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October 2008 - Troy Garris,
Midwest Irons Custom Tattoo Machines
Any artist who's ever picked up a tattoo machine knows that he or she has to totally trust that the machine in their hand is going to deliver the best possible end result - both for our own satisfaction, and more importantly, for our client! Troy Garris of Midwest Irons balances a true understanding of the artist's needs along with an expertise of his craft to deliver excellent custom tattoo machines. We asked Troy to share some knowledge with us:
Q: Tell us a little about yourself. (How long have you been in the industry? Where’s home? How did you get your start in tattooing and machine building?
A: I’m 34 years old… married 10 years with 2 kids… and a huge soccer fan. I have a serious Napoleon complex. Standing only 5’4”, I talk way more shit than I should.... I started getting tattooed at 17 years old, but it wasn’t until I was 21 and in the Army that I actually started tattooing. In 1996, I served a half-assed apprenticeship which taught me the very basics and just enough to be dangerous. That’s also where I got stuck with the nickname “Squig” that I’ve used ever since. In 1998, I worked in Morro Bay, CA with Chrys Young before moving back to my home-state of Maryland. The next six years were a combination of working on my own and with some great folks in Baltimore. I guess it was around 2000 when I really took an interest in learning more about my machines, tearing them apart and rebuilding them, but it wasn’t until I met and worked with Seth Ciferri that I truly learned the finer points of machine tuning. In 2004, I packed up and moved to the outskirts of Milwaukee, WI and that was the best decision I could have made. I’m a family man and Baltimore was not where I wanted to raise kids.
Q: Do you still tattoo or are you primarily interested in machine building?
A: I don’t tattoo full time (or part time for that matter) anymore. Since moving to Wisconsin, I’ve done some tattooing at conventions, but that’s about it. I have a good friend who flies out for the Milwaukee Convention every year and he begs me to tattoo him every time… He’s a brave soul. It’s not exactly like riding a bike. I was never a great tattooer… I could put in clean lines and solid color, but I knew I was never going to stand out as one of the heavy hitters. I got a lot of good feedback on my machines even early on, so I pursued it as my contribution to the tattoo world. Machines have become a great creative outlet for me and keeps my hand in what I love.
Q: Tell us about Midwest Irons Tattoo Machines! What sets your machines apart from others on the market today?
A: Everyone and their mother is a “Custom Handmade Tattoo Machine Builder” these days. Everyone’s got their own line of clothing and magical tatty-wands for sale. My machines aren’t fancy… They are built for a purpose. That purpose is to make tattooing easier for the person using it. I build and fine tune machines as specifically as I can for the person ordering them. I’m not so overwhelmed with people wanting machines from me, that I can’t take the time to put a little extra into every one I build and I guarantee them forever. I understand that shit happens. Springs break, coil wires get broken, they get dropped on the floor and go out of tune… whatever. I’m happy to fix something that goes wrong with one of my machines… It tells me that they’re being used and abused. That’s what they’re built for. They are tools…
Q: Who would you consider to be pioneers in the tattoo machine building industry over the course of modern American tattooing? Are there artists and machine builders over the last century that you gather inspiration from? How have the “Old Timers” of tattooing motivated your machine designs?
A: We all know the names… Or at least we’d recognize them on the “Tattoo Machine Identification Posters”. Rogers, Dietzel, Zeis, Waters, Jonesy. Moving to the Midwest really put me in the thick of it. Living close to where some of these big names tattooed, I was able to learn a good bit about their history. Visiting shops like Lake Geneva Tattoo, and Chicago Tattooing Co., I was able to see photo albums, flash, machines and letters that any tattooer would love to check out. While those big names were the pioneers in the art of machine building, I think that the early 1990’s introduced some of the best machine builders to date. They took conventional machine knowledge and pushed for better performance. Those guys innovated machine building without the conveniences that today’s breed of machine builders have. Back when you had to be resourceful rather than computer literate. Back before the internet gave you every answer to every question. Before ebay would sell you $30 machine. Those guys had to put in the time and do their homework. They didn’t have the luxury of hopping on the latest tat-gun builder’s forum to find out what the name of that little thing is that goes under the coils on a brass machine, and why it’s there. As for my frame designs… my first frame was an attempt at taking bits and pieces from classic styles and putting them together into one frame. I loved the look of the Jonesy side-bar, the Bulldog’s length and the Walker’s versatility. I actually designed it 4 years before having it produced. I made several attempts at bent steel and welded frames before finally being content with a design I wanted to have cast. The second casting I had made is more of a direct takeoff of the Walker style frame. I wanted something a bit more compact and lightweight, but still have the ability to set it up as a liner or a shader.
