Rotary Tattoo Machine Answers

Here are some answers to questions I have recieved about Special Technique rotary tattoo machines.

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when a rotary tattoo machine has a spring to make the 'hit' softer, it is called 'dampened.' we also say 'it has a dampening mechanism.'

this dampening feels nice to both artist and client. some dampening mechanisms have too many parts. more parts means more chances to break. i like to make the dampening with no extra moving parts, just a well placed spring that softens the 'hit' a little bit. ALL DAMPENING FEELS NICE and you don't need to adjust it on the machine. just turn the power up or down a little bit.

ADJUSTABLE dampening means there is a screw to adjust the tension on the dampener spring. i think these adjustable ones will break down too soon. i made a few, but i worry....

i think our Tracker machines like the first one in this video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5SXvQRj87aI will all have the dampening spring but with NO adjustment screw. two reasons for this: i don't want tattooists messing with my devices, and you should NOT be using one machine for every tattoo task. you should have at least 4 or 5 machines you use every day. no machine can be used by itself to support a tattooist's ENTIRE career. it just doesn't work that way.

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the machines get tested under the WORST and also BEST possible conditions. i put oil instead of ink in the tube and run all rubber real loose, and i also dry needle that hard rubber practice skin with metal dust and crap all over it... using a 15 mag a lot of the time. it really hammers at the machine's working parts. i really try to give these things some punishment before i send them out. i really go over these things in detail. if something is amiss, i find it right away. when i get all the parts to behave correctly, nothing will change the machine, even in the roughest tattoo conditions, for a year to two years. our parts are becoming more durable and easier to replace as we progress: this aspect of making the machines is a huge emphasis for us. we also buy extra motors well over and above the number of machines we make, just to be on the safe side.

you get a surprising look at other factors in tattooing when the machine never changes. i'm really concerned with nothing else other than showing tattooists this different and enjoyable perspective on their daily task. i've shut off basically everything in life, and devote ALL my time to stressing out about sending mechanical devices to england and switzerland and india.

my partner, brian campbell and i charge a lot for our creations because we know what it's worth to buy a product backed by people who are so devoted to their craft. right now we are obsessed, low-tech mechanical innovators, but we're both interested in machining, mass-production and even engineering classes. who knows what we will turn into, but the point is that we are so into making and sharing mechanical devices that you literally buy a piece of us when you get a machine from us. we have made roughly 60 machines at this time, and we'll have the same attitude after we've made 600 and 6000 machines.