Mission Darts have released their most premium dart to date and their first (and so far only) 97.5% tungsten barrel - The Archon. This Mission Archon Darts Review, will cover how the dart performs for me personally as well as detail the specifics of the dart itself.
Description From Mission
"The Mission Archon features a straight barrel with a bull nose. The design on the Barrel incorporates intricate unique milled Archon symbol etched into the barrel, highlighted by Bronze PVD coating, the rear section of the barrel incorporates fine Radial grooves with Horizontal milled cuts to enhance the Grip, finished with Black PVD Coating. Completed by the Mission logo, laser etched into the rear of the barrel, the Mission Archon is made from the highest grade of ~tungsten 97.5%"
Product Information
22g Steel Tip - 97.5% Tungsten (Also available in 24g & 26g steel Tip and 18g soft tip)
Length: 55.0mm
Width: 6.0mm
Supplied with short Mission Sabre Shafts and No2 Mission Archon flights.
Price (As of 04/05/2023): £84.95
Grip and Balance
The grip on these darts is very intricate at both the front and the rear, but the more practical area of the grip is that at the rear. The rear grip offers a level 4 out of 5 grip in my opinion however due to the fine machining on this section, the grip will wear down relatively quickly. Saying that 97.5% tungsten will give the barrel a bit more resistance to wear and tear.
The front section, where the archon logo grip is located, still provides a good level of grip personally I would say this is a level 2.5 out of 5. This means across the majority of the barrel there is somewhere to hold with the exception of the silver smooth band.
This dart is center balanced however, with the dart being long at 55mm, it will feel as though it has a rear weighted bias especially with a longer shaft and large flight. Despite this, when throwing I still managed to get the darts to stand up, similar to that of the 48.5mm long Shaun McDonald darts.
Darts Performance
As a front gripper, I found these darts a little difficult to control due to the length. The issue I had was that my technique and preference of a shorter dart does not account for the extra weight added to the read of the dart, causing it to fishtail and wobble through the air after release at least until I'm fully warmed up. This is why I believe the more practical section of grip was added to the rear as the balance suits those who can push the weight of the dart to the board rather than pull it through their fingers.
One thing that did surprise me is just how thin the darts feel. Now 6.0mm is very thin however not far off the standard 6.2-6.4mm we see in other straight barrel darts of the same weight. They felt a lot thinner than advertised and for a while took some getting used to especially when transitioning the darts to the throwing hand.
Summary
The Archon are a premium dart with a great look, although the bronze PVD coating looks more gold than bronze. And for the machining, are very affordable and still usable. For me personally, I wouldn't want to spend £85 on a set of darts but that's me personally. For people who like the premium looking darts and want a 97.5% tungsten barrel, these offer great value whether that's for using them or displaying them on your darts shelf.
The Mission Archon darts can be purchased from DartsCorner here.
Thank you to Mission Darts for sending these darts for review.
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