Blowouts

No matter what I do what I always get some blowouts (With the exception of the pig and chicken on my avatar). They're not very bad and they dont show up till the next day. But it seems like they're always there. I really don't think I'm going to deep. My liner is set up with less than a dimes width of throw. And if I try to go any less deep my lines are scratchy as shit. There's very little redness or swelling and everyone including myself has said that I'm less heavy-handed than most other tattooist that they've had work on them. It is driving me crazy. I don't know what to do Someone please help

Re: Blowouts?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!

A dime is 1mm thick. So your throw is less than 1mm?

Do you work off the tip? Because I can take machine with a 1mm throw and get a needle 3mm in you pretty easily if I hang it out of the tube 4mm.

Blowouts are typically depth, or angle. If you are positive you are not going too deep then you have to address the angle issue.

Mark

Re: Blowouts?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!

No I don't work off the tip but I don't bury the needles either and a 1mm stroke 3mm deep would be stuck in the skin and I'm not having snagging problems(and we are both in America why are we using the metric system ) but it may be angle but I've read about that a lot here and try to stay Conscious of it since I put up that post I read somewhere else that it could have to do with ink I use zuper black by intenze and that is one of the inks that they pointed out they were talking about the size of the partials of pigment being so small the they can Migrate even if put at the proper depth have you heard of this happening if so any suggestions on a good rich black ink that can be used for lining without causing blowouts

Re: Blowouts?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!

kuro Sumi is a safe bet, also if you have to stop and then start again on a line you are tattooing can cause blow outs.

Re: Blowouts?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!

something is wrong with your technique.

It's either too deep
wrong angle
or your machine is running too fast for your slow hand (same effect as stopping and starting in a place and putting more into a spot than it can hold)

Don't blame the ink. People have been using Zuper black for years and even a search on the subject shows pros supporting it as a great ink and newer folks taking about blowouts. Even you said your feet are not blown out...does the ink decide when it will and won't?

If your technique is right the ink won't blow out, the ink didn't migrate
if your hand is steady your lines will be straight, the machine didn't cause bobbles
if you are patient and thorough your color will be solid, you don't need a better shader

People always want to blame their equipment. the ones who blame themselves and try to fix it get better.

off my soapbox now.

Mark

Re: Blowouts?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!

I didn't blame the ink I just mentiond that I had read a thred on another site that made a good case for that but I only read it on one other site so that's why I was asking on another site and there is no question zuper is awesome ink the stuff goes in awesome and stays velvety black I am relatively new to tattooing so I don't yet know about everything however I am an aircraft welder by trade and I know in my trade there are tools that work for one job and not for others there are tungsten electrodes that work great on aluminum but suck on nickle alloys and there at some that just suck and if a new welder got ahold of the wrong tungsten all the best Technique in the world wouldn't help so in my ignorance that I am trying to cure I ask a question to people on a site that is ment for doing just that I'm so sorry if it offended you

oh and just one more thing if a liner is a liner than why do some cost $600 and some cost $6 you would think people would be pissed if they payed 100 times more for thesame thing

Re: Blowouts?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!

A $6 liner will put a line in
A $600 liner will put a line in

the difference is craftsmanship...think snap on vs. craftsman

You can cause a blowout with either but it is the correct tool for the job. Tungsten on nickle alloy is not...so of course you can't expect results.

I'm not offended...but I've been at this long enough (and on help forums) to know that it's easy to blame the equipment and I've seen it, and done it, 1000 times. Your blowouts are technique related...that's cool, we've all had them. But now we have to analyze WHAT is wrong in your technique.My fills sucked initially. I swapped coils, springs, inks, etc. etc. etc. Then I just slowed down and stretched the skin...and my fills quit sucking.

Ink we can rule out because if it were the ink, you would ALWAYS blow out. especially on feet where it's easier to blow out than almost anywhere.

Depth- you say you're good there...so assuming you are then that's 2 out of the equation.

Angle- do you push the needle in at a 45 degree angle when you line? That will blow some stuff out QUICK. there is a lot of info online that says hold your machine at a 45 degree angle but it seems to be for shading/color...not lines.

Speed- if you have a short throw machine running fast, think about how many times a second that needle is going in and out of the skin...probably around 150cps. If you go too slow, trying to be careful, and take 3 seconds to put in a small line you've damaged that skin 450 times pushing ink in. it's 5lbs of potatoes in a 2 pound sack...the ink just won't fit. Think of what happens if you don't lay a bead down steady and just stay in one place too long.

I really was trying to be helpful...and sorry if I came off as an ass. When I raced motorcycles if someone missed a shift the first thing they did was look down at the shifter as if it couldn't have been them...bike must have broke. I did it too...nobody likes to think it's them that's screwed up, myself included. When people take responsibility for their errors they tend to fix them a lot faster.

hope this is received in the manner intended...as something helpful.

Mark

Re: Blowouts?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!

