Tattoo Machine Kits

The tattoo machines that you’re going to get in those kits are crap. Save up your money and get yourself a good machine. You can go to the tattoo suppliers online and get a decent machine that doesn’t cost much or you can buy a high end machine that will cost you up to or more than $300. For the price you pay for a kit you can buy the supplies yourself and end up with a much better starting point. The kits are a ripoff. Go to http://www.technicaltattoosupply.com or some of the others to get your equipment. Remember, skill is the most important aspect of being a tattoo artist but your gear is very important as well.

I actually got a kit off amazon, the machine itself didn’t really last too long, but the power supply was decent. i ended up getting another machine off amazon that has lasted me a while. i’m neither a pro nor, an apprentice, but i was in the same boat you’re in, i just got a kit to try it out and see if i wanted to pursue it. if you end up getting a kit off amazon, do some research on how to tune the machine. even the crappiest machine can do good work if tuned right.

I bought the Grinder kit myself. Decent enough for the money to get you started practicing, and gives you a starting point on what you’ll eventually need. I had read the book already (Basic Fundamentals of Modern Tattoo) but still wasn’t sure where to start, so I bought the kit, learned the machines, and have been practicing on fruits and practice skins. From this experience, I now know most of what I want to upgrade to. I see kits as a stepping stone, kind of a necessary evil if you want to learn tattoo but don’t necessarily have an apprenticeship (yet). Just don’t expect to actually be able to start giving tattoos on people from this kit, the inks are crap, and you will most likely want better machines once you put ink to skin.

i bought a kit off ebay, but soon after replaced every single piece of equipment in hte kit, and sold what was in it for dirt cheap as it was all garbage ^^;

I bought my starter kit from “Piercing Pros”.
It was definately a good kit. It comes with
Starbrite ink (definately my favorite).

the kit i had with this cheap ass “Dragonhawk” 5ml things of ink lol like 50 of em
if i remember correctly they were from http://www.tattooooo.com or something like that XD
garbage :P
two machines were alright i guess
the other two were pure garbage

the i dont remember how decent the pedal was because i replaced it pretty quickly
clip cord too

even the “amazing dvd” they gave me had a bunch of unreadable flash. the files were corrupted
the “training” video was in like 6 parts in .dat file format and the videos were MEGA old lmao
and irrelevent XD
i guess it all comes down to how much you spend, and where you get your kit :)

the less machines the better!
120$ for a tattoo kit is probably decent
but i got 6 machines and 60 inks
so the way they give you 50 inks and 6 machines for 120$ is by giving you garbage

I agree!!! The way i started Was i knew kits where crap by reading different post ,and that black, red, blue, white, green, yellow and purple and brown where the main colors i needed and i did some research on inks and quality inks and went from there and researched different machines i ended up getting a couple hildibrant machines and Intenze ink. By doing that i still use the machines now. Of course i have changed just about everything on them but they for the most part worked well.. Needles and tubes i have no idea how i finally figured it but it all came natural to me after watching youtube…Kits are ok if you get one from a good supply company that knows that you need all disposable cause what is a at home artist gonna do with metal tubes and tips?? Boil Them??? I hope not!!! all metal i good for at home is fruits!! Save your money and get a couple $50 machines from hildibrant or Monster Steel… I hope this helps

Dear,
We got newestNedz RotaryMachine on sale,Four color in stock now,please check the pictures as following:

More color on our online shop,please check detail as following shop link

http://www.worldwidetattoosupplier.com

more new arrived,please take a look at our online shop to get your professional tattoo equipment

your any feeback will be appreciated..

Sale Team

http://www.worldwidetattoosupplier.com

Hey guy im very new on here and to tattoos. I haven’t bought any kit yet im looking all over the net for something of somewhat quality. I have seen some for $40 with 2 guns ink ect and just buy eye look like crap. I have also found some kits for $130 which $150 is tops for me right now but the kit had 5 guns ink ect.

I really don’t think I need 5 guns since im just starting. I would like 2 guns some color ink but more black thin any. I don’t know if the fake skin is even worth getting but their in their. If anyone has an idea of a good kit that will last for 20+ tattoos post a link.

check out http://www.tattoomachineequipment.com
they have good kits at decent prices. The ones with the Hildbrant machines are the ones i recommend

You can make a crappy cheap machine work fantastic if its the right type of metal and you replace the junk parts with good stuff.

When I was first starting, I was told that all these kits were junk, so I went out and researched what the best materials were and found cheap Hand-made machines made out of quality stuff. My first machine was only about 15$ and currently has a 5star average review on amazon. I also spent about 20 on a cheap power supply (which is junk, and I’m in the process of replacing) a single 1 oz bottle of moms black onyx and the cheapest needles and grips/tubes I could find they were for a 1rl which is something that you will probably hardly ever use on a person, unless you’re making a really fine line.

