Choosing the Right Machine
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CHOOSING THE RIGHT MACHINE
Before deciding which type of machine you should invest in - you need to know a little bit about them. Tanning machines can be thought of as a vaccum working in reverse. A high volume of air is pushed through the tanning gun which aims to feed a constant amount of solution past a fine needle tip. This needle tip atomises the solution while the air 'bleeding' out of gun shapes the spray pattern to be like a 'fan' rather than a circular shape. This pattern helps to cover more skin surface in less strokes. FEATURES & FUNCTIONS Needle Tip Tip sizes in spray tanning range from between 2.5mm to 0.5mm and are made from either plastic or stainless steel. The smaller the needle tip - the better the atomisation and smaller the droplets landing on the skin. Non Bleeding vs Bleeding The term 'bleeding' refers to whether air is moving out of the gun when the trigger is or isn't pulled. A non-bleeding gun will only allow air to pass out of the gun when the trigger is pulled and solution is being expelled. A bleeding gun will always have air passing out of the gun regardless of trigger position - assiting in drying your client when the trigger is not pulled. Top or Bottom Feed A top fed gun has the solution cup situated - you guess it - on top of the gun. Solution is gravity fed to the needle tip. Visa-Versa for the bottom feed gun. The solution is sucked up a pickup tube and fed to the needle tip. It is generally accepted that bottom feed is preferrable to the top feed variety. The top positioning of the cup tends to enter your line of sight when spraying. Pressurised Cups A consistant solution flow to the needle tip is vital for an even application. Air is forced into the cup through a rubber tube - this creates an increased air pressure inside the cup which acts to force the solution up the tube in smooth and consistant stream. Non-pressurised cups tend to suffer from the 'spluttering', where solution will stop coming out of the gun for a moment and then resumes, causing missed portions of the skin. Solution Flow Adjustment Controlling the rate at which solution is fed through the gun is often adjustable. A higher solution flow requires a faster tanning stroke. While reducing the amount slows down the speed of application.
Fan Width Adjustment Guns will sometimes allow you to increase or decrease the width of the spray pattern. Having a wide pattern allows you to apply the tan in fewer strokes but results in more overspray while tanning thinner body regions (ie. arms). While a narrow pattern requires more strokes but results in less overspray.
CONCLUSION Need somthing specifically designed for tanning not a painting machine. Needle too large speckled tans Quiet - salons should be a tranquil environment- many salons do not spray tan for this reason - it disturbs the treatments in other rooms - salon shouldn't sound lke the cleaners just arrived to vaccum. Get something that lasts - invest in a good machine - you will pay for it 100 fold down the track. Customisable - not everyone likes to spray the same way, some like spraying from the top down long strokes, some like to use short horizontal strokes across the body with the fan pattern vertically orientated. Some like to be far away and some like to be close to the skin. Either way your want to have the choice to in a way which suits your preference. Common problem with pigs is the tendancy for the hose to pop out due to a poor seal between the hose and the compressor. HVLP 700 - cheap plastic units - large needles - short hoses
Before deciding which type of machine you should invest in - you need to know a little bit about them. Tanning machines can be thought of as a vaccum working in reverse. A high volume of air is pushed through the tanning gun which aims to feed a constant amount of solution past a fine needle tip. This needle tip atomises the solution while the air 'bleeding' out of gun shapes the spray pattern to be like a 'fan' rather than a circular shape. This pattern helps to cover more skin surface in less strokes. FEATURES & FUNCTIONS Needle Tip Tip sizes in spray tanning range from between 2.5mm to 0.5mm and are made from either plastic or stainless steel. The smaller the needle tip - the better the atomisation and smaller the droplets landing on the skin. Non Bleeding vs Bleeding The term 'bleeding' refers to whether air is moving out of the gun when the trigger is or isn't pulled. A non-bleeding gun will only allow air to pass out of the gun when the trigger is pulled and solution is being expelled. A bleeding gun will always have air passing out of the gun regardless of trigger position - assiting in drying your client when the trigger is not pulled. Top or Bottom Feed A top fed gun has the solution cup situated - you guess it - on top of the gun. Solution is gravity fed to the needle tip. Visa-Versa for the bottom feed gun. The solution is sucked up a pickup tube and fed to the needle tip. It is generally accepted that bottom feed is preferrable to the top feed variety. The top positioning of the cup tends to enter your line of sight when spraying. Pressurised Cups A consistant solution flow to the needle tip is vital for an even application. Air is forced into the cup through a rubber tube - this creates an increased air pressure inside the cup which acts to force the solution up the tube in smooth and consistant stream. Non-pressurised cups tend to suffer from the 'spluttering', where solution will stop coming out of the gun for a moment and then resumes, causing missed portions of the skin. Solution Flow Adjustment Controlling the rate at which solution is fed through the gun is often adjustable. A higher solution flow requires a faster tanning stroke. While reducing the amount slows down the speed of application.
Fan Width Adjustment Guns will sometimes allow you to increase or decrease the width of the spray pattern. Having a wide pattern allows you to apply the tan in fewer strokes but results in more overspray while tanning thinner body regions (ie. arms). While a narrow pattern requires more strokes but results in less overspray.
CONCLUSION Need somthing specifically designed for tanning not a painting machine. Needle too large speckled tans Quiet - salons should be a tranquil environment- many salons do not spray tan for this reason - it disturbs the treatments in other rooms - salon shouldn't sound lke the cleaners just arrived to vaccum. Get something that lasts - invest in a good machine - you will pay for it 100 fold down the track. Customisable - not everyone likes to spray the same way, some like spraying from the top down long strokes, some like to use short horizontal strokes across the body with the fan pattern vertically orientated. Some like to be far away and some like to be close to the skin. Either way your want to have the choice to in a way which suits your preference. Common problem with pigs is the tendancy for the hose to pop out due to a poor seal between the hose and the compressor. HVLP 700 - cheap plastic units - large needles - short hoses
