Temporary Fix for a Worn Out Bullseye

This little trick was taught to me twenty years or so ago by the owner of the Metro Atlanta Dart Association. It was my first night playing in a league and I'm forever grateful to Lewis for this tip.

If you've thrown on a board with a worn out bull, you know it can be frustrating watching dart after dart fall out because the material making up the bullseye has lost much of it's "grip" from overuse. Here's what ya do. Every two or three throws, stab the point of your darts into a slice of lime. You won't believe the difference this makes in the darts sticking. I have no idea why it works, but I'm pretty sure little green elves are involved.

Careful using this trick with hammerheads, especially if ya put much oomph into your throw to start with. You may find ya need a claw hammer just to pull your darts!

Classic Dartboard Trick

Round and round and round she goes...

This is an oldie but goodie. Everyone knows the most points you can score with three darts is a ton eighty (180) right? So next time you're in your local pub, bet someone a beer that it's possible to score higher. Simply spin the board around so that the 16 wedge points top side. That slice of pie is suddenly worth "91" points, making three trips total up to 819 points!
 
Of course, depending on their sense of humor, your victim may pay you off with an empty beer bottle, having treated it to the same 120 degree tilt you gave the dartboard!

How to Hang a Dartboard

Your basic dartboard bracket. Note the line at 5' 8''

So you need to know how to hang a dartboard? It's not that difficult if you simply take the time to measure carefully and secure your hardware adequately. First thing is make sure you have the correct measurements. (See pic at right for what happens if ya rush. Note the extra holes from incorrectly measuring the first time.)

From the floor to the center of the bull should be exactly 5 feet and 8 inches, or 68 inches. That's 173 cm if you're in a metric mood. The other critical measurement is your throwing distance which  should be 7 feet 9 and a quarter inches, or 93.25 inches. That's 2.37 meters.

So measure 68 inches up the wall, make your mark and screw the bracket to the wall with two good wood screws. If you don't hit a stud, you'll probably wanna use toggle bolts instead of screws to be sure the bracket is good and secure. Remember, that's all that's holding up the board. Next you'll want to be sure to run a short, wide head screw into the exact center of the back of the dartboard. Leave the screw approximately a quarter inch out. This will slide into the bracket on the wall. Both the bracket and the screw should come with the board if bought new. Before you attach the board to the wall, there will probably be 3 or more rubber feet or metal strips which you attach to the back of the board in order to keep the board surface on an even plane.

Once the board is hung, plumb a line from the face of the board to the floor and make a mark. Then measure your 7 feet 9 and a quarter inches so you know where to place the oche (toe line, throwing line, etc.) Mark or tape a line there and you're pretty much done. If you care to triple check your work, then according to ol Pythagoras (who knew he threw darts?) a line from center bull to your toe line should be 9 feet 7 and 3/8 inches.