Sanitary Precautions For Tattoo Needles

Tattoo is a serious business and there are many things to consider. One of the most important considerations a tattoo artist will make is what kind of tattoo needles they will use. After all, all you really need to give a good tattoo is a needle and some ink. But we are after all not in prison or in the third world so we are lucky enough to have other equipment that makes life easier.

Starting with the tattoo needle and working back you have the tattoo machine which is made up of mostly interchangeable disposable parts. The coil wrap, the grip, and the and the tips are the main components of a tattoo gun and are held in place by screws, bands, and grommets. A tattoo gun is a pretty intricate piece of equipment.

Back to the needles. As I already said these are the most important part of the whole contraption because this is the part that actually comes into contact with the customers skin. This is were the magic happens and also where there is a potential for any possible problems. If a tattoo needle is not secured properly there could be injury. If the needle is not sterilized there could be long term health problems. If they needle is not checked for quality control it could be defective. And, if the tattoo artist is not using the needle correctly there could be a lawsuit.

After ensuring that everything is in proper working order we will work our way down from the tattoo needle to the gun to the power supply and foot pump. The foot pedal regulates the speed at which the needle penetrates the skin. The tattoo gun is in essence a hand held sowing machine, minus the thread.

The rest is up to the artist and as they say guns kill, tattoo guns create.

If you are getting a tattoo for the first time make sure that your tattoo artist takes the precautions of using pre sterilized needles. These will come in bubble packages or some similar type of sealed container. This will eliminate any possibility of cross contamination from other customers.

It is common for a tattoo artist to have a number of tattoo guns outfitted with the necessary needles that they may need for a particular design. Having multiple guns will allow the artist to work more quickly and eliminate the need for changing needles in the middle of a tattoo.

Different types of lines and shading will require different sizes, numbers of, and configurations of tattoo needles. Shading and outlining are done with a different needle configuration. Artist preference also plays a large roll in the needle selection.

Pre packaged tattoo needles will come with an identifying label as to what they are intended for. RS and RL stand for round shader and round liner. This particular setup is where the needles are grouped in a round pattern. FS and FL are used for flat shader and flat liner. As you can guess with a flat setup, the needles are lined up in a single file row, or they could be stacked on top of one another in multiple rows.

Tattoo needles are one of the costs of doing business in this industry and luckily they are one of the more inexpensive parts of the business. Large packages are low priced and buying in bulk will always save money. So you are getting a tattoo, you may now have more of an idea of what to expect and if you are an artist, then I probably didn’t tell you anything you don’t already know. Choose your tattoo needles wisely and don’t ever try to cut corners.