Contact screw placement

Otherone11 · 26 Feb 2021

Hey there-
I’m wondering if the contact screws point needs to always be at the tip of the front spring?
Or
If adjusting the angle of the contact screw sets it back on the spring, do you need to move the front spring forward or can it sit farther back in the spring?

Cyberthrasher · 26 Feb 2021

The contact doesn't have to meet the tip of the spring.
A spring that reaches past the contact screw will have more mass and be stiffer at the point of contact, which effects the machine speed. The screw being further back on the spring also effects the needle throw, making it shorter. In order to keep the same tuning if you move the screw back on the machine, you'll have to open the gap more, which will then require more power because your coils have to charge further before they'll pull the armature bar down. More power in the pull also means a harder hitting needle, which is remedied by turning your power supply down....which can make it harder to pull the armature down (see a vicious cycle there?). It's important to learn these things, but learn them with purpose rather than arbitrarily changing things.
Have you checked out the Machine Gun Magazine collection? Most of your machine questions are answered in detail in those. We really can't recommend them enough. I'd also suggest experimenting with all of this tuning on a cheap machine.

Otherone11 · 26 Feb 2021

Thanks a bunch, that’s helpful.
Yes that cycle sounds quite viscous . I’m still exploring better coil machines and taking my time pickin one.
I have a couple cheaper machines and have a power supply coming in the mail that show hertz, cps, duty etc so I think that will be helpful for getting the hang of tuning machines. Or at least understand what I’m doing when I make changes/tune a machine.
I haven’t looked into machine gun magazine but sounds like I should. Any chance they have digital articles?

Cyberthrasher · 26 Feb 2021

Otherone11 said:
I haven’t looked into machine gun magazine but sounds like I should. Any chance they have digital articles?

There are 8 issues and we have them all right here in the premium section.

Otherone11 · 26 Feb 2021

Cool, I’ll do a little sniffin around and see if I can find em

Cyberthrasher · 26 Feb 2021

Otherone11 said:
Cool, I’ll do a little sniffin around and see if I can find em

just do a search for Eikon Machine Gun Magazine and they'll come up in the premium books section.

Otherone11 · 26 Feb 2021

Do you know anything about the fronts speings that have little copper or brass nubs on the top also? Does that serve any superior purpose to an ordinary spring?

gadsden1776 · 26 Feb 2021

i second machinegun mag.

here is a pretty good discussion

: Contact Screw Nick Baxter : Custom Tattoo Galleries - Original Artwork

Hi Been wondering would changing the angle of the contact screw without changing the airgap, would it make the machine run different...i hope my quest

www.nickbaxter.com

Cyberthrasher · 26 Feb 2021

Otherone11 said:
Do you know anything about the fronts speings that have little copper or brass nubs on the top also? Does that serve any superior purpose to an ordinary spring?

just changes the conductive material, and also changes the height of the spring. Most springs don't even have them anymore. There's not a big enough benefit to even worry about it. If it matters that much then you probably have an issue somewhere else in the circuit.

Cyberthrasher · 26 Feb 2021

gadsden1776 said:
i second machinegun mag.

here is a pretty good discussion

: Contact Screw Nick Baxter : Custom Tattoo Galleries - Original Artwork

Hi Been wondering would changing the angle of the contact screw without changing the airgap, would it make the machine run different...i hope my quest

www.nickbaxter.com

I think there should be some clarification in that discussion though. It is NOT the angle of the screw on the machine. It's the angle of the screw as it contacts the spring. Basically don't let the edge of your contact screw be the contact point. That's actually why a lot of people round the tip of their screws off into more of a cone shape so that there's a greater contact surface.

gadsden1776 · 26 Feb 2021

this is true. i know the thread here is about the placement on the screw on the spring as it relates in space.

the thread i linked touches a few things regarding angle.

AAaaaand. i just noticed that the link highlights a portion of one response. yea. the whole discussion there talks about things relevant to this thread too.

Cyberthrasher · 26 Feb 2021

gadsden1776 said:
this is true. i know the thread here is about the placement on the screw on the spring as it relates in space.

the thread i linked touches a few things regarding angle.

AAaaaand. i just noticed that the link highlights a portion of one response. yea. the whole discussion there talks about things relevant to this thread too.

yeah, that highlight is what got me.

further down in that thread he shows a picture of a contact screw at a perfect 90 with the front spring. There's another thread around here talking about the arc and different setups. That would be along the same lines of contact screw/spring placement.

Otherone11 · 26 Feb 2021

Just noticed it on a machine I wasn’t looking at and realized I didn’t recognize it. Makes sense...

markanthonym · 3 Oct 2021

Cyberthrasher said:
just do a search for Eikon Machine Gun Magazine and they'll come up in the premium books secti

Cyberthrasher said:

yeah, that highlight is what got me.
further down in that thread he shows a picture of a contact screw at a perfect 90 with the front spring. There's another thread around here talking about the arc and different setups. That would be along the same lines of contact screw/spring placement.

Click to expand...

Do they still have the copies of machine gun here?

Cyberthrasher · 3 Oct 2021

Yep, in the premium section under tattoo reference material

Contact screw placement

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