On 19 Dec 2010 16:51:12 GMT, Wayne Boatwright wrote:

> Tatoos
> done by professionals look considerably different than those done by
> amateurs; e.g., tatoos done in prison. During WWII, the majority of
> tatoos were done by people with rather limited experience.

Jailhouse tattoos would be much better if they didn't have to use
staples attached to Walkman cassette motors attached to florescent
light fixtures with a piece of pencil lead in the wire to step down
the voltages.

The inks are made from the soot collected from incomplete
combustion of burning Vasaline or baby oil. Colors are sometimes
derived from the Sunday comic section, but its better to go
monotone.

Otherwise, the artists themselves are usually pretty competent in
working with what they have. They have a lot of people to practice
on and plenty of time to master the techniques. They just don't
have the right tools and materials.

-sw