Don't get me wrong, I am blissfully medicated right now. But I think my expectations were too high.
I opened up the Flip and my first thought was it's like a baby Hydromaxx, teeny and dainty and cute. Then I opened up the glass pieces I got to go with it that had arrived so far--a dry herb catcher and a coiled glass dry stem. The dry herb catcher was bigger than I expected, so the two pieces on top of each other were much taller than the Flip itself. I tried it with the 14mm WPA pointed up instead of down because the pieces felt too fragile to put the Flip on with the WPA down and all the weight on the glass (however the coiled stem by itself might be able to, I'll have to test that another time).
Restrictor disc was removed before use, titanium disc inserted. With the two dry glass pieces together it was extremely difficult to tell when I was getting the vapor because it was going through so much cooling, exacerbated by the coil stem having a carb so fresh air was also being added. I did still get a big cloud but I really had no clue how far I might be from combustion. I took off the dry herb catcher and did two more hits just with the coil stem and while I did get a very thorough extraction I had much less of a sense of how far I was pushing the vape.
Can you post a pic? I can't really imagine your setup.
I switched to my one standard bubbler which is a small piece but compared to the catcher and coil stem it is much more sturdy. This time I was able to set the WPA down and it was much more comfortable. I hit it through the bubbler dry because I wanted a better sense of how it controlled. This felt a lot more intuitive and with better feedback. Next time I'll try with water. If I had pushed the first hit on this one a bit further I could have done a one hit full extraction, but I backed off and ended up doing two hits. This way I had more control but it still didn't feel as utterly intuitive as the Runt.
This is what I'd expect, that a small rig would be easiest to learn on. Adding water after you get a little used to it should be easily manageable. You could even try a j-hook which should be really controllable and more like the Runt.
Honestly, the whole feel of it in the hand is just not as natural to me as the Runt has been. The Runt has four pieces but for the most part you only need to pull out the one piece with the bowl, so it feels more complete and secure. The flipping actions on the Flip felt less secure and more finicky. Ironically despite being so small I would say it feels far less portable than the Runt and I'm sure Junior are. This almost demands a big heavy water piece so you can feel secure with it.
It really is meant for water pieces, but it adapts pretty well as you get accustomed.
I do have the Hubble Bubble coming at some point, which would give me the water option with the WPA flipped upwards, and that might be a more comfortable option because the glass is nice and thick and is designed to be placed on top of a WPA instead of under.
That should be really sweet, as long as the tube fits the space. I think that one should fit. It's really nice with the Maxx's mouthpiece, too.
Out of the box, if you forced me to pick one, it would have to be the Runt. Virtually the perfect vape in every way. But I'll keep playing with the Flip to see if it opens up more after some use.
Yeah, it's more a specific tool for waterpipes, and it's pretty good at that. It is not my favorite wooden bong-topper but it's distinct from most of them in the amount of restriction it has and its cantilevered shape, which can act sorta like a dropdown to keep the flame farther from your eyes.
When they first came out, people had a hell of a time keeping them from combusting. After a design change that mostly lengthened the heat path it's a much better/easier vape. In fact, I got mine a year or so ago and I was impressed with how little I struggled, and found it much easier than its reputation would suggest.
Point is, it's allegedly the most difficult Brick, but you already sound like you're figuring it out and having pretty good luck getting to where it will work. I think with time you will find it fun and satisfying, but it is a different thing than the Runt.
Judging on my issues with the handling of the Flip, I suspect the Twist is the more ergonomic/intuitive model of the small Sticky Bricks.
The Twist, I would caution more on. I have one and i love its dual use, love the wood (cherry), love the injector bowl, and am pleased with the more open, direct hit. But! I've found it to be the most difficult brick to use. I took out the disc and still struggle to get enough heat built up to run it well, unless I use it one my biggest water pieces. There it works like a charm, like you'd expect it to.
The point is, I will be here with you in the future conversing about how we overcame our brick struggles and found true happiness, or something like it! ; )