Again I did not blame equipment or ink I asked if it was possible that I was trying to turn a screw with a hammer because no matter how much you practice and alter technique a hammer will never turn a screw so I was asking if what I had read about it not being a good idea to line with zuper could be true cuz if it was then maybe I could stop hitting the screw


but thank you for the help in that last post I didn't think of the short throw to hand speed to machine speed thing and your welding analogy was dead on. I'd bet that that's my problem. I am kinda slow but if I go faster my lines are crap and if I slow the machine I get snagged up in the skin. so now I'm still stuck because I'm not sure how to fix this problem do I increase the throw of the needles, try to move faster (I can move much faster on pig skin then In the awkward positions and skin stretching required on people skin) maybe add a drop or two of distilled water to the ink so as to not jam 5lb of pigment into the 2lb sack or not maybe a less concentrated ink in the first place till I'm able to move my hand faster

Re: Blowouts?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!

Have you trieed lining with a rotary? In my experience, every time I tattoo myself, I seem to get a delayed blowout, just the same as you. I put the lines in nice and clean, about two or three days later its seems to have spread. Maybe its just the skin tightening as it heals and making it look blown out, as it does seem to clear up a week or so after completely healing. Think of this: your tattooing yourself, maybe your subconciously holding back, causing your hand speed to be off. What angle do you line at? What really does it for me is, up to now I've never had blow outs when tattooing others, what's the explanation for that? When I see the people I've done work for I ask them how their tattoo has healed and ask if I can have a look, they've all turned out as id hoped they would have. I was in the exact possition you were in and almost jacked it in because of that. You'll get it just keep trying different things, remember what worked and what didn't.

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I'm actually so upset with my self I'm about ready to jack it in too anybody want to buy two brand new hoodlum machines they're probably not even finished being built yet someone take them before I get them and ruin any more skin

Re: Blowouts?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!

dirtyscratcher said:

I'm actually so upset with my self I'm about ready to jack it in too anybody want to buy two brand new hoodlum machines they're probably not even finished being built yet someone take them before I get them and ruin any more skin

Click to expand...

We've all been in this exact spot. I actually wrote up the add to put all my stuff on Craigslist at one point.

Ever play golf? All you have to do is hit a 2 oz ball...it isn't moving, no distractions, nobody is shooting you with a paintball gun while you try...but it's hard as F**k to hit that stupid little thing straight. It's because there is so much more involved than at first glance. Tattooing is like that. Seems like if you can draw on paper you should be able to draw on skin, right? We all learn that's not the case.

"any suggestions on a good rich black ink that can be used for lining without causing blowouts?"

That's why I said what I said about it not being equipment...not that you were blaming your machines but you wanted an ink that wouldn't blow out...but it wasn't the ink. And diluting your ink won't help. It will just make your blowouts lighter. I get where you were coming from now.

Try this:

Load a needle into your machine and run it as slow as possible.
Add voltage, a couple tenths at a time.
Each time you add voltage, touch your thumb gently to the A-bar
Keep doing this until the FIRST time the needle doesn't recede back into the tube from the touch. That's your voltage to use.

Now...shave your thigh and find a design with a lot of lines in it.

Plan on where each line will start and stop, then move your entire hand to put that line in. don't twist your wrist because your machine angle will increase dramatically at the end of your lines. I have one on my thigh blown out towards the end of every line because I did that very thing.

When you get to the end of a line don't "hang out" there...get that needle out of the skin.

If you have to do a long line in 2 parts, have their meeting in the middle and sweep the lines into one another. Where they intersect you should have 50% pressure from each side creating 100% at their junction. (did that make sense?)

I had about a month and a half where I was tattooing pig skin EVERY day. That made the biggest difference. So many of us want to do a tattoo every 3-5 weeks and we expect to get better like that. It just doesn't happen. You'll be fine, don't sell your stuff...every problem has a solution.

Mark

Re: Blowouts?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!

steve just relax mate take time out here we have all one time or another been at this point if you need step by step support ..and live even you can use the chat room there are plenty of us on here willing to help you!!!

This was an interesting thread to read.
I was trying to search why I am blowing lines too.
I have only started tattooing about 3 months ago.
Tattooed on fake skin everyday for a month before jumping to my leg. First one I did had blowout here and there and the lines that weren’t blown out were scratchy. I think it was safe to say that human skin was different. Once it healed it seemed to be a bit better but pretty dull. I have since touched it up. The strangest thing for me. Like others have said, is that when tattooing another person. The lines are effing sweet. No blowouts. So I don’t know if it is like a mindset thing. For me. When I tattoo myself, I almost have the thought of ‘oh , this isn’t hurting. I better get that needle a bit deeper.’
But then the even stranger thing is that I did a half black line and half red line tattoo on myself yesterday and the black lines blew out but the red ones didn’t?? Also mad confused. But hey. It’s just practice I guess.
I have only tattooed my cousin and my wife and they are stoked on their prices and so am I. No blow outs at all.