Talk:Bong/archive

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Archive This is an archive of past discussions. Do not edit the contents of this page. If you wish to start a new discussion or revive an old one, please do so on the current talk page.

I'm very skeptical that a bong is used to smoke "usually tobacco (and less frequently Cannabis or other substances)."

I don't doubt that somewhere, in some parts of the world, people frequently smoke some types of tobacco out of bongs, but to me it's quite clear that their primary purpose is marijuana smoke. My local head shop puts plastic flowers in them and calls them "german acrylic vases"

Don't smoke tobacco bongs. cigarette tobacco through a bong is just a painful and very harsh hit which puts you out and makes you feel fairly sick for 5 minutes.
Well the bong is closely related to the Arabic Hookah pipe, which is strictly for the smoking of flavoured tobacco, that could be where the confusion comes from. The bong, however, is clearly a distinct object with a distinct cultural heritage and is mostly used to smoke cannabis. Having said that, I'm very surprised that neither article mentiones the other device, as they are both common facilitators of water filtered smoke inhalation.
Help this article solve terminology issues. Add your definitions for bong terminology to this section

Here's a question for the ages. Is a gravity bong really a bong if the smoke is never filtered through water? Go ahead and marinate on that for a little while. Tokerboy 04:42 Dec 5, 2002 (UTC)

Good point. I once saw a guy make a gravity bong out of one of those 5-gallon (or whatever) water jugs that you put on top of a water cooler... It was a sight to see. Needless to say, he wasn't that bright. --Dante Alighieri 00:14 Dec 6, 2002 (UTC)

I've heard of people using toilets, but I think it's an urban legend. Flushing would just be too powerful unless you used a couple ounces of smokables, I think. It's a cool idea, though--add that to my list of things to do in Amsterdam. Tokerboy 00:20 Dec 6, 2002 (UTC)

Maybe, to avoid the issue of if a gravity bong is still a bong, this article should be moved to bong -- it's the most commonly used term in the US, anyway. Does anybody know about bongs in other countries? Tokerboy

"A water pipe or bong is a device used for smoking cannabis,"

Cannabis is a genus (and so should be capitalized). The equivalent would be to say Philip Morris makes Nicotiana cigarettes. How about we just saw marijuana, or is there some political/advocacy reason for this euphemism? orthogonal 09:50, 16 Feb 2004 (UTC)

There are three species of cannabis that I'm aware of: sativa, indica, and ruderalis. While the last is known as hemp and is seldom, if ever, smoked; the former two are smoked and as such it can't be referred to as one species. Marijuana does generically mean one or both species, but the word has non-NPOV connotations as far as a lot of people are concerned. Calling the plant by its genus is an elegant solution to the neutrality issue. Matt gies 10:42, 16 Feb 2004 (UTC)

Throughout most of the world, cannabis (lower-case c) is the common name that also happens to be identical to the scientific name for the genus. We should no more capitalize the c in cannabis than the p in primates just because it is also the Latin name for an order of mammals. Tuf-Kat 17:54, Feb 16, 2004 (UTC)
Except that Matt gies says, right above your comment, that he's using it not as a common name, but as a genus name. And genus names, according to biological usage are always capitalized. orthogonal 18:31, 16 Feb 2004 (UTC)
I believe this article should refer to the plant using the common name, not the taxonomical genus. Tuf-Kat 19:29, Feb 16, 2004 (UTC)
Yeah, me too. ;) That's why I started this thread. Now, by common name, do you mean "marijuana"? orthogonal 19:31, 16 Feb 2004 (UTC)
I prefer cannabis because it refers to any plant of the three species (while marijuana doesn't include hemp) and is used in all the English speaking countries, even the United States (marijuana is an American word). Tuf-Kat
Marijuana was a word adopted by the US the early twentieth century from Spannish American/Native American roots. It was a deliberate tactic by media moguls, in a country split by race, to add add to the mystique and fear of the substance in society. There is therefore, intrinisically, slightly racist overtones in widely applying the term marijuana, as well as it being POV. Dainamo 10:20, 30 Nov 2004 (UTC)
When 'cannabis' is used to refer to a type of plant, as it is here, then it's an improper noun and doesn't take a capital C. Fugg 07:29, 21 Nov 2004 (UTC)

