With all the recent discussions around exposed fibreglass or questionable materials in devices like the Angus Enhanced, VapBong, and now potentially even the Tafee Bowle 2, I’m curious if this has changed the direction people are going with their setups.
Honestly, part of the reason I’m asking is because I’ve personally started second guessing certain devices in my own collection and have avoided using a few recently just because of potential concerns. Even if some of these issues end up being overblown or isolated, once that doubt gets planted in your head it can definitely change how comfortable you feel using a device.
Has anyone here started moving away from electronic portable vaporizers because of these kinds of concerns?
I’ve noticed more people lately talking about sticking to simpler setups like ball vapes, butane-powered devices, induction heaters, or other more analogue/mechanical-style vapes where the airpath and materials feel easier to verify and trust.
I find myself suddenly more drawn to using my Simrell Ti, Tornado or Joystick along with a couple of different ball vapes these days, and not reaching for the electronics as much.
Don’t get me wrong, I still love a lot of electronic devices and I’m not trying to spread panic or misinformation. But I do think situations like this make people pay closer attention to what’s actually inside their devices and airpaths.
I’m also curious whether this changes what people recommend to new users entering the DHV space.
Are you still comfortable recommending electronic dry herb vapes to beginners, or do these situations make you more likely to steer people toward ball vapes, butane devices, or simpler analogue setups instead?
Yes, I for one have always been in the search of the “cleanest” consumption method possible. My VAS really comes from my sensitivity to flavor and the different signatures that come from each device. For many electronic devices, I have high confidence in easily discerning the signatures between an S&B device, PAX, FF, Arizer etc. Even TM gives off a unique convection signature, due to (IMO) the electronics and heating materials involved. I veered towards butane convection for this reason. Stick Bricks were amazing for speed, flavor and potency, but I could taste butane residuals in the airpath (despite quality filtered butane brands). Despite how much I love their experience, Dynas and their metal caps/bowls give off a hot metal accent, as do Vapmans and their copper/gold bowl. My beloved EVO used to give me strange headaches and hot electronic odors during heat up, but hard to prove causation. As Troy stated on a stream, “used appropriately” is indeed a valid pov, but yes the stigma of manufacturers using fiberglass in design is strong, and I understand the concern among users.
I love all my different electronic vapes for their fun experiences and advantages but I settled on all glass and heat vapes as 1st choice - screen-less ELEV8rs, TRWW quartz caps.
The TB2 discussion is interesting to me…I was interested in upgrading my FF2 experience but this puts a dampener on it.
You are so right, and I absolutely love variety! I’m glad we live in a time now where we have so many amazing options that can do so many different things. What do you like or prefer about each style?
I mean - the ball vape was genuinely invented for this exact reason.
It’s why the first 3 ball vape designs were all glass. So you could inspect it at all times.
The glass symphony, the g43, and my InVerzion 1.0.
That said - the electronic portable is by far the most popular vape category.
But IMO as far as perceived safety goes, the absolute best vaporizer designs are 100% user serviceable / cleanable.
Makes me think that with all the clone companies dominating the space while solely leading with lower price offers - as a side effect, even some legit companies are probably cutting corners to try and compete.
If I want huge, milky clouds I will always choose my Dani Fusion 2. If I want to maximize flavor I’ll always go for my Bowle 2. I’m moving away from session vapes like the Venty because I’m finding I prefer more of the on-demand devices. One hit, whenever I need it.
I can get highly medicated on any vape device. Analog gets me there the quickest. The Tafee or the Venty are the long slow build up.
I’m not “switching” exactly because I already prefer analogue for my usage but I am definitely observing more and looking before I leap with newer models - I have that tendency naturally to see how things pan out generally with most purchases that are benefiting from my “watch and wait” rationale. I do have some electronic vaporizers I use but nothing implicated as far as I know or have found from my usages.
Not me. All my walls have fiberglass insulation. My garage had a leak and the ceiling and fiberglass came down and I’m sure I inhaled more fiberglass cleaning that up than I did using any vapes, and that isn’t even mentioning fiberglass sanding on boats and motorcycles.
None of the devices I’ve seen breakdowns of look like a high enough risk to worry about for me. It does make me wary of opening them though, because both TB and Vapbong have made a case that what has been shown is damage from disassembly.
I understand your sentiment here but that fiberglass was not subject to intense temps making it brittle over time and susceptible to microparticles breaking off and traveling through a focused channel to your lungs. I am largely not concerned either but the fact is enough of that inhaled will cause respiratory issues, introduce asthma, etc. It’s a genuine concern and I think it’s good people are calling it out. The damage is done long term, not acute.
In my opinion this is unacceptable design, then. Soon my state will have right to repair laws in place and if simply opening it can create risk that is something that should be called out against a manufacturer. The device is expensive and marketed as premium, so why was ceramic cable not chosen?
While the recent discussion is not going to make me shelve my TB2 necessarily, I still would lean toward ball vapes and all the use cases you mentioned here are the ZXL for me. If the coil is left on you get a hit whenever you want with no wait. If you want the best flavor, that’s it. If you wanna maximize clouds, it does that too.
Reaching for things other than my ball vape is more a matter of convenience and location.
One reason I’ve started leaning more toward analog dry herb vapes over battery-powered devices is the concern over long-term material safety.
I switched from combustion to vaping as a harm reduction choice, not to introduce a different set of unknowns into my lungs. While dry herb vaping may reduce exposure to many byproducts created by smoking, I still think there needs to be far more independent research into the materials and components used in many electronic vaporizers.
With battery-powered devices, you’re often dealing with batteries, wiring, solder joints, adhesives, coatings, plastics, insulation materials, and electronics that are repeatedly exposed to heat over long periods of time. Even if these materials are considered safe under normal conditions, we still don’t fully understand the long-term effects of repeated thermal cycling and inhalation exposure over years of use.
That’s why analog devices appeal to me more lately. Simpler designs, fewer electronic components, and more direct air paths using materials like glass, stainless steel, or titanium just feel like a more comfortable direction for my personal risk tolerance.
Not saying analog is “proven safe” or that battery vapes are inherently dangerous — just that I think consumers deserve more transparency, more independent testing, and more long-term research into what we’re actually inhaling.
I am concerned about safety, but I also understand the complexity of the world we live in. I once had a University chemistry professor explain all of the dangers of soaking in natural hot springs. The discussion took place while he chain smoked cigarettes.
For my use at home I prefer analog devices, when I am away from home I prefer the convenience of an electronic device.
I hope that from all this that is going on and coming to light that makers and producers are more mindful with future designs. As well as open and transparent with their releases and even generous to donate models for teardown; with a “nothing to hide” sort of mindset.
It wont change overnight of course but a lot of good can come from what we are seeing and that which is being uncovered.
My experience of vaping is that while it feels a lot easier on my body than smoking, it still feels like it’s fairly hard work on my lungs etc compared with not inhaling anything. So in my mind, vaping weed isn’t as much of a healthy activity as I see it sometimes being sold
I sold my battery portables a while back because it bothered me that they’re either disposable, or I’m often putting plastic in my mouth, or they’re far too complicated in design, or they’re far less powerful than simpler desktop models, or they’re absurdly ugly, and all of this in a package that’s often bigger than you really want.
If I got more concerned about the health aspects of vaping I think I’d switch to edibles. When I vape every day I definitely feel the strain on my lungs compared to when I’m not vaping.
That said, I don’t want to be inhaling fiberglass or something real bad. But for me, there are a whole list of reasons why these portables aren’t something I want and whether they’re safe or not seems like just one of many issues with this genre of vaporizer.