Q: Experienced tattoo artists usually know how to examine machines and make an educated decision on which machine is the right one for them. We’ve all seen and used the various techniques artists use to “kick the tires” when shopping for machines at conventions. Explain what you think are some good ways of examining machines and distinguishing a good machine from a bad one. If you were to tell a young or inexperienced artists fresh out of their apprenticeship what to look for in a machine, what would you tell them?
A: I’d tell them to buy one that has “Squig” engraved on the a-bar… HAHAHA. Honestly, a young or inexperienced artist is going to have a hard time determining what a “good” machine is. Some people trust names… others trust pricetags. I always ask people ordering a machine from me what style of tattooing they’re into. What needle groupings they use for lining and shading. That helps me decide how I’m going to set it up. If you have the opportunity to hold a machine in your hand before buying it (like at a convention) really look at the setup. Does the armature bar hit flush on the front coil with very little gap between the a-bar and rear coil? Does the a-bar line up correctly over the tube vise? Ask the builder plenty of questions. A good builder will be able to answer them without giving away the Colonel’s Recipe. And for God’s sake, run the machine. Check the stroke, how hard it hits, how quickly it backs off. If it sounds like shit, it was either built for Lee Hanna or it’s not tuned well. Oh, and have some fucking class…. don’t try to haggle over the price. It’s insulting. A good machine builder knows what his work is worth, just like any good tattooer.
Q: You mention on your Website, www.midwestirons.com, that you hand-wind your own coils and individually make your own binding posts. We often see “Hand-Wound” coils with respect to custom tattoo machines… can you explain the difference in quality and performance between hand-wound coils and manufactured coils?
A: Hand-Wound has become a rather loose term. There’s hand-wound (turning a crank to wind the wire onto the core), hand-guided (electric motor driven winders), and then there’s hand-it-over to some industrial coil manufacturer to do it for you… I have an old film editing hand crank that was given to me by my good friend, Brian Hibbard (Shankmade). He used it for a number of years to wind his coils and it’s been all I’ve used for the last 4 years, so I can still proudly say that my coils are really hand-wound. Back to your question (sorry I got a little sidetracked). Core material, insulation material, and wire quality are all very important to a good coil. If manufactured coils are being made with the same quality materials, I don’t see a huge difference. Personally, I like to have my hands on as many components of my machines as possible. Some of it is tedious, but I like cutting and shaping my springs, making coils, binding posts, contact screws and whatever else I need - from scratch. There’s a certain level of quality control that goes with that.
Q: You make and sell a variety of machine configurations and frame styles – which configurations and styles seem to be your most popular machines?
A: I’m currently only building on my two cast frames. The first, I refer to as the “OG”. Some say it looks like a backwards “N”. The second was dubbed the “Squalker”. I’m Squig, it’s based on the Walker style frame… ‘nuff said. The OG is probably the most recognizable as a Troy Garris machine because it’s a completely original design. People really seem to dig the cutback liners I build with that frame. The Squalker is still relatively new and I only had a small number of those frames cast, but people seem to like the compact style. I’ve also done some left handed steel bent frame machines. I’ve got another project in the works. I managed to score a batch of brass Dietzel frames that were cast from the original mold back in the mid 80’s. I’ve finished a few of them by hand and they are super nice. One of these days I’m going to have them machined and put a few into production. No timeframe as of yet.
Q: How does the frame material, design, and configuration affect the overall quality and performance of a Midwest Irons tattoo machine?
