If you ever went to a headshop or if you browsed an online store that sells marijuana products, you might have felt completely tempted to purchase a bong. After all, these glass pieces are made by highly trained and skilled people, which is one of the reasons a lot of people consider them to be works of art.
However, if you know nothing about glass blowing, you might be wondering – how are these intricate items made? Luckily for all individuals looking for an answer to this question, this article might be able to help you. Let’s take a closer look at the entire process of making glass bongs:
The Four Steps in The Process
Step 01: Firstly, The Water Compartment is Formed
Like with other things created for the consumption of marijuana, the designer starts by working with a slim, elongated tube of glass. Most commonly, they start with making the water compartment because it works as the foundation of the piece as well. Then, they will start the process by utilizing a blowtorch to warm the long tube.
This will allow the material to extend into a bigger barrel and when it does, the designer utilizes a metal pipe for driving oxygen into the heated material, which will in return, make the material into a bigger balloon. While they are blowing into it, they also need to twist the tube at all times, in order to increase its bottom.
While the material is heated, they’ll work on the compartment until it gets to the model and size needed. When they are done with developing the container, the person will utilize a specific tool to create a hole on one of the sides. This needs to be done in order to fit the downstem later on.
Step 02: Developing The Upper Part
The next step in manufacturing is developing the upper part, which is the neck. The designer will employ heat to the material directly over the water compartment and as it develops into a bigger model, the whole thing is rotated in order for it to be smooth. The technique is continued until the cylinder gets large and wide enough to become the neck for the item.
Step 03: Creating The Mouthpiece
When the artisan finishes making the water container and neck, they’ll need to focus on creating the mouthpiece which is positioned at the top part of the neck. In order to form it, they need to use flame again to make the material flexible. Once completed, they could start separating the wide neck from the leftover piece.
The neck will eventually break loose from the rest of the item, and when it does, the person working on the item will twist the thing to form and size it, and then, they’ll carefully smooth the upper part into a mouthpiece. While doing so, they need to assure that there are no razor-sharp corners that could hurt users in the future.
Step 04: Assembling The Removable Downstem And Bowl
As you might already know, most bongs such as the ones featured on herbtools have detachable containers and downstems, which means that the expert needs to make these parts as well. These additional parts are produced by using the same methods as we mentioned previously, which means that the artist will need to warm the material while rotating, blowing, stretching, and developing it.
How is it Decorated?
As we mentioned at the beginning of this article, bongs are considered to be works of art. In fact, some of the most qualified and experienced workers are capable of producing mesmerizing, complex, and creative items that often come with a price tag that has more than 6 digits.
However, this doesn’t mean that cheaper items do not incorporate decorative elements, instead, they most commonly come with a lot of colors, some engraving, or the expert might choose to make the piece into a weird and specific form. This is why some artisans choose to implement colors by blending bits of stained glass or paint into the original pipe utilized to produce the item.
As they work on it, they could also stretch the bits of color into various forms, lines, and/or patterns. They can also add pigment by a process referred to as fuming. It includes evaporating metal such as gold or silver and transferring the steam into the tubing.
What will this do? Well, it will cover the interior of the tube with the metal, hence, the designer can modify the initial material into a bong that will feature strips of metal that will provide interesting colors and patterns. Besides the colors, the artist can also add melted glass to the surface of the item, which will create a miniature figure on the exterior.
The piece itself could be made into any form the artist wants, however, they must ensure that it has a water compartment that works as the base, the neck, mouthpiece, as well as the opening for the removable downstem and the bowl. Keep in mind, bongs are extremely versatile, hence, do a lot of browsing before opting for a specific model.
Can They Be Manufactured in a Factory?
Although it is always better to purchase a bong made by hand, there are also mass-produced ones that can be found in the market nowadays. The pieces are manufactured by using the same process of applying heat to the material and shaping it into the desired shape and size by rotating, blowing air into it, and molding.
Conclusion
As you can see, the process of creating a glass bong is daunting, complex, and time-consuming, which is why only experienced and highly skilled artists choose to make them. Since the pieces can be made into almost any shape that an artist thinks of, they are extremely versatile and you’ll be able to choose from thousands of options available.
So, now that you are aware of the entire process of making bongs, you might not want to lose any more time. Instead, you should open up your Internet browser and start searching for a bong that will suit your needs and requirements, but more importantly your budget.
