Cheap High Quality Bubbler

[RustyOldNail]

I have about 35 pieces from DHGate (8 from SAML) - this kind of thing is prevalent. The vendors are not interested in complaints about esthetics - if it's not leaking water or broken, it's considered acceptable. Steven (and Jane) are not so keen to replace something that's not broken. The klein I bought from him showed up broken - Jane sent me a replacement which was the wrong piece and we argued about for some time before I ended up buying at 50% off and then finally a replacement klein was shipped out and arrived in one piece.
I've ceased shopping for import glass and started watching the US glass market for deals. I'm paying 3-4x what a DHGate piece costs, but the joints are straight and round and I can get colors that are simply not available in the import market. As @EmDeemo says, TAG can be a valid option - but I find their selection to be severly lacking since they were shutdown and moved to CO last year.

Thanks once again. That’s a lot of glass you own. I figured the low prices indicate getting pieces that the NEW guy in the shop gets to practice on. It works, and I don’t care too much about looks, just wanted the feedback so I knew if this was fairly standard for discount DHGATE glass, not surprised.

BTW: I looked at the CALIBEAR site you mentioned last time, especially the USA warehouse for supposedly faster shipping. They have a few seed of life rigs. Unfortunately I will have to email them with a few questions as they don’t list a phone number, and their site has some confusing photos. I don’t mind paying a bit more to get what I’d like.

Thanks again for sharing your knowledge!

 

[EmDeemo]

Thanks once again. That’s a lot of glass you own. I figured the low prices indicate getting pieces that the NEW guy in the shop gets to practice on. It works, and I don’t care too much about looks, just wanted the feedback so I knew if this was fairly standard for discount DHGATE glass, not surprised.

BTW: I looked at the CALIBEAR site you mentioned last time, especially the USA warehouse for supposedly faster shipping. They have a few seed of life rigs. Unfortunately I will have to email them with a few questions as they don’t list a phone number, and their site has some confusing photos. I don’t mind paying a bit more to get what I’d like.

Thanks again for sharing your knowledge!

DHGate stuff was great at low prices for checking what it is you like, and then buying something more expensive, but the prices are going up without any attributable QC going up, so fuck it. I guess this is why I only own a couple of pieces, and only bought rarely from China.

And also why I was trying to get TAG to do a Rattlecan!

 

[RustyOldNail]

DHGate stuff was great at low prices for checking what it is you like, and then buying something more expensive, but the prices are going up without any attributable QC going up, so fuck it. I guess this is why I only own a couple of pieces, and only bought rarely from China.

And also why I was trying to get TAG to do a Rattlecan!

I didn’t know TAG moved, I wrote them almost a year ago when I brought all my NV gear, and wanted to get a backup for the NV rig, that TAG actually makes. While I’m no longer interested in getting the same model again, I kept looking at the TAG site, and noticed how much was NOT in stock, figured it was Covid - China supply issues.

 

[bizwaxzion]

Unfortunately I will have to email them with a few questions as they don’t list a phone number, and their site has some confusing photos.

If you can stomach it, do some reading on reddit (r/chinaclass) about people's experience with calibear - caveat emptor - I have no experience buying from their new site. TAG was raided late 2018 or early 2019 and moved from PA to CO before opening back up. They have had only limited stock since then which is likely covid related.

 

[Haze Mister]

TAG was raided

Why? They still had paraphernalia laws in 2018/2019?


The off-center joints and unsightly curves/corners on some chinese stuff would definitely put me off but it's not always. And it is usually obvious what to expect when looking at the photos. The female rattle can with the round top- for example, -is visibly not straight when looking at the main photo. The connector for the bowl / banger / nail is clearly not horizontal.

As for the Flower of Life diffusers.... sure it looks nice but the idea that this arrangement of cuts is somehow more better magic is hard to swallow when you've seen a lot of new age woo-woo in your life.

 

[bizwaxzion]

Why? They still had paraphernalia laws in 2018/2019?

Actually, I'm not certain it's true as I'm nowhere near them, but there was some discussion on reddit...

 

[arb]

I do not buy China glass for looks though I have gotten some very nice pieces.
I buy them shits to break as I use them all day every day.
I do not appreciate walking into a glass shop and seeing obvious China glass for American prices.
China glass educated me to that shit before I was clueless,learned that here on FC.

