Needles vs Gun Piercings

Which is better?

You want to get pierced. Or you're looking to get your child's ears pierced.

But there's all this dialogue about needles vs guns... what does it mean?

Does it really matter?

Yes it does.

Piercing 101

An ear or body piercing is done by pressing something sharp (a needle or the actual earring - which is not sharp) into the desired area.

Piercing needles are designed for piercings. They are sharp and pierce the skin smoothly with no blunt force trauma to the area. They are also hollow, which allows the jewelry to slide smoothly into the tissue.

Piercing guns (or devices) push the actual jewelry through the skin through spring loaded or manual force. This causes blunt force trauma to the tissue as the back of the jewelry is not very sharp and can have a harder time going all of the way through the tissue.

Let's look at the differences.

Piercing Guns

Spring Loaded

Used for butterfly back jewelry
Earring is pushed through the ear using spring force of the gun
Can cause some blunt force trauma to the ear tissue
Loud(ish) noise
A risk of device getting stuck during piercing process
You’ll find these in the piercing places at the mall usually

Piercing Needles

Hollow and designed for piercings.

Used primarily for flat back jewelry (can be used for butterfly backs)
Hollow needle is pushed straight through tissue
No blunt force trauma as needle is sharp and designed for piercings
Single use & sterile
Needles are the standard for professional piercing studios
Catheter or canulla needles have plastic sleeve around them that remains in the ear once needle is removed. This allows for jewelry to be inserted in a more flexible way.

Catheter / Canulla Needles

Hollow needle with plastic sleeve.

Used primarily for flat back jewelry (can be used for butterfly backs)
Hollow needle is pushed straight through tissue
No blunt force trauma as needle is sharp and designed for piercings
Single use & sterile
Needles are the standard for professional piercing studios
Catheter or canulla needles have plastic sleeve around them that remains in the ear once needle is removed. This allows for jewelry to be inserted in a more flexible way.

Piercing Device

Manual Force - hand pushes earring through the ear.

Used for butterfly back jewelry
Earring is pushed through the ear using manual force of the piercer’s hand
Still causes some blunt force trauma to the ear tissue
Not as “loud” as piercing gun
Still a risk of device getting stuck during piercing process
You’ll also probaby find these at the mall or places like Rowan

Watch this: Needle vs Gun Piercing

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