so got my spektra halo and derlin grip today

[cagelavey]

I just got to say that I haven't had the chance to use it yet today. however straight out of the box, the look and the function of the locking system, the way the vice locks down on the grip, and the way the ttech carts and push bar fit into the grip are down right awesome! this machine was machined really well, with a no nonsense design. the grip in my opinion is one of the best designed cart grips I have seen. there is absolutely no way that the push bar can jump around inside the inner sleeve of the grip, and the way the carts lock and unlock into the grip is way easier to insert and remove than any other grip I have used. all of this is just my opinion straight out of the box I will post more when I have used it. in any event, I do know if I had any reservations, at this point they have been alleviated.

[johndameart]

glad to see you are liking it, def post your opinion on it, i love mine, its a daily workhorse. both machine and the grip, they are like long lost brothers who finally made there way together haha.

[cagelavey]

they look beautiful together! lol, I will, I think maybe a sugar skull on the wife tonight, cause its my day off today. in any event, I cant wait, uber excited.

[Dreviltattoo]

yep, i've been using the same set up for about a week and i've been happy with both so far. halo 3.2 seems to do it all. rpg is great, foot switch is really small but in a good way. i'm waiting on the disposable rpg to come out and i'll try that too.

[cagelavey]

johndameart (http://www.rotarytattoo.com/member.php/2676-johndameart) , do you rubber band your push bar? im thinking it may be better not to. I don't know though.

[cagelavey]

Dreviltattoo (http://www.rotarytattoo.com/member.php/845-Dreviltattoo) , you line with the 3.2 also? I was thinking the 3.6 for that, I guess ill see, I just like a little longer throw.

[Dreviltattoo]

yeah, the push bar may wear on the delrin bushing if you don't. i actually ran it yesterday w o one for a couple hrs before i realized it wasn't on there. i'm using the delrin rpg, but both versions have a delrin bushing. it runs the same either way, i just don't want to wear it out before the disposables are available.

[Dreviltattoo]

yeah, the push bar may wear on the delrin bushing if you don't. i actually ran it yesterday w o one for a couple hrs before i realized it wasn't on there. i'm using the delrin rpg, but both versions have a delrin bushing. it runs the same either way, i just don't want to wear it out before the disposables are available.
also i put a small amount of a&d on the the push bar.

[cagelavey]

that's cool, thanks for the info. wouldn't want to fuck things up.

[Dreviltattoo]

Dreviltattoo (http://www.rotarytattoo.com/member.php/845-Dreviltattoo) , you line with the 3.2 also? I was thinking the 3.6 for that, I guess ill see, I just like a little longer throw.
i have the 3.6 and 4.0 cams, i just haven't had a need to change it. it lines very well with the 3.2. i only run it at 7.8v for lining and 6.8 for shading, blending, coloring.
i have a ton of lining to do today. i'll throw the 3.6 in and see if it makes a diff.

[Dreviltattoo]

i actually got 2 halos and one is still new in the box. no need for it w/ the rpg. i love being able to tattoo w one set up. need a diff grouping in the middle? takes 2 secs to throw something else in. I LOVE CARTS!!!

[Dreviltattoo]

that's cool, thanks for the info. wouldn't want to fuck things up.
especially this time of yr. at least out here...this is going into slow season.

[Dreviltattoo]

I just got to say that I haven't had the chance to use it yet today. however straight out of the box, the look and the function of the locking system, the way the vice locks down on the grip, and the way the ttech carts and push bar fit into the grip are down right awesome! this machine was machined really well, with a no nonsense design. the grip in my opinion is one of the best designed cart grips I have seen. there is absolutely no way that the push bar can jump around inside the inner sleeve of the grip, and the way the carts lock and unlock into the grip is way easier to insert and remove than any other grip I have used. all of this is just my opinion straight out of the box I will post more when I have used it. in any event, I do know if I had any reservations, at this point they have been alleviated.don't forget to take the stay up spring out of your halo...it just overworks the motor. the band in cart will do the job.

[crabink]

Did you guys remove the stay up spring?

[cagelavey]

thanks bro ill let you know what I think too. im gonna rock otut the 3.6 to line and try the 3.2 for shading and color, and ill leave a few lines to do with the 3.2 before I switch to the shade/color, just so I can get a feel for both. I know gaston says he's stuck on the 3.2mm cam so, who knows I might be a convert, lol. we'll see what happens

[cagelavey]

yeah, I know to take out the stay up spring, I did a lil research on the issue before I bought the halo on the subject of carts, because that is all I use. so I had to know the ins and outs of all that, thanks for the reminder, though.

