Banger, dab nail, drag, joints — you’ve probably noticed that the water pipe industry has a lot of jargon. For the beginner who’s still just trying to learn basic bong terminology, it can be pretty overwhelming. That’s where Thick Ass Glass has your back. We’ve created an all-inclusive glossary to help you figure out what all our different water pipes, dab rigs, and accessories are and what they do. If you’re ready to become an expert in glass, continue reading about bong terminology!
Ash catcher: a piece within the water pipe that catches ash and helps maintain the cleanliness of the pipe. They are especially helpful if percolators are being used.
Banger: a type of dab nail with a dish further separated from your dab rig, which ensures that your rig’s joint is less likely to be damaged due to excess heat.
Beaker Base: the wide, beaker-shaped base of a water pipe. More stable than a straight pipe and great for beginners!
Bowl: the external part of a water pipe or dab rig used to place and combust your product of choice.
Bubbler: a small, hand-held water pipe.
Carb cap: a cap most commonly attached to the end of a domeless nail. It manipulates air flow to create a lower temperature smoke or vapor.
Chamber: refers to the different internal spaces of a water pipe, such as the water chamber or recycling chambers.
Chillum: a straight pipe with an end-to-end channel and no choke.
Choke (Carb): a small hole that regulates airflow. To close the hole and allow smoke to fill the chamber, simply press your finger to it. Then remove your finger and continue inhaling to clear all the smoke from the chamber.
Dabber: used to scoop and press your desired oil against the heated surface of your dab rig. They are generally made of stainless steel, glass, or titanium.
Dab e-nail: an electronic nail. They use heating coils and connect to e-nail capable domeless nails, which can be made of quartz, titanium, or even silicon carbide.
Dab nail: like a bowl, the nail is what you heat to put your concentrates on and feeds the resulting smoke/vapor into your dab rig or water pipe.
Dab rig: a type of water pipe made especially for smoking oils.
Dome: a small piece that goes on top of a nail. It helps capture and hold vapor until you are ready to inhale. They are generally made of glass, titanium, or quartz.
Diffuser (Percolator): a filter used to force the hot smoke or vapor through the cool water inside your pipe and, in turn, cool down the smoke or vapor to give you a smoother hit. Some diffusers are simple, with only one hole located at the bottom of a removable downstem or fixed stem. Others are more complex, such as honeycomb discs, which can have hundreds of holes and create high levels of diffusion (lots of bubbles) for extremely smooth smoke.
Drag: how easy or difficult it is to inhale smoke from a pipe. Some percolators with massive diffusion can cause a large amount of drag.
Dropdown: an accessory that creates space between the glass joint and the nail (or other accessory) you are using for your water pipe or dab rig.
Downstem: a long glass tube near the base of a water pipe that extends from the pipe’s joint into its main chamber. Some are diffused, meaning they have small holes at their base used to diffuse the smoke without the use of a separate percolator.
Hammer: refers to the hammer-like shape of a pipe or percolator within a water pipe.
Healthstone: a porous, ceramic material that can be used in place of a standard glass, titanium, or quartz nail or dome. Works well with concentrates.
Hemp wick: a healthier, natural alternative to gas or butane lighters. Many users say that, because of the lack of fumes, using a hemp wick to light concentrates leads to a cleaner, tastier hit.
Herb iron: a ceramic heating element used as an alternative to gas or butane lighters. It’s a safe option that heats up and cools down quickly.
Herb grinder: used to grind herbs into a finer texture, which makes your product last longer and gives you more satisfying hits.
Honeycomb disc: a kind of percolator common in stemless water pipes that aerates the water and allows for a smoother hit.
Ice Pinch: a pinched section near the base of many stemmed water pipes where ice is held. The purpose of adding ice is to cool the smoke and allow for a smoother hit; this trick is highly recommended for beginners.
Incycler: a type of recycler that has the water funnel chamber suspended inside of the first chamber, rather than two separate chambers. Some incyclers use small holes within the drain funnel to recycle the water rather than an external tube.
Joint: the part of the water pipe where a bowl or other accessory connects. Some of the most common joint sizes are 10mm, 14mm, and 19mm. Joints can be either “male” or “female,” with male being better for concentrates and female being preferable for herbs. Be sure to buy the right size for your particular pipe or rig!
Mouthpiece: a removable cap you can attach to the top of a water pipe or oil rig; it helps prevent the spread of germs when sharing with friends.
Oil: legal, commonly essential oils. You would most likely smoke these using a dab rig.
Percolator (Diffuser): a filtration device inside a water pipe. They force hot smoke or vapor through the cool water inside your pipe using bubbles and, in turn, cool down the smoke or vapor to give you a smoother hit.
Piece: slang for a water pipe or dab rig.
Reclaim: leftover oils or concentrates captured in a reclaim bucket and ready for reuse.
Reclaim bucket: an attachment for your water pipe or dab rig that captures and saves your oils or concentrates that otherwise would have been lost.
Recycler: a type of water pipe that typically uses two chambers to transfer vapor and cool water from the first chamber to the second. This provides a continuous filtration cycle, and preserves the flavor of oils and concentrates.
Slide: typically made of glass, it is the piece used to push your herbs into the bowl as they are lit or vaporized. It also functions as a carb, releasing smoke into the chamber as you remove it.
Splash Guard: a disc-shaped piece found in some water pipes to keep water from bubbling up and splashing your mouth when you take a hit.
Spoon pipes: a handheld glass pipe generally comprised of a mouthpiece, bowl, neck, and carb.
Stemless: a water pipe with an attached glass stem leading to the water chamber rather than a removable downstem.
Torch: usually propane or butane, they are used to vaporize or burn your oils, concentrates, or herbs.
Tube: slang for water pipe.
Thick Ass Glass is the place for all kinds of reliable and durable water pipes and dab rigs. We’ve also got plenty of bangers, carb caps, domeless quartz nails, and much more. Now that you know all about bong terminology, browse our products and find the right water pipes and accessories for you!