Tuesday, September 27, 2016

How To Choose A Bubbler

A bubbler is a smaller, hand-held version of a water pipe. The compact size and portability is what makes bubblers so popular to so many people.

A water bubbler with recycler built in!Bubblers can take a variety of sizes and shapes. In many cases, they are simply a dry glass hand pipe with a small water chamber that provides some diffusion. On the other hand, they can seriously resemble small and rather complex water pipes with high end percolators and a very scientific glass-oriented look. TAG, naturally, carries more of the latter type of glass bubbler, and our collection is here:

https://www.thickassglass.com/collections/bubblers 

Bubblers use water, which will cool your smoke for smooth hits and bring down the harshness to your lungs and throat. As mentioned above, these mini-water pipes also use percolation systems that will filter, diffuse and cleanse your smoke to make your smoke as healthy as possible. The combination of water and a quality percolation system will ensure you're good to go.

What all bubblers share, of course, is portability. These pieces are small, solid, and can be easily transported.

There are drawbacks, however, and they include:

  • Get dirty very easily
  • Cleaning is not easy
  • Cheap versions can break easily

Choosing The Best Glass Bubbler Pipe

Affordability should not always be why you purchase a particular bubbler. Some things to consider with these solid smoking devices include:

  • Decent-sized carb: Carbs will eliminate stale smoke and will also help clearing your pipe. Always look for bubblers that have carbs that are not too small in size.
  • Look for newer bubblers: Do not purchase a bubbler that has been sitting around for a long period of time.
  • Look for bubblers that have structural stability: it's obviously critical to buy one that can be placed down without having your water spilling out.

Types of Bubblers

Hammer Bubblers

Hammer bubblers have a mouthpiece and bottom chamber on them that sits flat on your surface with the neck that leads diagonally upwards in order to connect to the top of the chamber. Essentially, they balance and look a bit like a judge's gavel, or, as per the name, a hammer.

Sidecar Bubblers

Sidecar bubblers are bubblers that include a sidecar mouthpiece which is going to branch off of the chamber and will move on an angle from the side of the chamber instead of to the top of the chamber. The sidecar design is going to eliminate any type of splashback and will prevent any water from leaving your bubbler. TAG offers a few very cool sidecar bubblers like this.

Sherlock Bubblers

Sherlock bubblers are bubblers that have the S shape that is seen in sherlock pipes. That classic Sherlock Holmes shape is a big winner, my friends.

Pendant Bubblers

Pendant bubblers have a notch and string so that you can wear the glass piece as a necklace. These bubblers are pretty seriously compact and are good to bring to concerts or to other large gatherings. These tend to be not extremely common.

Concentrate Bubblers

Concentrate bubblers give you the ability for use with legal concentrates and essential oils. You will notice that many of this type will have a male joint, which makes it easier to add a titanium or quartz nail An example of a concentrate style bubbler is this.

Double Bubblers

Double bubblers contain two chambers; many times with each chamber with its own percolator. This design of bubbler is going to create a great amount of filtration because of the dual percolator system it has.

Conclusion

Let's face it, many water pipes above 10" just aren't as portable as many people would like. Meanwhile, your classic dry glass pipe can make for a rough smoke, to say the least.

A bubbler is a beautiful hybrid of both. If you don't have one, what are you waiting for?

 



source https://www.thickassglass.com/blogs/enlightenment/glass-bubbler-pipes

Thursday, September 15, 2016

Metal Herb Grinders

You may be wondering if a grinder is a good investment. Perhaps you're poking around with some old scissors wondering if you should upgrade. Well, we can tell you this: a Gold Metal Herb Grindergrinder is literally one of the best investments that you as a frequent smoker can make.

How Grinders Help You

Grinders are going to help you be able to speed up and simplify the process of separating your dry herbs. They also make it much easierfor you to conserve your herbs when they are finely ground up.

It's an important note to remember that when you pull apart your herbs by hand, the pollen and other plant matter are most likely going to stick to your fingers. The problem with this is that you can very easily reduce the effects of the herbs as a result!

When herbs are ground up, they can be packed more tightly into a bowl or rolling papers. When your herbs are exposed to less oxygen, they are going to burn less before you inhale them and the airflow will dramatically increase, a major benefit.

Essentially, grinders are going to help give you more control over how fast and smoothly your herbs are going to burn.

Your grinder is also a good way to store small amounts of your herbs when you are not quite ready to use them yet. Our collection of herb grinders is here:

https://www.thickassglass.com/collections/grinders

How Grinders are Manufactured

Grinders are:

  • Either made out of metal or plastic
  • Have at least two interlocking pieces that form as upper and lower chambers
  • Upper chambers contain different teeth that will slice and grind up any dry herb that you insert inside them
  • Ground up herbs will then fall through the small holes between the two pieces and land in the lower chambers
  • The number and shape of the teeth are going to vary by brand

Different Chambers

Many of your grinders you find on the market are going to have more than just the two chambers.

One very common chamber is going to be the grinder that has four pieces. The four-piece chamber typically has a bottom chamber that is separated from the other chambers by a metal mesh screen.

This metal mesh screen is meant to catch any pollen that falls off your herbs when you are grinding them up in your grinder. The grinder will then store your herbs you have ground up in a separate chamber so it they can be used whenever and however you like them to be used.

You can also find five-piece grinders are have a second mesh screen on them that is finer and will further separate the ground-up herbs you place in the grinder.

Maintenance

You should always make sure that you routinely clean your grinder in order to keep it from getting clogged and you never want to use a dirty grinder.

Sizes

 You are going to find out that grinders are going to come in a variety of different sizes. The size of your grinder is not going to affect its function. The size of the grinder you have will only depend upon how much herbs you would like to grind up at one time.

