To think ear lobe piercing with a gun really isn't that bad?

[AngryAtYouTube]

Been asking around for local recommendations as my daughter has been begging for years.

And get lots of the "don't go anywhere that uses a gun" replies.

Which I get - I have numerous tattoos and piercings. But my ear lobes were all gun and were all fine (have 6). As are anyone else I've met who has ear lobe piercing.

It's pretty hard to find a piercer who'd needle pierce someone under 13 anyway.

Do not believe anyone who talks about,'blunt force trauma', it isn't because it leaves a hole in your ear

Not true. The earring is forced through the lobe via force, instead of a needle making the hole first. A stud earring isn't as sharp as a needle. It is a blunt force. In the lobes it's not really a huge deal, though.

Gun and needle piercings are very different. The gun literally shoots the earring through your flesh, where as the needle is hollow and takes a very small amount of flesh, just a few cells with it. A gun is blunt trauma where as a needle is an incision. Also, an antibacterial wipe if you’re lucky is all they will use to clean the gun, as the parts are fixed and are unable to be sterilized. The needle and plastic tube are single use and sterile. If a gun piercer aren’t very hot on cleaning, as much as you can be with a gun, there’s the possibility of droplets of blood spraying onto the gun and being transferred to other customers.

I’m not saying gun piercings can’t heal well or are necessarily a bad thing, but a needle is cleaner and causes less trauma to the piercing site.

you should never have a cartilage piercing done with a gun, ever. Only a proper janky piercer would even think of doing such a thing. They are bloody bad enough to heal anyway, without adding blunt trauma into the mix.

But they didnt touch my ear anywhere near where the hole went. They held my ear at the top and cleaned that bit with a sterile wipe. Then the only thing touching that area was the earring . I think

I had my first ear piercings done by a gun and didn't have any problems. Since then I've done my own with sterile piercing needles from Amazon - only takes a sec, the hardest part is getting the earring in afterwards! I'm not suggesting that the OP's daughter does her own, but for others reading this thread, it's far less painful or traumatic than you'd think, and has the added advantage of being very cheap! Never had an infection, or problems with healing, either :)

Yes, they’re holding a gun a bit away from your ear, aiming, and firing a sharp metal object, although not that sharp, through your ear.

When my gf had her ears done with a gun the first attempt on one side didn’t go through so they had to do it again. Apparently it hurt like fuck and she has a pit in her earlobe now. It’s a pain when she changes earrings.

All the kids here get their ears done at the local tattoo place, it would be shut down in a shot of there was a problem with under 18s.

I had terrible issues with having mine done with a gun but I think it was because I used to fiddle with them and they got infected , took weeks to heal. I did my second holes myself, just shoved a pair of earrings through my loves, barely hurt. Just gave it a swish with some surgical spirit and never had a day's trouble with them in 35 years, they weren't even piercing studs

Also, with a gun you can only have studs I think. When I had mine done with a needle I had them done with ball closure rings. I know they aren’t for everybody but I much prefer them. I’m good at ripping studs out when I take off my top, and they’re a cunt if you lose them in the shower.

I've been to plenty of parlours where they don't pierce those under 14 but this is enforced by the establishment as opposed to the law.

I think some piercers won’t pierce kids with a needle because they’re worried about them staying still. I don’t think it’s a legal thing.

I got mine done in a tattoo parlour. They used a gun. Healed just fine. I was 29 at the time though so it might've been different.

@smashstore

Yes.
Really.

They didn't cry, didn't show any sign of discomfort. It's different when you're older. It's also done by a nurse with a sterilised needle so different from a gun. They all got golden earrings straight away. So did I, btw.
See nothing wrong with it, at least it's not a traumatic experience like for many girls who decided to have their ears pierced later on in their lives.

But they didnt touch my ear anywhere near where the hole went. They held my ear at the top and cleaned that bit with a sterile wipe. Then the only thing touching that area was the earring

So they didn’t hold the lobe steady?

How did the back get on? Either they put it on - so touched the jewellery, or the gun “shot” it on which is poor practice.

I've had my ears pierced with a gun back in the 90's, they are wonky and one is at a weird angle, they took an age to heal. By comparison the piercings I've had done with a needle have been a breeze all healed nicely in a reasonable amount of time.

