RFID Body Mod Part 3
In this post you’ll find the first entry I made in my journal, in which I made my first endeavors to find someone willing to do the injection for me. As you’ll see, my research paid off.
Oct 27th, 2009
6:13 PM
After some initial introductory emails to a local Tattoo/Body Mod shop here in Ypsilanti, Michigan, (Liquid Swordz) I took a field trip there to meet the man that does all of their piercing work, Dave. He was in the back of the tidy shop, and upon asking if I could speak with him, one of the other men at the counter told me he would be right out and we could talk to my hearts content. Dave seems like a nice guy, albeit were one to run into him on the street they might not think so at first glance, if raised in a small rural town such as myself.
Dave has a remarkable look about him. His ears have been pierced and stretched so that tremendously large metal hoops can be put inside of them, and multiple rings were then connected through said gaping holes. I noted that his tongue has been split down the middle, though the extent of which I do not know. He has multiple facial piercings and a slightly gruff look about him, but nothing too terrifying.
Upon speaking with him, I introduced myself as Lace Williamson, the man who had sent him an email regarding implants. His eyes lit up and he seemed to lean forward against the counter, readying himself for an interesting conversation. He asked what exactly it was that this device would do.
“It’s similar to the systems you may have seen on educational and business buildings. A small keyfob is placed near a sensor, not touching, just nearby, and then the computer it’s connected to checks it and says ‘Hey, there’s an ID that is allowed!’, and unlocks the door.”
Our conversation covered uses of such devices, the size and build of the tag, as well as how it would be injected. In an earlier email I mentioned a twelve gauge needle could be used, and upon speaking with him clarified that I would be purchasing the one time use kit to do the injection.
“I would do it myself, but I’m not that fond of needles.” I said. At this, one of the other men at the counter smiled and laughed quietly to himself. I bet they hear things like that all the time.
We also talked about where the injection should be. Dave mentioned that he would be more comfortable doing it in the arm due to the hand being prone to not healing as well, but eventually agreed to my preference of the ‘webbed’ section between the pointer finger and thumb.
The next big point was sterilization. I told him I had done some research and they could be autoclaved (is that even a word), though not according to the manufacturers. Amal Graafsta (my inspiration for this ‘mod’ and writer of the book ‘RFID Toys’) has run several standard chips through an autoclave without a problem, so that is what we will try. I told him I would bring a reader to ensure that the tags still worked afterward. I’ll be keeping my fingers crossed on this one. I would prefer to just soak them in antiseptic, but he said that they aren’t truly clean, that way.
At one point in the conversation cost came up just as a side comment, and he said he wouldn’t expect to charge me more than ten dollars for the injection. Compared to the problems and cost issues I would have (being a University student) with having the same thing done by a plastic surgeon, I was quite pleased to hear it. *Note. If I didn’t trust that they could do this job well, I would not hesitate to turn them down. I would never risk having someone do a botched up job just because it is cheaper.* He even agreed to allow me to record the procedure, for the website. We think alike, because he asked if I would credit the store on the site while I was at it, and I had already decided to, assuming the job was well done.
After around ten minutes of speaking we agreed that when my next shipment of tags came in I would give them a call and make an appointment to have it done. My guesstimate; middle of November. In the meantime, I’m starting to design a lockbox that uses RFID as the authentication system to toggle a locking mechanism. It will be made out of oak or walnut, and look completely old fashioned, save for a hidden power jack somewhere that can charge the internal batteries if they run low.
That wraps up this post. If you’ve missed any of the earlier posts, you can get to them here. Stay tuned. There’s more to come!
–Lace