[Jewelry making - Article 00275] - Re: [Orchid] Tattoo Machines

[James Dagda]

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    Hello Matt. I'm also new to this forum, but not new to lapidary art,
    metalsmithing or tattooing. I probably know about as much as you do
    about lost wax casting, so I'm not qualified to help you find a way.
    However, in my 14 years as a tattoo artist working for the late
    Sailor Moses, I was fortunate enough to learn about building tattoo
    machines from Scott Sterling and quite a bit from the late Paul
    Rogers. Orchidians please bear with me on this, as it doesn't relate
    much to the trade as it will to Matt. 

    Matt, take any two of your assembled machines; one with a cast
    frame, and the other with a machined frame. Hold each in your
    stronger hand, one at a time, so that you can squeeze the back of
    the frame where the rear armature bar spring is attached, toward the
    binding post. On either frame you will notice that you can actually
    twist the frame by squeezing the spring post toward the binding
    post. I am confident that you will find that the machined frame is
    far more rigid than the cast one. In fact, if you squeeze the cast
    frame hard enough, it may break. Sure, casting frames is easier and
    cheaper, but the rigidity of the machined frame produces much better
    geometry for a solid running machine that won't bog down as easily.
    Smithy is a company that offers small-scale milling machines that
    are more than up to the job. 

    If you absolutely MUST cast your frames, I would suggest you look
    for a local rock/gem/mineral club in your area and ask if any
    members do lost wax casting. Even if they don't, they will probably
    know of someone in your area who does. Either way, just reading in
    this forum about exploding crucibles and asbestos liners proves to
    me that its just as good an idea to learn about casting from an
    expert as it is to learn tattooing under a veteran's wing. I hope
    this helps. 

J. Duncan


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