Dry Starbuzz?

[Jshenrikson]

Hey Guys,

I just bought a 250g tin of Starbuzz X on the Beach shisha and there was nothing I could do to not burn it. I tried my phunnel bowl w/ mod (double foil and two halfs of reliable QLs) and my "modern ceramic" bowl with foil and screen and every possible set-up I've ever tried and every time the shisha burned. I wasted like three bowls worth of shisha too trying to figure this out. I also tried mixing it up and taking the shisha on the bottom in case all the glycerin and juiciness went to the bottom. The thing is it doesn't seem like it is dry or anything, but I'm not sure exactly what dry shisha would look like. Does Starbuzz ever mess up? to me it doesn't sound like they do from what I've heard

[ZenSilk]

Anything could happen to shisha. If it's dry, it just has barely any juices, slightly moist. Starbuzz is always VERY juicy, you can REALLY tell. Dry is just like normal rolling tobacco or pipe tobacco (which is also slightly moist, but not juicy).
Starbuzz can be very temperamental to heat.

If it helps, this is my exact set up whenever i smoke SB...

1) 1.5-2 Pieces Golden Roll QL coals (Hookah-Shisha.com)
2) Small Tangiers Phunnel w/ Scalli Mod
3) 1 Layer of Foil
- With Starbuzz, i punch one circle/row of holes along the outermost point, then one more row inside that, about in the middle (between the edge of the bowl and the edge of the inverted phunnel hole) , and then randomly spaced holes around the edge of the inverted funnel area.
4) I place the coals directly across from each other. The Mod helps with the heat and airflow, as the coal is slightly lifted from the surface of the foil. I start out with 1.5 coals, if that's not enough, i add .5 more.

It takes a little while to get started, but i found that not moving the coals around as much as normal creates enormously thick clouds, full of flavor. I try to smoke through one whole area of shisha on each side, and then rotate coals when the smoke gets too thin.

[Jshenrikson]

I'm pretty sure ZenSilk you are my tobacco mentor. I'm going to try breaking my QLs into two instead of four, and I'm going to try to mix the shisha up more. This shisha definitely seems wet, so it might just be something I have to play with a lot.

[Jshenrikson]

4th bowl result - burnt

It wasn't exactly burning for a while I don't think, but when there was smoke it tasted really bad. I don't really put much shisha in and its fairly loose. "sprinkled." I don't know if that has anything to do with it. Does starbuzz take a particularly long time to start? and do you need less heat than other kinds?

Please help,
my lungs hurt Edited October 9, 2007 by Jshenrikson

[ZenSilk]

Damn man!

Let's see if SafeSearch has anything to say..

[Jshenrikson]

wait, I just realized my water is lower than usual, would that make shisha burn?

[MechAnt]

That wouldn't cause it. In my experiences, one QL is all you really need for SB. Try using one and have about 3mm or so of the coal hanging off the edge of the bowl. Just keep rotating it. That may be your solution. Try it.

[ZenSilk]

Unless your using a Mod on a Phunnel. Then you need a little more coal because of the spaces between the foil and coal. I don't use a standard bowl with SB because it is just too good and expensive to waste, the juices run down the holes in a standard bowl.

[Jshenrikson]

update: I'm not the sharpest tool in the shed folks

I'm actually positive it was the water level because I'm using a diffuser. The water was at such a level it was not getting filtered at all, but still making the noise. I used a phake phunnel on a standard bowl with one QL and now I'm getting thick clouds. This SB is so good. RIP wasted coals and shisha, you were an excellent learning experience haha

sorry to bother you guys, my bad

[mmm... hookah]

update: I'm not the sharpest tool in the shed folks

I'm actually positive it was the water level because I'm using a diffuser. The water was at such a level it was not getting filtered at all, but still making the noise. I used a phake phunnel on a standard bowl with one QL and now I'm getting thick clouds. This SB is so good. RIP wasted coals and shisha, you were an excellent learning experience haha

sorry to bother you guys, my bad

Guys it is not the water level in the vase nor the way you set up your hookah.. my friends and i sat and repeteadly tried to smoke SB's X-on the beach and other flavours. It is a great experience with lots of flavour for the first 5 to 10 min, but after that it always gets harsh.. Hey guy! it sound like you need a tobacco brand change like me, i couldnt handle SB for the life of me Try Fantasia's Blueberry it has lots of flavour and consistently smokes smooth through the whole bowl.

[Zildjian]

both of you have to be doing something wrong. pretty much all i smoke is sb and it is super easy to maintain and smoke. never harsh for me =\

[Scheetz]

Water level will effect how you smoke. Obviously if the water was not high enough then the smoke was not even filtering through the water. (My understanding of what he said) SB smokes fine, you just have to understand how to properly use a hookah and the proper adjustment order to find that sweet spot. Hookahs are no different than a car or a computer. If it is not running properly then you follow a certain guideline first before venturing to something completely different.

