Help Me Build My First Oil Rig!

I kind of skipped the glass section in Stoner school, having graduated from a hammer bubbler to an Extreme Q. I'd really like a daily dab driver and I need some help since this side of cannabis can be very flashy and very pricey.

Currently, these are my parameters-
Price: 50-150 USD
Size: 12" at most, smaller preferred (that's what she said)
Diffusion: Fritted Disc, you tell me
Bowl: Ti Nail or HealthStone

I'm not sure if it's cheaper to buy a complete rig, or buy the size bubbler / bong I want then adapters and sliders. Really, I'd just like something that's a great intro to dabbing (I haven't done it much) that's reasonably priced but will hit well. I have an old hookah case I'm hoping to store it in, so it really can't be any bigger than a foot.

I also don't know where to buy these things. I keep reading that LHS are unreliable, sometimes sell mislabeled seconds, can have shoddy joints and can break easily on me. I really am tired of bad experiences when it comes to my smoking peripherals, so if anyone has a sure fire distributor, and even better, a sure fire set up they'd like to suggest, I am all ears.

Also leaning towards the Health Stone just because it seems easier to use, especially since it requires a small triple torch lighter instead of a regular torch. To me, this equates to less butane used, less time spent heating. If there are positives and negatives I should consider here, please enlighten me.

For diffusion, I haven't dabbed much, but when I have it has always been a humbling experience. Humbling as in you know how close Death watches us when you're coughing up capillaries. I had issues in the past with inhaling combustion in cheap bongs and bubblers and have had to employ various techniques to keep from coughing too much (eating a mint or cough drop while smoking, always having a cold drink, etc). If there is a certain diffusion out there that should bypass the weakness in my lungs and throat, I definitely need it.

From there, I don't know if certain brands should always be sought after for... idk, build quality or glass thickness. If it helps, imagine you have a second chance at your first oil rig. What would you have wanted?

It seems to be a relatively popular opinion that a concentrate piece shouldn't have too much percolation, as the nastiness should be filtered out in the process of making the concentrate, and it just adds more surface area for the oil to stick to before reaching your pie-hole.

I like fritter pieces, very smooth but they can be a bit more fussy. They will block up if you don't use warm water with concentrates. I wouldn't pick one for my first piece.

My advice is for a simple, but not overly teeny bubbler. Your stated price point is pretty limiting, something like this comes to mind, but it's 35$ more than you wanna spend.

http://www.ioffer.com/i/8-hd-honeycomb-disc-oil-rig-bubbler-water-pipe-546051886
bet this one is possibly even better, no pic yet though.
http://www.ioffer.com/i/hd-cut-disc-brilliance-perc-side-car-di-bubbler-pipe-558808124

[edit] yeah, I forgot you'll still need a nail, but I would figure what type of piece you want to go with before deciding that. I'll let someone with more experience chime in on the healthstone.

I had good luck at the lhs, headdies sidecar mini rig, ti ladle, domeless ti and padded box for 165. I highly recomend the sidecar style rigs, no splashback.

mrboote said:

bet this one is possibly even better, no pic yet though.

Click to expand...

OMG i didnt even notice that - will have to get that fixed when i get to the office!

mrboote said:

http://www.ioffer.com/i/8-hd-honeycomb-disc-oil-rig-bubbler-water-pipe-546051886
bet this one is possibly even better, no pic yet though.
http://www.ioffer.com/i/hd-cut-disc-brilliance-perc-side-car-di-bubbler-pipe-558808124

Click to expand...

Was just coming in here to recommend Jhanpixel, my experiences with him and his glass have been nothing but good so far.

I would shy away from the health stone, the issue I have with them over a nail is: with a nail you use the butane to heat it, then turn the gas off, nail is hot, apply dab, no gas in lungs. With a health stone you can't preheat the rock like you can a nail, so you have to use that triple torch the whole time you are inhaling the dab from the stone. You get a lot more butane in your lungs this way in comparison to a nail.

If I were you I would settle for glass or quartz nails to start with. Any ti nail ( that you can be sure is actually grade 2 ti) is going to be at least $50-75. There is nothing wrong with glass except that they do break. The domeless quartz nail that is sold by mariposa on eBay seems to be pretty well reviewed and would leave a lot more of your budget to get a quality bubbler. I would check out the cheap quality bubbler thread, there are at least ten different options well within your price range.

Quartz nails don't break if you don't drop them. I have had mine for 2yrs+.

You'll get better taste off of the quartz - whenever I hit a ti nail I taste metal.

Quartz nails also allow you reclaim much easier - use a razor blade and scrape the nail clean. You can't do that with a ti nail because of the shape.

Quartz ftw!

notmyrealUSERname said:

Quartz nails don't break if you don't drop them. I have had mine for 2yrs+.

You'll get better taste off of the quartz - whenever I hit a ti nail I taste metal.

Quartz nails also allow you reclaim much easier - use a razor blade and scrape the nail clean. You can't do that with a ti nail because of the shape.

Quartz ftw!

Click to expand...

I have gone through countless glass nails, but have my one original quartz nail still! I've actually sold it to someone, along with a male/male adapter, and dome...I bought it back several months later when they were no longer interested, and the nail had been dropped and chipped...still heats and cools fine without breaking/cracking! I will probably always go for my 18mm DYD Ti nail over the quartz, if going for a nail at all...but that's cause I already own it! hahaha, if I were being cost effective, and getting a new setup, I'd probably stick with a quartz nail...a cupped one

You are asking alot to get a quality pipe that dabs well for that little, but possible. You need to test a few though. Buying from an image w/o much experience is difficult. I know black leaf even through German/Chinese work well and quality is good enough.

I appreciate the feedback, guys. I would have given this progress report sooner, but the Hurricane in the Philippines has had my family pretty worried.

Anyway, in classic Atomsk fashion, the first oil rig I picked up broke on me day one. It came with a glass nail, and, using a triple torch I bought with it, both the glass nail and the beveled male joint cracked from heat pressure. A glass on glass oil rig that breaks from heat on the nail, brilliant. The LHS I picked it up from has not been very helpful though the manager blows glass and has confirmed that it was a heat crack as there are no abrasions, chips, etc.

The above endeavor cost an amount of money I'm too embarrassed to disclose, but, thankfully, I've finally got some luck with a wax peripheral.

This is now my new daily driver:


45cm stemless bubbler(?) with a honeycomb perc, I had to buy a male-to-male adapter & the Ti nail which I am assured is grade 2. The dome came with the stupid fucking first rig that I cannot believe *****

Ahem.

The honeycomb stacks so beautifully and I really like how the bent tube will keep the water down. I wish the base was squared and thicker, but I've had no problems. I also really like how the oil accumulates in a honeycomb looking pattern. Overall, this is the best pick up I've made since the Extreme Q.

Yeah. I'm pretty happy with this set up. Glad I went with the Ti nail after all my own experience with glass nail and your feedback. The bubbler(?) was $80 at the best goddamn head shop in SD. The Male to Male was $15, and I got the nail for $25. What's even sweeter is the second head shop gave me credit for the triple torch I bought from the other shop since it was a Vector and hooked me up with a full torch. $120 out the door and all I can say is, I wish I had found this half a year ago.

I know, I know, $25 dollar nail! Chitanium!
I'm keeping an eye on it. Did the magnet test, the heat test. It turned blue at first as is now a slightly lighter, matte shade of it's unheated form. I'm guessing it's seasoned well now, but please let me know what a nail is supposed to look like when seasoned.

Let me know what you guys think!