Why 'piercing guns' should never be used

A situation arose recently here on the forum where supposedly a person used a piercing gun to pierce someone's ear lobes. Here I am going to outline as best I can and as simply as I can why guns and home piercing kits should never be used.

Piercing Guns: These instruments of doom are bad for so many reasons

- They cannot be put in an autoclave and cleaned because they are generally made out of cheap plastic. Therefore they are not sterile and not safe for piercing people with because bacteria may be present in/on the instrument. This is bad

- They have too many moving parts, again cannot be cleaned efficiently in an autoclave. This is bad

- Piercing guns use brute force to 'pierce' the lobe. It forces itself through the opening very roughly compared to a standard blade which glides through. The blade that they have in them is not as sharp as a standard blade (one time use) used by a professional piercer. If a gun is used on your lobe expect bruising and scar tissue at the very least, not to mention a nasty infection. This is bad

- Piercing guns come pre-loaded with poor quality jewelry generally unsuitable for lobe piercings. Unsuitable because it is not implant grade titanium or other such material. Again they come pre-loaded with default inferior quality jewelry. Everyone does not have a standard lobe, everyone's is different. If your lobe is thicker than the default jewelry being used your ear will literally 'swallow' the jewelry. This will cause discomfort and a trip to either a professional piercing studio or the local hospital along with some anti-biotics. This is bad, very bad

- Piercing & tattoo studios don't buy autoclaves for the fun of it. They are used for a reason. To eliminate potential microbes and diseases (eg. aids amongst other things) from re-usable instruments. If you use a piercing gun on someone you could potentially be infecting them.
Following is taken from the BMEzine wiki -

In terms of body modifications, it is very important that all jewelry, needles, hooks, and other tools that may penetrate the skin or tissue are sterilized and autoclaved. Always make sure when getting a desired modification that all tools used are either new (many artists will take them out of the packaging in your presence) or appropriately sterilized, and that the studio has and uses an autoclave appropriately. Taking these measures will minimize your risk of exposure to these devastating diseases.

This is bad

- Wearing a pair of latex/nitrile gloves is useless unless you have received proper training in combatting blood borne pathogens, cross contamination techniques and even first aid. If you put on a pair of gloves then lets say, touch the wall. The gloves are no longer sterile/clean. You have touched something that is not clean, if you go on to pierce someone's ear, the next thing you touch (gun/blade/needle) is now also contaminated. This is bad

- Piercing guns should never be used, lobes are barely acceptable. If you have the amazing idea of piercing through cartilage with a gun the effects will be worse. Ear collapse will most likely occur at the minimum. This is bad

- In short, getting a piercing done by a piercer in a guaranteed safe, clean and professional manner may cost a bit of money. (around €30 for both lobe piercings, not that much for peace of mind) It is a hell of a lot cheaper than a trip to your local hospital to be put on anti-biotics or worse.