NEEDLES VS. GUNS

These days the proponents of gun piercings are becoming fewer and farther between, which is a very welcome shift in the world of professional piercers. You won’t find a reputable piercer using anything other than a single-use, sterile needle at a reputable shop. The APP (Association of Professional Piercers) says, in part, ‘It is the position of the Association of Professional Piercers that only sterile disposable equipment is suitable for body piercing, and that only materials which are certified as safe for internal implant should be placed inside a fresh or unhealed piercing.’ As an APP Certified Studio, we agree that needles are the only correct tool to perform a piercing. Piercings done with a gun may seem like a cheaper and more convenient option, but they come with several hidden costs.

1- Sterility

The piercing needles used at Human Kanvas are sterile, single-use, medical grade implements, whereas piercing guns are made of questionable materials and used repeatedly on countless piercings. The guns are impossible to sterilize in any recognized way, most often only being wiped down between services. This means that all the internal components are virtually never cleaned, leaving you susceptible to infection and the transmission of bloodborne pathogens. 

2- Safety

A professional piercer is heavily trained on all aspects of their craft – they can handle the unpredictable, and your safety is a top priority. Piercing gun operators are more likely to have the bare minimum training on how to use the gun itself, with no other guidance or relevant information. Generally, these operators only use the gun once before performing a piercing and will be completely unprepared if the gun components were to stick or otherwise malfunction.

3- Healing Outcomes  

All piercers at Human Kanvas pierce with your best interests in mind, and that goes beyond the service itself. Precise angles and placement of piercings done by an experienced piercer sets you up for uncomplicated healing – something that is essentially unattainable with piercing guns. Piercing guns leave you with very limited options for placement, and their imprecision makes for a high likelihood of an undesirable placement. Take a look at this comparison between a needle and two different pieces of jewellery used in piercing guns.

The red line shows where each one pierces through the material – almost immediately with the needle, while the two pieces of piercing gun jewellery put substantial unnecessary pressure on the would-be skin. You can also see the tearing caused by the blunter ends of the jewellery in comparison to the smooth insertion of the needle. This clean puncture makes for a piercing that will heal faster, and with better results.

4- Jewellery

Piercing guns use the jewellery as the piercing implement, squishing the front post through the skin and into the butterfly backing. Not only is that a ‘one size fits all’ method that does not take any other factors into consideration, this does not allow for the initial swelling of the piercing. Butterfly earring backs are much harder to keep clean than the smooth and simple flat backs used by professionals, and they also carry a high risk of becoming embedded in the skin during the healing process – due to the lack of space to accommodate swelling. Professional piercings are done with high quality, implant grade titanium with flat backings that are easier to clean and much more comfortable to wear than the butterfly backs.

For all body piercings, needles are the clear winner. Piercings are a permanent change to your body, and you deserve the best – every step of the way. Skip the headache of low quality jewellery, unsanitary practices and inexperienced providers associated with piercing guns and invest in a high quality piercing. Human Kanvas has the experienced piercers, high-quality jewellery, strict sterilization protocols, and expertise to ensure the best outcomes. When you choose a professional piercing with a needle, you prioritize the health and comfort of both you and your new piercing!