Spektra Halo feedback thread

[serial1313]

I was using the Old No.13 B&G set. By the way.

You should, I streched the skin just normal stretch & it was really like using a marker.

[chris-in-cali]

my only complaint is that when i get it up to around 10 volts for lining...there is noticeable vibration....was wondering if it's just the tubes i'm using.
I am using tatsoul wrath tubes.

[fkirons]

my only complaint is that when i get it up to around 10 volts for lining...there is noticeable vibration....was wondering if it's just the tubes i'm using.
I am using tatsoul wrath tubes.

Use extra rubber bands! What stoke do you have?. at 10 V you get very high RPMs. Remember the machine is really light and the centrifugal force kicks in at that range. You may not need all that voltage. I use 3.2 for lining at 8.5, 9V again i never use anything bigger than a 9 tight. I've heard people in here using 13RL with ease. If you are using some large grouping try to stick to thick wrath or slam some stainless steels to compensate. I tried the new Morphix grip covers and really like them. That may help you too. Feel free to contact me if you need further assistance.
Gaston

[elbo]

my only complaint is that when i get it up to around 10 volts for lining...there is noticeable vibration....was wondering if it's just the tubes i'm using.
I am using tatsoul wrath tubes.

Try a grip like this...32mm stainless....I line at 10.3 volts using 14 liners for jap work....Ok the grip is heavier than the machine but vibration isnt a problem as it soaks up the vibrations....And i find it steadies the hand...a 28 or 30 diameter will no doubt work too...

I would never use a lightweight disposable tube/grip for lining....although i love em for shading...

[Sage Oz]

Ditto here. I use filip leu titanium grips for lining, and I wrap them with two folded paper towels to make a comfy disposable grip cover.

[chris-in-cali]

cool...thanks for the replies. the more and more i use the machines the more and more i have come to love them.
was playing with the different stroke wheels and gives to try and find my sweet spots.

I settled in at 3.2 stroke with no give at around 9.5 volts....very little vibration but gonna slap another band on or bump up the width on my tube.
the 3.6 with a hint of give at 7-8 volts is fucking smooth as butter.
i have never seen my work heal so fast, clean and vibrant.......fucking awesome!!!

[PAWNJOB]

Kinda glad you said it first Chris. Don't get me wrong, I love this machine! I started writing a thorough review that I haven't posted yet but I've been afraid that I might get crucified on this thread if I said it really vibrates too much, at least both the 3.6 and especially the 4mm stroke at higher voltage. In fact it's been such an issue for me that I've been pretty shocked that after a 100 posts that not one other person had made mention of it. I can't help but think it might have something to do w/ the fact that Gaston is such an awesome and active presence in our community. I've noticed quick responses and valuable information posted by this guy for years. He seams like a great guy who's passionate about what he does and he obviously cares about our craft. It seams as if people don't want to say anything negative about his machines at all, perhaps out of respect. I don't wish to offend and this is not directed toward anyone or any of these reviews specifically, I could definitely see how someone might have nothing but good things to say about these machines! But in order for these reviews to be worth while and more credible, we should try to remain objective and voice our opinions on all aspects of these machines both good AND bad. I don't want to put words in Gaston's mouth but I'm sure he too would appreciate our candor. I'm sure he learns from both our compliments and criticisms when working on builds, I'd think that's the whole point of this.

