store will set you back only one or two pounds.
Sharp points reduce bounce outs
so that’s one good reason, the second reason is blunt darts can reduce
the life of your dart board and at same stage you will find the points
will get so small that the barrel will start to imbed in the board! Yes
unfortunately I have seen this happen and the person who owned the darts
was unwilling to have his points changed even when I offered to do this
for him. (No I am not offering a re-pointing service!)
Before dart points get this
short you should replace them. Many dart suppliers sell points and will
cost less than a couple of sets of good flights. Some suppliers will
re-point your darts for you but it is an easy process to do yourself.
I have changed dart points
using conventional house hold tools and by using a tool known as a dart
point puller. Removing the old points is always the difficult part of
the process so I will show you both methods.
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Changing points
using household tools.
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First let’s list the equipment
you need.
o
A pair of pliers
or bench vice.
o
An adjustable
spanner or second pair of pliers.
o
A light weight
hammer.
o
A piece of soft
wood.
o
Spare points!
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Removing the old
point.
To remove the old dart
point place the dart between a gap in the adjustable spanner. The
adjustable spanner should not be tightened but the barrel should not
be allowed to pass though the gap. With the pliers pull free the
point from the barrel you may find this easier using a vice but it
is not essential. |
(1)
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(2)
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(3)
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Inserting New
Points.
Insert the new point into
the barrel and place the barrel point down onto the wood. Hit the
top of the barrel with a single blow with the hammer and the inertia
will force the point tight into the barrel. The point will slightly
imbed itself into the wood but will cause no damage to the point.
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(4)
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(5)
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(6)
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If you find this method too
hard you can if you wish buy a dart point extracting tool.
Dart point pullers cost as
much as a good set of high percentage tungsten darts around £32 or
$60 so many players either use house hold tools or have a shop
undertake the task for them. But if you belong to a team then it is
well worth buying the useful tool to share between you.
The dart point puller
illustrated to the left is the one I use and is available from
Dartman (US)
Or from
House of Darts (UK).
Alternatively contact one of the dart suppliers illustrated on the
links page
of this site to see if they are willing to do this job for you.
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How to use the dart point
puller. (1)
First open up the screw
thread by turning the wing nut at the top. Insert the point through
the vice gap and then tighten the barrel onto the screw thread. Make
sure you have the point as far down as possible and tighten the vice
onto the point using the Alan key. |
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(2)
The next part of the
process is quite easy. Unscrew the wing nut, this pullers the barrel
of the dart away from the point leaving point in the vice. Remove
the barrel and old point from the puller.
To secure the new point in
place follow the above instructions ‘Inserting New Points’.
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