Best Dry Herb Vaporizers

The dry herb vaporizer market is saturated with devices. Some are excellent, while others completely miss the mark. Read our detailed vaporizer for dry herb reviews covering the top of the best devices of 2018 and pick up some useful knowledge at the same time.

The best dry herb vaporizers are for people who want to try something different. Smoking weed still has its fans, but vaping materials puts a new spin on things. The best weed vaporizer can apply the right amount of heat to extract all the active substance from herbs. The vapor the device creates is pure. It is not smoke. The vapor does not have the same harmful chemicals that combustion produces. Temperature is crucial to dry herb vaping. Too much heat causes burning. Too little heat does not vape at all.

The best devices allow users to control heat settings. This control can come in two ways:

• Preset settings
• User-controlled settings

Mid-range vaporizers have preset settings with one-button controls. The range is usually between 220F and 420F, some might go above even 420F. The settings number between three to four/five distinct temperatures. A vaporizer with presets settings is easier to use still, many users prefer having control over their heat. Despite a little higher cost, they are popular as they allow users to set their favorite temperature down to a degree. Temperature affects the vapor, which is why temp control is such an important feature. Low to mid-range heat gives off smoother, less harsh vapor. More heat gives off bigger vapor clouds that might be too much for some vapers.

Vaping marijuana at temperatures between 350°F and 420°F are below the temperature that begins the combustion process which avoids the toxins present in marijuana smoke. No smoke means no carbon monoxide or benzene, and besides, as I just mentioned it tastes a whole lot better.

The way the best weed vaporizers vape is one more thing to think about. Devices either use a heating element that comes in contact with the material and heats it that way. This style is conduction heating. In convection heating hot-air is used to create vapor. With a hot-air oven, all the material gets heated. There is no waste. The vapor is thicker and tastes better, and material lasts longer with hot-air heating.

The two vaporizing styles have their good and bad sides. A heating element device uses less power. Which prolongs battery life. One bad thing about this style of heating is that not all the material gets vaped. If the heating element is at the bottom, the material at the top does not heat up. What most users do to prevent this waste is stop mid-session, open the chamber and stir the material.

A good portable vaporizer uses one of two materials in its heating chamber:

• Stainless steel
• Ceramic

Neither of these two materials reacts to heat. So they do not melt, or burn, at least at the temperatures that most vapes can reach. This is important since no chemicals or toxins get inhaled by the user. All-steel chambers are usually heavy, they cost a little more, but they heat-up fast and are easy to clean. All-ceramic ovens are lighter, less expensive, but they take time to heat up and are hard to clean.

Loose-leaf vaporizing devices started as desktop units first. These big machines cost a lot, but their tech was cutting-edge and opened a path to the portable units we see today.

Best portable vaporizers use a lot of the same elements as their big brothers. Elements like convection/conduction heating, clear vapor paths, and temperature control. Before, if someone wanted to vape marijuana they had to use a special rig, use fire and butane torches. These rigs were also not portable. Current vaporizes are small, discrete and most important, portable.

V2 has two models on this list, and the two units are very unique. The Series 3X is a one-of-kind device as it can vape marijuana, waxes, and e-juice in the same device. The Series 7 also does the same. V2 devices are very versatile. They use separate cartridges for each material to make changing between them easy.

The Pax 3 is one of the most advanced weed vaporizers around. It comes from Pax Labs who also make the Juul e-cigarette. The new version of the Pax, the Pax 3 is a dual-use device. It can vape both herbs and concentrates.

Mig Vapor is another well-known brand. They have three products on this list. The DRAY, the Herb-E are two vapes and the Pro 50 Combustor. Mig Vapor specializes in making durable, easy-to-use vaping machines. Their units are mid-range in price, but high-quality in performance.

Users can buy a good cheap vaporizer fast online. Online vendors have great selection, lowest prices, and they offer daily deals. Local vape shops usually focus more on e-cigs and box mods. They may have some herb gear, but the price may differ from the manufacturers’ a lot.

Head shops are stuck in the old ways. They will have tons of bongs, pipes and other smoking accessories, but little to do with vaping.

Burning anything creates harmful by-products, and the same goes for marijuana. Vaping weed instead of smoking it can give users the same high, but with fewer chemicals and toxins.

Vaporizers do a lot. They produce vapor, but they use batteries, heating elements, and LED screens to do that. What is more, a safe vaping experience needs high-quality materials. This means using ceramic, quartz and glass instead of cheap plastics and glues. It has to do all that AND fit in a pocket (portable devices at least).

Better also means safer. There are far fewer vape explosions happening lately since there are better circuitry and the materials used are more rigorously tested. Lately, most of the problems are caused by mechanical mods. So, you get what you pay for and these days you are paying for a safer product.

Portable ones do cost a lot, but good units under $50 do exist. Desktop units can be an investment. For all that a device like the Herbalizer can do, though, a high price point is justified. It produces medicinal and recreational vapor. Ex-NASA scientists designed it. It has touchscreen controls.

These kinds of features do not come cheap. Think of desktop vaporizers as home appliances like a fridge or stove that also cost a lot. The initial investment is high but paying it means the investment will last a very long time and perform very well.

Reading dry herb vaporizer reviews, one can see what things a unit needs to be the best. If we are talking about portable models, it should have at least three things:

• Quality build materials
• Adjustable heat settings
• Reasonable price

Preset heat levels are good too. The best vapes though give the user the freedom to set whatever temperature they want. Desktop vaporizers are different as they can already do so much. They have all the features listed above and then some. Desktop models should be, above-all, easy-to-use. There are learning curves with desktops, no doubt. The best desktop vapes though are the ones that a user can start using right away.

All the vaporizers here deserve the title, “the best.” They may be different shapes and sizes. They might have different settings, and features or can be made from unique materials. It is their performance that unites them though. They all deliver the best they can do to the user. They all produce great vapor. Most of them are all portable (except for the desktop one) light and easy-to-use. But one stands out due to the innovative control: the Pax has Bluetooth so even a smartphone can control it.