Why is What Is Soul in "see also"? --Andrew 04:49, Apr 22, 2004 (UTC)

This may be a nitpick.. but I don't consider the glass pipe in the picture to be a "bong". I've always heard such pieces referred to either as simply a "pipe" or a "bubbler", if it uses water filtration, which this particular piece may or may not. Maybe I'm just looking at it wrong, though, it does look kind of weird :) Schmiddy 07:22, Jul 8, 2004 (UTC)

This piece does use water filtration; the maker has called this kind of pipe a bubbler as well as a bong (he's my roommate). I think "bubbler" is just a colloquial name for a bong (although maybe it's only used for some kinds of bong?)
You're right, though, that you can't really see what's going on inside - I haven't got a picture of any of the mostly-clear ones he's made. In any case, inside the can (the big part on the bottom) there's a downstem from the bowl designed to reach under water and allow the smoke to bubble through. --Andrew 05:28, 11 Jul 2004 (UTC)
Around my way, a bubbler is a kind of bong. It is smaller and generally shaped like a pipe, but uses water like an upright bong. The picture does not appear to be of a bubbler by this definition, since it stands upright. Tuf-Kat 20:06, Sep 10, 2004 (UTC)
I think it is a bong. After all the principles involved are exactly the same ones described here. I updated the caption on the image to reflect this fact and I think it really helps bring it to light. Triddle 05:57, 7 Apr 2005 (UTC)

Contents

changed picture, old one is archived here

Image:Red Bong-(mod).jpg
typical bong

I changed the image to one that is more clear about the technical nature of this device. It was adopted from the German Wikipedia article of the same title. The old picture is archived here in case anyone in the future can use it. Triddle 03:18, 6 Apr 2005 (UTC)

has that anything to do with Bung ? etymology or smthn? (clem 18:13, 21 Apr 2005 (UTC))

Terminology

There is a huge disconnection in terminology between different readers and editors of this article; I suggest we try to find some way to consolidate it all, find unique terms for this article, and document the variants that are known. This should help keep the article more consistent and at the same time also illustrate how terms/slang for a bong can change depending on location. I'll start it off; this list is organized with the term from the article listed first and then alternate names and location listed under it. Triddle 18:34, 29 Apr 2005 (UTC)

  • Gravity bong
    • The same thing as a bucket bong in this article. Southern California, United States. Triddle 18:34, 29 Apr 2005 (UTC)
  • Waterfall bong
    • This was called a Sobe bong in Southern California, United States. Triddle 18:34, 29 Apr 2005 (UTC)
  • Carb
    • Anything that helps the user purge the bong of smoke. This can either be a simple hole in the bong or the removable bowl style (slide carb as mentioned in the article). Southern California, United States. Triddle 18:34, 29 Apr 2005 (UTC)

This list should be split into Bongs and Parts of a Bong --Ballchef 03:55, 16 August 2005 (UTC)

"Bowlpiece" - also: Bowl, Conepiece, Cone, Coney, C.P.
"Stem" - also: Hose.
"greening out" - To be sick or ill from the effect of smoking too many cones.
"punch" - to empty the chamber of smoke in one breath.
"hit" the inhilation of bong smoke.

--Ballchef 07:33, 18 August 2005 (UTC)

History

Someone on the peer review page asked for some history; I noticed in the American Heritage Dictionary [1] that the word bong comes from the Thai word, baung. Maybe one of the bong experts here could add some explanation how the thing we know as a bong developed out of the thing known in Thai as a baung. --Theodore Kloba 21:57, July 20, 2005 (UTC)

The word bong also suggests the deep resonant sound. The word is more associated to an object that makes the sound than just the tube. The throat could be called a bong, which being a moistened shaft that produces sound. This article should not hide this concept. 69.108.3.109 01:13, 23 July 2006 (UTC)

Why replace the patents section?

I don't see why the patent section belongs in here; I don't know of any other article that has a list like that and it really makes this article ugly while contributing little. From the peer review of this article: Don't quite understand what the serial numbers are. Deryck C. 14:32, 21 July 2005 (UTC) I believe this refers to the patents; I'm going to move them to their own article: List of bong patents.

