Disadvantages of smoking using a bong

[aznknites]

I love bong hits... (I really don't see the health concerns just due to it isn't enough to cause any real damage) However I do love smoking out of a pipe just due to ease of use. From time to time I just roll one up for fun and to make sure that I remember how to do it. When i went to amsterdam I realized I couldnt roll!? took me a good couple of hours before I go thte hang of it again.

 

Which now brings me to a vaporizer... I wanna try it, but i think its going to take away from the whole experience... thats just my two cents...

[Guest niall]

The problem I'm having with smoking through a bong/joint is that I have always been against smoking tobacco for respiratory and health reasons.. so why should I smoke pot and yet be against smoking tobacco?

 

Well for a start, they're totally and utterly different? Not only are they different plants, but commercial tobacco does not resemble anything like the actual tobacco that was used traditionally for smoking. Open a cigarette and see - the majority of the "tobacco" is actually shredded paper steeped and impregnated with nicotine and many other adulterants to complement, heighten and distort the normal absorption process of nicotine in the human body. Take a look at http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/cigarette/anat_text.html:

 

Excerpt follows:

 

"Only a portion of the tobacco inside a cigarette comes from the leaf of a tobacco plant. A significant amount of the shredded brown innards of most modern cigarettes is a paper product called "reconstituted tobacco" or "homogenized sheet tobacco," which is made from a pulp of mashed tobacco stems and other parts of the tobacco leaf that would otherwise go to waste. Manufacturers spray and impregnate reconstituted tobacco paper with nicotine and other substances lost during the process, along with as many as 600 chemical additives. These include several that may come as a surprise, such as ammonia, which aids in the delivery of nicotine, and chocolate, which masks the bitter taste of tobacco. Finally, the 'recon' is sliced to resemble shredded leaf tobacco.

 

In addition to reconstituted tobacco, cigarette companies pack cigarettes with so-called puffed tobacco (also called "expanded tobacco"), which allows them to produce more cigarettes per pound of tobacco grown with lower levels of tar particles in the smoke. Manufacturers saturate this tobacco, which they make from the leaf of the plant, with freon and ammonia gases and then freeze-dry it. This process expands the tobacco, increasing its volume to at least double its natural state."

 

In addition to that, commercial tobacco cultivation makes use of highly radioactive fertilisers, and the traditional curing processes that normally took many years are now performed within WEEKS!

 

However, all things being equal - the active ingredients in tobacco and cannabis work in quite literally opposite ways on the body. At a biological level, nicotine increases bloodflow around and to cancerous tumours - it encourages the growth and multiplication of many small feeding veins around these cells. THC works in the absolute opposite way - it actively starves cancerous cells of bloodflow! (Note I may have gotten the exact technicalities slightly wrong here, this is all from memory - google for more details or I'll hunt it down if you're interested)

 

Tar and carcinogens are present in both, studies have shown cannabis plenty of them if not more than tobacco. But there's plenty of evidence mounting to suggest that the modern crisis of tobacco related illness has more to do with the way it is cultivated and adulterated. Given the choice between an active ingredient that feeds and encourages cancer, vs. one that actively starves and has been shown to actually KILL certain types of cancer... well it's a pretty easy choice eh?

 

You simply cannot compare cigarettes to organic, homegrown cannabis.

 

You see, I am at a mental crossroad at the moment. The Vapir One looks like a really good unit (from what I hear).. does Off Ya Tree stock such an item? I plan to continue using maijuana for a long, long time.. I know there is limited research to prove/disprove the fact that smoking marijuana causes cancers and the like, but my head tells me that inhaling any kind of smoke, no matter from what substance, is harmful to your health, period. Is it justifiable to purchase a vapourizer on these grounds? I wanna hear from actual vapourizer customers/users. Is it worth the money in the long run? And will the product last the long run? xD

 

If you're looking for an investment to use for a long, long time - to seriously minimise your exposure to carcinogens and tar, I would skip straight to the Volcano. Without question. Try a hotplate model, once you've got the knack they're not too bad for what they are at that price. The Vapirs have always gotten mixed reviews, some people like them and others hate them, but anyone who has moved on to a Volcano or a Vriptech style hot air gun swears by them and I doubt that any of them go back. I've been using a Vrip for many years now, and I'd rather smoke a joint than even bother with any other type of vapouriser (other than the Volcano). Hot air extraction, with properly calibrated temperatures, controlled airflow, clean and medical/food grade surfaces... there's simply no other technology that has yet come close.

