E-nails—Sorting through the options and putting away the torch
Many people enjoy vaporizing over smoking because it’s less harsh on your throat, it smells less, it can give better flavor than smoking, and it might have fewer health issues. Unfortunately though, in the case of dabbing, it can look significantly scarier than smoking if you’re using a torch. Using a torch has been called crude, barbaric, unsafe, and even “cracky”. Nobody wants these stigmas associated with their vaporization routine.
As a daily dabber, a torch became just a normal part of my life. However, while you may get used to it, I assure you, unfamiliar guests will not and not all your friends will want you to bring a torch into their house. If you enjoy dabbing, chances are, you’ve looked into the types of E-nails, but with all the choices on the market and the high cost of most products, there are considerable barriers to entry. A good E-nail can really change your routine and help you put away the torch, but it has to be a good E-nail. I’ve tried numerous torch alternatives and wasted a few hundred dollars trying to match the same reliability, control, and cool, thick vapor that I enjoyed from dabbing with my trusty torch and favorite rig. Without the same functionality, I just kept going back to the faithful torch and nail. In this article, w’ell talk about my experiences with different types of E-nails and hopefully help you find the right type of E-nail so you can put away your torch.
Types of E-nails
At its core, an E-nail is a vaporizer specifically for concentrates. Typically, an E-nail features some type of water filtration, but it isn’t always a part of the E-nail itself. There are many types of e-nails on the market and the varieties only continue to grow, but they can be broken down into two general types; portable E-nails and table top units.
Portable
Portable E-nails are smaller, generally self-contained vaporizers featuring a heating element and built in water filtration. The pros are obvious, these units can easily be packed up and fit in a pack or even your pocket and be taken with you anywhere. As an avid outdoorsman I thought a good portable E-nail would be the end all for me; something I can reliably use at home and take with me hiking or camping! What I found, and what seems to be the case for many portable E-nails, is that the dab size was restricted, and the vapor wasn’t quite as thick as I would like. My portable E-nail still goes with me camping and hiking, but I rarely use it at home because it just doesn’t have the power I want for vaporization. With better portability, you’ll commonly lose some power, so be sure to read reviews and do your research before making a purchase.
Table top
Table top units come in a variety of shapes and sizes. You can generally break them down into self-contained all-in-one E-nails, featuring built-in water filtration and the vaporizing element that functions as a complete rig, or nail attachments that are attached to any glass piece they can fit on. All-in-one E-nails come in all shapes and sizes with varying degrees of portability and functionality. My main issue with these units is that I want to be able to use my glass collection and this restricts you to dabbing out of the unit. After collecting glass as long as I have, the percolator on most of these devices just doesn’t live up to my favorite rigs. So, I ended up using my torch again.
On the other hand, E-nail attachments fit on whatever rig I want to use and worked perfectly for me. This was ultimately the deciding factor that helped me put down the torch for good. There is also a large variety of these E-nail attachments. Some have to be plugged into the wall and some have batteries. Some hold a constant temperature and some only heat up when you hold a button. My personal favorites feature a power box that controls the temperature and a heating coil that fits around a nail. These units can be compatible with either titanium or quartz nails and some even offer coils compatible with nectar collectors!
After the long search, an E-nail that allows exact temperature control and has a coil compatible with quartz bangers got me to put away my torch. This set up provided the same flavor, thick vapor, and adaptable use with any of my rigs that dabbing with a torch offered. It also made dabbing quicker and easier than using a torch, not to mention safer!
Hopefully after hearing my experiences with the types of E-nails you have gotten an idea what type of E-nail might work best for you. Keep in mind, the technology is constantly improving, and every E-nail will have its own pros and cons. Be sure to do your research before making a purchase if you really want to find the right product for you put away your torch.