Tattoo Machines, Guns

A tattoo machine is a hand-held device for creating a tattoo, i.e., a permanent marking of the skin with ink. Modern tattoo machines use alternating electromagnetic coils to move a needle bar up and down, driving pigment into the skin. more...

Home
Bath & Body
Dietary Supplements,...
Hair Care
Hair Removal
Health Care
Massage
Medical, Special Needs
Nail
Natural Therapies
Oral Care
Other Health & Beauty Items
Skin Care
Tattoos, Body Art
Flash
Other Items
Piercing Supplies, Kits
Tanning Stickers
Tattoo Machines, Guns
Tattoo Supplies
Temporary Tattoos
Vision Care
Weight Management
Wholesale Lots

Tattoo artists generally use the word "machine", or even "iron", to refer to their equipment, while amateurs and collectors often use the term "gun".

The basic machine was invented by Thomas Edison and patented in the United States in 1876 as the "autographic printer". It was originally intended to be used as an engraving device, but in 1891, Samuel O'Reilly discovered that Edison's machine could be modified and used to introduce ink into the skin, and later patented a tube and needle system to provide an ink reservoir.

The technology used to make modern tattoo machines has come a long way, however. While O'Reilly's machine was based on the rotary technology of Edison's engraving device, modern tattoo machines use electromagnets. The first machine based on this technology was a single coil machine patented by Thomas Riley of London, just twenty days after O'Reilly filed the patent for his rotary machine. For his machine, Riley placed a modified door bell assembly in a brass box. The modern two coil configuration was patented by Alfred Charles South, also of London. Because it was so heavy, a spring was often attached to the top of the machine and the ceiling to take most of the weight off the operator's hand.

Most modern tattoo machines can control needle depth, speed, and force of application, which has allowed tattooing to become a very precise art form. Such advancements in precision have also produced a style of facial tattooing that has attained mainstream popularity in America called dermapigmentation, or "permanent cosmetics".

How it works

The machine works similar to alternating current— charge causes magnets to pull downward on a bar, which disconnects the circuit and allows the upward force of the spring to pull the bar back to its initial position.

Power is conducted by wires in two different directions: Through the coils to the adjustable contact screw (E), and through the frame (A) to the contact spring, (above C), via the armature spring (D).; Current, flowing between the contact screw and the contact spring, completes the circuit, causing:; The electromagnetic coils (B) to pull down on the armature bar (C), which causes:; The needle bar (F) to move down with it, the needles at the end of the needle bar penetrate the skin.; With the circuit at (2) broken, the armature spring (D) is free to exert its upward force again, causing the circuit to close with the contact made, again, at (2).;

This process repeats 80 to 150 times a second, providing the artist with a means to penetrate the skin with ink without moving his hand.

The frame (A) is usually a conductive material such as iron, brass, or copper, with plastic bushings at the contact points to isolate the current from the frame (although some frames are made of non-conductive materials with a yoke to connect the coils to the wiring, thus completing the circuit). The capacitor (pink) regulates current flow. The needle tube (G) provides a grip for the artist's control, and a small reservoir at the tip for ink.

Read more at Wikipedia.org