Peer review comments

This is a copy/paste of the peer review comments just for ease of reference.

  • The article could benefit from a history (or development) section, it doesn't say when, where, or who created the bong. In addition, inline citations are recommended. Finally, the lead section is a bit short- maybe another paragraph? Flcelloguy | A note? | Desk 22:29, 23 Jun 2005 (UTC)
  • The first picture is beautiful, but I think is a little confusing for the unitiated. Maybe the lead picture should be a simple, achetypal bong. You should definently keep the current picture though, because it is really nice. Maybe further down to illustrate bongs as a form of art. ike9898 June 28, 2005 21:23 (UTC)
    • I moved it down to the bubbler section; it does work much better there. A better picture of a bong at the start of the article would be nice but the current picture will do for now. Triddle 01:41, August 5, 2005 (UTC)
  • Considering there's only one in-line link in the whole article it almost doesn't seem worth it, but if you want this to be featured it has to employ the {{ref}} and {{note}} system. Thanks. Harro5 July 8, 2005 23:16 (UTC)
  • Don't quite understand what the serial numbers are. Deryck C. 14:32, 21 July 2005 (UTC)
    • I'm pretty sure this comment is about the patent numbers. I moved that particular section to list of bong patents and I think the page looks better now. Triddle 01:41, August 5, 2005 (UTC)

sound file of a bong hit

This file has a .ogg extension which is some crazy thing. Can't it be made to a normal file i.e. .wav or .mp3. I have a recording of a bong hit in .wav, but it is most likely a copyright breach to be pasted on here. (cut from "shake your rump" by the Beastie Boys

The present sound file is copyright problem free (courtesy of me) and Ogg-Vorbis is the standard file format for Wikipedia. I can't find the media-help page to link to but it talks about how to use Ogg/Vorbis. Additionally, if you can find a better recording of a bong hit (including the glass bowl sliding back into the stem at the end, turn your speakers up loud), I'd love to hear it. Triddle 18:22, August 14, 2005 (UTC)
Ah ha, I found the media page, it is at Wikipedia:Media_help and Wikipedia:Media. It describes why Ogg/Vorbis is the choice for audio formats at Wikipedia. Triddle 18:04, August 15, 2005 (UTC)

bowls and conepieces

Hey triddle, you look to be running this page, so can you (or anyone else) explain. In Australia, we don't use the word Bowl. I'm guessing it is the equvalent to a Conepiece, the part where the weed is packed and ignited and sits at the top of the stem.

I wanted to add this to your Talk:Bong#Terminology section, but maybe it should be labelled Bowl/Conepiece:

  • Conepiece
    • A usually removable metal piece of the bong where the chopped Marijuana is placed and ignited. Varying amounts are placed or 'packed in' the conepiece, which sits at the top of the stem. Over time it collects a (soft) resin on the bottom, and encrusted resin within the conepiece

If you put the picture of the labelled red bong back onto the main page, it could be referenced as part (4).

Thakns for listening, --Ballchef 06:43, 15 August 2005 (UTC)

Hi Ballchef, I had no idea terms could be so diverse. I've got a good idea of what you are referring to (nice description btw). That addition to the #Terminology section would be great and leads me to think about another page, something like List of bong terminology. Triddle 17:59, August 15, 2005 (UTC)

Ok I described the red bong. Triddle you didn't actually confirm what a "bowl" is. I'm, still confused ---Ballchef 04:53, 16 August 2005 (UTC)

Sorry about that, a bowl is indeed the part where the material is placed for smoking. We have many styles of bowls here and some of them could easily be described as a conepiece but not all of them are. We also have some bowls that are more similar to a blown glass pipe than a metal or glass piece manipulated into a cone shape. This is a good example. Triddle 05:21, August 18, 2005 (UTC)

They look good, we dont have much of that here. So what will it be called, bowl or conepiece? --Ballchef 06:52, 18 August 2005 (UTC)
I've got some comments in the section below but I would opt for calling it a bowl. In smoking pipe the place the material goes is also called a bowl and I aim towards consistency with that article. Triddle 06:24, August 19, 2005 (UTC)

