I had no idea what a chillum was when I bought it at a dispensary, and they didn't have any pipes in the smaller size I wanted for personal use. The chillum I bought is relatively small; the bowl part is the diameter of my pinky finger. I'm not using it for stealth smoking, so that's not a factor. I've never used a smoking implement where the bowl is not horizontal. At the dispensary, they told me that the way to smoke it is just like a joint or regular pipe. But when I got home, I found out that people smoke a chillum by using their hands as a chamber, and this isn't the way I want to smoke. Do a lot of people smoke a chillum like a regular pipe (holding it horizontal), without using their hands as a chamber? I have mini screens for my chillum, so there's no concern breathing in ash or pieces of weed. Or should I return it (it's not used yet) and find something else? Since the handmade chillum wasn't cheap, if I end up hating it, that's money down the drain. Thanks for any input.
i have 3 chillums and i love them all. the only thing they have in common is that they are small. aside from that it took a little bit of time to figure them out and find the "sweet spot" as far as how to work them best. here is what i have found: use a grinder and only pack enough for a single hit. single hits mean a green tasty hit every time. i use an old pill bottle that is long enough to hold the chillum and the bud that i pre-ground for ease of use. be sure to clean it often or it gets tasting fucking nasty. easiest way to clean it is with rubbing alcohol and salt if needed. another great thing is the ease of use. it isn't gonna sit there and smoke away between hits and stink your spot up. well, those are the reasons i like them.
I have a small glass chillum and like what ajroxit said: I pre grind my bud. It lasts longer and my chillum is my go-to. The piece isn't shaped right for the "proper" hand technique so I use it as a one hitter. Definitely my favorite dry piece.
Yeah it's definitely personally preference really man, if you want to use it as a little one hitter you can do that, there isn't no assigned rules on how to smoke it, totally up to you.
I mean depending on the size, I mean some can pack just as much bud as some of my bowls. But for the more average ones are good for people with a super low tolerance, because it doesn't fit a lot (in my experience). The upside is it's not a bad way to introduce people to smoking. There's no carb (which confused the fuck out of me when I first started) so it's a pretty straightforward concept.
Totally agree with you on the simplicity of a chillum. Although nothing is as straight forward as a nice J.
I don't paticularly favor chillums because I like to see the cherry after I light it to let me know how much smoke i'm getting. I can't see the cherry in a chillum.