I know it sounds kinda dumb, but video game systems are supposed to break after awhile, I don't think bongs are made out of the strongest glass. I have owned many bongs gear and roor and have at some point or another someone has done something "gentile" with it and it broke. Eg. Lighter hitting the chamber of the bong and it poking a hole in the glass like it had a shotgun So am I asking you are bongs ment to break Because they know you'll always buy another ?
Bongs break it's a part of life even if you take really good care of it one dumb mistake could break it making it unrepairable. I mean not all bongs break but usually you will have bongs that will break eventually.
It just depends on how well the bong is made. They aren't meant to break, but if there's an area where the glass is thinner than than the rest of the bong, it's going to be a weak spot. A good glass blower will always try to have an even thickness all over the bong. When I'm buying a new piece, one of the main things I look at is how thick it is. The thicker the glass, the less chance of it getting broken. I've seen a nice RooR dropped from about 4 feet onto solid concrete and it didn't break. On the other hand, I've seen a cheap bong simply knocked over while sitting on a hardwood floor and it shattered. Just depends on the quality.
everything is transitory. but yeah.... does sound like you've been getting shafted by the ones that havnt been getting made like they used to. to paraphrase the ol' saying. make your own. that way you get more satisfaction, learn more, and are never without a bong because of your ability to construct one in anyone's house, in under 10 minutes, from whatever you find lying around. it's impressive to see a bongsmith challenged just so and suceed. often such bongs are very effective too. i know one we made almost 3 years ago, and it's still alive and still a favourite... so it's not alive from just sitting unused on a shelf. and how much did it cost? dunno about the bowl we eventually fitted, it was a gift. the jar that was used, probably about 70p. and a mouthpiece made from something that was just found lying around. so if it breaks... who cares. just buy another 70p jar if thats what broke, or replace one of the other bits, and if the whole thing somehow gets broken, who cares (beyond the sentimentality for a moment), make another one.
Cheap acryllic ones, yes. After time they'll fall apart. Nice glass ones, (you mentioned RooR so let's go with that), no.
I've broken so many glass bongs its not funny, pretty expensive bongs too, around 100-150 bucks. Funny though i've never broken a glass cup. wtf is up with that shit?