We should also note that you don't necessarily need a $90 grinder. There are certainly levels of pricing, but to be fair, most users can get away with something under $50.

 



source https://www.thickassglass.com/blogs/enlightenment/metal-herb-grinders

Monday, September 12, 2016

Talking Downstems

Downstems are a smoking accessory that you attach to certain water pipes using a joint. Basic diffused downstemNot all glass pipes have them, of course, but if yours is broken, you probably need one fast.

For most pieces, typically the old skool "beaker style", detachable downstems are going to provide you with an extra layer of filtration and percolation.  In most cases, when you have a pipe with an attached or removable downstem, you can usually customize it with a different downstem based on either design or diffusion level.

 Downstems work by filtering smoke through a nail or flower bowl and diffusing the smoke into the water in the main chamber of your pipe.  The added layer of diffusion is going to make for a cooler, smoother and better filtered smoke time and time again. It's a mild diffusion, but it does work. Check out our collection here:

https://www.thickassglass.com/collections/downstems

Benefits of Downstems

A downstem can even add a lot to a simple straight tube or beaker base.  With the use of an additional layer of diffusion, you are going to get a completely different chug and taste out of your next smoke. 

The key to downstems is for you to experiment with them. While they certainly can't replace an ash catcher (like these), they do add a diffusion level that can smooth things out. The different styles and different lengths in downstem styles are going to lead to quite different smoking experiences.

Downstems are not going to just add layers of filtration and percolation to your rips.  Some of your diffused downstems are also going to work as adapters or drop downs. 

The diffused downstem will simply fit as one gender or size but will extend into a second joint of a different size and/or gender.  This is going to be perfect for smokers who want that added filtration and a new fit for a different slide all rolled into one simple accessory: a downstem.

Sizes and Styles

Downstems are going to come in all standard glass joint sizes:

  • 10mm
  • 14mm
  • 18mm

Your diffused downstems are going to be traditionally used only on your female joints because your male joints are external only.  However, an adapter can easily turn any of your female joints into male ones. 

Downstems also come in a variety of length sizes from two to seven inches. The size of the main chamber in your glass piece is going to help to determine how long or short of a downstem you are going to need to go with.

Downstems also come in a variety of diffusion styles.  Many of the styles are going to be based off of your classic percolator designs which are going to include:

  • Slitted style
  • Matrix

Finding the precise amount of filtration and percolation is something that is very easy to do.

Conclusion

You can find a wide variety of unbranded downstems which are going to be very affordable and of high-quality.  Many high-end vendors of diffusers are going to provide their own twists on diffused downstems. In the end, remember that the more holes in the end, the smoother the smoke.

It's hard to go wrong with a good downstem, believe us.



source https://www.thickassglass.com/blogs/enlightenment/downstems

Tuesday, September 6, 2016

Carb Caps

A carb cap is a tool that is designed for use with domeless nails, either titanium or quartz. These tools have a small hole to maximize airflow to your nail. When using a carb cap, you will heat up the domeless nail, put the oil or concentrate on the nail and place the carb cap over the domeless nail.

Carb caps are going to offer you a flavor that is far superior, and will allow you to keep the smoke where it belongs: in your piece. A carb cap will also restrict airflow and help to maintain the nail's heat.

Using a Carb Cap

A carb cap can come in handy no matter if you are new to concentrates or have been using them for years. The following will give you a detailed account on what to do with your carb cap.

Dabbing at Low Temperatures vs. Dabbing at High Temperatures

Dabbing at high temperature is what people who are new to concentrates will experiment with. Learning to heat your nail correctly is not easy. Properly heating up your nail will make all the difference when it comes to preserving your glass piece. Experienced users will take preventative measures to make sure that the heat will not be applied directly to their glass piece.

Hottest Part of Flame

There are two major areas that you need to consider in order to get the most out of your flame. The two areas are the bright blue part and the light blue part.

  • The bright blue part of the flame is where the primary combustion will occur; it is where the initial burning happens. It is NOT the hottest part of the flame.

  • The hottest part of the flame is at the tip of the inner flame. When you use this part of your flame, you will find that you are left with far less combustion byproducts and a much faster heating time.

  • The high temperature dabbing trend may have also come about from the common misconception that your nail needs to be red hot in order to use it but this is not true. The perfect temperature for vaporization is going to occur between 350 and 410 degrees F.

    If you try to use your nail when it is red hot it will only result in less efficiency while burning away your materials. The type of nail you are using will not affect this. If you have nails that are made out of glass, quartz, titanium or ceramic, they will all still work the exact same way.

  • A red hot ceramic nail and a red hot titanium nail will be the same temperature. Titanium does have a tendency to lose heat rather quickly and this is why people using titanium are told to wait until the red glow from their nail fades before applying their concentrates.

Low Temperature Dabbing

Low temperature dabbing is a concept that more experienced users generally consider. Low temperature dabbing will optimize your flavor and provide you with a much smoother hit.

Using Carb Caps with Open Air Systems

Carb caps will help you in the low temperature dabbing process. If you want to use a carb cap, you must make sure that you are using a product that is going to operate as an open air system. An open air system is when your concentrates rely solely on the heat from the dish of the nail for vaporization. You can use carb caps on:

  • Domeless nails
  • Bangers
  • Curves

Operation of Carb Cap

A carb cap creates a chamber with restricted airflow for your concentrates to vaporize. Most of your carb caps are going to have a single hole which will in turn help to create suction within the chamber. The carb cap will then produce a vortex that will help to cool down both the air and vapor that is trapped inside the piece.

Most carb caps are similar in design. They all will feature a hollowed, rounded end which will function as the cap and the pointed handle end.

 



source https://www.thickassglass.com/blogs/enlightenment/carb-caps