All in all I got started for about 60$, that first bottle of moms is still going, I still have a lot of those needles, and the machine is now tuned far better than it was when I received it.

Practice on a bag of oranges if you want to go real cheap, then graduate to a honeydew, or I’ve heard pig-skin is really good to practice on. Not sure how much it runs though to be honest, you could probably make a deal with your local butcher pretty easily.

All that being said, I think it is more than possible to build your own decent tattoo kit for a fraction of what some of them run. If you buy it piece by piece and stay thrifty.

Good luck!

Although if you do want to get a kit, I would recommend one of the Hildebrandt tattoo kits from tattoomachineequipment.com like Ram said. That’ll cost you about 150, (which you said was your max) and you’ll have some quality stuff

@Infamous wrote:

You can make a crappy cheap machine work fantastic if its the right type of metal and you replace the junk parts with good stuff.

When I was first starting, I was told that all these kits were junk, so I went out and researched what the best materials were and found cheap Hand-made machines made out of quality stuff. My first machine was only about 15$ and currently has a 5star average review on amazon. I also spent about 20 on a cheap power supply (which is junk, and I’m in the process of replacing) a single 1 oz bottle of moms black onyx and the cheapest needles and grips/tubes I could find they were for a 1rl which is something that you will probably hardly ever use on a person, unless you’re making a really fine line.

All in all I got started for about 60$, that first bottle of moms is still going, I still have a lot of those needles, and the machine is now tuned far better than it was when I received it.

Practice on a bag of oranges if you want to go real cheap, then graduate to a honeydew, or I’ve heard pig-skin is really good to practice on. Not sure how much it runs though to be honest, you could probably make a deal with your local butcher pretty easily.

All that being said, I think it is more than possible to build your own decent tattoo kit for a fraction of what some of them run. If you buy it piece by piece and stay thrifty.

Good luck!

Although if you do want to get a kit, I would recommend one of the Hildebrandt tattoo kits from tattoomachineequipment.com like Ram said. That’ll cost you about 150, (which you said was your max) and you’ll have some quality stuff

+1

Exactly. As long as teh frames are solid and not plated then you can easily turn a cheap, or knock off machine and have it run great. My buddy runs solid iron Mikey Sharpz knock offs and they run beautifully. It really comes down to how much knowledge you have of the machine, geometry, and such. You could potentially build good machines. However, I currently use the Hildbrant machines and even out of the box they run beautifully. They only really need a few minor tweaks to match ME personally. I don’t mind the radiant colours either, and their spartan power supply is a good starter power supply. Its not liekt eh 10$ ones youll get in other kits. :3

I will more thin likely go with the Hildbrant kit. It seems to be the only kit with a name none of the other have any names at all.

They also have Inkstar and Vulsturd kits, but they are pretty cheap as far as machines, power supplies, and inks go.

@RobertRange wrote:

There are many various types of tattoo machines available in the market for selling which are used for effective and fantastic tattooing. If you own a tattoo shop and want to provide the best services to clients, you should must use the best tattoo machines.

Agreed :D

those were spam Lenn :P

:oops: :oops: :oops: :oops: :oops: :oops: :oops: :oops: :oops: :oops: :oops: :oops: :oops:

Well it sounded right hahahahahahah

I think it was one of the few good spams I’ve seen lol

@tattoosupply wrote:

Dear,
We got newestNedz RotaryMachine on sale,Four color in stock now,please check the pictures as following:

More color on our online shop,please check detail as following shop link

http://www.worldwidetattoosupplier.com

more new arrived,please take a look at our online shop to get your professional tattoo equipment

your any feeback will be appreciated..

Sale Team

http://www.worldwidetattoosupplier.com

I’m sorry but I’m a little leery of someplace that claims they are selling the “new” Dragonfly for $30.00 when Inkmachine has a $750.00 tag on them. Makes me think these are going to be the Chinese fakes that we are all talking about. I will have to say I also got caught up in the ebay kits as well. The machines have CRAPPY coils, FLIMSY springs, LOOSE threads (if not stripped) and are pretty much just garbage!!!! The power supply produced inconsistent power and the display was false!!! Foot peddle broke in the first month or so, CHEAP PLASTIC CRAP!!!! I guess the clip cord was okay? :lol: I would have been SCARED to inject the ink that came with the kit and the needles in the kit were out of date from the get go. BUT HEY, if you’re tattooing a bunch of fruit go for it. I couldn’t even resale it because I didn’t want to have that on my karma counter. What I did with one of the machines in the beginning though was put a grip on a big pen and installed it into the tube clamp and drew with it. Got me used to the machine weight and awkward feeling of the machine vs. a straight pencil. Ended up buying Mickey Sharpz dial machines an Eikon power supply and Eternal inks. I like Superior or Mithra needles and am still looking for a disposable grip that I just can’t live without. I have SS tubes/tips/grips and a dry clave but hey, what a PITA when there are single use tubes at a pretty reasonable price.
Good luck

try Tatsoul’s Gen2 wrath tubes.

