When buying Labrets and replacement bars, it's easy to assume that two products labeled as 1.2 mm will automatically be compatible with each other.

In reality, this isn't always the case.

In the internally threaded Labret system available on our website, even when both pieces have a 1.2 mm bar thickness, 316L surgical steel and titanium use different thread sizes. For this reason, the decorative tops and bars of these two materials are not interchangeable.

1.2 mm Refers to the Bar Thickness, Not the Thread Size

First, it's important to understand what the 1.2 mm measurement actually means.

When a Labret is listed as 1.2 mm, this measurement refers to the outer diameter of the bar, not the diameter of the screw on the back of the decorative top.

With an internally threaded system, the screw on the decorative top needs to fit inside the bar, so its diameter must be smaller than the outer diameter of the bar itself.

In addition, Labrets made from different materials do not necessarily use the same thread size.

What Thread Sizes Do Our Steel and Titanium Labrets Use?

On our website, unless otherwise specified, a 1.2 mm internally threaded Labret made from 316L surgical steel uses a 1.0 mm thread.

A 1.2 mm titanium Labret, on the other hand, uses a 0.9 mm thread.

In other words:

1.2 mm surgical steel Labret → 1.0 mm thread

1.2 mm titanium Labret → 0.9 mm thread

The two bars can therefore have exactly the same outer thickness and both be labeled as 1.2 mm, while their internal connection systems are different.

A difference of just 0.1 mm may sound insignificant, but when it comes to threading, it is enough to make the two components incompatible.

Can I Buy a Surgical Steel Labret and Replace the Bar with a Titanium One?

No.

This is also one of the questions we receive most frequently.

For example, you might purchase a 1.2 mm 316L surgical steel Labret and then buy a 1.2 mm titanium replacement bar, intending to keep the original decorative top and simply change the bar.

Although both bars are 1.2 mm, the decorative top from the steel Labret uses a 1.0 mm screw, while the titanium bar is designed for a 0.9 mm thread. As a result, the two components cannot be properly connected.

The same applies in reverse. A titanium decorative top with a 0.9 mm screw is not compatible with a surgical steel bar designed for a 1.0 mm thread.

In our internally threaded system:

Steel decorative top + titanium bar = not compatible

Titanium decorative top + steel bar = not compatible

So when purchasing a replacement bar or decorative top, checking that both products are labeled as 1.2 mm is not enough. You also need to make sure that they use the same threading system and thread size.

How Can You Avoid Buying the Wrong Replacement Bar?

The easiest solution is to choose a replacement bar made from the same material and designed for the corresponding thread size.

If you purchased one of our 1.2 mm surgical steel Labrets, choose a compatible surgical steel replacement bar with a 1.0 mm thread.

If you purchased one of our 1.2 mm titanium Labrets, choose a compatible titanium replacement bar with a 0.9 mm thread.

To make this even easier, you'll find a recommended compatible replacement bar at the bottom of each Labret product page. If you'd like to change your bar to a different length, simply follow the link on the product page to find the correct replacement bar without having to work out the thread size yourself.

When shopping for replacement components, don't look only at the bar thickness. The “1.2 mm” measurement tells you the outer diameter of the bar, but it does not guarantee that two products have compatible threads.

If you're looking for a system that offers more freedom to combine decorative tops with bars of different materials and thicknesses, you can also consider Push-In jewelry. Push-In systems use the tension of a thin metal pin instead of traditional threads, allowing much greater flexibility when mixing and matching different components.