Description of the red bong

The numbers in this correspond to this picture. It should be put under the heading of Bong#Operation What i have put in "these" should also go in to the terminology section. The editing notes are open to reply, feedback is good --Ballchef 04:27, 16 August 2005 (UTC)

Description of a Bong

A typical bong is made of few components, as noted on the picture:

Image:Red Bong-(mod).jpg
A RED Bong
1. A Mouthpiece, where the user's mouth is placed over, sealing out air through that hole. Thus the Bong is "Airtight" (Providing there is also an airtight seal around the stem. If a "carb" is present, it must also be covered). When "airtight" it has but one small source of air, which comes into effect when the user inhales through the mouth piece.
If all the smoke isn't removed from the bong in a single hit, the user can place their mouth again over the bong to again inhale, or hover their mouth closely over the bong to slowly inhale the smoke
Editing Note: Do you use any of these terms in the USA? Instead of carb I would rather write "Shottie" which is the only term we use for the hole covered by a finger. And we say "hose" instead of "stem", mainly because we often use a few inches of the backyard hose. A perfect fit, but get easily filled with resin.
Shottie is not unknown to me but the term is rarely used in conversation. Is shottie also used to refer to a pull-out style system (where a part is removed to clear the chamber instead of a finger over a hole)? Triddle 05:15, August 18, 2005 (UTC)
Alright, carb it is. --Ballchef 07:31, 18 August 2005 (UTC)
2. A Chamber, where smoke collects upon inhilation, after being "filtered" through the water. When enough smoke has been built up or the user has finished burning the cone, the chamber then releases the smoke through the mouth piece. This is accelerated by using a "Carb" which allows smoke to be emptied much faster from the chamber when uncovered. The height (and width) of the chamber can vary, from a few inches to some of ridiculous length. See World's Longest Bong
3. A Base, which holds the water, is usually wider than the chamber so it can stand-alone without tipping (see the consequences of a spillage.) The bottom of the "stem" sits in the water, on an angle as shown. The opening at the bottom of the stem must be underwater to bubble the water. The water temperature will affect the temperature of the smoke inhaled (e.g. a bong with water and crushed ice as a filter will allow the user to inhale cooler smoke, providing a less harsh experience). Some bongs also have a removable, water-tight base, for easy changing of the bong water.
I think it may be better to make a note in this article about how some bongs are constructed to hold ice rather than create an entirely separate article. Triddle 22:10,

August 18, 2005 (UTC)

Done--Ballchef 12:18, 22 August 2005 (UTC)
4. A Stem sits in the base and pokes out of the chamber at a degree higher than the water level. It holds the Conepiece/Bowl and enables smoke to pass through the water when in use. The stem collects "resin" over time which can clog the stem, and reduce the air flow through the water.
5. A Bowl (aka. Conepiece) is basically a (usually) removable bowl or cone shaped container, where the cannabis is packed and ignited. Made of metal or glass, a bowl can be joined to the stem, or can just sit in the stem. The bowl forms a seal around the stem so that the only inlet of air is through the bowl. Over time, it collects a soft, wet resin on the bottom, and encrusted resin within the bowl.
I checked out smoking pipe and they call the spot that the material is placed a bowl there; would that be considered a bowl as well in Oz (am I allowed to call it that if I'm an American? =)? If so, I think some consistency is in order. It seems to me that the term bowl is more easily understood than conepiece. Granted it is my local vernacular so I'm really open to everyone else's opinion. Triddle 22:10, August 18, 2005 (UTC)
OK it is bowl (aka conepiece), I can't get rid of conepiece it's all i know and love. --Ballchef 12:18, 22 August 2005 (UTC)

Additional parts

A Carb allows for an accelerated withdrawl of smoke from the chamber. It can be either a hole in the chamber(covered by a finger or removable seal), or the hole revealed when a removable bowl is taken out of the stem. When smoke is inhaled through the mouthpiece and the carb is uncovered, air enters through the carb and pushes the present smoke out through the mouthpiece.

