Tag Guns And Needles What To Buy For Which Job
Standard, fine and loop tagging compared, how needle length and tag pin size relate, and how to avoid damaging garments.
Standard Or Fine Depends On The Fabric
A standard needle makes a larger hole and is the right choice for robust knitted and woven garments where the hole closes up. A fine needle makes a smaller hole and is what delicate fabrics need. Using a standard needle on fine fabric leaves visible damage; using a fine needle on heavy fabric bends or breaks needles. This is the first decision, and it is decided by what you are tagging, not by price.
Needle Length And Tag Pin Size Go Together
Our A001 uses a 35mm needle with 1.0mm tag pins, the A002 a 37mm steel standard needle with 1.0mm pins, and the A003 a 31mm fine needle with 0.8mm pins. The needle has to pass through the material and the pin has to be right for the needle. Ordering a gun and then sourcing pins separately by guesswork is how people end up with jams.
Loop Guns Do A Different Job
A loop or label loop gun attaches a tag with a loop fastener rather than a straight pin, which lets the tag hang from a buttonhole or a garment feature instead of being pinned through the fabric. On garments where any hole is unacceptable, this is the way round the problem.
Why Guns Jam
Most jams come from three things: a bent needle, the wrong pin size for the needle, or forcing the gun through material it was not intended for. Replacing a bent needle early is cheaper than working around it, and it protects the garment as well as the gun.
Handle The Needle As A Consumable
Needles are consumables, not permanent parts. A blunt needle needs more force, which means more fabric damage and more operator fatigue. Factories that keep spare needles on the bench tag faster and damage less than factories that replace a needle when it finally breaks.
Test On The Actual Garment
Before a production run of tagging, put a tag through a sample garment and look at the hole from the face side after the pin is removed. That takes a minute and tells you whether you have the right needle. It is the same principle as sampling a lamp: judge it on the real material.
What We Make In This Area
Questions From This Guide
Which needle for delicate fabric
A fine needle. Our A003 uses a 31mm fine needle with 0.8mm tag pins for exactly this.
What is a loop gun for
Attaching a tag with a loop fastener so it hangs from a buttonhole or garment feature instead of being pinned through the fabric.
Why does the gun jam
Usually a bent needle, the wrong pin size for the needle, or forcing it through unsuitable material.
Ask Us About This
If your situation is not covered above, describe it and we will answer it properly.