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How To Set Up A Tattoo Gun

Most people remember that becoming a professional tattoo artist means creating amazing designs every mean solar day. And while that's an outcome of success, what people don't see are the characteristics that allowed the artist to get to that bespeak-  the grit behind it all.

In the tattoo industry, simply beingness a adept tattoo artist is not plenty to be successful. There are other qualities aspiring tattoo artists need to reach the superlative.

In this article, yous'll learn:

  • v mutual traits of successful tattoo artists
  • Ways that you tin can abound these traits
  • How to ultimately be successful in a competitive niche like tattooing

Note
Call back to wear latex gloves (or nitrile gloves) while setting upwards your tattoo machine.

How to Prepare a Coil Tattoo Machine

Coil tattoo machines are frequently considered "traditional" machines. They can exist tricky to melody, so virtually artists volition use two separate machines - one for lining and one for shading - to avoid re-tuning their machine mid-tattoo.

Set Up the Springs

If the springs are not already in place on your auto, you'll need to set them upward around the screw on the armature bar. Wedge the springs around the spiral; the back spring goes under the forepart spring. And then loop the O-band around the screw, going nether the front end jump and over the back jump.

proper location for tattoo gun springs

Put a Slight Bend in the Tattoo Needle

In that location's two reasons artists put a curve in the needle before sliding it into the tube. First, it makes information technology easier not to barb the needle when you lot slide it through the tube. 2nd, having a slight bend lets the needle residuum against the back of the tip more hands.

how a tattoo artist puts a bend in the needle bar

Put the Needle Through the Tube

Advisedly slide the needle through the tube and adhere the safe grommet. Make sure that the needle does non hitting the tip on its style through, this can barb the needle. Barbed needles can mess up your lines, chew out the peel faster, and crusade your client to have a painful tattoo feel.

Brand sure that y'all take a tip with a matching needle bar. For example, a tube fabricated for a seven Circular Liner will have a diamond tip (ideal for liners) and only be big enough for a liner with 7 sharps. Information technology'll be impossible to use a larger liner, a mag, etc. with that tip.

needle tip sliding through the needle tube

Feed the Needle and Tube Through the Clench

Loosen the clench at the base of the automobile so the needle and tube tin can easily slide through. Secure the grommet at the cease of the armature bar.

how a tattoo artist attaches the needle tube and needle bar to the armature bar on a tattoo gun

Adapt the Tube so Needle is Fully Retracted

If your needle does not get all the style back into the tip while you are tattooing, it won't be able to pick up ink from the reservoir. Motility the tube up or down within the clamp until the terminate of the needle is lined upward with the tip of the tube.

how a tattoo artists adjusts the tubes and tattoo needles on tattoo machines

Put a Rubber Ring Around the Tattoo Motorcar

Having a rubber band around the auto applies a little bit of pressure to the needle. That pressure pushes the needle to the back of the tip and so it doesn't bounce around and ruin your line piece of work. It besides keeps the grommet from popping off.

You lot just demand 1 rubber band. Also much pressure on the needle will make information technology harder for the needle to move, which will wear out your car and cause issues with the ink "spitting" out.

how a tattoo artist adds rubber bands to a tattoo gun correctly

Attach Your Clip Cord

Attach your clip string to the dorsum of the machine. Printing the foot pedal or the "on" button on your power supply to turn the machine on. The "fizz" y'all hear while information technology'southward on is the armature bar hitting the coils. Make sure to put a prune cord cover over your clip cord to protect yourself and your clients from potential contact with bloodborne pathogens.

tattoo artist tattoo gun, clip cord, foot pedal, and power supply

Tune Your Tattoo Machine

power supply for tattoo gun

When tuning a coil automobile, you'll need to adjust the post-obit settings:

Voltage

The voltage is essentially how much power is going through your tattoo machine. The more voltage, the more powerful the "hitting" of the needle. We recommend keeping your voltage around four volts for shading and around 5.v volts for lining with a traditional coil machine.

Cycles Per Second (CPS)

Sometimes labeled "Hertz" on your power supply, the CPS of a car is how many times the needle is making a full up-and-downwards movement per 2nd. We recommend a CPS of 120 for shading and 130 for lining.

You increase the CPS by moving the contact screw in closer to the forepart spring and you lot decrease the CPS past moving the contact screw abroad from the front spring.

Stroke

Your car stroke is the length of space the needle covers in one up-and-down motion. For coil machines, we recommend a 3mm stroke for lining, a iii.5mm stroke for black and grayness, and a 4mm stroke for color packing.

Like the CPS, you suit the stroke by moving the contact screw. Moving the contact spiral in shortens the stroke. Moving the contact spiral in also increases the CPS. This works well for lining as you demand both a shorter stroke and an increased CPS. (In the same mode, moving the contact screw out lengthens the stroke and decreases the CPS, which you lot would want for packing.)

Duty

The duty of your machine measures how long the needle is in the skin. If the duty is below 50, it means the machine is spending more fourth dimension off than on during a cycle. This ways the needle is spending too much time extended out into the skin, causing extra trauma to the peel.

If the duty is above fifty, the needle is spending as well much time in the tube and not putting enough ink in the pare.

To conform the duty, you need to swing the armature bar out and lightly bend the dorsum spring. Bend the back spring up if the duty is less than l, and curve the back spring down if the duty is more than 50.