 

If you really want to vape, pick up a hotplate and if you can still see the potential and feel that it's worth pursuing, save up for the Volcano. With enough practice a hotplate model works fairly well, it all comes down to the grind and timing it right. Whatever you do, don't buy a hotplate, then a vapir, then a box/whip/other style vape and eventually end up at the Volcano anyway - just smoke joints, pipes and bongs and save up for the Volcano. My 2c and I am a vapourisation nut

[pipeman]

If portability is important do a search on the vapor genie. Oz Stoner did a post on them its probably in this forum. Costs about $80. Its a handheld device you use with a lighter.

 

Or, do a google search on "lightbulb vapouriser" Can make it yourself for virtually nothing. If you can't find the info on it PM me and I'll post how to do it.

 

Yes Off Ya Tree stock the vapirs. I have bought all the vapir models and think they are the worst value for money and don't recommend them at all. Don't let the shop attendants talk you into one (like they try to do with me virtually everytime I speak to them about vapourisers) they don't know shit IMO.

[Budman2012]

High Again All ,

And hey Nial , Cheerz for that , was very interesting ...

 

I have a Question if you will (anyone) ... How much is a volcano? pretty pricey aren't they? .. Like half a grand?

I think with Vapes .. you would most likely get what you pay for , and they are not cheap.

Whereas Bongs Are very cheap , will last forever if taken care of , and are a much more practical smoking method (i.e. No waiting for temps etc.)

Also I don't think a Volcano is very portable is it? ...

(Don't get me wrong , I'd like to own one .. But I'd still use my Bong more often I'd say)

 

I think I mentioned already ... But My Small 15cm glass (pyrex) billy was $18 dollars from memory and I've owned It for years , great for travelling ..

 

O.k. ... Bye for now fellow Stoners

 

Budman

 

(Edit- apologies , I got names mixed up) : )

Edited October 14, 2006 by Budman2012

[Guest niall]

(i.e. No waiting for temps etc.)

 

Mine (Steinel/Vrip) reaches its target temperature in 12 seconds.

 

Also I don't think a Volcano is very portable is it? ...

(Don't get me wrong , I'd like to own one .. But I'd still use my Bong more often I'd say)

 

They're maybe slightly bigger than your average bong in *volume*, but in size I think the Volcano is comparable to the average bong. In terms of portability I think they're more portable - they're not fragile for one, no water is involved, and they make efficient use of space - bongs tend to be thin and tall whereas the Volcano is short and stocky, it would fit into a smaller box than the average bong imo.

 

None of these points should influence your decision to buy a vape imho, only its cost and the AC power (but I'd rather smoke joints in the great outdoors anyway). They're about the only negatives, and the positives are many - flavour is pure and 1000% better than smoke, significantly less carcinogens and tar, virtually no smell, vapour bags are compatible with bongs (Vriptech's Valloon at least) for water and ice cooling, less wear and tear on your equipment, way less cleaning (bong water is crystal clear with a vape, entirely drinkable - quite a nice herbal tea in fact!).... In the end the positives far outweigh the negatives, I think most people if given the choice of a free Volcano would find that they switch from bongs and never go back. So really, cost and requiring AC power are the only real issues.

[mull]

Over 800 Aus Budman mate, over half a grand US.

Not really portable nah, the vapor genie is and about 80 bucks aus. Might get a little lighter gas thro it. Same like with the billy tho.