How To Set Up A Tattoo Machine for Beginners? Tattooing is an art form that has been practiced for thousands of years and is still evolving due to new technology. A tattoo machine, or “tat gun,” as some call it, is one tool in the artist’s arsenal.
A popular question has been raised, “how to set up & use a tattoo machine? If you are wondering this, this post is for you! Check it out for more details about how to set up and use a tattoo needle properly.
Source: Healthline
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Contents
How To Set Up A Tattoo Machine?
If you’re a first-time tattoo artist, it is important to get one of the best possible machines and learn how to set up your machine to be easily fixed when things go wrong.
Knowing these principles will help give new insight into what needs doing with any type or style and give advice on which ones may suit certain kinds better than others based on personal preference.
Source: iStock
Step 1: Preparing All The Necessary Components
It’s a good idea to have everything you need in one place, so that way if anything goes wrong or your machine stops working for some reason there won’t be any trips back and forth from the store.
These include a power supply unit with an attached clip cord and foot pedal to activate and terminate current flow between your machine’s batteries or clamps. You also need to prepare needles in various sizes and ink caps to dry out before use.
In most cases, a beginner will receive their starter pack of goodies. If they’re just getting started and have no experience with the field at all, then this might be enough for them to get going.
Step 2: Preparing The Needles
A standard sewing kit should be in every professional’s toolkit, and it is important to choose the needle size appropriate for your project.
For the task at hand, needles come in a variety of sizes. Smaller needles give more control over your ink flow. By contrast, longer points penetrate deeper into the skin to do larger scale work such as tattooing or airbrush painting with fewer passes through an area than regular pens.
As the names suggest, tattoo needles configurations are either liner or shader. Liner-style tattoos use a single row of small tips that come together to outline your design. Moreover, shading inks need more than one needle type placed closely next to each other for greater coverage and depth effect.
Due to your working purpose, you should prepare the correct needle type to handle specific tattoo types in one working day. Depending on your task, it’s your choice to prepare before work every day or prepare for a whole week.
Step 3: Gun Assembly
Machine assembly is completed with the help of simple tools. A tattoo machine can be assembled easily as long you wash your hands before touching any components. Pay attention to connections between parts and tune-up properly for best results.
Here’s how you can assemble the gun with ease:
- When drawing figure eight, you’ll need two points. The screw and spring underneath it should make up a dime-thick line on your paper for linework precision.
- With the needle pointing towards you, slide it into place and tighten the wingnut as much as needed. The eye loop should now be facing left before installing onto the machine threading slot.
- Next, fit the armature bar needle into place to ensure correct positioning. If installed incorrectly, there could be trauma and no ink flow from it.
- To get the best sound, professionals recommend adjusting your record needle length between 0.04 and 0.07 of an inch long.
Step 4: Connecting The Power Supply
A power supply unit is an essential part of any tattoo gun kit for beginners. It ensures that the device runs smoothly and safely in different locations with varying voltage levels, preventing knock-downs when working at remote sites around town or the country.
If your place is located in a prone-to-electricity-loss region, it’s best to prepare a power supply to handle the unlucky situation immediately once it happens.
How To Use A Tattoo Machine?
Step 1: Practice Tattoo Artist Try First
It’s time to test your tattoo gun before using it on some person. You can practice with apples or pears, which are very similar in flesh color and synthetic material. Thus, you’ll know if all the components have gone together correctly and avoid damaging real skin when trying out ink for yourself.
Source: 123RF
Step 2: Proper Machine Positioning
The tattoo machine can be quite dangerous if you don’t hold it properly. Remember that the tube of your gun will vibrate just like any other object. Therefore, please keep a firm grip on its shape and remember to use both hands when inking someone.
Source: Wikimedia Commons
How Far Should The Tattoo Needle Stick Out?
A tattoo should go through the skin 1mm and 2 mm. Why? Find out the details now:
The skin’s structure consists of three major layers:
- Subcutaneous tissue (fat layer)
- Dermis (includes two sublayers)
- Epidermis (includes five sublayers)
A tattoo needle is a tool for the sake of art. It should never be used as an instrument to inflict pain. You would not want any physical and mental scar on your customer.
The best way for this not to happen? Ensure you are sticking deep enough into their dermis layer, which will give them the deeper meaning behind their ink.
It’s worth noting that the skin is a complex structure with many layers, and the dermis layer has an average thickness ranging between 1mm to 2 mm.
The best needles for tattooing should be set at this depth since it will help give you better line quality when drawing or writing on your client’s body part.
Don’t forget that there’s no perfect measure for everyone. Some people have more fatty tissue than others which means their skin will be thicker and harder to puncture. Be assured you’re sticking your needle between 2mm-4mm in depth.
Source: Getty Images
How To Setup A Tattoo Needle Properly?
Step 1 – Prepare All “Ingredients”, start
Figuring out how to put a tattoo machine together seems a hard challenge for a rookie. To make everything simpler, be organized by placing all tools you have in front of you neatly. As a result, if something goes wrong, at least everything will be labeled appropriately.
Step 2 – Get The Tattoo Needles Ready
It’s important to check and prepare your needles in advance and make sure they haven’t been dull or crooked. A bad needle can cause brutal bleeding, which will lead to an unwanted experience for both artists and clients. This could result in scarring down the road.
Inspecting the tube is important because disposable or autoclaved types of needles should be used. When things go wrong, replace the used package with a sealed one. Then, opened packages must be discarded when done using them for safety reasons.
Source: Shutterstock
Step 3 – Create the tattoos
When the needle has been settled on the skin, it’s vital to adjust it to flush with tube slots. Slide up on the wing nut slightly and tighten securely for maximum stability.
When putting a tattoo needle through the skin, be mindful of facing the left and inserting it. If this isn’t done correctly, there can be some very painful consequences like not getting any ink due to improper placement on an armature bar ring-nipple set up.
Ensure the needle is set at a tight but comfortable distance from your skin. It should be set at the correct length—between 0.03 and 0.08 of an inch, depending on what you’re going for with your drawing.
Frequently Asked Questions
What Voltage Should A Tattoo Shader Run At?
It would help if you use a high voltage machine for those new to line work when shading on an 8-10 volts optimal setting will produce the most details with no mistakes in your artwork.
What Is The Difference Between A Shading And Lining Tattoo Gun?
A tattoo artist will need a longer spring to hold their machine in place and create the most vibrant colors with shader machines. They also require more power than liner-style needles.
The reason is that they have many extra features such as bi-directional motors, steppers, or lead screws. These allow for complex designs on intricate parts of your body as you’ve never seen before.
Which Angle Should You Tattoo At?
When you link up your skin, ensure to keep an even pressure. Adjust the standard angle between 45 and 60 degrees until it looks perfect for what type of design will be done on top with a pen or marker.
Final Thoughts
So, how to set up & use a tattoo machine? Setting up and using a tattoo machine is not as complicated as it may seem.
With the right information, you can be well on your way to becoming an expert at this process in no time. We hope that these tips will help you have no trouble setting up and using a tattoo machine.