Franky Sharpz
Hand-built machines. Hand-drawn ink. Runs the floor.
Franky manages Wailana Tattoo in Waikiki — and builds the custom coil machines he tattoos with. Hand-wound coils, custom frames, tuned for liners, shaders, and color packers. American Traditional, Polynesian, and color realism. When you build the tool, every adjustment has meaning. When you run the shop, every artist on the bench knows the standard.
- Wailana Manager
- Machine Builder
- Walk-Ins Welcome
- SF · Honolulu · NOLA
Quick booking · 30 seconds
Manager of Wailana. Machine builder. Tattoo artist by the same hands.
Franky Sharpz tattoos at Wailana Tattoo in Waikiki and builds his own machines on the side. American Traditional, Polynesian, color realism — Wailana's bread and butter is the kind of work that combines power, precision, and a deep respect for the craft.
Custom work, walk-ins, and machine-building inquiries — text (808) 400-6934.
Honolulu, Hawaii. Built by hand, drawn by hand, inked by hand.
Recent work by Franky Sharpz
Traditional, Black & Grey, color, and custom flash from Wailana Tattoo and beyond.
View @frankysharpz on Instagram →Loading Franky's latest work from Instagram...
More work on @frankysharpz · Text for samples
Built by hand. Tuned daily. Tattooed with personally.
Most tattoo artists buy their machines off the shelf. Franky builds his own — hand-wound coils, custom frames, geometry tuned for the specific job. The result: a machine that responds the way the hand intends, every session.
Custom Liners
Tight needle grouping, precise contact, fast give. Hand-wound coils with bespoke spring tension dialed in for clean single-pass lines. The kind of liner that doesn't tire your hand at hour six of a back piece.
Custom Shaders
Softer give, wider needle groups, longer dwell. Built to push grey wash and gradients smoothly without trauma. Each shader's voltage curve mapped by Franky on his own skin before it leaves the bench.
Color Packers
Heavy stroke, dedicated weight, tuned for saturated solid color in one or two passes. The machines that put Wailana's signature American Traditional and color realism work on skin to last decades.
Bench Time
Build a machine. Tattoo on yourself. Adjust the spring. Tattoo again. Repeat until it sings. Franky's machines aren't designs on a CAD screen — they're hours of bench time made permanent in brass and steel.
"When you build the tool you tattoo with, nothing is guesswork. Every line, every shade, every solid pack — you know exactly why it lays the way it does, because you built the geometry that put it there."
— Franky Sharpz
Inquiries about custom builds for other artists: text (808) 400-9943.
Where to find Franky
Wailana Tattoo
1860 Ala Moana Blvd · Waikiki
Street-level studio next to the Hilton Waikiki. Walk-ins welcome. Open 10 AM to midnight daily.
wailanatattoo.com →Aloha Tattoo
Hilton Hawaiian Village · Kailua
First tattoo business on a Hilton Hotel property. Affiliated studio.
alohatattoo.com →Ohana Tattoo Company
339 Saratoga Rd · Waikiki
Veteran-owned walk-in shop. 531 Google reviews, 4.9 stars. Affiliated studio.
ohanatattoo.ink →Artists Franky works with
"American Traditional, Polynesian, and color realism — plus he builds the machines he tattoos with."
The Waikiki family
Tim Goodrich first — bouncing daily between his two Aloha Tattoo studios inside the Hilton Hawaiian Village. Then the rest of the ohana, across Wailana and Ohana.
Tim Goodrich
American Traditional · Japanese · Cover-Ups
Aloha Tattoo · Hilton Hawaiian Village
2bit (Chris Curren)
Color Realism · Neo-Traditional · Lost at Sea Studio
Lost at Sea Tattoo
Forrest Goodrich
American Traditional · Black & Grey · Hawaiian Flash
Ohana Tattoo Company
Dustin Gormley
Intuition · Energy · Transformation
Ohana Tattoo Company
Tiki Ramos
Blackwork · Tribal · Bold Negative Space
Ohana Tattoo Company
Julian (xwildxlovex)
Illustrative Color · Bold Linework · Custom
Ohana Tattoo Company
Scripttoria
Refined Script · Fine-Line Black & Grey · Memorial
Ohana Tattoo Company
Heather Baldwin
Cover-Up Queen · Floral · Black & Grey Realism
TNT Tattoo · Aiea
Benson Carlos (Inked Benz)
Polynesian · Black & Grey Realism · 30 Years
TNT Tattoo · Aiea
Myles Mokuahi
2nd Generation · Black & Gray · Custom · Hawaiian
TNT Aiea + Ohana Waikiki
Kevin 'Papamokes' Mokuahi
Hawaii Legend · 40 Years on the Iron · Cultural Work
TNT Tattoo · Aiea
Questions about Franky
Where does Franky Sharpz tattoo?
Primary: Wailana Tattoo, 1860 Ala Moana Blvd, Waikiki. Also works in San Francisco and New Orleans. Walk-ins welcome — open 10 AM to midnight daily.
What styles does Franky specialize in?
American Traditional and Black & Grey are his core. He also does color, custom flash, and walk-in designs. Well-rounded artist, doesn't limit himself.
Does Franky build tattoo machines?
Yes. Custom coil machines. Building the tool and tattooing with it daily gives a fundamentally different understanding of the craft.
How do I book with Franky?
Text (808) 400-9943. Walk-ins also welcome at Wailana Tattoo (10 AM – midnight).
Does Franky do walk-ins?
Yes. If he's in the shop and the chair is open, sit down. Franky loves tattooing anything, any time of day.
Book a session with Franky
Text your idea — or walk into Wailana Tattoo, Waikiki.