What am i breathing? Bongsmith's Basics

All right fools, time for some handy bong building tips for all you bongsmiths so feel free to add any info. Remember you shouldnt have to breath in anything more toxic than your smoke. Harm reduction not discrimination!

Section .01: Materials

1. Choose wisely and dont be impatient. Building bongs is like building puzzles; not all pieces fit.

2. NO TOXIC SHIT! Do not use any thing that gives off a strong scent/odor even if it is more pleasant than the taste of the smoke. Also NEVER EVER use: PVC, copper, brass, tin, lead, pewter, iron, unannodized aluminum (pop cans, etc), cheap plastics (drink containers, etc), metal with any type of coating (galvanized, painted, etc), and probably even wood. All these react poorly to pyrolisis (burning shit) and with have you inhaling more carcinogens than need be.

3. Adhesives: Most store-bought adhesives are highly toxic when it comes to pyrolisis so if you must use some use something with a high boiling point like silicon latex. Also, dont have ANY adhesive connecting/in/on/near the bowl, stem, or smoke chamber. Use this shit in moderation and make sure its dry before you start toking. No tapes or gums either.

4.Smoke Chambers: or the body of the bong should be made out of some unrusting material like glass, stainless steel, titanium, ceramics, stone/marble*, aluminum*, bamboo*, and acryllic plastics. There are probably other materials that can be used but have had a long track record and are the most likely to be safe.

5. Stem and bowl assembly: These pieces are the most important as they come in contact with the most heat. For bowls the best materials tend to be stainless steel, annodized aluminum, glass, and stone*. This also goes to the in-stems. You shouldnt use anything that can rust since iron oxide is poisnous as is soft aluminum. Unaltered sockets work well.

6. Out-Stem and mouth piece assembly: This is an area where heat reactions dont normally occure so using unannodized aluminum, some adhesives, some rubbers/plastics is probably (i'm not a scientist) acceptable. Yet its best just to be safe and avoid all possibly hazardous materials. As for flexible tubing vinyl is with a doubt the best.

7. Lids and Stoppers: These are key pieces for any home-made bong and should be made out of a safe material. In the past i have had great success with the black rubber stoppers found in labs and vinyl tubing. It would probably be a bad idea to use a lid/stopper that had any type of additional coating such as that found on most food container lids.

8. Miscallaneous Shit:

Clays - there are many different clays that can be used as adhesives, lids, decoration, etc. One in particular that i have had a lot of experience is Fimo and works fine as long as it is well cooked (try and scratch it with your nail, if it scratches put that shit in the oven for another round).

Vinyl Tubing - This stuff is great because you can use it for just about anything where heat isnt a problem. Use water when attaching so when it dries there is a vaccuum seal.

Resonators - If you must put a resonator on your bong then make sure it is connected to the out-stem and not to the in-stem or bowl since this will over heat the weed and vaporize all the thc. Be careful of splash.

In Stem Tips and Tricks - to better break up those bubbles and more efficiently cool the smoke consider cutting/drilling holes in the bottom of the stem. This can have a profound effect on the quality of your bong. Also, having something blocking off the main hole (something nontoxic and nonrusting) will keep all the smoke from exiting through one hole and will also collect unsmoked chunks of weed for later use.

Bowl Lids - have you ever taken a hit and cleared your piece only to see a massive musheroom cloud arising from your bowl? Cap that shit! Capping a bowl will save at least 5 - 10 hits per bowl and will keep anything from falling out. Use a magnet, prism, something pretty, be creative.

So thats my two cents on the subject. Remember bong building is an art so take your time, be creative, and dont be impatient. Dont be stupid and use cheap/unsafe materials and think everything is fine just because you dont taste anything. I've read about a lot of stupid people doing this shit so WISE UP! The last thing a smoker needs to be doing is inhaling more toxins than normal. All comments/corrections welcome.

***NOTE***
*Unaltered Aluminum and stone are probably heat-sensitive and there for should be used with caution.

For Us Cocoa astros and the donKey flUx!

thanks for all of that. that helped out a lot

awesome and highly informative. I never thought about the tape connecting the bowlpiece being hazardous, but you're absolutely right.


cheers

very good points in there man i recently made a nice glass bong with a storebought slide and bowl, lol it hit so fat, and just to add something to see if its airtight put your hands/fingers/palms over the carb, bowl, and other openings on your bong and blow into it.... if you can...its not airtight and your hits will be weak and shitty so keep trying over and over until its airtight then rip that shit up....youll be glad you did

Anyone gotten good results with a glass drill bit? I've been experimenting with vases, glass coke bottles, etc., but I can't get all the way through without cracking the hell out of the glass and just shattering it. Any advice?

Airtight-ness - While it is always a good thing to have an airtight piece, if you can manage to get enough air to dilute but not too much to loose suction then your hits will be excellent.

Drilling glass - mason bits are said to work if you cant afford the diamond ones. if you dont have any of that shit than start with a very small bit and drill very very slowly. I've been able to drill through but its really tricky and not worth breaking a kick-ass bottle.

Screens - if you have a bowl that needs a screen and you have no screen there is the option of using aluminum foil but it is most definately not safe (poor quality metal). Airator screens used in plumbing work nicely as they are thick and stainless. Essentially what you need in this situation is something heat proof. I've used jem stones in the past but this can be dangerous as rocks tend to explode in high heat situations.

Water levels - I personally feel that water levels are a matter of personal preference and lung control; i.e, more h20= cooler and therefore less to breathe and more smoke dilution. But if you dont want to bother just fill your piece to the point where the smoke is still fairly hot but not so hot that you cant tuff on it. Individual bongs have individual levels so practice with your piece.

hey, i just recently made a 3 man bong. i got a sweet vase from a Winners and it was like a cm thick. then we stole a 15$ glass drill bit, it was called a ceramic drill bit and it was from home hardware ( in Canada) it was actually pretty easy each hole took about 5 minutes and every so often we'd spray some oil over it cool it down. put tape over the spots where ur drilling too. i also tried making one before it. the glass was not even half a centimeter thick and we didnt use a glass drill bit. get a glass drill bit for sure

did u call me a fool, mofo?

I am but an egg. If you dont consider yourself a fool then you're being foolish.

Nice

I have a glass drill bit; I'll have to try the tape trick and the oil trick.

How did you clamp the vase in place without breaking it?