When I got the review request email a couple weeks ago from Jake Wright, owner of Brother’s With Glass, I tried (as I usually do) to dissuade him from sending his product to me for testing and review. Not because I have a house full of glass (I don’t), but because I can be a bit of a dick when people send us mass-produced crap to review and expect us to say something nice about their product just because one showed up in the mail for free.
The most recent crap review item that came in was a portable dry herb & wax vaporizer a company had begun importing from China with their logo stamped on it. Mass produced and poorly assembled, the owner of the vaporizer company had built his entire business plan around these vaporizers that he imported by the pallet-load despite the fact that he was really promoting a brand, not a product. When I wrote to the company to ask for clarification about certain aspects of the vaporizer — like what sort of metal the concentrate cup was made of — their response was that it shouldn’t have been included and told me not to use it (meaning it’s made out of something other than titanium and probably creates harmful vapors). More crap in the junk drawer.
Finally, someone that exceeds expectations
After replying to Jake with a solid “whatever” I only had to wait three days until a box from Brothers With Glass showed up. Being an online retailer I receive a fair amount of inbound stock, and the first thing I noticed about my shipment from BWG was how completely professional the whole package was. The box was well-sealed with plenty of “Fragile” warning tape and the glass itself was carefully wrapped in high quality packing material, making it nearly impossible to break in transit. For those who worry about discretion when ordering herbal accessories, the return address label is professionally printed and very generic-looking. To be honest, at first I thought the box was a birthday gift I had ordered for my wife from Amazon and didn’t pay much attention to it for half a day.
When I finally got around to opening the box I was well pleased with the piece Jake had chosen for me, a beautiful water pipe from HVY Glass. The pipe was wrapped in super-thick bubble wrap and packed with peanuts. The most important part of the packaging for glass, which BWG seem to have down pat, is using the right sized box. Careful attention to small details like this told me right off the bat that the rest of my experience would be awesome, and I was right.
A pleasurable toke
First things first: I am a klutz. I break shit, often for no discernible reason, and water pipes made with beaker-style bases were made for people just like me. The glass is also very thick, which is helpful for people (again, like me) who are often doing several things at once and tend to be a little rough with their gear. Like, I slam shit down when I am trying to juggle several tasks at once, and a pipe made with thick, heavy glass is much better in this kind of environment than a cheap, thinner-walled pipe from China.
Besides providing an easy draw and a super clean toke, the other thing I noticed about the pipe was that it doesn’t have the deep “chug chug” sound of most beaker-style pipes, and sounds more like a low-pitched flutter from a straight bong. Not only that, this thing is BEAUTIFUL and is an instant conversation-starter that is sure to kick-start your sesh with friends.
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- Height: 11”
- Dish/Base: 5.5”
- Downstem: Removable
- Perc: Diffused Downstem
- Joint: 18mm
- Slide: Yes. 14mm
- Ice Pinches: Yes
- Glass Thickness: 5mm
- Artist/Brand: HVY
- Made in the US (California)
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More about Brothers With Glass
Now in their 6th year, Oregon-based Brothers With Glass was founded by Jack and Jesse Wright and is currently operated by Jack and his wife Phern. BWG is a family owned and operated business offering a wide selection of glass smoking pipes from local artists from all around the United States. Brothers With Glass started with the intention of growing into the most reputable head shop and glass distributor on the internet, and they are certainly coming close by selling high-quality glass like this at extremely affordable prices. They also have a fantastic customer support team and love answering questions from new customers.
Where to find them
You can connect with Brothers With Glass by visiting their online Headshop or by giving them a call toll-free at (888) 710-1098 Monday through Friday between 10:00 and 3:00 PST.