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Jul 14, 20215 min read

Buyer's Guides: Everything You Need to Know About Quartz Bangers For Dabbing

Updated: Aug 17, 2021

Why does that one cost three-hundred and fifty dollars when an identical one goes for less than thirty dollars? Why is all of the China stuff twenty bucks when American quartz goes for hundreds? Are there differences and what do I need to efficiently consume hash and rosin? Is it worth spending hundreds of dollars on something I already bought for thirty bucks?

Those are just a few of the questions I asked coming back to the world of cannabis upon completion of parole. Things changed fast. Not education or information, but the glass scene absolutely exploded in the five or six years I was forced to abstain. Some of the same brands are still out there doing it and doing it the same way I remember, like the infamous Roor, who introduced everyone to "glass-on-glass" fittings standard today, and my Philly favorite, Illadelph. Mothership took the game to a whole new dimension, incorporating mathematical concepts to invent pretty much every style of dab rig made today. Otherwise, the glass industry turned to modern art for its pricing and structure with glass artists selling their works for tens-if not hundreds- of thousands of dollars. There's probably more money spent on glass than cannabis. Mind-blowing.

Fully-Worked

There are a few things that actually do differentiate a cheap banger from a quality-made one, believe it or not. While the price hike is mainly for brand name appeal, it is a custom craft requiring a skilled craftsman. The part of the banger where the arm attaches to the bucket is the main difference. A quality quartz banger will have been "fully-worked," referring to the bucket and neck of the banger being worked with heat into one solid piece of quartz. Lesser quartz bangers and those coming from China are simply fused to the side of the bucket as two separate pieces. If you start to look closely at the weld, you can determine if it was "worked" or not. Does it change the function? No, not until it breaks anyways, as the "fully worked" bangers are surprisingly strong and hold up to small drops on the table or in the sink. Cheaply made bangers will often snap in two. That's one advantage to spending more money for a good banger knowing it will stand up to the daily rigor of use and short drops.

The Seal

Really the only other aspect is the shape. This aspect could be downplayed or maximized depending on your knowledge and experience dabbing. Since all of these quartz bangers are handmade, buying quality quartz will assure you a tight seal. People often overlook suction and pressure, which is a main component to effective vaporization at lower temperatures. If your "carb cap" or "bubble cap" does not sit flush on the banger (or just inside) it will not make for a solid seal and fail to build adequate pressure during the dab. If you have a cheaply made carb-cap the problem compounds. This is the biggest difference in function that I have noticed although, the cheap stuff gets better and better every day.

While we are on the topic of suction, I figure it's the perfect opportunity to talk about the latest evolution in smoking hash, The Slurper. Terp Slurpers by Toro glass have taken off over the past several months with numerous models and differing ideas that focus on the same concepts. These slurpers bring gravity into the equation but can fail to have any suction pressure at all. If used with the appropriate marble combinations, the suction and pressure is greatly increased. Without a good set of marbles however, you're sucking wind. I've tried numerous models and systems like the "blender" and "shredder" but in the end I still prefer a more traditional set-up.

dab rig quartz — Terp Slurper Example on rig by @sa_glass

Size and shape remain a huge issue with cheap imports and unknown brands. The size and shape of a banger has pretty much become standardized with either a 25mm or 30mm wide bucket. Lots of cheap brands use their own sizes and dimensions that quite-frankly, just aren't as aesthetically pleasing. They seem to not function as well either. For these newer slurpers and blenders, the China quality knockoffs have only just begun. With the best designs still being dialed-in by some of the best artists, I'd be weary of China slurpers until they have some time to improve.

Name Brand Quartz

While I believe Puking Beagle is accredited with the first banger designs, Quave and the QCB, or "Quave club banger" really cemented the style of banger and their brand on the hash industry. They make some of my favorite quartz in the traditional shape. Quave combined with Mothership to craft @binarybangers at a hefty price. Toro, who invented the Terp Slurper makes some of the most desirable quartz in the game. They stay sold out, however. Joel Halen glass is my go-to for quartz carb caps. That's right, quartz carb caps, as they're usually made from borosilicate glass. Between the perfectly shaped circle of the cap and its long narrow snout (for added pressure), plus the added strength of quartz, it makes for the perfect carb cap. Shout-out to Evan Shore who makes some awesome quartz as well, hailing from my home turf near Philadelphia, PA. Long Island Quartz is another East Coaster and Grass Labs has really caught my eye lately. While decent, Highly Educated is another brand I would no longer recommend and Eternal quartz just seems to always be overpriced. DCS is relatively affordable at times also. This is just the beginning with countless others I'm sure I forgot.

Cheap Quality

Luckily, there are a couple brands doing some quality work for prices that actually reflect cheap imports. Brands such as Monark Glass and Bear Quartz are selling quality, hand made quartz for twenty or thirty dollars. I have gone through countless twenty- or thirty-dollar Bear Quartz bangers in the traditional, non-worked category. It's really hard to beat a twenty-dollar banger shaped almost identical to a Quave. Bear also has incredible heat retention outdoing my Quave and my Highly Educated V3 bangers. And now they're doing "fully-worked" Bear bangers for just fifty bucks. This might be the best deal on quartz in the whole industry. While I love these quality made cheap bangers, I wouldn't spend my money on just any knock-off. I put in some time and research to find brands like Bear and Monark that are affordable and consistent in shape with top quality models.

(AFM, or Alien Flower Monkey quartz falls under this more affordable category, although I do not have experience with their products. Same is true for the banger supply company. Feel free to comment on these brands below).

What drew me to brands like Bear quartz early on, was that they modeled their bangers off some of the best. My non-worked bear quartz is shaped nearly identical to my Quave Club Banger, but the Bear has slightly thicker walls, hence the greater heat retention. They're almost identical and I have mixed the two bangers up before. One cost me twenty-six bucks, the other two-hundred and twenty bucks....

Later

There's been a lot of talk about American quartz versus "wherever-quartz," as though being American makes a mineral better. While there are various qualities of quartz, I'm yet to find or notice a difference in anything from heat retention to flavor. I've used and own the fade space inserts and can say first hand the immense flavor produced, but as far as regular quartz, I can find little difference in flavor from one to another. For our usage and the best hash and rosin on earth, quartz is quartz and serves one purpose, heating my hash. Quartz doesn't make flavor, but good hash does.