Anyway, I've grown attached to a 4mm stroke length for most of my lining but I just couldn't get on w/ the 4mm stroke Halo as a liner ONLY because starting at a little over 9 volts it starts vibrating so much that the needle jumps forward off the back of the tube no matter how you set up w/ a disposable. I spent a lot of time w/ different setups trying to counter act this, and yes adding another rubber band does help some w/ the vibration and needle ride, I tried it too. But it bogs the motor down a bit which I didn't like. (Friendly suggestion for Gaston: you might possibly offer higher tension bands along side your existing bands, I found that using just 1 didn't provide enough tension sometimes for the long stoke @ high volts but using 2 was just too much.) It's a shame because the intended main purpose for my first Halo was a long stroke liner. I ordered a 3.6mm stroke wheel as a second choice and find I can crank it up slightly higher w/o as much vibration but it's still problematic as a liner. A few days ago, after 2-3 weeks of using the Halo I almost gave up on it as a liner. I said "one last try" and loaded it up w/ the 3.6mm wheel again. As a partial and temporary solution I switched from a 7 diamond to a 5 round tube for running a 7 liner so that the needle didn't jump around, and an extra tight Kung Fu grip to keep the tube from vibrating around. I finally managed to run it at 10 volts w/ a usable stroke and it kicked ass! Granted this client took ink exceptionally well, but I dropped some solid ass one-pass lines while moving along faster than hell.

I truly believe you guys have the best solution for using this machine as a long stroke liner w/ the SS Grip! I haven't tried it w/ my Halo yet though. It did wonders for killing vibration and weight distribution when I used them w/ my Bizarre V2. I honestly believe that the SS Grips are an ideal set up, but let me say one more pessimistic thing before I move on, I hate using non-disposable tubes! Just for the time and laziness factor. I think this machine might actually be worth switching back to SS for, I think it's really that good. My shop does disposable ONLY though! This machine might actually be worth me leaving my current shop! One more thing I'd like to try before I have it out w/ my boss over the SS is the extra thick green disposable tubes from Unimax. I remember you made mention of them in a post on another forum sometime back Gaston. I thought they might possibly be strong/thick enough to resist vibrating. Anyone else experiencing this problem? What fixes have you come up w/? I believe in this machine enough that I'm committed to making it work and sorting through this issue.

I simply don't have time to write out a full review right now but in light of this fairly negative post I would like to say that all in all I'm really impressed w/ this machine. I have plenty of good things to say about it, it has a lot of really nice characteristics. The give system is superb, motor bolt, design, rubber band system, weight, shading and coloring is great. I'm sure lining will be too once I get everything sorted out. The motor has real nice speed and torque, looking forward to using the other stroke lengths!

Sincerely and Respectfully,
-Ryan

[fkirons]

Kinda glad you said it first Chris. Don't get me wrong, I love this machine! I started writing a thorough review that I haven't posted yet but I've been afraid that I might get crucified on this thread if I said it really vibrates too much, at least both the 3.6 and especially the 4mm stroke at higher voltage. In fact it's been such an issue for me that I've been pretty shocked that after a 100 posts that not one other person had made mention of it. I can't help but think it might have something to do w/ the fact that Gaston is such an awesome and active presence in our community. I've noticed quick responses and valuable information posted by this guy for years. He seams like a great guy who's passionate about what he does and he obviously cares about our craft. It seams as if people don't want to say anything negative about his machines at all, perhaps out of respect. I don't wish to offend and this is not directed toward anyone or any of these reviews specifically, I could definitely see how someone might have nothing but good things to say about these machines! But in order for these reviews to be worth while and more credible, we should try to remain objective and voice our opinions on all aspects of these machines both good AND bad. I don't want to put words in Gaston's mouth but I'm sure he too would appreciate our candor. I'm sure he learns from both our compliments and criticisms when working on builds, I'd think that's the whole point of this.

