What Are the Best Types of Weed Pipes for Smoking?

In 2023, a reported 11.8-million young adults claimed to have smoked marijuana that year. This is a number that is undoubtedly climbing as more states legalize and make the drug more widely available. If you’ve recently joined those 11.8 million users, you’re probably looking for the best possible way to smoke your marijuana.

There are a lot of different types of weed pipes to consider when shopping for the best option. Here’s a guide to help you make the right choice.

The Many Types of Weed Pipes

If you’ve ever visited a head shop, you know how many types of marijuana pipes exist. It’s often overwhelming just looking at all the glass pipes, let alone picking one! Let’s have a look at the different types of smoking pipes in more detail.

The Hand Pipe

The most common, and often the cheapest option is the hand pipe.

Hand pipes typically come in glass, metal, and silicone variants. They look sort of like your grandpa’s old pipe, only with a more modern twist. All you do is pack your weed into the bowl, and light it up while inhaling to take a hit.

Many new smokers start off with hand glass pipes. They offer an easy way to smoke without having to learn how to roll a joint. They also award you a great high, and are portable, making them great for taking to a friend’s place, or on a trip.

Hand pipes are harsh, though. Taking too big a hit will send even the most seasoned smokers into a coughing fit. They also get dirty fast, so they should be cleaned regularly.

Check out these glass pipes online from Brothers With Glass for an example of glass hand pipes.

If you’re buying a hand pipe, make sure to get pipe screens with it. This will stop your weed from falling into the pipe and going to waste.

The One-Hitter

If you’re looking for a way to smoke discreetly, get a one-hitter.

One-hitters look like tiny little tubes and are about the size of a cigarette. They often come in a carrier case where you can hold loose marijuana. Press the tip of the one-hitter into your weed to pack a one-hit bowl, then smoke it like a pipe.

You’ll need to keep packing and smoking this to get a strong high going, but it’s the best way to smoke discreetly. It shouldn’t be too harsh because of the small amount you’re smoking each time. These aren’t great for group sessions, but they’re perfect for portability and discretion.

The Bubbler

For many, a bubbler is the next step up after a pipe.

A bubbler is essentially a small bong. You fill it with a small amount of water, which allows for a smoother hit. Some bubblers have a detachable bowl piece like a bong, while others have a percolator that allows the user to control their hit.

A percolator, for those that don’t know, is a small hole near the bowl-piece. You hold your finger over the hole while taking your hit, then remove it near the end of your hit. This releases the smoke inside and lets it flow into your lungs.

Bubblers are small, easy to clean, and offer smooth hits. They can be delicate, though, so they aren’t always the best for portability. That depends on the bubbler, though.

The Bong

What’s a list of pot pipes without a bong?

Bongs offer the biggest, smoothest hits possible thanks to the addition of water. Bongs hold a lot more water than bubblers. The water cools off the smoke and keeps your bong cleaner, as well as your lungs in the long run.

You can get bongs in plastic, metal, glass, silicone, and almost any other material you can imagine. They come in tons of shapes and sizes, and some have extra filters for an even smoother hit. You can also add an ash catcher to your bong — a bowl piece that you can put additional water in to catch your ash and make your hit even smoother.

As far as hits and highs go, it doesn’t get better than the bong. There’s a bit of a learning curve for beginners, though, so practice makes perfect. Expect a couple of coughing fits the first few times you smoke a bong.

The Fruit Pipe

Smoking from a piece of fruit is like a rite of passage for marijuana smokers.

Apples are probably the most-used fruit to smoke from. You can also use a potato (not a fruit, but the same idea), a pear, an avocado, and even a jalapeno pepper. The idea is to poke a hole in the top for a bowl, then poke an inter-connected hole in the side as a mouthpiece.

Pack your weed into the top, put your lips to the mouthpiece, and smoke it like a pipe. You might even get a slightly fruity taste to your smoke! However, this is far from the best method for smoking.

It works in a tight spot when you have no other options, but it’s a worse version of the hand pipe. It’s harder to get an even burn, and holding and lighting it is uncomfortable. This is definitely not the best option.

The Gandalf Pipe

“Gandalf pipes” are just regular hand pipes, but with much longer stems. They resemble the pipe Gandalf smokes in The Lord of the Rings.

The longer stem gives the smoke more time to loosen before entering your mouth. This allows for a smoother hit overall. The pipe also just looks cool, which is a definite bonus.

They’re not as portable as other hand pipes, and the stem is delicate. If you’re trying to smoke in style, though, this is a great choice.

Which Pipe Is Best?

Picking the “best” types of weed pipes is a subjective thing. It all depends on the type of high you want, and the situation you tend to smoke in.

If you’re looking for something for home use, it’s hard to beat the classic bong or bubbler. If you’re looking for portability, the best choice is a hand pipe or a one-hitter. As with finding the best weed strains, finding the best smoking option takes some experimentation.

Looks like it’s time to get that paraphernalia collection going.