Sorry I disappeared for a while. The epoxy has worked great. As afar as cartridges not starting up, make sure the grip is screwed out start the machine and screw it in until you have the right hang of your needles. Mine starts at 5.5v on an Eikon EMS420, no kick start. If the problem persists, look and see if the dive bar is moving at all. If it is use a q-tip and apply a small amount of pressure to the dive bar and see if it just stops. If it does just stop, this is the issue I had.

I have done several 6+ hour running time tattoos and plenty of bangers since my repair and have had no issues whatsoever. In fact I haven't even thought of touching my Thunders or coils since.

If I get a chance this week I will tear the machine down and show you guys how to perform the repair. At this point I would say plain super glue (cyanoacrylate) would perform very well. At least it is a cheap fix readily available and the repair is easy as can be.