Mini glass bubbler

So in putting off my final college application, I decided to make a new piece for myself. My goal is and always has been to avoid aluminum foil, cans, plastics, and any other questionably safe materials.

You will need:
glass McCormick extract bottle (vanilla, orange, whatever you have)
glass drill bits up to 5/16" and drill
5/16" socket
eyedropper with glass stem
J-B weld
hot glue (optional)

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So to start off, find one of these extract bottles. I chose the McCormick extract bottle because it has an angle along the side, so when you drill into it the stem will have the end in the bottle lower than the one with the bowl. It is extremely difficult to drill into glass at any angle other than 90*. Drain it, wash it out, and peel off the label before you drill.
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For your downstem we are using the glass tube of the eyedropper. You should be able to get a bottle with one at Whole Foods or any other health store. Just make sure that it is glass and not plastic. Just because the bottle is glass doesn't mean the tube is. Separating the tube should be as simple as wiggling it out of the cap. Set it aside for now.
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Now the hard part. Drilling it. Well, it's not so much hard as it is time consuming. Home Depot sells a 4 pack of glass and tile bits from Ryobi for like $15 with sizes from 1/8" to 5/16" (the pack is small enough to snatch if your pockets are reasonably deep). The key to this is to drill while the glass is submerged in water to reduce the risk of chipping off flakes or sending a crack across the whole bottle. Start probably about a little under an inch from the bottom with your smallest bit on the narrow side of the bottle. This will be the most time consuming bore you make, drilling the pilot hole. Take it slow, feeling for any resistance from the bottle. It is incredibly important to maintain the same angle as you started at, or it will break/chip the bottle. You'll feel it start to catch if you go off any. Don't get over zealous. Take your time to do it right, or you'll just have to start over. Once you've gone through with the small bit, enlarge the hole with the 3/16" and 1/4" bit. When you get to the 5/16" bit, do it in increments until the glass tube from the eyedropper fits through.
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Now that everything can fit together, it is time to complete the bowl/downstem assembly. We're going to use the JB weld to connect the large end of the glass tube to the socket. I used a small 5/16" one as I feel it offers a good ratio between room for bud and size. Whatever size you use is up to you (but make sure it isn't so heavy that it topples it over). The glass should be clean, but if your socket has been sitting around the garage like mine it should be cleaned. I used acetone to get off any oils, but soap and water should work fine. The instructions recommend using sandpaper to scuff up the surfaces for better contact, but it isn't necessary. Now squeeze out equal parts from each tube onto some scrap paper and mix thoroughly with a paper clip or something. Stand the glass on top of the socket and smear some of the mixture around it, making sure it is air tight. Instructions say it must dry for 4-6 hours before handling, and another 15 before it is fully cured (if you're not in a rush, wait a solid 24 hours just so you're 110% sure it is ready).

If you'd like, do the same to the downstem and bottle itself. I prefer to be able to separate them for cleaning, so I use hot glue at the end. It offers the same air-tight seal and because it is glass on glass, it should separate with a little bit of pulling and wiggling.
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From personal experience as well as reading on these forums, I have found JB weld to be one of the best bonding agents to use in these areas where they are subject to heat. Just to be sure though, I like to heat it before I use it to let it gas off. I use a little butane torch (comes from a 20 year old soldering kit) to heat it up to temperatures much hotter than smoking from it will ever get. A regular lighter will suffice as well. Using a damp paper towel so the glass doesn't burn you, slowly heat up the JB weld. Don't do it too fast or you risk cracking the glass. Once you finish just set it down on a plate or anything else that won't melt. Let it cool on its own; I assume you are all aware that when you dunk wicked hot glass in water it just shatters it.
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And there you have it, your new miniature bubbler. Unfortunately I'm in the middle of a dry spell so I haven't been able to test it out yet. I'll post back once I get a couple bowls through it. Any and all feedback is greatly appreciated. I'm always looking for new things to use for a bowl or downstem.

 

Thanks for the support guys.

@hippie4u, I see where you're coming from. I haven't read anything conclusively saying that a chrome plated socket will gas off. I've already super heated it with a blow torch prior to this to try and remove any gaseous impurities. I'm going to try and convince my old chemistry teacher to let me pop in the lab while I have some free time. I plan on weighing another socket (one that I haven't heated at all), then heating it at the peak of the inner blue cone for several minutes before weighing again. These scales are so sensitive that they detect the force of air currents for over 15 seconds after you close the door to the glass enclosure surrounding the plate. It should pick up any weight differences from the materials gassing off.

I'm going to try and find a decently sized glass marble and drill it out to make a new glass bowl too.

As to the glass shards issue, I'm not very concerned. Thourough rinsing should eliminate most of the particles. You'd inhale more during a windy day at the beach.

 

That bit about the glass is really informative. Thanks for that.

In regards to the test I plan on performing on the chrome, the tip of the inner blue cone is the hottest point of the flame of a Bunsen burner. Melting is unlikely as even at the hottest point of the flame is about 1000* C while chromium melts at 1900.

 

I understand. I wouldn't expect the main metal blend that makes up the structure of it to withstand high temperatures like that. It would have been cool though if the chrome coating melted at a lower temperature and you could just watch it melt and drip away from the rest

I'll see about getting into the lab. If I do I'll be sure to PM you the link to the post with my results.

Happy burning