Well, I hadent even touched a machine for roughly 15 years… (long story short a badly broken hand will end your career) But I got the itch… never really lost it I guess. So after hours and hours on the internet (where EVERYTHING is true :-) ) And even more hours on the phone to various sales reps, “experts” and a couple of artists I still talk to I decided to buy a kit just to see if I could even lay a steady line. Heres the one I settled on:

http://www.tattoomachineequipment.com/the-hildbrandt-professional-tattoo-kit-system

Part of what made me choose this on was the nice lady ( Nancy) I got on the phone when I called with questions about the product, she was very knowledgeable and helpful. The Customer service at Hildbrandt is awesome the was a hiccup in the shipping and my way cool case got broke in transit. One quick phone call and everything was right in my world again. And although the machines arent  “premium” they are a FAR cry from bottom shelf or even mid-grade. they needed very little tuning and so far they’ve stayed tuned. The liner does its job and the two shaders run very well, I’ve got one set as a semi- color packer and the other as a light duty shader. Now if only I can get my hand to do its part… the Abrams dual power pack runs well with very little power flux (flex ?) and the readout is about .5  off according to my my multi-meter. I don’t regret the purchase one bit. I wont ever tattoo professionally again but for a hobby I don’t think Ill ever need to invest in anything more. (Practice skins and pig hide only ) Just my $0.02 ….

check out http://www.tattoomachineequipment.com STAY AWAY FROM THE CHEAP INKSTAR CRAP. Trust me any kit giving you 6 machines is junk (especially at 50 bux lol wtf?)

You need the look at the Hildbrandt Kits. Made in Canada & assembled in Washington in the US. Not chinese junk. I still use my .44mag liner over my liners I own that cost over $300. Only thing I ever changed was I added eikon springs. It’s a workhorse! The 109.99 – 139.99 and 189.99 kit all are VERY worth there price and not just some cheap BS. I got gifted the 139.99 kit because at least it came with useable decent ink unlike the 109.99 kit. Radiant Ink isn’t top of the line but it is made in the USA and Ive seen work I did using that ink 2 years later still looking really good. Right now I swear by Eternal Ink though

The 109.99 and 139.99 kit come with (1) “.38 Cal Shader” & (1) “.44 Magnum Shader/Color” plus a simple but consistent power supply. Those 2 machines alone are $50ea. The price of almost the whole kit. It has everything but green soap to get you up and running. Even practice skins so you don’t go screw people up while you learn so you can get an apprenticeship and get your journey going. They also have a decent Rotary Kit. Like I said though 2 machines. No artist cant get the job done with a liner and shader/color packer. Just learn how to tune them.

I have $300 DF Time Machines & a set of Danny Knights ($700 a pair) & to this day my go to liner is my OG Hildbrandt .44magnum liner & the only minor tweaks I’ve done is add eikon springs to it and that is it! That should say something about Hildbrandt. Also made in Canada & assembled in Washington in the US. Not chinese CRAP.

Hey Guys, I have bought a Tattoo kit, the Hildbrandt 4 machine with .38 , .44 and the 2 rotary machines.
It is OK, the adjusting screws are plated and need to be replaced with solid brass.
As a quick fix, take out the locking screw for the adjusting screw, and put a tiny bit of Dielectric grease in there. Will make your machine run heaps better, seems the plated screw is a bit crap.

I am just starting out, been an artist for years, but only just getting back into it.
Was lucky enough to come across a couple of Original Micky Sharpz, one Iron micro liner and a solid brass shader, a world apart from the cheaper stuff. Can’t beat quality gear.

The Afterlife power supply seems to be OK from the kit and the Inks are Radiant, not cheap chinese lead filled Dragon hawk stuff. (Do not use for Tattooing people)

I have already replaced the Foot pedal (lasted 2 days), and the Clip Cords which are a joke.
After that and the Dialectric grease, they ran heaps better.
Just be very careful to wipe off any extra grease from the machine.

Happy Tattooing!

Jason.