14G is the tongue standard (some piercers use 12G) and nearly everything here is 14G. Length is the bar between the balls: 5/8 inch (16mm) is the everyday size and most of this page; a snugger 9/16 inch suits a thinner tongue after downsizing, and 3/4 inch is the long starter bar for fresh swelling. Balls run 5mm to 6mm. Match the bar you wear now; every product page lists gauge, length and ball size.

Because the long bar you were pierced with is for swelling, and once the swelling is gone a long bar flops around and clicks against your teeth and presses on your gums. Over years that wears enamel and gum tissue. Swap to the shortest bar that still sits comfortably, usually 5/8 inch, as soon as your piercer clears you. It is the single best thing you can do for a tongue piercing.

Acrylic or soft-plastic balls are the kindest to enamel, and the choice if you have veneers or caps; the glow and matte-color bars here are mostly acrylic-ball on a steel post. Steel and titanium balls last longest and clean easiest. Whatever you choose, stop clicking it against your teeth; that habit cracks enamel, not the metal.

Not yet. Tongues heal fast, about 4 to 8 weeks, but they swell hard in the first days and need the long starter bar your piercer placed. Once the swelling settles and you are cleared, this is the page to downsize from. Internally threaded and threadless bars are the gentlest for a fresh channel.

Because a plain bar is a plain bar. The posts are 316L surgical steel or anodized titanium; the price buys you no gems, no dangles and no logo, which is exactly what a basic should be. Steel holds a trace of nickel locked in the alloy and suits most people; if your mouth reacts to it, the titanium bars are the nickel-free pick.

Tongues move all day, so give the bottom ball a gentle righty-tighty check every morning. Dry hands, or a paper towel, grip better than wet fingers. If a ball goes missing, the post is still there; spare balls are cheap and a basic bar is the easiest thing in the shop to rescue.