Since the birth of the art of tattooing, one tool has always played a vital role – a tool that puncture the skin and delivers pigment to the skin—the Tattoo Needles For thousands of years, tattoo needles have evolved from primitive cactus thorns to the more modern needles we use today, until recently, the new word “cartridges” appeared in the tattoo industry dictionary.
What is the Difference between Tattoo Needles and Tattoo Needle Cartridges?
Traditional tattoo needle
Traditional tattoo needles are a group of needles that are soldered together with the needle bar. They form a tattoo needle configuration on the bar. There is a loop at the end of the rod that hooks to connect to the tattoo machine, the needle tips are always exposed while tattooing, such a design will bring safety risks, and tattoo artists cannot have the maximum needle control.
Tattoo Needle Cartridges
The tattoo cartridges is an assembly mechanism that securely holds the tattoo needles inside.
The tattoo needle configuration is glued into a tubular plastic piece called a plunger. The plunger is hosted in a plastic housing, which is sealed by a membrane cap.
The membrane (made of silica gel) is the mechanism that constantly pulls the tattoo needle back into the housing.
Tattoo Needle Cartridges Evolution
In the last few years’ needles, as used in the art of tattooing, have come a long way. As people’s requirements for safe conditions for tattoos increase, so does the demand for safety solutions. This led to the invention of the tattoo cartridge.
The principle behind the operation of the cartridge is that the needle tip is only exposed when the tattoo machine is running.
The evolutionary development of this modular system is that the inner structure of the cartridge constantly pulls the needle back to the tip, so the tattoo machine pushes the needle out.
The needle has a housing mechanism. Therefore, when you stop the machine, the needle retraction mechanism will pull the needle back into the cartridge, preventing keeps the tattoo artists and customers safe from being exposed to the needle tips.
Both the tattoo artists and the client are at risk of infection during the tattooing process, so safety always comes first in tattooing.
Traditional tattoo needles do not have any protection and if the artist is accidentally poked by the needle, he may get infected by the client’s potential disease (eg HIV or any other blood transmitted disease). That’s why the cartridge was born.
With cartridges, can only poke customers while the machine is running. In this way, the risk of cross-contamination is greatly reduced, providing highest level of safety.
Today, tattoo cartridges are all disposable. We do not reuse or sterilize cartridges; they are for one customer only.