I would consider the carb to be more of an action part than a specific part of the bong. For instance a hole in the bong a finger is placed over or a removable bowl/conepiece both act as the carb. In fact, could you have a bong with out a carb? It seems to me that with out the quick clearing action one has something closer to a hookah than a bong. Triddle 22:10, August 18, 2005 (UTC)
I only ever use bongs with a carb, but i have seen them without. How does the removable bowl work, are they hot to touch? Fill me in and I'll rewrite Carb to accomodate. --Ballchef 12:18, 22 August 2005 (UTC)
The removable bowls all include a part which provide distance from the location the combustion takes place in; there are a couple ways this takes place. On the larger and more ornate glass bowls there are usually large bumps. The bowl itself is large enough that the outside edges don't get so hot that you can't hold it. On smaller glass bowls (the style I would easily call a conepiece) there is a thin handle attached at the very top. Most metal conepieces include a piece of medium gauge wire wrapped around the stem to provide the handle. Triddle 19:18, August 22, 2005 (UTC)
Editing Note: Anyone skilled with Microsoft Paint or something better could you perhaps add a "5" at the appropriate positions of the red bong pic

I think this is on the right track but I don't think its a good idea to introduce too much slang (for lack of a better word) when trying to describe the components. The term stem is actually quite appropriate as a technical term, for instance. The fact that slang exists should be described but to attempt to describe the parts in slang only will lead to more problems in the future. I think the solution is to use the technical terms for the parts and have another section (or article) that deals specifically with the slang component. What do you think? Triddle 21:30, August 17, 2005 (UTC)

Hows that--Ballchef 07:31, 18 August 2005 (UTC)

I've got another question too: would cone piece also describe the style shown here? Triddle 05:11, August 18, 2005 (UTC)

It is a handblow glass stem/bowl. I added "Diffuser" as an additional part which is gaining popularity amoung more expensive bong brands such as Roor and Hurricane.

Homebrew bongmaking matrial question.


Aluminum foil releases toxic chemicals while heated, and its use should be avoided as high aluminum levels have been found in the brains of some patients with neurological diseases. Plastic can release fumes which may induce asthma. Little had been documented on the inhalation of these fumes but it should be avoided. Soda cans are widely used, but it releases aluminum fumes along with paint fumes, which has been shown to cause brain damage. While duct tape may release rubber, metal and aluminum fumes, apples are toxin free.

If using aluminum can be toxic as bongmaking material, what should be used to substitute it? A material thats needed to be easy to work with yet somewhat dourable, resist the heat of having a lighter flame held onto it for several seconds and not release toxic materials. Tin foil?

And what exactly does the last sentence refer to? Apples are toxin free. Huh? Arm 18:35, 17 August 2005 (UTC)

An apple fulfills each of those requirements and makes a mighty fine improvised pipe; this includes not releasing toxic chemicals when exposed to heat. Triddle 21:06, August 17, 2005 (UTC)

An apple makes a for a mighty tasty fruit, not a pipe. Arm 01:14, 18 August 2005 (UTC)

I've only ever heard good things about apple bongs. --Ballchef 07:46, 18 August 2005 (UTC)

The idea of making a bong sounds like something that needs to be moved to Wikipedia:BJAODN --Arm 11:56, 18 August 2005 (UTC)

Well I think you are wrong; apples and potatoes have been used as improvised smoking pipes by me and my friends for some time. Are you referring to constructing any kind of bong or a bong out of fruit? Triddle 17:45, August 18, 2005 (UTC)

Yeah I am. Making a smoking device out of fruit sounds stupid. Fruit rots and isn't very durable. Ide rather make my umm, tobacco smoking pipe (*wink*) out of something that will last longer --Arm 01:07, 19 August 2005 (UTC)

The beauty of the apple bong is that after the session, it also solves the problem of having the munchies. The apple absorbs THC aswell, so it's like hash cookies --Ballchef 01:24, 19 August 2005 (UTC)

