The new John O'Shea 'Joker' darts launched on November 4th as part of Missions 2022 Autumn Launch. John, a former World Master, signed with Mission back in February of this year and people were highly anticipating the release of his darts. It's safe to say Mission did not disappoint!
John O'Shea signing with Mission in February, with head of player development Darryl Fitton
The darts suit John's nickname 'The Joker' down to the ground with a purple and green rainbow coating which has also been sandblasted for a really unique look. The darts are front weighted and taper from front to back. They are based on a previous dart that John used before he signed with Mission.
The Mission 'Joker' John O'Shea darts, released on 4th November 2022.
Product Information
22g Steel Tip - 95% Tungsten (Also available in 24g, 26g Steel Tip and 20g Soft Tip)
Length: 50.8mm
Width: 7.05mm
Supplied with short Mission Sabre shafts and No2 'Joker' John O'Shea flights.
Price (As of 15/12/2022): £54.95
Grip & Balance
The grip rating given by Mission is a 7/10 which I agree with, the thin but tight together rings offer good amount of grip without being sticky or aggressive. Because of the nature of the coating, the grip isn't compromised like it would be with painted grooves. The taper gives a nice push point to propel the dart to the board.
The darts are front weighted because of the taper from front to back which means with the supplied setup, they really do stand up in the board.
Dart Performance
The darts for me personally were a nice surprise, I usually use a parallel barrel that is 6.4mm wide, these darts feel not too wide considering they are a little over 0.6mm wider than my normal match darts. They almost feel like a parallel dart in the hand and with the way I grip the dart with my finger wrapping around the barrel rather than a pinch style grip, I really felt the benefit of the tapered style. The nose shape is unique, made popular by a former two time BDO world champion who's darts these are based off. They don't make much difference in terms of feel of performance for me personally, although some people who put their finger on the nose of the barrel may think otherwise.
If the darts were cheaper I would suggest anyone wanting to change from a parallel dart to something more tapered, this would be a good starting point however, I would recommend trying these in a shop if possible before purchasing at the £55 price point.
Summary
Overall the darts are actually quite basic in terms of their cuts and shape however the added coatings and sandblasting really give them a premium feel and makes them good value for money as they are a little more unique than the standard rainbow coated or sandblasted darts. They performed as expected so there's no surprises if you were to purchase these darts without trying them first.
A solid dart that's unique enough to not be just another dart on the market, for fans of Mission, John O'Shea or fancy looking darts these would be a good pickup or for those who like similar tapered style darts too!
Thank you to Mission Darts for sending me these to review! The video review can be found on my YouTube channel here.
Comments