Alright: Been lurking and learning for a while, and finally felt compelled to share my thoughts on the
Phase3 ZX Ball Vape. I’ve been chasing that perfect one-hitter, something that can deliver those terpy first hits without needing a massive bowl. Well, I think I might have found it.
My relationship with the ZX had a slightly rocky start, I won’t lie. The first few bowls were… a little underwhelming. Vapor production was minimal, and I was scratching my head trying to figure out what was going on. It felt like the ZX needed to settle in (maybe it's the Swiss alpine air?), find its groove in my vape den, if you will. I played around with the temperature, bumped it up a bit, and really focused on my draw technique. Whatever it was, it clicked.
Now, the ZX has become my
daily driver. What really seals the deal for me is its knack for
one-hit extraction without needing a mountain of flower. I’m talking about the top position on the Zirc Bowl – I’m probably loading less than
0.05g in there, and I’m getting a long, satisfying pull of pure terpenes. After that initial hit, I often let the heater sit on the bowl for a minute or two and go in for a cleanup hit, which gives a nice little touch of conduction. It’s seriously
efficient and incredibly flavorful.
But here’s where things got
really interesting. I decided to try some classic
old-school hash, the kind that’s still pretty common around here. Cranked up the temperature a bit, and the ZX just
annihilated it, breaking it down beautifully into a surprisingly smooth and tasty vapor. Seriously, I let out a little “wow” – it handled it like a champ.
Regarding the bowls, I have both the
original P3 glass bowl and the Joda Glass bowl. To be honest, they don’t see much action. It’s not really a knock on the bowls themselves, but they just don’t align with my current focus on micro-dosing and one-hit extractions. For larger bowls, my eyes tend to wander over to other vapes in my collection (looking at you, upcoming ZXXL!), but that happens much less frequently now that the ZX is in the rotation.
I did have to do a little
14mm glassware upgrade, as I was mostly rocking 18mm joints. What works exceptionally well with the ZX is the
Sherlock Shredder from THG. However, my absolute favorites for unfiltered flavor are the
J-Hooks from Pharrowglass and High Artisan. They just let those terpenes shine.
TL;DR: the
ZX is a fantastic vape and, for me, the
ideal one-hit extraction machine. It’s exactly what I was hoping for. Now, I’m eagerly awaiting the ZXXL release and curious to see what else Ryan has up his sleeve. I have a feeling there are more exciting things to come.
Big thanks, Ryan –
well done! 
