Captive Bead Rings

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Thursday February 7th, 2008 @ 7:08 PM

Filed under: Nose

My question is multi-part. I have a septum piercing at 10 ga and I’ve always worn the same captive bead ring in it. The ring is pretty big, I’m thinking 1/2″ in diameter and I’m looking for something smaller that would look more balanced but I’m a little confused on a pretty obvious topic.

How is a 3/8″ 10ga+ captive bead ring possible? if there’s only 3/8th of an inch in the center diameter and the bead takes up part of that room what type of piercing could that possibly fit? How would one go about even getting the bead into such a small ring? Would a 3/8th inch ring be right for a septum piercing? I want small but it seems a little too small…

Thanks, I’m a bit clueless the only place I can get jewelry from is online and I’ve never seen a variety of CBRs with this size included before in person.

I’ll do my best to explain how the magical-ocity of the 10ga 3/8″ CBR works. The diameter of the CBR is measured by the diameter on the inside of the widest part of the ring. So, when a company makes the CBR, they have to decide what size bead they will put on the ring. With that decided, they make the ring 3/8″ (or whatever inner diameter), with the gap that will accommodate the size of bead they will put on it. The beads are typically available in 1/8″, 5/32″, 3/16″, 7/32″ 1/4″ etc. As long as the bead isn’t so large that it keeps the bead from remaining a circle, there isn’t an issue. Most commonly in 10ga 3/8″ captive, a 5/32″ or 3/16″ bead would be used. There is a bit of leeway to go with a bead that is bigger or smaller than the original bead and not misshape the ring. Doing so may alter the precise diameter of the ring, but it’s not often enough to make a significant difference.

It is very common to wear a 3/8″ diameter ring in septum piercings, so the 10ga 3/8″ would likely work well for you. In fact, some people wear even smaller jewelry. Keep in mind however, not every size is going to fit everyone. So, if you want to be sure the piece you are going to be will fit, you may want to stop into a shop and have a piercer take a quick look for you.

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