Piercing Guns 🔫 - Ears etc

Kind of a messy split from another topic, but I have tried to massage it into this thread.

Let’s see how it goes below

Just checked that out of curiosity… I’m always surprised on the different standards in different parts of the world.
This shop might be totally okay, I never been there obviously, and yet there are so many things that would keep me far away from it, if it would be like that here in Germany…
Piercing with a piercing gun…
Piercing children’s and infant’s lobes…
Risky or simply stupid piercings like horizontal tongue, hip or collarbone…
Stainless steel for fresh piercings…
Pretty cheap prices for “usual” piercings, but an insane jump up the scale for genital piercings…

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying it’s a bad studio - but is this stuff really still usual around the world? Most of it would be just unthinkable in Germany… :thinking:

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Me either, The reccomendation came from this post from over 2 years ago

Your understandable pet peeve

Yeah, I am also not a fan of “babies” with piercings

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I laughed for a good 5 minutes!
Thanks! :rofl:

Sounds sketchy indeed.
And I would never set foot in any studio that uses piercing guns.

But sometimes the only studios willing to do more unconventional stuff will get all the unconventional requests…

I thought I’d just jump in and give some thoughts, since I have been to The Piercing Shop twice, and have gotten two implants there two weeks ago.

Firstly, they do kinda do implants… fragger and I have both gotten implants there, xseries for myself, flex for fragger. Only one piercer is willing though, and some of the trainees / receptionists / assistants work under the unwilling one, so it can be interesting to get an appointment. (DM me @Daiilight if you want more info / if you want me to refer you)

Addressing some other points:

Its not a standard piercing gun, it uses single use sterilized cartridges - saying that, I would still never recommend anyone to get their lobes done with it… its just not as bad safety / hygiene wise as the traditional ones. I thought they had sharper studs (so less tissue trauma) but that doesn’t seem to be the case :frowning:

You can ask for Titanium, and they are more than willing to accommodate that. For my lobes at least, it didn’t cost much more to get Titanium - and yes, I would not recommend stainless steel either. They are also willing to use other high quality jewelry that a customer provides, including autoclaving.

Not a fan either

That’s standard for Australia, but it is a pretty big jump even so.

The studio itself isn’t too bad either, but it’s definitely not as good as Cherrycore in Melbourne. E.g. they don’t use single use markers or sterile procedure gloves (not needed for xseries, but afaik Cherry does both of these things for all piercings etc.)

Personally, I’d highly recommend them for any xseries install in a relatively standard location (e.g. L0/R0), just be aware of any potential shortcomings.

Finally, there is one piercing studio on the Gold Coast that you could try: Flesh Impressions. I have not heard of anyone getting an implant there / have never been there for that myself (only got jewelry / lobes looked at), but they are AUPP / APP members, and are recommended by the Sydney / Perth installer Joeltron. They use titanium / gold jewelry for piercings, and don’t include that in the price of piercings, which is a good sign.

Oh, and @Daiilight - they’re quite cheap to get an install - I got two at once in one position, so I can’t say just how much, but it should be well under $100 for a single xseries.

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The point with a piercing gun is not only that the guns (the ones I’ve seen) are impossible to sterilise (most cannot even go on the autoclave due to composite materials), But mostly because of the mechanics it employs:

  • The back of the piercings tends to be a flat piece with 2 twirled ends. this is inviting bacteria, external agents and secretion build up! You should never use a flat surface to seal a piercing unless no other option is available! (even a classic barbell should have spheric beads instead of conic studs or similar)

  • The piercing is pushed against the back and only the skin sits between them. This leaves no room for swelling and there is even risk for the skin to literally swallow the piercing if you’re particularly unlucky! (I’ve seen that a few times). For a new piercing you should account for a minimum of 2 mm larger than the pierced region. (I personally recommend 4mm).

  • I’ve seen so many places that use guns on the Helix. That might completely shatter the cartilage, adding a good 3 months to the expected healing period and inviting keloid and pain!

But… as said, I don’t know that particular studio.
These comments are more generic than targeted. :slightly_smiling_face:

Even here and in Brazil as well.
20R$ for a lobe piercing… 160R$ for a genital one.

Mostly due to how people who would refrain from getting the piercing because of the price jump tend to be the same ones who won’t care properly for it, and then become an issue against the studio.

