A first home setup fails in two ways: a coiled paper board that dies in a weekend, or a £400 cabinet you are afraid to throw at. Start in the middle.
Categories
| Category | What’s here |
|---|---|
| First home board | Board, surround, darts — this page |
| Shirts & wallets | Match shirt, wallet, oche extras |
| Maintenance | Points, flights, shafts, sharpener |
The library
| Item | Why | Search |
|---|---|---|
| Sisal dartboard | Staple-free bristle; the pub game | Winmau sisal dartboard |
| Foam surround | Misses hit foam, not plaster | Dartboard surround |
| 22–24g tungsten darts | First set you will still like in March | Tungsten darts 24g |
| Brass starter set | If this might be a one-month hobby | Brass darts 24g |
| Board light | Beats a new barrel for scoring | Dartboard light |
| Oche tape | 7'9¼" from the face of the board | Dart oche tape |
| Standard flights | Cheap, replace often | Dart flights |
| Nylon shafts | Same story | Dart shafts |
| Point sharpener | Steel tips dull | Dart sharpener |
| Flight protectors | Stops flights ripping at the punch | Flight protectors |
| Electronic cabinet | Rented walls, soft-tip only | Electronic dartboard |
Buy once: board, surround, darts, light. Restock flights and shafts as they die.
Height, once
Bullseye 5'8" from the floor. Oche 7'9¼" from the face of the board (steel-tip). Soft-tip electronic is often 8'. Measure twice. FAQ repeats this because everyone gets it wrong once.
Soft-tip vs steel
If the wall is rented and you are nervous: electronic with a cabinet. If you want the pub game: sisal and steel, plus a surround. Do not mix steel darts with a soft-tip board. Barrel metal: tungsten vs brass.
After it is on the wall
Read rules for 501. Hang a checkout card if you like, then ignore it until you can hit a double. Technique is stance and a still elbow, not a new barrel every Friday.
Related: Setup · Types of darts · Home vs pub