Wrap Your Tattoo Machine

Identify a car bag over your machine. Nosotros like to put a small hole in the bottom of the bag to fit the grip through. Y'all can then use grip tape to secure the machine bag.

tattoo equipment wrapped in a tattoo machine bag

Note
If yous do non take an autoclave, you must apply disposable grips.

How to Set a Rotary Tattoo Car

Rotary tattoo machines move the tattoo needle with a straight drive motor. Considering the cam cycle on the motor is powered straight and doesn't crave all the tuning of a coil auto, rotaries are much easier to prepare.

Check out our instructors' favorite rotary tattoo motorcar in our new commodity: Inkjecta Flite Nano Review.

Use an Allen Key to Attach the Needle Bar and Cam Cycle

Place the plunger bar in the opening of the cam bike and tighten with an Allen key. And so pop the cam wheel into identify and tighten with an Allen key.

tattoo artist wearing latex gloves

Attach the Tube and Needle Cartridge

Most rotary machines volition take a clamp that you twist to open. Open it plenty for the tube to fit in. Guide the needle bar into the tube. Then, identify the needle cartridge into the grip. Y'all'll feel a "click" as the cartridge locks into place.

how to set up a rotary tattoo gun correctly

Adjust the Depth of the Needle

Before you tighten the clench all the way, move your needle to set the depth yous want to tattoo at. Nosotros like to float the needle, which ways lining the needle up with the very stop of the cartridge.

If the needle is poking out the end of the cartridge while the machine is off, you've gone too far.

tattoo machines with different depths on liner needles

Attach the RCA Cord

To power the machine, plug the RCA cord into the machine and into the power supply.

tattoo gun plugged into a power supply without digital display

Wrap Your Tattoo Motorcar

Place a machine bag over your machine. Y'all can poke a pigsty in the bottom of it to fit the grip through. Secure the purse with grip tape around the grip. If yous do not have an autoclave you must employ a disposable grip.

tattoo gun bag for sterile equipment

Bonus Step: Changing Out Your Cam Wheel

If yous want to alter the machine stroke of your rotary machine, you'll need to switch to the cam wheel with that stroke.

Use the Allen key to release the plunger bar from the cam wheel, then to get the cam off the automobile. Y'all tin can then replace it with a new cam wheel, putting the plunger bar on the new cam.

We recommend using a 4mm stroke for linework or packing color and a 3mm stroke for black and greyness, realism, or smooth shading.

Cam pack

How to Prepare Up a Pen Tattoo Machine

Pen machines are uncomplicated to ready up, which is why they're some of the best tattoo machines for beginners. Many pen machines take a set up stroke (usually iii.5mm) so you can line, shade, and pack color with them without having to make many adjustments to the machine.

Put Whatsoever Pieces Together

Many pen machines will come in two parts (this is oftentimes the instance with wireless pen machines, and the rechargeable bombardment will be the upper half).

Put in the Needle Cartridge

Tattoo pens use needle cartridges. All you have to do is put the cartridge in the grip and twist to lock it in. We recommend using needles that have a membrane. This will keep blood, ink, plasma, etc. from getting back into the automobile and contaminating information technology.

Fix Your Needle Depth

Most pen machines will have you twist the grip to prepare the depth. Nosotros recommend manually controlling your needle depth by floating the needle. To set upwards your machine to float the needle, you twist the grip until the cease of the needle lines upward right with the lesser of the cartridge. If your machine is off and the needles are poking out past the cartridge, you've gone too far.

Wrap Your Machine

A lot of pen machines can exist wrapped in a clip cord comprehend. If y'all do not have an autoclave, you need to buy disposable grips for your machine. Secure the car bag with grip tape before starting.

tattoo artist tattooing a straight line on fake skin

Turn the Auto On

Most pen machines require little to no setup to get them up and running. Nigh wireless machines will fifty-fifty come in the post already charged if you order from the manufacturer. If you lot take a wireless auto, there will be a power push at the top of the machine. If your motorcar requires an RCA cord, plug information technology into the power supply and your machine.

machine used in tattoo shops

tattoo kit

Prepare Your Voltage

If your pen machine has an RCA string, you lot will need to adjust the voltage on your power supply. If you lot are using a wireless car, you will adapt the voltage on the motorcar (most volition have a lite up display or an LED screen showing you the voltage).

Learn to Chief Tattooing

artist applying a tattoo on human skin

Getting comfortable with your tattoo machine is only the starting time step on your journey to becoming a tattoo artist. Next, you need to learn how to use it to flawlessly apply tattoos.

There'southward a ton of information out there that promises to teach you to tattoo, only a lot of it is outdated or incorrect. This is why most tattoo artists trying to learn online pick upwardly bad habits that tin take years to unlearn.

If y'all desire to learn how to tattoo the right manner, you tin can still do it online and at your ain pace.

We created the Artist Accelerator Program to give aspiring artists all the lessons and techniques they need in an piece of cake-to-follow, 9-stride roadmap that can take anyone from complete beginner to professional tattoo artist in as little equally 90 days.

Within the plan, you'll learn the skills tattoo artists apply every day, get personalized guidance from professionals, and put together a portfolio that gets you hired.

Skip the years of trial and mistake and showtime edifice a career you love today.

Click here to cheque out the Artist Accelerator Program.

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  • 500 video modules
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Source: https://tattooing101.com/learn/tattoo-equipment/machine-setup/

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