Anyhow, Thanks for your post @DonFire!!
Always better to hear from someone who knows the place! :grin:

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Totally agree with those points, and yeah, I don’t like piercing guns.

Have a look into the Studex system - basically they use sterilised cartridges in a reuseable gun

The studex system also stops at a specific length leaving room for swelling. Idk if they do use butterfly or flat backs, but either way a barbell / labret is far superior.

They also do not use this system on cartilage - only on lower lobes. They also don’t use a gun by default - they offer / price both needle and gun (unlike many others who do gun by default, often the older style with all the risks you pointed out)

Saying that, I still don’t like any piercing guns, and my lobes were done with needles.

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De-railing a bit (maybe is this a good topic on itself, actually? @Pilgrimsmaster)

It’s more interesting than old tech… but still has far too many pitfalls for my liking:

  • it still uses flat and curly piercing backs. that is far too anti-higienic for an initial piercing

  • the piercings as they fit the cartridges don’t actually have enough length to allow for swelling appropriately. IE: even if they claim that the machine “stops at a certain length”, there is still a minimum distance the bar of the piercing must traverse through the back in order to lock it properly. if you add that distance plus swelling distance, plus a variable lobe width, plus placement lobe width… it’s more than what actually fits the cartridge. Also, it’s still spring loaded and I fail to see any mechanism to actually adjust the length of the application, so I just can’t trust that it will leave enough room to account for swelling.

  • the cartridges might be sterile, but the machine is not. That is almost like saying that I’ll use sterile jewellery but non-sterile reusable gloves / lube to do your piercing…

In short… that new machine still has basically all the problems as the older ones. the only advantage is that they allow for use of properly sterile jewellery, but the other issues basically render this moot.

That’s good news! :sweat_smile:

Also on that line… a “funny” thing so many piercers do even without the guns… they prep the area, swab with alcohol… then they take an un-sterile pen to mark where the piercing goes… and pierce through it. :tired_face:

or… Labrets!

That piercing is used even on helix and lobes now-a-days! Apart from the Labret (lips) region, these should not be used for an initial piercing anywhere else!

Mostly due to the flat surface and flat angle at one side, which accumulates secretion and bacteria, increasing unnecessarily infection risk.
But also, and on a much smaller risk, because an initial piercing should be able to be unscrewed from both ends in case of an emergency removal and…

a Labret’s flat end (or even a conical stud) can be “swallowed” overnight in a bad reaction, making it so that you need to cut into / damage the skin in order to remove the piercing, while beads, even halfway taken, still allow for pliers to be used for jewellery removal.

Although in all fairness these are edge cases, but it’s surprising how many piercers never thought about that.
Here in UK many studios even advertise Labrets as a fancy way to get your lobes or helix done! :tired_face:
(Much worst on helix. almost impossible to clean appropriately)

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Agreed, but no real clean line to separate it, but the Piercing shops were technically a derail also, so, this will do

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Yeah, all very good points!

Unfortunately they do this :cry: - which kinda surprises me.

Yeah, my lobes were done with labrets - do you happen to have more information / sources regarding labrets? This is the first time I’ve heard about them having any issues except for them being too short (which is a piercer thing, no a labret thing necessarily).

Makes sense though! :grin:
Thanks!

Also… how long before I commented and it got split?? 3, 4 seconds? :rofl:
Mind you to share Which BCI implant you’re using? :stuck_out_tongue_closed_eyes:

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And this is so easy to mitigate: Just use a disposable toothpick to mark the area using Gentian Violet. Not only this can be done without any cross contamination risks, but the product is also Antiseptic in itself! (just make sure to check for allergies)

I don’t know any specific online source, and “Labret” is a terrible term to google for. too many things about the location get mixed in the results.

So I’ve made this terrible png!! :sweat_smile:

First row:
Immagine the red thingies are bacteria, secretion and fluid/crust build up.
The shape of a bead reduces the adherence surface and creates a scenario where they should naturally come off or build further away from the wound.

In the case of a Labret (or a conic stud, or any other flat/90 degree angled surface), the angle makes it easier for secretion to build up (2 nearby surfaces to affixation, then certain protection from external friction and agents, plus more space to build up into…)

Still on first row:
Most of the cleaning is done with a cotton ball/swab with some saline solution. Rubbing too much against the piercing on the first days isn’t ideal…

So I hope my amazing mouse drawing skills served to demonstrate how a cotton ball/swab can naturally cover all of the infected surface on a bead piercing for cleanup…

While the Labret’s shape actually serves as a shield for the secretion, making it much harder for the cotton to reach it.

