DHC's Guide to Joint Size
When it comes to joint size, there are a number of reasons why people have preferences among the variety of sizes and styles. From things like function, appearance, universality, style, comfort, bowl size, to convenience, the variety in different styles become very useful when picking out the perfect piece of glass.
Difference between joint, glass piece, and bowl piece:
There are three essential parts when looking at a standard glass; the glass piece itself, the joint, and the bowl piece. A lot of the time, the glass piece is what people are initially looking at, however as pieces are recycled and upgraded from time to time, each time is an opportunity to figure out what you like best in a piece. Everyone looks for something different and we’re here to break down some of those differences, specifically when it comes to joint & bowl size.
Bowl Sizes
This graph breaks down an easy way to check out what size bowl piece that you have! This is important to know for not only preference purposes but it’s also good to know in the case that it might need replacing.
All bowl pieces will be one of these three sizes; 10mm, 14mm, 18mm. The lowest number represents the smallest size and the highest number is the biggest size for bowl pieces.
Not only will this guide help you identify the size of any bowl piece, but it also identifies the size of the joint because the sizes always correlate.
Male and Female Bowls
In glass, there are two styles of downstems that are identified as male and female. A female bowl piece will only be compatible with a male glass piece and vice versa; a male bowl piece will only be compatible with a female glass piece.
The Black Mushroom Recycler Bong on the left is an example of a male piece that is carefully rested inside the joint of the glass. Versus female bowls, like the one on the Daily High Club Tornado Recycler Bong pictured on the right, which rests on top of the joint, covering the top of it.
What is a joint?
The joint is the part of the glass where the bowl piece is interested into or placed on top of, essentially it’s the part of the glass that will be met with the bowl piece.
Now these are not vital for function, however in most cases they help enhance the the overall quality of the function in glass. Some glass has built in joints, like the Honeycomb Incycler Bong on the left in the picture above.
Other glass has a complete seperate piece for the joint that is commonly known as a downstem, like the one on the Heavy Clear Straight Shooter pictured on the right. Some even feature no downstems that are fully functional with intricate designs and other dope features that help promote quality delivery.
For reference, here is some examples of some pieces at DHC that have the little to no transition from bowl piece to glass:
$49.99
Although this piece features a connecting tube so that the smoke can easily pass through, it definitely gives a sweet twist to the classic style joint that is built in. This glass is a size 14 and includes a female bowl piece.
$24.20
This piece does include a little bit of a kink where the joint would be, but it’s main purpose is for sensible function and convenience.
This glass doesn’t rely on a downstem or joint as a filter, rather it’s design makes from perfectly smooth hits! This piece includes a size 14 male bowl piece.
If the glass features a built-in downstem then it might look a little something like this:
$59.99
Pieces like this are nice because not only does it include two honeycomb percs for extra filtration, but it also includes a downstem that provides larger but smoother rips. The bowl piece here is a basic 14mm male bowl piece.
$44.99
This chill collab brings only the coolest vibes to the table with it’s built-in three slit downstem that maximizes the air flow in the glass because of those slits at the bottom of the joint. The glass is a size 14 piece and requires a female bowl for proper function.
Luckily figuring out the gender of the glass is the easiest part once you’ve decoded everything else! Glass is usually the same gender as the joint or another way to look at it could be that the gender of the glass is always opposite of the gender of the bowl piece, and luckily at our online smoke shop, we carry a variety of all of it!
One thing you’ll notice is that none of these pieces aren’t alike in one way. The variety between joints and bowl pieces are meant to have variety for those who prefer different styles of glass.
The best part about bowl pieces is that they’re pretty universal and can be easily replaced, especially with the ease of our online head shop that offers a variety of different replacements, not just the basics.