Becoming an E-File Pro...
An E-File can be a Nail Technicians ‘best friend’ with many stating they could never go back to solely hand filing after they have successfully mastered using an E-File. You’ve decided it’s time to partly put down your hand file and dive into the world of E-Files but with a huge array available online and ranging in price massively, from as little as £20 all the way up to £1000, it can be hard to know where to start. Price tends to be one of the main deciding factors, we all want to make sure we are getting the best E-File for our individual working requirements but we don’t all have hundreds of pounds to invest in from the get go.
So, does price really equate to quality?
This is before we even start to consider the individual technical information of the machines and the bits that are used alongside it. RPMS, Torque, Low Vibrations, Brushless or Brushed Motor, Foot Pedal, Digital Screen, Diamond Bits, Carbide Bits, Ceramic Bits and the list goes on. Sourcing your first E-File can be overwhelming to say the least. There are a few important aspects to consider before starting your E-File journey to ensure you're investing in to a quality machine that is right for your individual working requirements, that you will get the longest life possible from your E-File and that your E-File comes with additional support in the form of education, servicing and warranty.
Our Top 13 Tips to consider when starting your E-File Journey:
1. What kind of working life will your E-File need to support you in?
2. Are you a part time or full time nail technician?
3. What kind of treatments do you offer?
4. If you’re a full time technician, working long hours and offering more ‘heavy duty’ treatments such as Nail Extensions, Full sets and Infills, or Electric Pedicures you will be better suited to a Desktop E-File as they tend to be more powerful and can withstand longer hours and more heavy duty usage. Whereas if you are a part time technician or mobile technician offering treatments such as Gel Polish or Builder Gel Overlays a portable machine can be a great option.
5. After you have determined which type of E-File machine would suit your working conditions best then you need to isolate the quality machines from the low quality machines. This is not determined by price. A high price tag does not equate to a high quality machine necessarily. A high quality E-File is determined by power and power is described as ‘Torque’. The higher the Torque the more powerful the E-File machine will be. With power comes efficiency. A powerful E-File will do the hard work for you. It will take off product smoothly, quickly and efficiently without struggle. If your machine isn’t struggling then you will experience no vibration or heat build up in the hand piece. Torque is measured in ‘n.cm’ which stands for Newton Centimetre. High torque in E-Files range from 2.6 - 3.2 n.cm. If an E-File falls below this range you are investing in to a low quality machine.
6. Unfortunately a lot of E-File sellers do not state what the Torque is or give inaccurate readings. So the next important step is to find out if the E-File you are considering can be serviced. All high quality E-Files can be serviced, either through the seller directly or the seller will recommend where you can send the E-File for servicing. Many low quality E-Files can’t be serviced due to them containing cheap parts. If you are told your E-File can’t be serviced this is a huge red flag.
Guess what...it's not a drill
7. Try to not let the features of the machine influence your buying decision. Attributes such as whether the E-File has a digital screen or not, comes with a foot pedal or not, indicates battery level or not, can charge your phone or not, looks pretty or not should not be swaying your decision. These are simply all ‘nice’ features but are not important to how powerful your E-File is or how long it will last you.
8. You’ve finally chosen an E-File and you’re confident it is high quality, hurray! But don’t jump the gun quite yet.
Does the seller offer E-File training?
Are they specialists of that machine?
Continued support and education is a must to be confident using your new E-File, to ensure you’re using it safely and to also ensure you understand the ins and outs of your machine and all the accompanying bits that are used alongside it. This will ensure you get a long life out of your E-File. The cost of training on top of the cost of the E-File can feel expensive but an E-File is an investment and an investment is long term. In the long term this is is often the cheaper option compared to buying a lower quality E-File that won’t last the years to come, paired with sub standard training that will leave you with a lack of confidence and needing to invest in more training straight away!
"The handpiece is where all the magic happens."
9. We have established that E-Files are a powerful piece of equipment which means we need to be adequately trained in using it to prevent damage to both the client and the E-File.
If you have never taken an E-File course before, or you’re not confident using your machine after previous E-File training, we recommend that you take an in-person course vs an online course. This is because using an E-File is mainly down to technique of pressure and angles. Both of these are extremely difficult to gauge viewing on a screen.