Think about surfaces on your house. It’s just much easier to clean a smooth surface than one with 90 degree angles, right? So the same principle applies here

Now, for the second row…
Immagine that the pierced individual had a bad reaction and it started to swell badly (Hope the swollen ear looks realistic enough. :stuck_out_tongue_winking_eye:)

On a spheric bead it takes much more swelling to cover it than a flat surface.

Also, even if the sphere is 50% covered by swelling (like on that immage), you can still apply pliers to secure it in place and, with other pliers, unscrew it, without damaging the skin.

On the case of a Labret, the very shape will make it so that the swelling must grow sideways more than outwards, and then all it needs is to grom 0.5mm to cover the edges of the labret disc… thus making it almost impossible to unscrew the piercing without having to push the swollen skin away from the edges (what will damage the skin)

I know the second row is an edge case, but it’s the job of the professional to know this and mitigate any possible issues that the clients might experience, even if it’s a tiny chance.

Hope those awful drawings helped!

Anyhow, my personal experience at a studio…
If a client asks me to use a Labret to pierce an earlobe, I used to say “I would rather not. for initial piercings I reccomend the classic Barbell or BCR” (I would also not reccomend segment rings for similar reasons).

If they insist, I would explain why, making them aware of the risks…

Then if they agreed with it, I might agree… but I had already straight up refused to do it with a Labret piercing (thus losing the client) in certain cases where I questioned their ability to properly take care of it (i.e. when they would come in all crusty and greasy)

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Dropping in a bit late here, but I just have to say it - thanks @Eyeux, for pointing out perfectly why piercing guns are something to be banned from all serious studios and additionally even why labrets are stupid for first use! Couldn’t have said it better! :+1::+1::+1:
:slight_smile:

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Reading this with a fresh pair of high nostrils done with threadless labret posts :relaxed:

My nostril was done with a PTFE stud - looked like a labret, but had a slightly oval shape on the inside. Since nothing really sticks to PTFE and there is always some moisture on the inside of your nose, the cleaning is a lot easier :wink:

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Back in my beloved home country, baby girls get teeny tiny little studs in their ears made with a gun by one of the neonatal nurses… “how else would people know if it’s a boy or a girl” (shudder)

About 8 years ago I was ahem…”convinced” by my mother to go to the neonatal unit and have the nurse queue me up with all the baby girls and punch holes through my lobes because my rebellious thing of not wearing earrings was “cute at 14 and ridiculous at 25”… I’ve had a bunch of piercings done since, none of them as miserable as my lobes… the swelling and healing were a bitch.

Some countries are plain weird.

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It always weirded me out when parents would come to our shop asking to pierce their baby’s lobes. Apart from wanting a gun, uh… consent? I got chewed out by many a mother.

“I’ll just take then to the hair salon down the road, then.” :confounded::no_entry_sign:

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Sad enough, even if you happen to have the time to explain why that is a really, really bad idea - they will still do it.
I have such a case in my family, and I threw all classical arguments into the ring… and still, I now have a 3 year-old girl with little golden earrings in my family, just because “but it’s soooooo cute!”. :face_with_symbols_over_mouth: :triumph:

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I totally agree on the infants but I have mixed feelings on children. My daughter wanted her ears pierced for years before I said ok. When she was 7 we took her to a tattoo studio and I think the piercer there did right by her. He pulled her to the other side of the room from us so we couldn’t influence her and asked if she knew why she was there. She said yes and said she wanted her ears pierced. He said that his own morality rules say they have to able to understand and ask for themselves. She took it like a champ (no gun) and loves them.

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Okay… so, no gun :+1: and she thought about it for some time (actually, half of her life :smile: ) - I still think it’s hard for children to really estimate the annoying healing period and all that, but I think this is one of the few cases where I wouldn’t do my usual rant :smile:
Thing is, it is very hard for the piercer (unless he knows you and your family already) to be sure that this little girl really wants it by her own - while your case might be okay, I know a big lot that weren’t, and it might be hard to distinguish. So I tend to think that studios who do this are often just looking for “fast money”. Might not always be the case, of course :wink:

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