Direct Drive Question

[skinmech]

This question is for veteran tattoo artists that used coils for a long time before switching to rotary.

My question is this:
Is it possible to use a direct drive for anything from lining to smooth black and grey, color portraits and color packing, and never have to use a machine with give at all ever?

The reason I asked is because I was doing a large black and grey piece today with my new Prodigy (RCA lol) using a straight edge 9 Bug pin mag, and a straight 13 Bug pin mag
It was a sacred heart, angel, roses.. the whole shebang.. and I didn't really use any give on the Prodigy. It was more speed and depth

Am i right to assume that using the proper stroke length, the correct volt speed, and precise depth is all that matters and that give doesn't really do shit?
I know for a fact that give on a coil machine is crucial because the downward force of the magnet if very quick and powerful and the only thing stopping the needles is dermis and the rear spring tension.
Thus it is really easy to go to deep.

IMO, yes it is possible to cover all the aspects of tattooing using a selection of no give/ non adjustable Rotary Machines...Some Rotaries hit way harder than others irrespective of volts..The Peter Tiegs for instance is one of the hardest I have came across, and the RW-ID is one of the softest hitting...There are great no give Rotaries available, and as I said, some hit softer than others, I found the Bishop to be a medium hit...So in theory, all you need to find is a Hard/Med and Soft hitting Machine,however, stroke also comes into play.....Depending on your style, In my opinion, an RW Triple, an ID and a DDO, will cover all the bases...

An adjustable Machine offers more scope for blending, or layering as, if set up correctly, it causes less trauma and enables multiple passes..The same can be achieved with no give machines as well, if the user is experienced enough working with a no give machine...

With regards to Give "being crucial" on a Coil Machine, again, certain factors need to be considered..and will depend on what the user is trying to achieve..Such as Throw, Force of Hit, Spring Gauge-Set up, etc etc etc..IMHO,Hand speed is most crucial when Packing/Saturating/Shading with a Coil Machine, as a Slow hand + fast running, hard hitting Machine = Trauma in the case of colour work, and if you Line slower than your Coil Machine runs, you can "charge" the line, and face the possibility of "ink spread/inconsistent line work, etc etc... I run off the needle for Lining and 4mm throw is the norm with me, and still some "hang", so I rely on Hand speed and Hand strength when lining.....For doing colour work, I have 4mm throw available, but ride the tube, so again, hand speed/strength is really important...

So to summarize, as I seem to have rabbled on,LOL...Yes, a selection of no give/non adjustable Rotaries, will cover everything (depending on your style)..Yes, stroke length, Volts, needle depth, hand speed and hand strength will, IMO, replace "Give"...See above for the advantages of "Give"...

I have reverted back to mainly Coil Machines....However, I will always, have my RW Triple, RW-ID and a few Old Timer DDO's....