[fkirons]

Hey guys, quick note.
You will no wear the bushing in just a couple of tattoos. the delrin one has a "delrin) bushing which is a poliacetal with low friction coefficient. The aluminums have a brass bushing, again stainless steel and brass are great together (just like motors have the brass bushing on the stainless steel axel)
We did not cut any corners in the construction of these grips and the best materials we used to provide a great performance.
We did countless of hours of testing and you can rest assure that you got what you paid for.
Should any of the grip should show any manufacture defect,
The way the system works forbibs the bar and bushing from wearing of. There is a small amount of play for the DriveBar to glide without friction. The DriveBar connects concentrically with the end of the cartridge stem (in that concave area) therefore the bar is kept aligned with cartridge at al times.

One thing that we recommend (it's on the instructions that came with your grip) is to dab a bit of synthetic grease on the tip of the bar from time to time. Do not use oil! Synthetic grease is food great approved and non toxic.

You can use a rubber band losely. The color ones great good as they are softer. In the event of machines with tensioner, apply just the smallest tension possible, the reason being is that you don't want to purposely push the bar down so much and make it grind against the bushing.

I say if your machine does not make any noise without rubber band tension don't use at all. A bit of tension wont hurt neither, some times quiets the cartridge if it gets noisy.

If you are going to use a direct drive, do not exceed 3.5mm stroke.

Any further questions please ask.

[fkirons]

Did you guys remove the stay up spring?
Yes remove your stay up spring (And read the instructions that came with your grip :) )

[cagelavey]

good to know, I read every bit of literature though, lol. im going to have to end up getting the aluminum rpg, though. I just like as little vibration as possible and heavier grips tend to help a lot with that. is all good though, a good excuse to make another purchase. :)

[Dreviltattoo]

Used the 3.6 for 5 hrs. Had to bump up the volts to 8.5 for lining and 7.5 for shading. Didn't notice too much of a diff than the 3.2. Really easy machine to use. I like how it bogs at low volts for shading. Black and grey is a breeze w standard #12 carts. I'll try the 4.0 out next just to see how it performs.

[cagelavey]

So I only got to do an outline, lol. I love my wife but she sets horrible. And it was late last night and she wasn't feeling it so the whole thing was a constant struggle. I ran the 3.6mm stroke wheel at 8.4v don't know if that is excessive or not didn't have alot of time to horse around with it, but it seemed fine for my hand speed. I backed off the give 1 full turn. That amount of give felt good for me. I wasnt really digging the vibration I got from using the derlin grip, and the lack of weight for lining. Switched to ss ttech grip and all was alleviated. I love the derlin grip well designed. I think it will be mostly implemented with my vivace though for color work. I just think that what vibration I got from the machine surprised me a little, but like I said ss ttech grip killed that issue, so no biggie. All in all I thought it lined like a champ!, which is awesome. Can't wait to gray shade with it, that's what I really want it for, so I'll keep you posted, with all that said so far I'm loving the halo.


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[cagelavey]

especially this time of yr. at least out here...this is going into slow season.

I know! Indiana slows to a crawl in the winter. Gets bad in November, you get murdered in December (except the week after Christmas) and doesn't pick up again until end of January and the beginning of February (tax season)

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[cagelavey]

going to do a new school piece tonight, not on my wife so chances are i'll get to finish it, lol. going to try the 3.2 for the whole piece and see if there may be less vibration with the slightly smaller cam. cant wait to see how it colors and shades! I do dig this machine a lot so far, my wife thinks its sexy(her words). I was telling her it vibrated a little, and she said well if you cant find a use for it i'm sure I can, rofl. she almost had me crying I was laughing so hard.

[bmerck11]

Lol something is wrong with me.I run mine at 9.0 volts sometimes up over 10 lol rrrrraaaahhhhhh!!!

[fkirons]

The Delrin grip is very light. Think is great for shading and running the machine slow. The aluminum one weights more and is what I will recommend if you like to run the machine harder.
3.2 usually gets all jobs done. Never had a need to go higher. With longer throw you will feel it more with the lighter grip.

