Dab rigs look something like a glass bong, but are specialized for "dabbing", which is smoking a concentrated form of cannabis (honey oil, shatter, wax). The bong is the quintessential smoking device used by stoners for decades, whereas the dab rig is the wave of the future. To clarify what really sets these two glass pipes apart, I've outlined the main differences between a bong and a dab rig below.
Bowl vs. Nail
The biggest difference between a bong and a dab rig has a lot to do with the product being smoked. With a bong, one would smoke dry herb. The herb would be packed into your bowl to be lit with a standard lighter. A dab rig however uses a "nail" instead of a bowl. The nail rests on the part of the dab rig called a glass joint. The nail itself is heated to very high temperatures using a hand torch, so that when the honey oil or wax is placed onto the nail the concentrated cannabis is vaporized before being inhaled.
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| glass bowl |
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| Ti nail |
Size
A glass bong is almost always going to be bigger than a dab rig. The reason being is that combusted dry herb doesn't vaporize, so the bong could be as big as you want it to be because the smoke will travel the entire path without dissipating or sticking to the glass. On the other hand, the smaller dab rig just make sense. A small compact dab rig keeps the vapor milky and condensed, keeping the flavor and potency. Many dab heads will say, the shorter the path from the nail to the face, the harder the hit.
Price
Dab rigs are generally going to be more expensive, but not by much. This is mostly has to do with the nail, which is more specialized and often made with pricey material, like titanium. You can find cheap dab rigs, you just need to know where to look. There's an online store that sells wholesale glass pipes and is open to the public. Just click on the link above to check it out! Enjoy!