A: My original frames are all cast ductile iron. They’re very solid, one-piece frames that absorb vibration without being heavy monsters. I have a firm understanding of good frame geometry, so I designed frames that I could use as-is for a long stroke shader, or modified to be a very compact, lightweight cutback liner. I think what makes my machines popular is the fact that I know how to tune them. Anyone can bolt shit together and call it a tattoo machine. I think people appreciate being able to tell me exactly how they want a machine to run and then have it perfect right out of the box.
Q: Obviously, machine building is not for everyone. How did you learn the machine building trade? Are there publications or resources for tattoo artists who are interested in getting a more intimate knowledge of the “ins” and “outs” of tattoo machines?
A: I started out tearing my own machines apart and playing with them… then I started doing rebuilds for anyone who had a bum machine. Tattooers would send me their clunkers or I’d get frames from anywhere I could and build them up… then I’d trade the machine for a painting or a tattoo. As I said, I learned a LOT about tuning machines while working with Seth Ciferri back in Baltimore and I owe a huge thanks to him, but we parted ways in 2004. I had my first run of frames cast in 2005. Since then, it’s been a lot of trial and error. Figuring out what works best for me. Experimenting with different spring thickness and shape, different coil setups, different tuning. Plenty of people have written books about their method of machine building and tuning… How many people have hosted their own machine building / tuning seminars at conventions? Eikon puts out Machinegun Magazine. I can’t say that I recommend any of them. If you want to learn the ins and outs of machines, take your favorite ones apart and try to replicate every piece of them. Try to figure out why it does what it does. Put them back together and see if you can get them running like before. Too many people rely on the “meters” and the “numbers”. I prefer the thumb and ear method.
Q: We’ve seen your machines for resale in the Bicknee catalog and for sale on your own website, www.midwestirons.com, where else can the public find your machines for sale?
A: Yeah, Bicknee has been selling some of my machines for about a year and a half now. They are pretty generic setups that are going to do the job. My website doesn’t have a shopping cart or checkout. It has contact information to get in touch with me - http://www.midwestirons.com. Like I said, I want to talk to the person ordering the machine so I can build something specifically for their needs. I work a couple conventions each year, so folks can find me hungover in the booth on Saturday and Sunday. Every now and again, I’ll see someone selling one of my machines on ebay. I’ve also been known to throw a few up there from time to time, but ebay’s just gone to hell, so I really try to avoid it.
Q: Last, but not least, you’ve mentioned upcoming conventions that you’ll be setting up at in the near future… what conventions and events will you be appearing at in the coming months?
A: I work the Beer City Convention (Milwaukee) every year because it’s in my back yard and it’s always a good time. I hate flying with equipment so I usually stay pretty close to home. My family is priority #1 and I don’t like being away from them for too many weekends. Local conventions are your best bet… Milwaukee, Chicago, Green Bay, Detroit… Right now, Beer City is the only one I’m booked for this year (October 3,4,5). Green Bay in January will probably happen… That’s a fun show.
Thanks for taking the time to read all my propaganda and for checking out my stuff!
Midwest Irons Customer Testimonials:
"I swear by Troy Garris' Mid-West Irons. Never before have I had a machine run as smooth and consistant, for as long as they have, without maintenance. These machines are work horses, daily drivers, money makers... whatever term you prefer, bottom line is THEY WORK! Mid-West Irons have good weight, excellent balance, and you can feel the quality of the workmanship and time put into each machine Troy builds. They look damn good too!"
John Sweeney
Hard Knox Tattoo
Yonkers, NY
www.hardknoxtattoo.com
"Troy's machines are slick-looking, solid, classy and get the job done. No bullshit here, just good tattoo machines for your everyday needs...buy 'em!"
-Mario Desa
www.mariodesa.com
"I use them everyday... and I build my own lol... they run awsome and I have no problem doing portraits or packing solid color.
-Don Morley
www.donmorley.com
"I do a ton of large scale traditional Japanese work; and using Troy's tat-zappers makes the day go by a helluva lot faster and smoother for my old fat ass... it's nice to be able to concentrate on the tattoo that I am workin' on, instead of fucking around with trying to get some half-ass factory built machine made by someone else to start runnin' right!"
-Yetti
www.crimsonleviathan.com
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