Water level = always in the same place for my vase. No matter what company I am smoking.
Packing Style = varies on company, Tangiers is packed tightly, layalina and starbuzz are pushed down to flatten but not packed tight.
Heat = varies as well, Tangiers for me requires less heat, Layalina needs .5 (half coal) more than Starbuzz.


Now if it was burning, you try taking off some of the coal. If that is no good and you reach the point where there is not enough heat to create smoke then you look at how its packed. Remember, water is always your constant. Packed loose, try adding more tobacco and pressing it down tighter.


And for the record, I have never had a SB flavor that died after 10 minutes.

[crashingsucks9]

i just recently bought some sb blueberry grape and it tasted horrible the previous onei bought tastes awsome though i think that there is no juic in it cause it seems really dry

[camelflage]

i just recently bought some sb blueberry grape and it tasted horrible the previous onei bought tastes awsome though i think that there is no juic in it cause it seems really dry

my SB blueberry grape is bombtastic.

[mmm... hookah]

Water level will effect how you smoke. Obviously if the water was not high enough then the smoke was not even filtering through the water. (My understanding of what he said) SB smokes fine, you just have to understand how to properly use a hookah and the proper adjustment order to find that sweet spot. Hookahs are no different than a car or a computer. If it is not running properly then you follow a certain guideline first before venturing to something completely different.

Water level = always in the same place for my vase. No matter what company I am smoking.
Packing Style = varies on company, Tangiers is packed tightly, layalina and starbuzz are pushed down to flatten but not packed tight.
Heat = varies as well, Tangiers for me requires less heat, Layalina needs .5 (half coal) more than Starbuzz.


Now if it was burning, you try taking off some of the coal. If that is no good and you reach the point where there is not enough heat to create smoke then you look at how its packed. Remember, water is always your constant. Packed loose, try adding more tobacco and pressing it down tighter.


And for the record, I have never had a SB flavor that died after 10 minutes.

OMG ur smoking a FLIPPIN hoookah!! JEEZZZZ its Sole purpose it to enjoy it not work for it. "trouble shoot it like a car or computer"... ha. if i had to do this with my hookah i wouldnt do it at all. So yes it has to do with diffrent company tobacco's some burn slower because there really juicy and some burn faster because they are dry, some have less flavouring in them so it is not harsh on the throat, some have alot of flavouring which irritates the throat thus burns faster! MOST people put tobacco in a bowl, water in a vase, and light a few pieces of charcoal. and thats it!!!

[Scheetz]

MOST people put tobacco in a bowl, water in a vase, and light a few pieces of charcoal. and thats it!!!

I never said I dont do that. While I have no idea how long you have been within the hookah industry most of the people finding themselves on this forum are brand new. Thus, they have no idea how to properly set up a hookah beside the little paper that sometimes comes with your purchase. I know what I am doing on all the companies I smoke with out having to think about it. Someone new on the other hand has yet to learn different tobaccos all require slight changes. You have to figure them out if you want the best smoke. Sure some can get it to a C level, but to the rest of us who actually tried different ways and found the best, a C will not do.

OMG ur smoking a FLIPPIN hoookah!! JEEZZZZ its Sole purpose it to enjoy it not work for it. "trouble shoot it like a car or computer"... ha. if i had to do this with my hookah i wouldnt do it at all.

And because of that, I guarentee you one of us on here who have worked at making a better smoke will produce a better smoke then what you are using now.

So yes it has to do with diffrent company tobacco's some burn slower because there really juicy and some burn faster because they are dry, some have less flavouring in them so it is not harsh on the throat, some have alot of flavouring which irritates the throat thus burns faster!

Not sure where you were trying go with this because its wrong. I can make Nahkla smoke longer than Layalina. Nahkla is on the extreme side of dry while Layalina is dripping wet. Flavoring does not cause the tobacco to burn. Yes it will irritate your throat if the flavor is to strong for the person. But that is not because the flavoring is causing it to burn. If you are burning the tobacco its because you have to much heat (read: take some coal off).

But that means making the hookah work for you.

[mmm... hookah]

I never said I dont do that. While I have no idea how long you have been within the hookah industry most of the people finding themselves on this forum are brand new. Thus, they have no idea how to properly set up a hookah beside the little paper that sometimes comes with your purchase. I know what I am doing on all the companies I smoke with out having to think about it. Someone new on the other hand has yet to learn different tobaccos all require slight changes. You have to figure them out if you want the best smoke. Sure some can get it to a C level, but to the rest of us who actually tried different ways and found the best, a C will not do.


WTF!?!?! LOL NvM guys....its ok