You are correct that fruit rots; I don't recall the article saying its a good idea to leave an apple on your desk for a month. Regardless, it works, even if it is not permanent, and to call it stupid is pretty short sided. Have you never had an occasion where you needed a pipe and didn't have one? When you are done, you throw the apple away. Feel free to make your pipe out of permanent materials but good luck doing it in a pinch, for 40 some cents, from a grocery store, but please don't refer to something as stupid because you do not understand it. Triddle 04:50, August 19, 2005 (UTC)
It's definitely a viable option. It may sound farfetched, but it works and, from a purely anecdotal perspective, seems to be fairly commonly known about. · Katefan0(scribble) 04:52, August 19, 2005 (UTC)

Triddle, the idea of making a bong out of an apple sounds farfetched and stupid to me. However ill have to try it some time. --Arm 01:06, 20 August 2005 (UTC)

Note that the article says a bubbler can be constructed with one (I changed orange to potato - orange is pretty far fetched, potato is much easier); this simplifies the task quite a bit. It's even easier if you use a pre-manufactured bowl. It would be a waste of time though, the apple pipe is quick and simple. Triddle 02:38, August 20, 2005 (UTC)
This leaves the question open of why such a thing is in the article in the first place. I put it in there as a demonstration of an extreme (pykrete serves a similar purpose). I believe that the diversity really helps to send home the point of how simple and how varied a bong can be. As for looking for instructions or ideas on how to construct your own bong, this is not Wikibooks. This article is not intended to provide instructions but rather to explain the bong. Triddle 17:27, August 20, 2005 (UTC)


At your local headshop buy a stem and screw-on bowl. Burn a hole in a water bottle and punch it with the stem and you will have yourself a homebrew bong.

Can someone post how to make a bong out of fruit/vegetables? I wanna try this. --Arm 13:31, 10 September 2005 (UTC)

The venerable apple pipe isn't really a bong. Bongs have a water filtration stage. To make an apple pipe, carve out a ~10mm bowl on one side of the apple and punch a hole through from the other side with a gutted plastic ball-point pen barrel. A cone is formed out of aluminum foil, formed over the tip of the thumb. Perforate the base of the cone with a straight pin and fit into the carved bowl.

I wouldn't recommend eating an apple that has been used as a pipe. I'd sooner drink bongwater. bongoloid 07:18, 23 May 2006 (UTC)

Let's get to work, god damn it!

Triddle will ya help us out putting this stuff in the article? --Ballchef 14:28, 25 August 2005 (UTC)

Be bold; it's best to make the changes you see fit then everyone else will get a shot at it fixing it up too. That includes me =) Triddle 21:39, August 25, 2005 (UTC)

Wow.

I never thought that an article about bongs would be longer than articles about the World Trade Center and Chinese Art.

And the narcs say weed kills your motivation. bah!

Tobacco use?

The opening sentence:

"...a device used commonly for smoking, usually tobacco (and less frequently Cannabis or other substances)..."

Is it just me, or is this just plain wrong? I know bongs are often advertised as being for 'tobacco use only', but I'm under the impression that it's only ever used for cannabis smoking. Anyone want to comment on this? - Haddock420

You are correct. The recent edits to the page are extremely unfortunate; an anonymous editor has been changing all cannabis references to tobacco. Wikipedia is not a resource to propagate revisionist history and I have rolled back the article to a known good point in time to clean up the excess of cannabis to tobacco conversions. It looks like an edit war also took place. This is definitely not in the spirit of Wikipedia. Triddle 07:59, 28 November 2005 (UTC)

"knifers"

I removed the section on knifers. By this articles definition a bong must have some sort of water chamber in order to be a bong. Knifers is simply marijuana on red hot knifes, inhaled through half a plastic bottle.

removed blurb about blow tubes

I removed this from the article:

When used in conjunction with a Blow Tube (a plastic bottle with the bottom cut off and stuffed with bounce or other scented laundry sheets)the user can eliminate any smell and smoke in areas previously impossible, ie. university dorms.

because it is simply not true. If one uses a blow tube stuffed with dryer sheets it causes the area to smell like the inside of a dryer for quite a while and this smell is pretty strong. It is also possible to still see the smoke for some time. Unless you have an excuse for why your room smells more like a dryer sheet than your laundry does you'll get caught if you depend on this method. Triddle 18:29, 20 December 2005 (UTC)

red bong

RED BONG DELETION NOTICE

ATTENTION

wikimedia is going to delete the beautiful picture of the red bong if we dont find out where it comes from, does anyone know how to confirm this stuff and make it legal. If you manage to do so, please leave a note for user:longhair at user talk:longhair#red bong so this user knows not to delete it. thanks for any help. --Ballchef 01:00, 3 February 2006 (UTC)

