Whether you are a brand new tattoo artist or an industry veteran, it is always wise to stay up to date on new machines. 2021 appears to be a signature year for some brilliant new developments by Stigma!
The rotary tattoo machine in 2021 has continued to see further development in the tattoo pen direction. Stigma has developed their fair share of tattoo pens. In 2019, they wowed the tattoo industry with the Stylist and the Spear. 2020, they debuted the super popular Thorn. This year, not to be undone by other notable brands developing battery operated tattoo pens, Stigma introduces The Force, featuring a state of the art and unique drive system with a custom Faulhaber brushless motor.
A Quick Summary of Rotary Tattoo Machines
The rotary tattoo machine has been dominating the tattooing industry for the last decade. They are incredibly popular with artists of all styles, and they are relatively simple to use.
Rotary tattoo machines are known for smooth, fluid movements and easy user experience. They feature a small motor, which powers the machine and allows the needle to move in a gentle, seamless pattern.
In particular, Stigma rotary machines are known for being powerhouses in the industry. We started seeing early forms of them in the late 90’s, they later made waves in the industry by developing intricate features like completely adjustable give systems. They are still just as popular now, and are worth getting your hands on if you have never used one before.
Stigma Rotary Tattoo Machines That You Need to Know About
As with any tattoo machine brand, there are plenty of different machines and specs that are worth brushing up on. To help you out with purchasing your next machine, we have handpicked the top 5 Stigma rotary machines you may be interested in. All these machines feature German/swiss motors, aircraft aluminum, RCA connection and high quality finishing.
Stylist
Out of all the machines in this list, this is one of our personal favorites. It’s been made with a long ergonomic-designed grip that is 27 mm in diameter. It can be used with all major brand cartridges, and it is incredibly easy to wrap before usage, too. As with other Stigma rotary machines, it comes with a great Swiss-made motor and a protected RCA connection. Comes with an anti-roll design so you don’t have to worry the Stylist will roll off your workstation
Something that really stands out about the Stylist machine is that it’s very simple to adjust and mold to your needs. You can adjust the stroke length of the Stylist by simply twisting the motor that’s fixed to the piece (adjustable from 3-3.7mm). Comes with a 6W swiss motor. This is a very user-friendly and intuitive rotary machine.
Also available in various colors – black, red, nuclear green, titanium steel, it’s absolutely worth checking it out today.
Spear
To start off with, this fantastic tattoo machine is perfect for tattoo artists on the go. It is formed with an easy to grip design that is lightweight, and easy to carry.
The Stigma Spear has all the right tools and features to help make the tattooing process smoother and more enjoyable for both emerging & veteran artists. It is easy to set up and wrap, and it has clearly been designed with ergonomics in mind with its long grip. Comes with an anti-roll design.
Furthermore, this handy Stigma rotary tattoo machine is incredibly easy to adjust to your personal work style. What makes it better than the Stylist is that both the give AND stroke length can be switched up with a simple twist of a dial (without changing any parts!) – which helps to speed up and improve the tattooing process as a whole. For this some are willing to pay the extra coin for the Spear over the Stylist.
Works with all major cartridge brands. Also available in various colors – black, red, nuclear green, titanium steel.
Hyper v4 Hybrid
The Stigma Hyper rotary machine V4 is a next generation machine from the Hyper V3. It is a hybrid tattoo machine that can work with standard needles and cartridges.
Something that’s great to point out about this machine is that it has plenty of amazing built in features. It comes with a completely adjustable stabilizer for the needle, a 6 watt Swiss motor and a comfortable, well designed grip. On top of this, it also has a handy tube vice locking system for your grips, which allows you to use cartridge grips from all major manufacturers.
Available in: black, red, green.
Thorn
Do you prefer working with sturdy grips? If so, this is the ideal Stigma rotary tattoo machine for you. This brilliant pen-style machine has the exact size and shape of a grip, and with most of the weight at the front.
The size is just 9.3 cm in length and 32.5 mm in diameter at its widest point weighing only 115 grams. It’s a great all-rounder machine with a 3.5 mm stroke that performs well for everything from lining to shading. (3mm and 4mm editions also available.) Powered by a 6W Swiss motor, this machine will have no problem pushing big needles.
On top of all these benefits, it’s incredibly light at 115 grams. Also with an anti-roll design.
Available in 5 colors: stain black, glossy black, nuclear green, army green, and red.
To Sum Up
Here’s a table summarizing the key stats of each machine:
| STIGMA ROTARY TATTOO PEN – STYLIST | STIGMA ROTARY TATTOO PEN – SPEAR | STIGMA ROTARY TATTOO PEN – THORN | STIGMA ROTARY TATTOO MACHINE – HYPER V4 | |
| Link | Link | Link | Link | |
| Cartridges | Compatible with standard needles and cartridges | Compatible with standard needles and cartridges | Compatible with standard needles and cartridges | Compatible with standard needles and cartridges |
| Vice | – | – | – | Compatible with standard grips and with all standard cartridge grips |
| Colour | Black Green Red Silver |
Black Green Red Silver |
Satin Black Red Glossy Black Nuclear Green Army Green |
Black Green Red |
| Stroke length | Adjustable stroke length: 3.0 – 3.7 mm | Adjustable stroke length: 3.0 – 4.0 mm | 3.5 mm (Special edition: 3 or 4mm) |
Adjustable stroke length: 3.0 – 4.0 mm |
| Motor | 6 Watt Swiss motor with 2mm shaft and 2 preloaded ball bearings | 6 Watt Swiss motor with 2mm shaft and 2 preloaded ball bearings | 6 Watt Swiss motor with 2 mm shaft and 2 preloaded ball bearings | 6 Watt Swiss motor with 2mm shaft and 2 preloaded ball bearings |
| Give | Adjustable give | – | Adjustable from super soft to solid hard | |
| Grip | Long ergonomic grip | Long ergonomic grip | ||
| Connection | Protected RCA connection | Protected RCA connection | Protected RCA connection | Gold Plated RCA |
| Anti-Roll | Anti-Roll Design | Anti-Roll Design | Anti-Roll Design | Shape Will Not Roll |
| Weight | 123 grams | 163 grams | 115 grams | 98 grams |
| Length | 11.2 cm | 12.8 cm | 9.3 cm | n/a |
Overall, if you’ve never worked with a Stigma rotary tattoo machine then we’d absolutely recommend getting your hands on one. They’re incredibly powerful yet easy to work with, and can produce some amazing results. Take a look at our full website here to see more of the latest and greatest tattoo products on the market.