Buying retainer online - bad idea?

[Clarmik]

Is it a bad idea to buy customized Hawley retainers online?

[jem]

Yes because you will have to take your impressions yourself. You will not do it as well as a dental professional so your retainers will not fit as well. You could ask your general dentist to remove your bonded retainers , take impressions and instruct a lab to make hawleys for you. The cost of the hawleys should not be much more than buying online and you will be confident that your hawleys will fit properly and not cause any adverse movement of your teeth.

Jem

[nteff]

I have done well buying replacement hawley online. No Problems.

[Danielle]

I tried to buy a retainer online, but even after braces, my bite still isn’t perfect. So after three tries (extra putty was sent to me) I still couldn’t get the impressions to be perfectly centered on the tray. It’s probably a hit or miss process. Worth a try, just make sure you order from a company that offers your money back if the impressions aren’t a success.

[Dunnyet]

Have your dentist take the impressions and make the dental casts. Then you can send your casts to the online shop and they make sure your retainer(s) fit! Worked fine for me. Cheers!