A lot of people say that they prefer TTechs over hawk and that it's a complete different. I have to agree the hawk carts have way too much tension.

Placing a rubber band will help you get a much more stable feel.

Let us know how it goes. And should you have any questions don't hesitate to contact us.

[cagelavey]

I love it! got to use it again this evening on a couple lil pieces, and I love how I can build lines with it. and backing off the give knob about 3 1/2-4 turns and gray shaded like a motherfucka! im sold on the halo, after just a couple tattoos. I couldn't really judge it from just a lil outline but getting to play around with it some I really enjoy it. and I don't care what anyone says, that give knob works wonders. I know a lot of people like doing b&g with no give but I always used soft hitting coils for some smooth grays and using the give system tonight really felt like home to me. ive gotten used to using no give with my vivace, but being able to switch it up and shade the way I used to felt good. so I will be using the halo as much as possible before this long cold winter hits me, lol. and with the 3.2mm cam and lower volts, around 7.8-8v the vibration was minimal and frankly after just a few minutes I no longer noticed. real nice machine Gaston, thanks bro.

[cagelavey]

which company, sell those disposable memory foam type grip covers? id like to order a grip(no pun intended) of those, lol.

[sacredsouls]

Those are truetubes grip covers. I believe 25 of them are like $26 bucks

[sacredsouls]

http://kingpintattoosupply.com/truegrips.aspx. There ya go. I assume that is what you are talking about.

[sacredsouls]

I am sure you can find them at other places too as I know supporting kingpin is looked down upon. These are made by Durb which is an awesome guy.

[slicksteel]

Try the 2.5 for black n grey with a small amount of give-it is smooth as butter with very little vibs at higher speeds.

[Dreviltattoo]

I know! Indiana slows to a crawl in the winter. Gets bad in November, you get murdered in December (except the week after Christmas) and doesn't pick up again until end of January and the beginning of February (tax season)

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Same thing here man. At least I own the shop so I'll get money for gift cards. Any walk ins I give to my artists and I just do big pieces for the most part anyway. It's ok if ya know it's coming and save for it.

[cagelavey]

just got home from work so just seen all your guys comments. well im an idiot, I knew kingpin had those foam grip covers, lol, I order from kingpin for a few things. and as far as not supporting kingpin, they have always been good to me, I cant say that I have ever had a single bad experience with them, so I got no problem rocking out some products from them. in fact I've been eyeballing that new dd machine they have as a possible first dd machine for my arsenal. and ill definitely try the 2.8mm cam for the halo at some point, but I used the 3.2 tonight and I just cant see this machine preforming better, lol. at this point if I used something else and the machine got even better, I think my head might explode! seriously though, my favorite part is the shading! the color is awesome the lining is more than adequate, but the shading is the bee's knees!, lmao. its just so fun watching those blends go in. I just feel like ive got the holy gail of tattoo machines, with my vivaces, my gen 8, and now my halo in my arsenal im just extremely happy. I know thee are gobs other rotaries out there, and there are many ones I want to get my hands on in the future(the microangelo, mini canker, flite v2, thunder, etc.) and there may be some machine I grasp in the future that will consume all, but for now I am extremely content. one question. when you guys color with the halo, what are your volts, give, etc.? I just ran mine at 7.8v with no give because im used to no give because of my use with the vivace, but am interested in knowing what works the best for you guys so I can experiment and use the halo and its give to its fullest potential, thanks everyone.

[sacredsouls]

I color with my halo at 8.8 volts with the give way out with a 3.2 stroke. Blends nicely and will still pack. I took vodu and mickwraths advice and turned the give all the way out and it works awesome. In fact I haven't tattooed with it with no give.

[cagelavey]

that's cool and makes sense to me. the way it shades with the give out is amazing, ill definitely try coloring with the give knocked out. I for some reason just thought that the give would not be that important before I grabbed one. I was so wrong. cant wait to try it, thanks for the advice, bro.

