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110 MMS August 2017 mmsonline.com BETTER PRODUCTION Shops Using Technology Dan Kubin used to prototype his dis- tinctive rotary tattoo machines using hobbyist-type equipment, but the process was too slow to keep up with his creativity and the demand for his products. PROBLEM Prototyping process was not fast enough to keep up with creativity SOLUTION Acu-Rite MillPwr G2 control on a Webb milling machine RESULTS Faster building of prototype machines Milling Machine Control System Leaves a Mark on Tattoo-Machine Developer M anually designing and developing tattoo machines takes time. This can be a serious roadblock for a creative person like Dan Kubin, who needed a faster way to produce his proto- types. By purchasing an Acu-Rite MillPwr G2 control from Heidenhain Corp. (Schaumburg, Illinois) and installing it on a new milling machine, Mr. Kubin was able to cut the time he spends making prototype machines by a day or more, and increase the options on and availability of his products. "I've really been able to up my game," he says. Mr. Kubin became interested in tattooing in 2005 while he was serving as a machinist and welder in the U.S. Air Force. He is both a tattoo artist, which he practices two days a week at a private studio, and a maker of the small machines used to apply tattoos, spending the rest of his week at his home workshop in Independence, Missouri, making such machines for customers around the world. These rotary tattoo machines sell out within hours of his uploading their listings on Sunday nights to his website, dankubin.com . They are described as reminiscent of "steampunk" style, a retro-futuristic take on technology that often incor- porates bright brass and copper. "If it is steampunk, that is unintentional. All I can say is that I like this look, as well as the use of brightly colored finishes, and working with brass and copper," he says. When Mr. Kubin was designing and developing his tattoo machines m a n u a l l y, h e o u t s o u r c e d t h e machining in bulk. This system was