O Rings

[marcus2418]

How do i know what size to get for retaining?

[Huskyjerk]

Make sure it is too small for your glans to fit thru flaccid. You do not want glans popping thru. Better the o-ring pop off.

[Allie2k14]

Hi,
What I'm currently using are #16 o-rings. Maybe the numbering differs with those you can find where you live.


Inner diameter: 19.8mm
Outer diameter: 27mm

I usually wear 5x #16 rings and 5x #15 rings, which are a bit smaller, towards the tip (not shown on the picture).

The idea is to retain your skin forward, not to strangulate it.

If you're starting with o-rings retaining, I would start using 1 ring. If it survives nighttime erections without popping off, or if you have enough skin, you could try adding more rings.

There is a related thread here, started a few weeks ago:
Retaining at night with o-rings – for intermediate to advanced restorers only

[marcus2418]

Thanks! i was able to go to lowes and find what i needed after some trial and error.

[Science Monk]

The size O-ring that worked for me as a single-ring retainer was 1 3/16 inch (3 cm) outer diameter X 15/16inch (2.4 cm) inner diameter X 1/8 inch (3 mm) thick (Danco brand #18, black natural rubber). Others at NORM meetings confirmed that this size worked for them also. The size of the O-ring needed depends more on the thickness of the foreskin than on the size of the penis.

Interestingly, guys who go shopping for O-rings cold - without any idea of what size to get - frequently come home with a set of O-rings all too small! Don’t underestimate the size of your male member…..and your foreskin remnant!

Personally, I never found O-rings to be that useful. They tend to fall off when they rub against your clothing. I frequently needed to use pieces to tape to help them stay put. So, for me, it was best to just use a tape ring (3M Absolute Waterproof tape).

Some guys who like to swim find O-rings invaluable however. A snug swim jock can be used to help keep the O-ring properly positioned.

I used a black natural rubber O-ring and never got around to switching to the red silicone ones, which are supposed to stay on better. Also, theoretically, you can also develop an allergy to the proteins in natural rubber, but you can't develop an allergy to silicone. Silicone is inert. Your immune system can't recognize it. However, the man on who championed the Multiple O-Ring method on the old (now defunct) restore-list, said he never heard of a man who claimed getting an allergy to the black natural rubber O-rings even though they are made of natural rubber. They have a tough shiny glaze on the outside that may help prevent exposure to the natural rubber inside. He recommended replacing an O-ring if the outer surface somehow got roughed up.

A man at the San Diego Chapter of NORM in 2001 invented “sticky O-rings.” He rolled a length of Micropore paper tape, sticky side out, into a long slim cylinder about 3 mm in diameter. He then twisted the ends together, like a snake biting its tail, to make a “sticky O-ring.” If he rolled the Micropore paper tape at an angle, the ends of the slim cylinder would naturally taper, which facilitated twisting the ends together.

In the US, the big box stores like Home Depot and Lowes no longer sell O-rings by the piece. Packs of 10 only. The ACE Hardware store and True Value hardware stores near me still (in 2016) sell O-rings by the piece however.

David
World As Monkey island

[Allie2k14]

Interesting.

The size of the O-ring needed depends more on the thickness of the foreskin than on the size of the penis.

Absolutely, once your skin is pulled forward past your glans, the only thing that matters is its thickness. The only thing that remains under the ring is your pulled skin.

guys who go shopping for O-rings cold - without any idea of what size to get - frequently come home with a set of O-rings all too small!

I guess any beginner has always to figure out what size to start with. In other threads here the subject was discussed and in the end you need a ring that:
- does not pop off (while flaccid, during any activity, during an erection...)
- does not let your glans pop through it (compromising blood supply, which is something you don't want, specially during an erection while sleeping)

Personally, I never found O-rings to be that useful. They tend to fall off when they rub against your clothing.

I guess that will depend on the type of skin one has. I tend to have quite a dry skin and my o-rings stay in place well.
In my case the o-ring sits in the middle of a bunch of skin at the tip of my penis, but if I had less skin so the ring sat at the very tip, it would probably pop off easily.

I haven't tried wearing o-rings while swimming, but in general I think wearing tight underwear or swim jocks helps keep o-rings in place.

The problem I usually have with o-rings is that the inner layer of skin under them is easily engulfed towards my body when I lean forward or I sit down. This makes o-rings fall off sooner. In order to reduce that inconvenience, I usually resort to either or both of:
- wearing smaller o-rings near the tip
- inserting a small conical "plug" made of a sheet of toilet paper at the tip so it prevents my inner skin to be pulled back.

One has to experiment in order to find the best approach. I find smaller o-rings more uncomfortable (that's why I said 'not to strangulate it' above) due to poorer blood supply. The toilet-paper-plug works quite well but must be of the proper size both not to be engulfed under the o-rings and not to press your skin against them too hard.

Something like this:
http://iomfats.org/resources/restoring/oringfunnel.html


Regards. Keep on Tugging, Keep on Experimenting!

[SaturnV]

Found some O rings at Home Depot, wasn't sure what size so bought a few different ones. Ends up the #20 worked ok. Not uncomfortable, a little tricky to put on - I used 3 of them. Other than the slight erection I get whenever manipulating my penis for anything, I am not sure it will allow me to get fully erect. We'll see how it goes.

[Ricardo]

But won't it cause phimosis if the ring is too small? I think is important diameter of penis. Maybe proportional to penis?

[greg_b]

But won't it cause phimosis if the ring is too small? I think is important diameter of penis. Maybe proportional to penis?

I would say no, it will not cause phimosis. For that to happen, the O-ring would have to cause the amount of skin to be reduced, and the opening made smaller, such that it would become too small an opening for the glans to fit through. I don't see how that would happen under the conditions typical of what we do, with or without O-rings.

There is some risk that the O-ring might cut off the blood flow, so you should keep an eye on that. And, if the O-ring is large enough, your glans could slip through and you would have your whole glans on the wrong side of the O-ring, which has happened to me while experimenting with them. I would not want that to happen while I was asleep, again do to compression reducing blood supply.

But short of surgery, I have not read of anything that we do, nor can I think of anything we do, that would result in phimosis.

Regards

[gdom]

Are you guys sure plumbing rings are safe to use? Is there a place to get medical grade silicone rings?

[Science Monk]

Are you guys sure plumbing rings are safe to use? Is there a place to get medical grade silicone rings?

Plumbing rings are made to be in contact with your drinking water, so they should be safe.

Your-Skin Cones are made out of aquarium-grade silicone, so they are safe also. If you've ever tried to keep a salt water aquarium, you know how the fish are all ultra-sensitive to the slightest contaminant.
https://tlctugger.com/your-skin-cone/

David
World As Monkey Island