jtattooer, i use fusion and electric ink for colours, euro sum for grey and black lining. yes i ride the tube all the way when using mags but never for lines so this may contribute to the redness, i have tried to hang the needle more but i just go too deep cos of my hand speed, i can't show an image on here as i won't take a pic if it looks too mucky or irritated. oh and panos i tend to have better results on healing with a longer stroke so I've never tried a 2.5, the last time i used a 3mm for some blending it healed real bad with scabs so i must have overworked it loads. my gen 8 is around 6mm at just over 9 volts, that thing is long man.