Bongs : pictures and my site

Hi there Wiki dudes. I hope I'm in the right page...;-) I have a new Bongs & Pipes store and I would like a link from the 'Bong' page. Is it possible? Check out my site - Bongs-Sale. Whom should I send it to? Second, I notice there are problems with some red bong picture. I can contribute my bongs pictures to Wiki with a smile! Would you like it?

===Me again: A sample for a red bong picture from my site.

Gravity Bong problems

Does anyone else find the Gravity bongs subsection to be in violation of Wiki:NPOV? It seems overly critical and offers a personal opinion of the efficacy of gravity bongs. I've always found them to be fine ways to smoke, on occasion. Freddie deBoer 04:35, 13 February 2006 (UTC)

This offers the same benefit of delivering a concentrated charge of smoke to the user but are much more effective at making the smoke denser, hence, more chemicals can be absorbed.
I believe the verbiage refers specifically to the efficacy of making denser smoke. The smoke in a gravity bong is thick, yellow, and extremely dense. I'm not sure it would be possible to achieve this level of smoke density in a standard bong. This would require the operator to use their diaphragm to maintain a constant and slow draw. Who can hold their breath that long and who has such fine motor control over their diaphragm? Perhaps effective is not the right term, but I believe that undoubtedly the reason that gravity bongs exist is because they can generate this coughing-fit-inducing dense smoke cloud. Triddle 02:50, 15 February 2006 (UTC)

Cleaning

I've added a bit about smoke resins being highly soluble in ethanol. There remains a comment about use of epsom salts (MgSO4) for cleaning. MgSO4 is not a good solvent for smoke resins (or anything else). The reference should be deleted, but I thought I'd discuss it here first before cutting it. bongoloid 07:30, 2 April 2006 (UTC)

No one complained, so I've removed the references to Epsom salts and also to rubbing alcohol. Epsom salts (magnesium sulfate) is not a good solvent. Rubbing alcohol is isopropyl alcohol (isopropanol) normally sold in a roughly 75% alcohol aqueous solution. Isopropanol is not as good a solvent as ethanol. The ~25% water content of rubbing alcohol makes it much less effective at dissolving smoke resins. bongoloid 06:42, 23 May 2006 (UTC)

Health

There is a brief part on health related issues in the introductory paragraph, saying that tar and carcenogenics are disolved. Is this true? Are there any health related points that could be added? Iirc, the Hookah article has a section related to this.

Photos

Do we really need eight photos of bongs? I could see two or three illustrating variations, but eight seems really excessive. I suspect there's a certain amount of, "dude, check it out, there's a picture of my bong at Wikipedia!" Bong-vanity? OhNoitsJamieTalk 04:45, 26 April 2006 (UTC)

Coke Can bong

The "Coke Can bong" is not a bong, but rather a pipe. Therefore I request it be removed from the article and/or placed in the Smoking Pipe article.

Agreed. In an improvised Coke (or beer) can pipe, the smoke is not drawn through water for filtration. The water filtration is a defining characteristic of a bong or hookah. bongoloid 06:53, 23 May 2006 (UTC)

Tobacco/Cannabis

Regarding this edit; few tobacco users smoke tobacco from a bong. Though tobacco water pipes are popular in some countries, those are typically referred to as hookas. I think it's silly to pretend that the pipes are primarily intended for tobacco use. I see from comments posted above that this is a continuing issue. If you plan on challenging the usage, do be aware of the three-revert-rule.OhNoitsJamieTalk 08:23, 30 May 2006 (UTC)

Let's be realistic here. Ask any police officer, DEA official, or headshop owner how many owner's of water bongs use them for tobacco. (Well, I imagine that owners frequently tell the police that...) OhNoitsJamieTalk 20:53, 30 May 2006 (UTC)