A Nickle and A Dime
A Nickel and A Dime
In this day of eBay, a serious collection is only dollars and the push of a button away from building a collection of tattoo memorabilia. I have purchased several treasures myself from the magic computer box, but every time I look at them, something is lost. I mean, a Charlie Wagner machine is very cool, but, since I bought it off the Internet, I have no direct connection to it. Where has it been for the last eighty years? How many hearts or anchors or roses with MOM did that machine put on those Bowery characters? I want to know more. Who owned it and how did the seller come by it? I wish I could collect the stories as well as the objects. Hopefully, when my son gets all of my good stuff he will remember the stories of my friends and the rare pieces I’ve collected along the way.
It took years of obsessive collecting of many things—antiques, art, motorcycles—before the obvious dawned on me: Why not collect tattoo-related stuff? Was I too late? Lyle Tuttle got the calling early. What a collection he has! The best in the world. Man, by the time it dawned on me, old flash was $35.00 a sheet, and a Paul Rogers machine was $250.00. Of course, you got to watch Paul build your machine right in front of you and put your name on it, if you were willing to make the trip to Jacksonville, Florida, that is. Yes, you can still buy a Paul Rogers machine on eBay, but try to buy the time I spent with Paul in the little metal shed in his backyard. With that thought in mind, I’d like explain the real importance of collecting to me.
The best pieces in my collection, by far, are not the eBay rarities. Instead, they are the objects I have picked up along the way, personally, from friends. Purchases and gifts, big and small. Anyone can buy an object on the Internet, but you can’t buy the story of where it is from. That takes time. Some of the things I was given at the beginning of my tattoo career that didn’t seem important then, are now my most prized possessions. I believe that you are born a collector. All tattooist have a hint of the collector gene, but even in tattoo collecting there is a separation. Some want the best that money can buy, others, like myself, savor the story, the history. Seems like the older you get and the passing of years and friends, the more important the story becomes. So now my collectables have become like my tattoos. Each one represents a time, a place, a situation, a person. Collecting now can be hard. There is too much flash, too many machines, rare collectables all coming from the self proclaimed kings of tattooing. So, my advise is, don’t worry too much about it. Slow down. Have fun and enjoy the trip. You’ll meet some great people along the way.
In future articles I will be sharing pieces from my collection, mainly from personal friends. I’ll also include some items that have a short story, beginning with me. Things that I have picked up from years of scouring flea markets and antique shows, before the Internet even existed. Let’s start with my first collectable. Yep, my first tattoo collectable was free! It was a nickel on a chain, given to me from D.C. Paul, my mentor. He was a Spaulding & Rogers protégé. He ran their old shop in Fayetteville, North Carolina. It was used to set the gap on a shader. Years later, while visiting Paul Rogers in Jacksonville, I was given a Liberty dime, use to demonstrate a spring punch. The weird part of collecting is that no one in the world of tattooing would know what this nickel and dime meant without the story. But every time I look at these two coins, they conjure the great times spent with these two tattooists. Something that no one will ever be able to buy, memories! Yep, collecting at its best.
Until next time, see ya in the funny papers… and where your hat so I know ya!
—Dana
danatattoo@fuse.net
