Looking For Guides To Make The Thickest Smoke

[zen]

Hey all, I have a basic 15" hookah and I'd really like to pump out the thickest smoke I can out of it.

There are a few thing that I read about getting it good
1. All about heat management
2. Cooler temperature at the base leads to thicker smoke
3. good shisha/glycerin mixture

I currently use pharaoh's shisha. Can anybody help elaborate about how glycerin falls into this? Does burning glycerin cause better smoke?

Thanks in advance. Edited July 21, 2008 by zen

[SimplexCoda]

well you dont want the glycerin to burn. You want it simmer, this creates smoke. Yes the best way to get thick smoke is to learn heat management. But the thing about using cold water in the base to get thicker smoke is that it will make the smoke less flavorful in exchange for thickness. So i can only suggest using room temp water and get very very good and managing your coals.

[zen]

Is there a comprehensive tutorial about good heat management? I've tried moving coals from the outside in a spiral to the center but I dont think I have my timing right.

[SimplexCoda]

i dont think there is a "guide" for heat management. The reason is every tobacco is different. It will require more or less heat than others, and require more or less coal maintenance than others. Its something that is learned by practice.

[mjdx88]

The two best brands I have found for good smoke with little work would be AF and Potion, I have always gotten nice clouds with both more so potion. The other thing that I have found that helps is to double foil, which I know many frown-upon here but it does work. The rest comes with time, I have been slowly working on moving coals around and getting a feel for heat management. I hope these tips help a bit.

BTW clouds of smoke are really fun, but for me its all about the flavor and the time spent puffing, so I havent worked on big clouds in a while, its all about what you like. Welcome to HF.

Mike

[zen]

thanks for the replies, I saw a few cool thing in the fun house like the foil tail method which I'll probably try. My question is this, will adding a little more glycerin have a noticeable effect on cloud size?

[SuburbanSmoker]

thanks for the replies, I saw a few cool thing in the fun house like the foil tail method which I'll probably try. My question is this, will adding a little more glycerin have a noticeable effect on cloud size?

In my experiences with extra glycerin extra heat is required and its not worth the effort. Buy a phunnel bowl, use really juicy tobacco, learn how to manage your coals (best way is through trial an error IMO) and smoke your heart out till you find what works for you.

[ronald_dooley]

Heat management and smoke thickness are an art, man. Really... it's a labor of love cuz there's many possible combinations of bowl/coal/shisha, each of which has its own dynamic.

Just the other day, I ruined a bowl of AF Eskandarani Apple because I under-packed the phunnel and used 2 cocos instead of three. The result= too little shisha and too little heat means hard pulls to get smoke = thin, harsh smoke and shisha that is burned on the top/wet on the bottom. And I consider myself fairly experienced. Rectified the situation today by correctly packing enough shisha and using 3 cocos = dense, sweet smoke! And for each bowl/coal/shisha combo, it's a different story.

Buy a phunnel. It will be the best $13 you ever spent. There are a lot of instructional videos, too.

Voski shows how to pack AF in a phunnel
Snoopy shows how to smoke Tangiers in a phunnel

And a lot on YouTube... some of the old ones from Scalliwag, for example.

- Ronald

[hookah hippie]

THe best advice is practice makes perfect after so many bowls you will learn exactly how to manage the heat on your hookah correctly

[Codename067]

A phunnel bowl helps a lot. What helps even more is packing the bowl correctly and managing your heat accordingly and appropriately.

[zen]

just packed a bowl last night after replacing my hoses with plastic tubes; used fresh tobacco and 2 quicklights, one of the best smokes I've had

[Giant Ninja Robot]

Nice dude! Remember that when you perfect your heat management for one bowl/shisha brand you may need to do something completely different when you switch to something else. It's all about practice and it shouldn't be too hard to get in a short amount of time.