The tools and techniques used by your piercer will depend on his style and the type of piercing you’re getting. One tool that all pierces must use is some type of piercing needles. The needle is usually held and pushed through by hand, though some piercers use a needle holder or pusher. Good needles are crucial for a comfortable procedure.

 

Piercing needles come in a range of sizes to suit the preference of different piercers. Needle thickness is gauge which is a numerical standard of measurement for the thickness of wire. Needle gauges correspond to those used to describe the thickness of body jewelry. For both needles and jewelry, the higher the number, the thinner the item. It is standard practice to use the same gauge piercing needles and jewelry for most piercings. Following is a list of specific gauges of piercing needles. The gauges are listed from smallest diameter to largest with standard gauges in the left column and the millimeter conversion for the corresponding gauges in the right column.

 

Gauge

Millimeters

18G

1.0mm

16G

1.2mm

14G

1.6mm

12G

2.0mm

10G

2.5mm

8G

3.0mm

6G

4.0mm

4G

5.0mm

2G

6.0mm

0G

8.0mm

00G

10.0mm

7/16″

11.0mm

1/2″

12.0mm

9/16″

14.0mm

5/8″

16.0mm

3/4″

19.0mm

7/8″

22.0mm

1″

25.0mm

 

Source: http://www.getbetterlife.com.