Almost 20 questions.. .

[MickWrath]

1.) How long have you been tattooing?
11 Years.


2.) Have you ever had problems w/ your hands/wrists/arms as a result of tattooing? describe
My elbow gets a little stiff from time to time on really long sessions.


3.) How many hours a day/ week do you spend tattooing?
Of course it varies but I probably avg 5 about hours a day, so roughly 30 a week.


4.) What style of tattooing (black and grey, traditional,etc.) do you work in most?
Color and Realism.


5.) What style do you prefer to work in?
Color Realism.


6.) Name an artist who has influenced you? What do you like about their style?
When I was green my main influences came from artists like Eric Merrill, Cory Kruger, and the Kern brothers, nowadays all I have to do is look at Liz Cook's work. She is pure inspiration in my humble opinion.


7.) How many tattoo machines do you own?
12 currently but it changes quite often.


8.) In the past, what machines have you used the most? how long? how were they set up?
Coils: Sharpz, Cains, Sobas, Seths, Next Gens, and ES Customs. Rotary: My first rotaries were a pair of original Neos when they first came out, and I primarily used those with my coils until a couple years ago. They were all set up for specific tasks depending on what I was doing.


9.) What is currently your favorite tattoo machine? Why?
Inkjecta Specific 3, I love its versatility, its so smooth it makes my style so much easier to transfer to skin, and maybe because I come from a 99% coil background it just fits.


10.) How many machines do you use in a typical tattoo?
2-3


11.) How much should a good tattoo machine cost?
It should be affordable without sacrificing quality, I actually think most machines are slightly overpriced currently, especially unproven custom builds that are hand built with little finishing. I remember buying my first rollomatic and back in the day 550-600 was so extremely steep for a coil but if its more expensive its better right?, that was a mistake I learned from and I built a machine that month that ran so much smoother and consistent than my Rolo and I did it for about $150.


12.) Name a few things that you like/dislike about tattoo machines and/or power units
dislike: cords lol, mounts for power supplies I feel can be vastly improved on.


13.) What tubes do you use?
Original 1" taper NG bombs, and Morphix humbolts with disposable tube stems.




14.) What needles do you use?
I was very happy with tatsoul up until my last order and I have a slight suspicion that its due to the company being sold. My last batch of almost 500 needles has been shit. Everything from inconsistent tightening to beads of solder at the end of the solder line towards the tips, to the needle loop being on the opposite side of the norm on some, to the damn blister packs heat sealed with folds so they are open and exposed to air after eo sterilization. It will be my last order. I was very pleased with the very large sample pack kingpin sent me however so I will try them most likely. I love metaxa's but they are a bit spendy imho.


15.) What power supplie(s) do you use? Do you prefer knobs or push buttons?
CX2, push buttons, CX1 for conventions.


16.) How important is knowing CPS, volts, etc., to you?
Very, as is knowing the ins and outs of how a machine works and why. The more you understand about how the machine works in every minute aspect the better you will understand how to technically apply pigment to skin in all its types and areas of sensitivity and elasticity.


17.) What do you think of rotary tattoo machines? Needle cartridges?
I only use Rotaries, they have replaced my coils fully. I will be receiving my first machine next week that uses cartridge systems. I have used them in the past on borrowed time and liked them, but I always found the cartridges very pricey compared to needles. However! doing the math I figured that larger magnum cartridges can actually put you on price point with the same in standard needle format, so I intend to use my Stylus for larger magnums exclusively.


18.) How much would you pay for a tattoo machine that would eliminate the need for several tattoo machines and be adjusted by the push of a button rather than turning a knob or screw?
I'm more of a KISS kinda guy. Innovate, create, make vast improvements, even revolutionize...but Keep It Simple Stupid, is a motto I think most of us can agree with. Besides, like stated above I like having more than one machine and my machines are also set up individually for very specific tasks.

[TATsoul]

1.) How long have you been tattooing?
11 Years.


2.) Have you ever had problems w/ your hands/wrists/arms as a result of tattooing? describe
My elbow gets a little stiff from time to time on really long sessions.