 

[RustyOldNail]

Why? They still had paraphernalia laws in 2018/2019?


The off-center joints and unsightly curves/corners on some chinese stuff would definitely put me off but it's not always. And it is usually obvious what to expect when looking at the photos. The female rattle can with the round top- for example, -is visibly not straight when looking at the main photo. The connector for the bowl / banger / nail is clearly not horizontal.

As for the Flower of Life diffusers.... sure it looks nice but the idea that this arrangement of cuts is somehow more better magic is hard to swallow when you've seen a lot of new age woo-woo in your life.

Yeah, I’m really not a glass person. I don’t have a lot of room for pieces. I would probably own more if one could test drive them. There are tons of “head shops” in my city, but they are all like McDonalds FRANCHISES. Glass display cases full of rigs, but they are all from China, except the prices are stupid high, even after you haggle on price. Some of them even have Roor knockoffs, at crazy prices. They markup these rigs at 3-5 times what they pay. I’ve never seen anyone buy a rig in these stores and the stuff just sits there. I would love to at least look at and hold a rig, and if the price were reasonable, I would prefer to buy one in person, but that’s not the case, and I have to buy online, which seems like a crap shoot!

But in response to SEED OF LIFE, yeah I have no clue if those cutouts could, or do make any real difference. A glass novice like myself, can only READ about these things in reviews, or posts. My instincts tell me it’s probably BOGUS, but I figured I’d buy one more piece and see.

 

[cybrguy]

I do not buy China glass for looks though I have gotten some very nice pieces.
I buy them shits to break as I use them all day every day.
I do not appreciate walking into a glass shop and seeing obvious China glass for American prices.
China glass educated me to that shit before I was clueless,learned that here on FC.

Same for me. I buy china glass for the price, and the willingness of some of the glass vendors (like Yingmin5 and Steven) to make changes that we have asked for. When you see FC at the front of a glass piece name (like 2 of the pieces under my spoiler) they customized them per requests from us. There are also some other pieces that they changed for us that lack the FC in their name....

 

[RustyOldNail]

This is a rig I am interested in from the CALIBEAR site:

COLORED TORUS | CALIBEAR |US WAREHOUSE

CALIBEAR Colored Torus features a clear/purple/transparent black/usa color these beautiful colors with 4 seed of life perc and cone recycle part which u will see amazing vortex overthere. Specification: 7.24/8 inch height 14.5mm female joint It comes with a free 14.5mm glass bowl.

www.calibearofficial.com

I just wrote them, with the picture from their page. WONDERING if the 14mm glass joint is not GROUND glass. From the photo it appears CLEAR, you can see the frosted glass from the male banger through the female joint.

I’ve seen a few lab type sites that sell glass joint adapters, and a few versions offered “bare” WITHOUT the joint being ground. I’m sure there is an application for this type, but all my glass has ground joints.

I’ll see if they respond about the accuracy of the photo, but I figured I’d ask the glass gurus here, on this.

 

[Gigsabits53]

@RustyOldNail you aren't wrong there, that joint attachment is way off. It's definitely disappointing to wait for stuff only to find it looking like that.



Absolutely agree, I know people don't want to hear "spend more money" but I'm done with import glass and 'the gate. Honestly some of the DH Glass has gotten so expensive you can get real American work for not much more. Also anecdotally I find my American glass can at least take a bump, my import rig broke the other day cause it got knocked over on a mood mat.... and it broke it the exact same spot as the one before it, popped right off at the maria on the neck. My heady rig has legit fallen over like 100 times and still chugging along.

This is my feeling as well, although I have never purchased anything from DHGate. It seems like everything I buy anymore is made in China, usually not made well, certainly not to last. I figured I would just spend a bit more and not wait a month or two for it to be delivered. I do have to say though, those prices on DHGate were very tempting. Not so much anymore.

