Do New Tattooers Even Care About Coils, Or Are Coil Machines the Comeback Kid? — BJ “Soba” Fireside Tattoo Network

Do New Tattooers Even Care About Coils, Or Are Coil Machines the Comeback Kid?

[31:24] “I have 150 tattoo machines displayed in my booth, you’re not gonna see that with these pens. You’re gonna throw them away when the motor runs out and then get another one. That in itself is this collector aspect, the [fact] that it came from someone who builds it for a purpose.”

— BJ “Soba”

There has been a small resurgence of interest around coils in recent years, and it seems to be growing slowly, though to what end we’re not entirely sure. Is it the novelty of owning a coil tattoo machine? Is it the legacy of them that can still be seen in most tattoo imagery like banners and logos and paintings? Or is it just the curiosity of the younger generation attempting to understand why everyone keeps trying to “make it feel like a coil”.

For sure there’s a certain type of magic that coils have. And, If you take good care of them they last far longer than almost any rotary on the market today, possibly your whole life. 

Maybe there is some kind of happy medium that favors the health benefits and convenience of rotaries and the stability and majesty of a well tuned coil machine. Will it be a Kubin? A Soba? Or, maybe YOU will be the one who really changes the landscape of tattooing?

Watch the full episode:

Is it Worth the Trade-off? Coil Tattoo Machine Talk | BJ Johnson (Soba One) | EP 268