Perusing your local heady glass shop or online headshop it is plain to see that glass pipes for cannabis come in all shapes and sizes. They can be affordable and simple, with no extra bells and whistles.
They could be a multi tool like our HooHNu chillums that act as a pipe or a joint holder. Or they can get really artistic and very heady, with some unique glass pieces even costing thousands of dollars.
The types of weed pipes that a cannabis user can choose to use tells a lot about that person. Do they prefer dry hitting cannabis flower out of a glass pipe or prefer some water filtration when they smoke? Do they smoke flower or do they only consume concentrates out of a dab rig?
Let’s take a look at the five most common types of glass pipes used to consume cannabis.
1.The Chillum Glass Pipe
Also known as one hitters, the chillum glass pipe is the most discreet glass pipes to use. They are typically three to four inches long and are a straight cylinder, typically without a carb hole. This allows the cannabis user to take a quick hit of cannabis in a motion similar to lighting a joint or cigarette.
The HooHNu is the evolution of the chillum, as it also serves as a smell proof pre-roll tube and doubles as a functional glass pipe. It can be hit like a one hitter oreven a glass blunt. The HooHNu is a perfect day pipe, as the use of its air tight caps make the chillum smell proof and child and water resistant.
2. The Glass Hand Pipe
A glass hand pipe is one of the most used pipes used for smoking cannabis. The most common of these pipes are typically hand blown in the shape of a spoon. One end of the pipe has a mouth piece, with the other end having a carb hole and a top loading bowl carved out to pack the flower you want to smoke.
Glass hand pipes come in a variety of shapes from your standard spoon to more intricately designed Sherlock Holmes pipe.
Hand pipes are normally mass produced and affordable. But heady glass artists using gold infused glass to make fumed color changing pipes or even adding jems like opals and millies to a hand pipe can exponentially increase the value of a pipe.
3. The Glass Bubbler
The next step up from a hand pipe is the glass bubbler. Bubblers are larger blown hand pipes that use water to help filter and cool down the smoke when inhaled. A downstem comes down from the bowl to pull the smoke through a little bit of water held within a chamber in the bubbler. This can help make the hit smoother than a normal hot and dry hit.
Bubblers can be simple factory made pieces or extremely expensive custom art glass pipes. When it comes to art glass bubblers, it is good practice not to snap your bowl through, as cleaning the insides of art pieces can be extremely difficult. For larger sessions, cleaning the water frequently in bubblers is highly recommended.
4. The Glass Bong
Before cannabis became decriminalized, we used to call these pipes water pipes. We have come a long way from the days of not being able to say the word bong. The glass bong is typically a connoisseur’s method for using a glass pipe. Larger than a bubbler, bongs are freestanding glass pipes that can hold a considerable amount of water for filtration.
A glass bowl that holds the cannabis is attached to a glass downstem where the smoke is pulled through the water to filter and smooth out the bong hit. Some bongs also have ice catchers to further cool the glass and smoke for inhalation.
Bongs are normally used for larger sessions and more experienced cannabis users, as it takes a considerable amount of lung capacity to smoke and clear a bong properly. Bong hits are normally reserved for smoking high quality cannabis.
Imported glass and specialized machinery have allowed for the prices of glass bongs to be more affordable. But glass artists continue to showcase the works of art that can be made with the right materials, an industrial torch and the right vision.
5. The Glass Dab Rig
The glass dab rig is the method of choice for the highest level of cannabis consumer. Dab rigs are used to smoke cannabis concentrates like badder, diamonds, sauces and sugars. A dab rig has a separate bucket shaped bowl called a banger. The banger is heated and normally used to smoke the concentrates.
Dab rigs hold water for filtration, and are usually larger than a bubbler and smaller than a bong. The smoke typically pulled through a recycler or diffuser to create a smoother and tastier dab.
A proper dabber’s arsenal is full of necessary smoking accessories along with the dab rig and banger. A torch, dab tool and cleaning tools like cotton swabs and some isopropanol alcohol will help keep a clean dab rig.
Being a true cannabis connoisseur’s method of consuming cannabis concentrates, glass artists have been known to blow extremely ornate and fully functional dab rigs. Some of the gem and heavy mineral ladened glass have been known to fetch thousands of dollars from the right collector.