If and when DD asks to have her ears pierced they're being done by a professional with a needle.

@EerieSilence

I'm surprised you came back tbh. I'm baffled that you could defend piercing babies ears. Are you not embarrassed? Have you had a think about what is actually happening to the baby?

I don't understand, I must be naive and missing something. But thought all ear piercings were done with an ear piercing gun. Is there some other way I haven't heard of? ??

Mine were done with a gun at 8, at a jewellers. They got really infected and gacky, and eventually we had to let them close. They were also uneven because after the first one, I jumped a split second before the second went through because I knew the noise and pain were coming! That was 30 odd years ago now. A gun can’t be cleaned and sterilised properly, I suspect this and the fact a blunt earring was being forced through half a cm or so of flesh at speed was the reason my ears got so horrible. I can’t get earrings in anymore, but occasionally they still weep a little.

A tattoo/piercing place and a needle sounds terrifying, but the needle is sterile and hollow so it actually takes a core of flesh through the centre, which heals much cleaner and doesn’t bruise. My eldest had hers done for her 12th birthday (had been begging since 9!) in a clean parlour with a needle removed from sterile packaging in front of us. They healed beautifully, there was no loud noise and sudden pain. She said it actually didn’t really hurt.

Lots of OTT reactions here, if you genuinely want educating on the subject then here goes.

Piercing with a needle means a sharp object will push through to the other side easily and it's not as likely to have problems. Piercing with a gun forces a relatively blunt object (the earring) through the ear lobe and creates blunt trauma. Think of how much force you would have to use to push an earring through a rubber glove compared to pushing a needle through. It's obviously takes a lot more force and on ears can be harmful.

As well as that, a professional piercer will use a needle once then dispose of it. A piercing gun will have been used on hundreds of other people, which might not sound bad at face value, but its impossible to steralise a piercing gun. There's cases of people contracting diseases through guns which although unlikely isn't a chance anyone should take, especially somebody under 13.

How did the back get on? as far as I can remember it was part of the piercing action. I may be misremembering but I was interested at the time and I don’t think there was any point where the gun equipment or hands touched either the hole area or the earring parts that came into contact with it

Try H Samuel, the tool they use isn't exactly a gun, but the earring itself is sharp and pointed like a needle, they also have special safety backs that stop them going too far into the ear. Had mine on one side mid cartledge done there last year, absolutely no problems and a hell of a lot cheaper than claires

How on earth do you pierce an ear lobe if not with an automatic piercer gun? I have read of people from around early to mid 1900s using a block of ice and a sewing needle and I remember being horrified. It seem so pre-historic and unhygienic. And excruciatingly painful by the sound of it. Rather like using a block of ice and a carpenter's instrument to remove a bad tooth. Ear guns from what I know I simply standard mid to late 1900s are a safe, accurate and efficient way of piercing. I think a nail or sewing needle would do so much worse permanent damage and scarring than a quick accurate and safe official ear piercing gun.

If you aren't talking about prehistoric nail and hammer or sewing needle and hammer, please tell me what alternative you have in mind? Because I honestly don't know of any other way to pierce ears other than an actual official piercing gun. Until now, it never occurred to me that there was any other way. Regardless I would prefer to use the only true and tried formal method of the ear piercing gun. I wouldn't want to risk anything lesser.

Worst mother in the world here both my girls had theirs done in Claire’s, with dual guns.
Both healed fine no problems x

"How on earth do you pierce an ear lobe if not with an automatic piercer gun? "

Are you being serious?

@smashstore - why should I be embarrassed about what was done to me? What is happening to a baby girl other than she won't have to worry about having something done to her that she will probably have done later on, just with more pain and hassle.
It has no health impact on the girl's life. It's not like FGM which has an influence on how a girl experiences sexual intercourse. The ears won't get drafty just because there used to be holes in them, barely visible, which tend to close if not used for earrings.
If she doesn't want the piercing, not a problem. The holes actually grow back pretty nicely - on my daughter, they weren't visible at all two years later, when she had them repierced. In all the years I had my ears pierced I never once regretted having them pierced, even though I haven't worn earrings for a very long time (20 years or something).

Yes, I am being serious. I had no idea until now that there was any other way.

Loves with gun is fine. Cartilage with a gun is like being shot in the head.