Anyway, I've grown attached to a 4mm stroke length for most of my lining but I just couldn't get on w/ the 4mm stroke Halo as a liner ONLY because starting at a little over 9 volts it starts vibrating so much that the needle jumps forward off the back of the tube no matter how you set up w/ a disposable. I spent a lot of time w/ different setups trying to counter act this, and yes adding another rubber band does help some w/ the vibration and needle ride, I tried it too. But it bogs the motor down a bit which I didn't like. (Friendly suggestion for Gaston: you might possibly offer higher tension bands along side your existing bands, I found that using just 1 didn't provide enough tension sometimes for the long stoke @ high volts but using 2 was just too much.) It's a shame because the intended main purpose for my first Halo was a long stroke liner. I ordered a 3.6mm stroke wheel as a second choice and find I can crank it up slightly higher w/o as much vibration but it's still problematic as a liner. A few days ago, after 2-3 weeks of using the Halo I almost gave up on it as a liner. I said "one last try" and loaded it up w/ the 3.6mm wheel again. As a partial and temporary solution I switched from a 7 diamond to a 5 round tube for running a 7 liner so that the needle didn't jump around, and an extra tight Kung Fu grip to keep the tube from vibrating around. I finally managed to run it at 10 volts w/ a usable stroke and it kicked ass! Granted this client took ink exceptionally well, but I dropped some solid ass one-pass lines while moving along faster than hell.

I truly believe you guys have the best solution for using this machine as a long stroke liner w/ the SS Grip! I haven't tried it w/ my Halo yet though. It did wonders for killing vibration and weight distribution when I used them w/ my Bizarre V2. I honestly believe that the SS Grips are an ideal set up, but let me say one more pessimistic thing before I move on, I hate using non-disposable tubes! Just for the time and laziness factor. I think this machine might actually be worth switching back to SS for, I think it's really that good. My shop does disposable ONLY though! This machine might actually be worth me leaving my current shop! One more thing I'd like to try before I have it out w/ my boss over the SS is the extra thick green disposable tubes from Unimax. I remember you made mention of them in a post on another forum sometime back Gaston. I thought they might possibly be strong/thick enough to resist vibrating. Anyone else experiencing this problem? What fixes have you come up w/? I believe in this machine enough that I'm committed to making it work and sorting through this issue.

I simply don't have time to write out a full review right now but in light of this fairly negative post I would like to say that all in all I'm really impressed w/ this machine. I have plenty of good things to say about it, it has a lot of really nice characteristics. The give system is superb, motor bolt, design, rubber band system, weight, shading and coloring is great. I'm sure lining will be too once I get everything sorted out. The motor has real nice speed and torque, looking forward to using the other stroke lengths!

Sincerely and Respectfully,
-Ryan

Hello Ryan. As I stated many times, good and bad feedback helps me all the time not just the good one.
I don't see why people would be afraid to say what they have to say as I can only improve the product with good and good and bad feedback.

I myself have tested all the strokes, with several configurations and voltage speeds.

The 3.6 and 4mm are the StekeWheels with the most displacement of the bearing axis. The reason why the machine hits and pushes inks so fast is because two things the weight of the stroke wheel (made our of stainless) and the weight of the slider (has a stainless steel rod inside + the weight of the slider knob and slider itself) When you run it too high the machine will show some vibration for the simple fact that the machine is really light and RPMs kick in creating more centrifugal force when the stroke is longer.

You notice this with the 3.6 and 4mm. Personally I don't see the need with this machine to go with anything more than 3.2 but some users like larger strokes. I think this is something that you can notice with several rotaries. The longer the throw the more they will vibrate, especially the really light ones.
Same thing with coil machines. All my coils ship with a 2.5- 3mm stroke for that reason unless the user wants something longer.

Although I notice some vibration with the longer throws at higher voltage, this never bother me to pull crisp, steady lines for what I can think that the other thing that could happen in your case (as well) is that the slider for some reason fits a bit lose and you get some rattling sensation, I haven't came up to this situation yet but I would like to take a look at your machine. If you like please send it to me ASAP. Make sure to fill out this form http://www.fkirons.com/shop/service-your-machine and send along your machine.

Again to anyone trying our machines, feel free to drop me a line, even after all the testing we did, we still learning and improving the way we build them and we are here to assist you.

Gaston

[artoftatt2]

I wrap my disposables with a paper towel and some self stick tape...takes most of the vibration out and feels better for me..

[PAWNJOB]

I think it's worth you taking a look at it. I'll send it off asap. Thank you,

-Ryan