The Science of Darts - How Tungsten got it's Technology
The Tungsten in your hand is so perfectly sculptured and comfortable to your grip, you probably won't notice the benefits of this semi-precious alloy until you try picking up an old brass dart.
Tungsten darts evolved in the mid 1970's with the invention of high density, tungsten alloy rods, known as billets. Tungsten’s massive weight to volume ratio offered dart players an unrivalled scoring advantage over traditional brass darts.
Whilst individual machinists started to fashion the very first tungsten dart barrels, it was not long before a plethora of tungsten dart brands sprung up around this blossoming market.
Red Dragon’s very own engineers were pioneers at this hugely exciting time in the history of the sport. Experts in tungsten powder metallurgy, they were one of the first companies to successfully blend tungsten with other metals such as copper and nickel, in the early mass production of these revolutionary new darts.
At the same time as tungsten was re-writing the rule book for scoring averages, a global industry was emerging as the game was watched on television by millions of viewers worldwide. When Leighton Rees doubled to victory at the inaugural BDO World Championships in 1978, the future of tungsten for darts was secure.
Over the last 45 years, Red Dragon has consistently remained at the forefront of new technology and innovation, focusing on the development of profiles, trajectory dynamics and grip biomechanics. It is this genesis of eighth generation tungsten, that offers the players of today such a huge range of grip and flight dynamics to perfect to their very own throw.
With staggering tournament prize funds, now estimated to exceed £10 million per annum, the technological advantages offered by tungsten have never been so important.
Each top professional is fastidiously aware of the advantage that the perfect feel in a set of darts can give them, almost to the point of an unfair advantage. And so it is to the top tungsten technologists that the leading players turn in their chase for the most innovative, tournament winning designs.
Congratulations therefore to our three reigning World Champions, Luke Humphries, Wayne Warren and Peter Wright as well as our team of specialist engineers who continue to push the scientific boundaries of tungsten technology.