3.) How many hours a day/ week do you spend tattooing?
Of course it varies but I probably avg 5 about hours a day, so roughly 30 a week.


4.) What style of tattooing (black and grey, traditional,etc.) do you work in most?
Color and Realism.


5.) What style do you prefer to work in?
Color Realism.


6.) Name an artist who has influenced you? What do you like about their style?
When I was green my main influences came from artists like Eric Merrill, Cory Kruger, and the Kern brothers, nowadays all I have to do is look at Liz Cook's work. She is pure inspiration in my humble opinion.


7.) How many tattoo machines do you own?
12 currently but it changes quite often.


8.) In the past, what machines have you used the most? how long? how were they set up?
Coils: Sharpz, Cains, Sobas, Seths, Next Gens, and ES Customs. Rotary: My first rotaries were a pair of original Neos when they first came out, and I primarily used those with my coils until a couple years ago. They were all set up for specific tasks depending on what I was doing.


9.) What is currently your favorite tattoo machine? Why?
Inkjecta Specific 3, I love its versatility, its so smooth it makes my style so much easier to transfer to skin, and maybe because I come from a 99% coil background it just fits.


10.) How many machines do you use in a typical tattoo?
2-3


11.) How much should a good tattoo machine cost?
It should be affordable without sacrificing quality, I actually think most machines are slightly overpriced currently, especially unproven custom builds that are hand built with little finishing. I remember buying my first rollomatic and back in the day 550-600 was so extremely steep for a coil but if its more expensive its better right?, that was a mistake I learned from and I built a machine that month that ran so much smoother and consistent than my Rolo and I did it for about $150.


12.) Name a few things that you like/dislike about tattoo machines and/or power units
dislike: cords lol, mounts for power supplies I feel can be vastly improved on.


13.) What tubes do you use?
Original 1" taper NG bombs, and Morphix humbolts with disposable tube stems.




14.) What needles do you use?
I was very happy with tatsoul up until my last order and I have a slight suspicion that its due to the company being sold. My last batch of almost 500 needles has been shit. Everything from inconsistent tightening to beads of solder at the end of the solder line towards the tips, to the needle loop being on the opposite side of the norm on some, to the damn blister packs heat sealed with folds so they are open and exposed to air after eo sterilization. It will be my last order. I was very pleased with the very large sample pack kingpin sent me however so I will try them most likely. I love metaxa's but they are a bit spendy imho.


15.) What power supplie(s) do you use? Do you prefer knobs or push buttons?
CX2, push buttons, CX1 for conventions.


16.) How important is knowing CPS, volts, etc., to you?
Very, as is knowing the ins and outs of how a machine works and why. The more you understand about how the machine works in every minute aspect the better you will understand how to technically apply pigment to skin in all its types and areas of sensitivity and elasticity.


17.) What do you think of rotary tattoo machines? Needle cartridges?
I only use Rotaries, they have replaced my coils fully. I will be receiving my first machine next week that uses cartridge systems. I have used them in the past on borrowed time and liked them, but I always found the cartridges very pricey compared to needles. However! doing the math I figured that larger magnum cartridges can actually put you on price point with the same in standard needle format, so I intend to use my Stylus for larger magnums exclusively.


18.) How much would you pay for a tattoo machine that would eliminate the need for several tattoo machines and be adjusted by the push of a button rather than turning a knob or screw?
I'm more of a KISS kinda guy. Innovate, create, make vast improvements, even revolutionize...but Keep It Simple Stupid, is a motto I think most of us can agree with. Besides, like stated above I like having more than one machine and my machines are also set up individually for very specific tasks.

Hey Mick,

Thanks for being a loyal customers of ours. I am sorry to hear about the needle issues of your last purchase. If you can send me a personal email regarding the lot # and the needle configurations, I can definitely help remedy the situation and send over some replacements over to you. Just to be clear, our company was never sold to anyone and is still the same company with the same ideology of providing the best in products and customer service. My personal email is [email protected]. If any of you would like any free samples of our Wrath Tubes or Envy Needles, feel free to contact me. We are in the process of expanding our needle configurations and other equipment to specific artwork types through all of our research and evelopment.

Thanks for reading.