By Connor Watkins
A first of hopefully many reviews for myself brings a unique twist to what many would view as quite a standard dart. The Loxley Sorcerer darts sees a scallop inserted into a traditional ring gripped straight barrel, with the addition of a fine micro-grip.
Product information
The barrels are 90% tungsten and are supplied with one set of the Loxley intermediate (tweenie) black Loxley branded stems, alongside a set of the green transparent feather flights (100 micron).
• 21g – Length 50.7mm – Max Width 6.35mm • 23g – Length 50.8mm – Max Width 6.35mm
Point Length = 32mm (26mm protruding)
Price (as of 25/06/2023): £41.95 from Premier Darts
Grip & Balance
Despite the scallop, I found these mostly centre-weighted, just slightly front-weighted, which was surprising to me.
The grip is mild, with the standard rings at the front of the barrel, nearer to the point, being the least grippy. The front of the barrel has a grip level 1 out of 5 grip, however, I imagine that this will not wear down for quite some time due to the low amount of machining that is put into this part.
The rear of the barrel sees a finer micro-grip which has more of a bite to it. Interestingly, the micro-grip near the shaft is slightly grippier than the grip within the scallop. This did not make a huge difference to me but is something to take note of if you are looking for a grippy scallop.
The rear of the barrel offers a level 2/2.5 out of 5 grip, which means that there should be somewhere for all types of players to hold the barrel. However, the fine micro-grip style approach to the rear of the barrel can wear down quite quickly depending on how regularly you would be using these barrels. If you were a rear gripper, like me, who wishes to use these barrels as your main darts, you may want to consider having a second set and rotating the use of them to ensure that you are getting the most out of the grip.
Dart performance
When throwing the darts, my thumb sat in the scallop while my pointing finger laid across the front ring grip, which meant that I covered most of the barrel. However, there was a slight fishtailing in the air, this may have been due to the shorter point that comes in the dart as standard, whereas I am used to a longer point (36mm). I did manage to hit a few 180s with these darts and found that the scalloped micro-grip area really catered to my needs because it allowed me to maintain a rhythm whilst holding the barrel in the same place every time.
I enjoyed these darts, which for me is something I find key in choosing a set to use regularly. The simplicity of the design meant that I had less to focus on in my eyeline and could instead focus on the main priority, the dartboard.
Summary
Overall, these darts hold a lot of potential to be a very popular choice for those that want to enter the scalloped dart world. The micro-grip offers a bit more of a bite to rear-grippers and the scallop gives them a unique twist to what could have been a very generic barrel. These could be seen as slightly expensive for what they are, but I feel these are priced pretty fairly. For just over £40, these are an underrated barrel more people need to explore.
Thank you to Loxley Darts for sending these over to be reviewed!
These darts can be purchased at Premier Darts
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