I received a lot of questions about Prince Albert piercings from a man who was interested in getting one. Below is our correspondence:

Hi Elayne...Saw you were going to be in Philly and I missed you at Infinite (I live in Conn.).  I'm what you  might call an "older guy (over 50) and have been putting off getting a PA for years.  Well, I'm ready but I want a seasoned pro like yourself.  Who might you recommend?  I know there are no safe piercing.org recommended in Conn., and I'll be back in my home town of Philly in late Aug.  Anyone in particular at infinite you'd recommend for a PA?  Thanks much!

Sorry I missed you in Philly last month; I would have loved to pierce you. Yes, I do have a referral at Infinite, and his name is Kellan. You'll be in good hands with him. All of my referrals information is on this page of my site:
http://piercingbible.com/piercer-referrals

Let me know how it goes, and if you do see someone I recommend, be sure to send my warmest regards.

Re age...I'm  on Cape Cod this week and I spotted an older (but not than me!) chap on the beach sporting a nice gauge PA (we were in the clothing optional section of the beach, of course!) and started up a conversation about how he liked it, etc.  When I asked him when he got he said in this 40s and with no regrets whatsoever.  When I told hiim I was hesitant now cause I thought I missed the window of my 40s, he asked me how old I was...When I asked him how old I looked, he said 47 (I'm gonna be 55 in Sept!...gulp), I thought, okay, I'm still hanging in there.

ANYWAY...I will try and appt with the chap you recommended at Infinite. IN the meantime, mind answering a few Qs?

**First is gauge.  I'd actually heard slightly larger is better to start with, so I was thinking 8ga.   And diameter.  Is this personal preference or does it go with your anatomy?  And also was thinking I'd go strictly with titanium for weight and purity and would allow me a little bit larger gauge to start with.  Thoughts?

I personally use 10 gauge as a maximum (and 12 as minimum) as the piercing is so easy to stretch after healing, and larger piercings seem to result in even more bleeding (it can be really messy). I do think Kellan does 8 ga, so if you are interested in that, you can talk to him about it.

Here's a brief excerpt on that topic from my book, The Piercing Bible--The Definitive Guide to Safe Body Piercing:

The 10 gauge is a reasonable maximum starting thickness; the 12 gauge is less apt to bleed and can easily be stretched later. Let your piercer know if you have plans to stretch to jumbo gauges, because this should be factored in when marking the placement. If you don’t have a large penis or a high urethra (allowing for a substantial distance between the piercing and the lower edge of the urethral opening), the piercer can mark the placement a little further down the shaft to cheat some extra tissue into the piercing. The skin it pierces through won’t be any thicker—it will just be a little further from the tip of your penis. You should have no less than 1/2 inch of tissue between the piercing and the edge of your urethra when your penis is flaccid. If you want to stretch up to large gauges, the piercing should encompass at least 5/8 inch.

Implant grade steel and titanium are both good choices and in 10-8 gauge, don't really have a large difference in weight.

**Also,  I'd love to try a segmented ring, but it's prob not best for the healing period.  True?  WHats the best design for a PA? What I think is good about a segmented ring is the "cure" for pissing stream.  Without the ball of a CBR or CBB, a piss stream is less likely to shpritz all over!

You defintely don't want to go with one of those for healing. The seams can harbor bacteria and then get worked into the piercing. I don't think the ball makes that much of a difference in urination. Use a safer style for initial healing, and then change over after the piercing is no longer an open wound.

Circular barbells are versatile for PAs because you can modify the ring diameter for a precise fit by spreading or narrowing the gap between the balls. You can make adjustments (or have your piercer help) even when your piercing is new. This is also from The Piercing Bible:

Prince Albert Piercing: Urination

Many men are apprehensive about being able to urinate standing up after getting this piercing. A few easy maneuvers can help you to normalize the act once you have healed. When a ring sits in the middle of your urethra it can split the flow and cause a splashy mess. Also, many Prince Albert piercings stretch on their own, leaving extra room around the jewelry, which results in leakage from the piercing hole. A simple solution is to manually plug the hole on the bottom when you urinate. Place a finger on the underside of your penis just at the front of the jewelry. If you wear a ring, put your fingertip within the ring. This draws the jewelry to the lower edge of your urinary meatus so it doesn’t interrupt the flow. Or, rotate your penis so that the ring faces the ceiling. This helps to merge urine leaking from the piercing hole back into the main stream.

**PA placement.  I may want to get a frenum later down the road and get a frenum hoop. What's important to know about the PA placement (if anything) in regard to this?

The specific issues about PA placement relate more to how large you may ultimately want to stretch as mentioned above. The more common problem is men who get a frenum piercing first and have them placed too high (close to the glans), without leaving room for a PA. Even on men who are "100% SURE" they don't ever want to get a PA, I usually leave room for one when I place a frenum. Early in my career, plenty of those guys who were adamant ended up returning for PA piercings. Since then I've gotten more forceful about protecting them from making a bad decision they'll regret.

**And finally, read your very thorough fact page on healing.  Interesting about the emu oil, might give it a try.  How about that H2Ocean product? Hype or help?

Bottled sprays are convenient but they are far more expensive than making your own saline solution, and spraying does not confer all of the benefits of soaking. When you aren’t able to soak, you may want to use a saline spray that is formulated for use on piercings.

And...Thanks for the referral at Infinite.  Yes, I would've loved to have you "do the deed," to me, it's super important to have a methodical pro do such a delicate perf.  Maybe, when I'm ready for my frenum, I can track you down.  Then I'll need to know who makes the coolest frenum hoop ;-)

It seems to me that you really want to be a well-educated consumer. If you found my website informative, I think you'll be amazed by all of the valuable facts and practical advice in my book.  It contains loads of information about evaluating piercers and studios, piercing placements, appropriate body jewelry sizes, styles, and materials, aftercare, troubleshooting, and much, much more. My website contains just barely a taste of the information in my book!