[cagelavey]

so I cant put my halo down. I haven't picked up my vivace, or gen 8 for a week! not that im going to stop using them, because I love them both. I just wanted to see how I got on with the halo as an all around machine. let me tell you, when people say it can do anything they are not lying. as far as the give, some say that you have to make quite a few adjustments to get the give to soften substantially. I for one like that about this machine. if I need just a little give for lining, I like the fact that setting is quite a distance from my shading and color give settings. I no longer even look at how many turns I use, I just turn then place my finger on the armature pin to evaluate my give and continue to turn until I am satisfied with where it is at. ive always done that with my coils when tuning, so it just feels natural to me. and no matter how many turns I have to make to get my desired give, I can always find it so not an issue at all. it really does feel like you are massaging the ink into the skin when shading/coloring. i know there isn't much i can say about the halo that hasn't been said already, so ill just say, i fuckin love it! plain and simple. if you do not have a halo in your arsenal you are missing out! at first i didn't like how lite the machine was, it kinda felt like a toy in my big ol mits, however after using it, it is anything but a toy and i now love the size and the feel in my hands. especially with a ss t-tech grip, all the weight is in my hand and not on my wrist. i just want to thank you again Gaston, awesome machine man. that's all i got to say, everything else has been covered many times before. i always wondered why there was so many positive post about the halo. i thought , no machine can be that good. i love being wrong at least in this case, peace ninjas!

[fkirons]

so I cant put my halo down. I haven't picked up my vivace, or gen 8 for a week! not that im going to stop using them, because I love them both. I just wanted to see how I got on with the halo as an all around machine. let me tell you, when people say it can do anything they are not lying. as far as the give, some say that you have to make quite a few adjustments to get the give to soften substantially. I for one like that about this machine. if I need just a little give for lining, I like the fact that setting is quite a distance from my shading and color give settings. I no longer even look at how many turns I use, I just turn then place my finger on the armature pin to evaluate my give and continue to turn until I am satisfied with where it is at. ive always done that with my coils when tuning, so it just feels natural to me. and no matter how many turns I have to make to get my desired give, I can always find it so not an issue at all. it really does feel like you are massaging the ink into the skin when shading/coloring. i know there isn't much i can say about the halo that hasn't been said already, so ill just say, i fuckin love it! plain and simple. if you do not have a halo in your arsenal you are missing out! at first i didn't like how lite the machine was, it kinda felt like a toy in my big ol mits, however after using it, it is anything but a toy and i now love the size and the feel in my hands. especially with a ss t-tech grip, all the weight is in my hand and not on my wrist. i just want to thank you again Gaston, awesome machine man. that's all i got to say, everything else has been covered many times before. i always wondered why there was so many positive post about the halo. i thought , no machine can be that good. i love being wrong at least in this case, peace ninjas!

Cage, Im happy to know that you are another happy customer. Enjoy the machine and thank you for putting food in our plates.



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[sacredsouls]

I have to agree cage. I am getting another one this week and one of my crew ordered one as well. I am gonna pick up an rpg as well. Are they 1" or 1.25"

[cagelavey]

1.25 but definitely comfy, because of the taper in the grip. I'd suggest the aluminum though I hear that the extra weight is awesome for lining and eating vibration. But yeah I'm halo crazy right now! I love em with carts, the give and the consistency are amazing together. I know skills aren't included when buying a machine, but with a halo and carts. It takes so much guess work out of the process, bro., kind of feels like cheating , lol.

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[sacredsouls]

That is what I toldy apprentice that made her want one. I told her that it was the same machine every time and it just worked amazingly haha. She was talking about how she hates having to tune a machine everyone once in a while and I said get a rotary haha

[cagelavey]

its true. i definitely think that an apprentice should have to learn to build a machine(coil) and know what all the different parts do. what compacitors do, what springs, etc., and so on and so on. but i also believe that when an apprentice is getting their hand, using a no give rotary like a bishop, neo, or any give machine with the give tightened down all the way is going to help them substantially. every time they pick up that machine it is going to run exactly the same way it did the last time and the muscle memory will be easier to develop that way. then they can experiment with give, coils, etc. its just seems the best way to go about it nowadays. imho.

[sacredsouls]

Yea she has been tattooing for about 6 months now and can build a coil machine and tune it and tattoo with it. I made sure that she knew how to do that. I believe it is important you know.

[cagelavey]

definitely got to learn what got us to this point, too many short cuts going on nowadays, people owning shops after a year/or never tattooing before. not knowing the history of the craft, etc. she's going to flip when she finally gets to use her first halo! but by learning on coils and knowing the demo she'll be able to appreciate rotaries like the halo and how they preform. that's awesome to know people still care about maintaining the integrity of the industry.