Professional 18” Sisal Bristle Darts Board

A bristle board is thousands of tightly compressed sisal fibre bundles standing on end. A dart pushes between the fibres rather than punching through material, and when you pull it out the fibres spring back and close the channel. That is self-healing - no permanent holes, no dead spots, and years of life from a good board. Sisal is grown in Tanzania, which is a pleasing detail.

Yes, in practice. The official diameter is 451 mm, which is 17 and three quarter inches - every manufacturer rounds that to 18 inch. A board sold as 18 inch is the correct regulation board.

The bullseye goes 1.73 m from the floor, and the throwing line sits 2.37 m horizontally from the face of the board - measured to the board face, not the wall, because a board with a surround stands proud of it. Cross-check with the diagonal: 2.93 m from the centre of the bull to the back of the oche. If the diagonal does not match, one of your other two measurements is wrong.

Rotate the number ring every few weeks so the 20, 19 and treble beds do not take all the wear. Keep the points conditioned but never needle-sharp. Do not soak the board or hang it in direct sun or driving rain - humidity swells sisal and sun dries it out, and both shorten its life. Pull darts out straight rather than levering them.

Steel tip darts have a metal point and go into a sisal bristle board. Soft tip darts have a flexible plastic point and go into an electronic board. Never throw steel tips at an electronic board: the point punches through the plastic segments and can wreck the sensors underneath, and that is not repairable. Soft tips on a bristle board simply bounce out.

You are conditioning the point, not making it pointy. Roll the tip on the stone at a shallow angle, turning the dart as you go, until the burrs and flat spots from hitting wires are gone - ten or fifteen seconds is plenty. Leave it smooth and slightly rounded. A needle point is worse in every way: it skids off wires and bounces out, and it cuts sisal fibres instead of parting them, which puts permanent holes in the board.

Sisal boards mind humidity more than anything else, so hang the board somewhere ventilated and out of driving rain rather than on an exposed veranda. Flights soften and curl if they are left in a hot car. Steel points pick up surface rust in coastal air - wipe them dry after a session and keep them out of a damp bag.

Yes. We deliver across Dar es Salaam and send nationwide to Arusha, Moshi, Mwanza, Dodoma, Zanzibar and beyond by courier. Call or WhatsApp us if you need a same-day drop in the city.