[Rat-tat-tat]

hi, welcome to the site.

here is a page i found that has lots of good information, including sections on machine tuning: http://www.hyperspacestudios.com/q&a.html#32

For starters, it's good to have a set of backup machines handy at all times, especially when experimenting with some of them-- just so you have the familiar to return to, just in case. That said, I'd recommend trying a small increase in the point gap at a time, just to see where your machine responds the best. If you are adjusting tension, it's not a bad idea to have a few spare springs, since you can only add tension to a spring- once you have more than you want, you need to start with a fresh one, since bending it back will compromise its integrity, making it run unevenly and eventually snapping in two. Hopefully your new springs will arrive soon. As far as the pigments are concerned, I know they're not the problem, since they've worked so well for myself and many others. What brand(s) have you tried? Did you shake them thoroughly? One thing I noticed when I first tried Starbrite colors was that they seemed watery and hard to saturate in the skin. This was because I was used to a slightly thicker pigment, whose consistency I was accustomed to and developed my rhythm around. It took a few tries to start getting the results I wanted, but I quickly became comfortable with them and now enjoy working with several different consistencies of pigment at a time. As with the changes in machine tuning, I recommend trying out new pigments gradually, especially if the pigments you are currently using are giving you decent results. Start with two or three colors from the new brand, while still using most of the colors from your familiar brand. That way you can get used to them and see their results while not seriously compromising the tattoo. Plus, then you can compare how the familiar brands healed compared to the new ones. If there isn't a difference, that means it's probably the way that the machines are tuned.

cheers!