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How to Design Your Own Tattoo Machine

Increase your effectiveness in the industry of tattoo art by customizing your tattoo machines to suit your personal needs and taste. Change parts on your existing tattoo machine to create a custom designed machine, without building from scratch. Create your own custom tat machine to increase inking performance, add greater comfort and handling, and impress new customers. Swapping out a few parts is all it takes to design your own tattoo machine with a custom look or feel.

Things You'll Need

  • Tattoo machine
  • Custom tattoo machine coils (optional)
  • Custom tattoo machine contact screw (optional)
  • Custom tattoo machine grip (recommended)
  • Custom tattoo machine tubes (optional)
  • Leeverloc tattoo machine adjustment (recommended)
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Instructions

    • 1

      Purchase a "Spaulding Rogers Leeverloc" directly from www.Spaulding-rogers.com or from another vendor of tattoo machine parts that carries this modification. The Leeverloc eliminates the need for a hex bolt to attach the needle tubes to your tattoo machine. The inexpensive Leeverloc modification makes changing tubes much easier and faster.

    • 2

      Change the contact screw on your tattoo machine to add character and signature flair to the machine. Decorative contact screws come in a variety of designs such as skulls, dice and angels. Changing the contact screw won't likely change the machine's performance; however, it is the most noticeable change to a customer that signals a custom designed tattoo machine, adding to your image of experience.

    • 3

      Purchase custom needle tubes to increase the functionality of your tattoo machine according to your needs as an artist. Needle tubes come in different lengths, changing how the weight of the machine sits in your hand. Different needle tube brands have different sized and uniquely placed "cut away holes" that reveal the needle bar. Artists prefer different shapes and placements of the cut away opening for cleaning and performance of the machine during the application of a tattoo.

    • 4

      Change custom grips on your needle tubes. Custom grips come in various weights, shapes and sizes, which greatly alter the placement of the weight of the machine in the artist's hand. Uniquely shaped grips offer different control and handling of the tattoo needle while inking a tattoo. Grips also come in a variety of colors and patterns, adding to the recognition of your equipment by clients and peers as a custom designed machine.

    • 5

      Replace the electromagnetic coils on your tattoo machine to alter the performance of the machine. Adding coils with more wire wrapping creates a stronger action in the machine, providing more reliable inking. Unique colors and printed textures on the outer surface of the coils adds additional character to your custom tattoo machine, making it more identifiable to artists and clients.

    • 6

      Consider altering the existing frame of your tattoo machine with hand or power tools to custom fit the weight of the machine to your hand.

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