When I first was told to get a cage I had no idea which one.. Instead of paying $300 + for one I ordered several from DH Gates, $25 each . Once I found one I liked ( jailbird) I then spent over $300 and ordered the quality one from Mature Metal . The cheap knock offs soon rusted, chrome peeled off cutting me , had jagged edges that rusted after being ground off , but I'm glad I had them to see which was best for me..
That should be the way.. buy some interesting knock-offs first and try out before settling for the real thing.. sizes and feeling are almost similiar.. only quality differs.. but still, i havent splurge on any original models yet.. i just like to try new types over again.. some are good some are down right crappy
to find the correct size of ball ring ,I went to Tandy Leather supply .they sell leather craft material. I think most stainless steel rings were around $2 . Any hobby store will likely have them..