Additionally, when it comes to The Practical you have no-one over your shoulder to see whether or not your angle or pressure technique is correct, so if you start to struggle you may not understand why initially and this is where it is imperative to have an in-person educator assessing and guiding you accordingly.
No matter how good the educator is this is something that just isn’t possible via online training. Online training should simply be used to brush up on existing skills or can be great for theory based learning.
10. Look in to where you need to send your E-File for servicing and how often. How much will it cost you and how long does it take them to service your E-File. Knowing all this information beforehand will save you a lot of time, effort and any potential delays when the time comes.
11. Once you have purchased your E-File and completed training we recommend you look at your working calendar in advance and pencil in when you can service your E-File in 6 months time to ensure you don’t have to go days without it when it is most needed. For example if you have an upcoming holiday or a week that doesn’t tend to be so busy (e.g. January vs mid December) this may be a good time to make a note to remind yourself to send your E-File for a service.
12. Have a back up. If you know you can’t go a few days hand filing then always keep any old E-File machines (even if it is lower quality) to keep you going just for a few days whilst you are without your E-File when it is being sent for a planned or emergency service.
"Invest well and it will last for years to come"
13. Think about how many clients you will be using your E-File on throughout the day and be organised. If you purchased a portable E-File always make sure it has enough charge before you start your day as it is damaging to the E-File to use it whilst it is charging, this will ruin the battery and shorten the overall life of your machine.
Then consider what bits you will be using throughout the day and how you plan to clean these between clients. Will you schedule out an extra few minutes to manually clean and disinfect each bit between clients or will you purchase multiples of the same bits for each client and then bulk clean them at the end of the day?
Starting your E-File journey doesn’t need to be overwhelming and it doesn’t have to be an expensive mistake because you didn’t know what were important factors to consider when making your purchase. In our Willow Ultimate E-File Course and our Willow Natural Nail Tech E-File Course we go through in-depth theory covering everything there is to know about E-File anatomy. This includes: servicing, caring for your E-File, RPMS vs Torque, Health & Safety, all the different bits and their anatomy, how to clean and store your bits, how to identify low quality vs high quality E-Files and E-file bits and much much more. You will walk away feeling confident and best of all you don’t have to purchase an E-File to attend our course! You will have the opportunity to use both our portable and desktop E-File machines throughout the duration of the course so you can make an informed decision before making your purchase. Follow our upcoming blog posts for more beginner friendly tips and advice.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 'torque' mean?
Torque is the rotational power in the spin itself. An E-File without rotational power will slow down and struggle when applied to the surface of a nail.
How often should I get my E-File serviced?
You should send your E-File away for maintenance every 6-12 months. A licensed professional will take it take it apart, replace the bearing and clean out the dust thoroughly. Do this before there is a problem, as leaving it too late could mean you will need a new hand-piece. Find out more servicing info on our website.
Are the parts universal?
No. Your E-File components should be replaced with genuine Willow parts.
How do I clean my E-File bits and tools?
Always clean your bits between every client.
WASH - Load your Spit-spot-bit-pot with warm soapy water. The inner tray means you can lift out the pieces instead of immersing your fingers in any solution.
SCRUB - Using the Brass Brush & the warm soapy water, scrub your E-File bit to release any product debris& dust from within the grits and teeth.
SPRAY- Lay your E-File on a Willow Towel. Spray evenly with our Spray & Go, making sure all pieces are well covered.
ROLL & GO - Roll the pieces over. Spray again over the pieces and wait 2 minutes. Dry each bit thoroughly using your towel. Store & go!
Alternatively you can use your Willow Ultra Cleanse Machine. This skips all of the manual scrubbing & combines both the scrubbing and sanitising step in one with non of the manual work.
Building your E-file Kit
The Author : Annabel Ifill
@PrettyEdgyNails
Annabel is our Willow Online Education Manager & South London/Surrey Educator teaching manicurists how to work SMARTER not harder.
Make sure to keep your eyes peeled for our upcoming blog posts for more beginner friendly tips and advice and remember to keep connected with us on all of our socials!
As always, please reach out with any questions or concerns via E-mail hello@willowacademy.com