Replacement Balls & Parts

The drawer of spares every pierced person needs: threaded replacement balls in 3mm, 4mm and 5mm, dimpled captive beads, UV, glitter and crystal ends, plus the parts that save a favorite piece: implant-grade titanium threadless posts and barbells, steel labret posts and curved bars, and light sticks for glow jewelry. Match the gauge, screw it on, keep wearing the thing you love. Since 1999.

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Replacement Ball Sizing & Thread Guide

Size follows the gauge, because the thread follows the gauge: 14G bars (belly, nipple, tongue) take 5mm balls, with 4mm and 6mm for a different look; 16G bars (eyebrow, horseshoes, lip) take 3mm or 4mm; 18G and 20G posts take 2mm to 2.5mm. Every listing names the gauge it threads onto and the ball diameter; read both off the jewelry you are repairing before you order.

Three kinds of end, and they do not swap: externally threaded balls screw onto a threaded post and fit our standard steel barbells, curved barbells and horseshoes of the same gauge; captive beads are dimpled, not threaded, and are gripped by the ring (3mm for 16G, 4mm for 14G); threadless tops press into a threadless post and hold by tension. A ball that spins without catching is the wrong gauge, not a bad ball.

Keeping them on: dry the threads, give both ends a gentle righty-tighty once a week, never force, and for a ball that will not stay put use a tiny dab of thread-locker with the excess wiped off. Materials: plain and gem balls are 316L surgical steel; colored, glitter and UV ends are acrylic with a steel thread insert, gentler on teeth for tongue bars; replacement posts and barbells are 316L steel or implant-grade titanium, and the title names the metal.

The jewelry these fit:

FAQ

Match the ball to the bar's gauge, because the thread size follows the gauge. As a rule: 14G bars (belly, nipple, tongue) take 5mm balls, sometimes 4mm or 6mm for a different look; 16G bars (eyebrow, septum horseshoes, lip) take 3mm or 4mm; 18G and 20G posts take 2mm to 2.5mm. Each listing names the gauge it threads onto and the ball diameter; check the one on your jewelry before ordering.

Our threaded replacement balls are externally threaded, standard pitch for their gauge, so they fit the externally threaded steel barbells, curved barbells and horseshoes we sell in that gauge, and most standard body jewelry of the same gauge. They will not fit internally threaded or threadless bars; those take their own ends, and we list the titanium threadless posts and barbells separately. If a ball spins freely without catching, the gauge is wrong, not the ball.

Captive beads are not threaded; they have two dimples that the ring's ends grip by tension, so they are sized by gauge and bead diameter: 3mm for 16G rings, 4mm for 14G, 5mm for 12G. Listings that say captive or BCR are the dimpled kind; a threaded ball will not hold in a captive ring and a captive bead will not screw onto a bar.

Threads back off with daily movement, especially on tongue and nipple bars. Give both ends a gentle righty-tighty once a week, snug and never forced, and dry the threads first; wet threads slip. A tiny dab of thread-locker on the thread, with the excess wiped off, is the piercer's trick for a ball that will not stay put. Keeping a spare pair in the drawer is cheaper than the bar.

Yes. This page also carries implant-grade titanium threadless replacement barbells and post-only labrets in 14G to 20G, steel replacement curved barbells and labret posts, and spare light sticks for glow jewelry. They let you keep a top you love when the post wears, or downsize a post after swelling without buying the whole piece again.

Plain and gem-set balls are 316L surgical steel, the everyday standard; the colored, glitter, UV and crystal ends are acrylic with a steel thread insert; the replacement posts and barbells are 316L steel or implant-grade titanium, and the title names the metal. Acrylic ends are gentler on teeth for tongue bars. Nothing here is plated mystery metal.