I get asked a lot if I use a piercing gun to pierce ears, the easy answer is no, I don't.
Lobes are probably the first piercing people will get, and is also sometimes done at quite a young age. At the studio here I will happily talk young clients through the procedure and also show them the items I will use in order to make them feel comfortable. This is very important as this is a very invasive procedure and I want any person that comes to me to feel comfortable and relaxed when having a piercing done, regardless of age. However it can be much scarier for a child than an adult as its a completely alien environment.
There are lots of pros and cons to using a piercing gun, but bottom line is, the cons outweigh the pros.
Although quicker, the gun is essentially blunt force trauma and the stud is forced through the ear, whereas a needle is sharp, and creates a hole for the jewellery to be placed into, thus causing less damage and potentially aiding the healing process.
With a piercing gun you are very limited as to where you can pierce, they are fundamentally only to pierce lobes, if used anywhere else they can cause huge damage for instance shattering cartilage within the ear. This can cause huge problems down the line and even result in collapse of the ear.
Piercing guns are used over and over again from person to person, but there is no way to sterilise the gun, if put into an autoclave (which is used to sterilise equipment) it would melt, so to clean them they are just wiped down with cleaner which will not get rid of all nasties that lead to cross contamination, again potentially leading to further complications and infections.
Needles used will either be disposable one use only, that are sterile until used (same as is used with an hospital environment to draw blood) or they will be a specially designed piercing needle that will be cleaned using an ultrasonic cleaner and then sterilised in an autoclave to ensure that it is completely sterile for use. Both of these options ensure the highest possible cleanliness and the absolute minimum of risk for cross contamination.
There's also the risk of swelling. All new piercings swell, however the stud used with a piercing gun is of one set size and the butterfly back will be fixed in place which doesn't allow much, if any, room for swelling, Also when pierced with a gun aftercare is generally to clean and to keep turning the jewellery, to make sure that the earring remains 'free' but can cause more trauma if the earring becomes 'stuck'.
When pierced with a needle the jewellery that is then placed in the hole will have been sized to allow for swelling and can be changed later on to smaller jewellery, aftercare is to clean the area regularly but other than cleaning to leave it alone, This is to make sure that it stays as clean as possible.
Training for piercing guns can be as little as an hour of watching a video, and then they will be allowed to pierce on the shop floor sometimes on their first day! A trained body piercer will have done extensive training and know the ins and outs of the trade. They will be able to guide you and inform you of the best routes to follow and for some piercings, even if it will fit with your anatomy.
So as you can see, although it is much quicker to have the piercing done with a gun, that's really the only acceptable pro. If you do decide to utilise the gun method then please do your research throughly and ensure that you are only having your lobes done.
For a better, more hygienic and less traumatic method please contact your local tattoo studio and speak to their body piercer, they will be able to give you the most up to date and reliable information in regards to your piercing, and will always be available for aftercare.
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