 

[arb]

This is a rig I am interested in from the CALIBEAR site:

COLORED TORUS | CALIBEAR |US WAREHOUSE

CALIBEAR Colored Torus features a clear/purple/transparent black/usa color these beautiful colors with 4 seed of life perc and cone recycle part which u will see amazing vortex overthere. Specification: 7.24/8 inch height 14.5mm female joint It comes with a free 14.5mm glass bowl.

www.calibearofficial.com

I just wrote them, with the picture from their page. WONDERING if the 14mm glass joint is not GROUND glass. From the photo it appears CLEAR, you can see the frosted glass from the male banger through the female joint.

I’ve seen a few lab type sites that sell glass joint adapters, and a few versions offered “bare” WITHOUT the joint being ground. I’m sure there is an application for this type, but all my glass has ground joints.

I’ll see if they respond about the accuracy of the photo, but I figured I’d ask the glass gurus here, on this.

View attachment 1779

That would appear to me to be a unground joint.
I have a couple pieces with joints like that and they work fine.

 

[RustyOldNail]

That would appear to me to be a unground joint.
I have a couple pieces with joints like that and they work fine.

Thanks for the quick response. So I should have no issue with my ground glass joints fitting airtight with a non grounded joint. Which leads to me ...
... ASKING.. is there any particular reason or application for these non ground joints, is it just cosmetic? I have only recently seen this type.

 

[bizwaxzion]

@RustyOldNail Of my 35 pieces, 10 have non ground joints. The finish is not the issue so much as the "roundness" or depth. About 40% of the import glass I have allows some movement of a log stem or banger and I have one that has a joint so shallow a banger bottoms out against the floor just as it gets tight. Most are minimal/tollerable, but a couple are relegated to the "guest use" pile. I've discussed this with a couple vendors, but none would entertain any kind of discount (unless I bought more) let alone a replacement.

All 3 of my US made pieces have ground joints that allow no movement of the accessory.

 

[cybrguy]

I have about 10 glass pieces all in. All of them, and all the adapters I have, are ground glass. I imagine ground glass makes a better seal, but I have no plain glass fittings/joints to try.

 

[LesPlenty]

A non ground joint might stain less?
I have a Rattle can that I dropped from about 3 feet onto bare concrete that only lost a chunk out of the base, the cleisen that was in it smashed into 100 pieces, it is very sturdy.
I now email any seller on DHGate before purchase to make sure all welds are spot on and that everything is level and centred before I purchase and warn them I will open a case if it is not (I have opened a case and got a full refund when DHGate saw my pre sale messages). I explain the item is for myself and that I am sick of poor QC. I even got Yinmin to make a copy of SAML RC as Steven kept sending me shitty glass, the copy I got was great but I hear that even Yinmin QC is all over the shop.
So my advice is to email any seller first so they pack you a nice one as most of their sales would be high numbers to single buyers like TAG that do the QC!

 

[Haze Mister]

Why would anyone want ground glass joints?

 

[RustyOldNail]

I have about 10 glass pieces all in. All of them, and all the adapters I have, are ground glass. I imagine ground glass makes a better seal, but I have no plain glass fittings/joints to try.

It’s a lab standard. Not sure the purpose of a clear joint, except for looks, I doubt having one joint with and one without would be as good a seal, but I don’t own any un-grounded joints to test with.

 

[Haze Mister]

OK I just remembered that with smooth joints the banger on a bubbler may be annoyingly mobile.

 

[snackmaster]

I agree ground joints fit better and smooth joints stain less, but biggest driver might just be production speed/cost: (I think) smooth are formed, cooled whereas ground are formed, cooled, ground + whatever it takes to remove glass dust. Water pipes don't need to fit as precisely as laboratory glass so lots of makers opt for smooth joints. Sound plausible?

 

[JCat]

Just ordered this directly from biao.t on Instagram:

View attachment 550

This finally came in, and it’s outstanding! My new favourite piece

 

[FlyingLow]

Love that! How much?

Bear mountain has a similar design, but I cant afford theirs!

 

[LesPlenty]

My new favourite piece

I need some new glass for that 'Honeymoon' period, been a while!
Still looking for that next new partner @FlyingLow?

 

[JCat]

Love that! How much?

Bear mountain has a similar design, but I cant afford theirs!

$40 + $7 shipping (took >2 months to get here ... was an exercise in patience ... )

 

[EmDeemo]

This finally came in, and it’s outstanding! My new favourite piece

That looks like a fun piece, very cheap too!