No seriously, what’s up with the fab egg (short for “faberge egg”)? When you think of cool bong designs, very few look to the humble egg for inspiration. Don’t judge that ball-shaped pipe by its cover. though; the fab egg offers a lot to the selective smoker.
What’s Up With The Name?
Believe it or not, the fab egg rig gets its name from a resemblance to a limited series of jewel-encrusted eggs made by the Russian jeweler House of Faberge. Only 50 were made, making them the most valuable jewelry in the world at around a few million per egg. They’re so valuable that they’re often used as a plot point in heist films like Ocean’s Twelve where thieves can retire from the profit of just one egg theft. For those of us without a million dollars in our bank account, the fab egg rig is a less expensive yet much more functional alternative.
Why Does It Look Like That?
Fab eggs have spherical chambers with hollow centers. These pipes have multiple holes, which can make for great dabber holders. From a pure aesthetic perspective, the fab egg has the definitive glass-on-glass design. It’s basically a bong within a bong, with water and vapor moving through the two layers of glass instead of through the middle chamber like most water pipes. This helps smooth your smoke in a way similar to a swiss perc, which gets its name from its non-uniform holed design. The swiss perc is considered the predecessor of the fab egg. Some pipes incorporate a fab egg design in their percolators, allowing for similar diffusion in a different package.
Where Do You Get Them?
The first fab eggs were exclusively dab rigs and, like the faberge eggs they draw inspiration from, were regarded as rare works of heady glass art. The first commercially sold fab egg was made in 2012 by a Washington glass-seller for a steep price of $1,000, with later models reaching $7,000 and even $14,000. Despite the price, many glass enthusiasts trekked to Washington to get their hands on these rigs. Other companies took note and produced their own variations of the fab egg, such as High Tech Glassworks. Known for making cup-themed water pipes, High Tech has a line of “baby bottle” rigs that have two half-fab-egg chambers connected by glass joints. The final product resembles a pinched baby bottle, hence the name. The curvature of the baby bottle allows for even more diffusion than regular fab eggs.
LA’s Pulse Glass also built upon the fab egg design with some of their rigs. Their fab egg-style shrub rigs have a can-like shape with swiss holes around the perimeter for diffusion. They incorporated a showerhead perc into the design for even more diffusion. Pulse also released a heady glass fab egg called the “Fab Munny” which featured a monkey theme and dichro glass accents. This pipe used the same showerhead perc as their shrub rigs.
Despite the initial steepness of fab egg prices, many modern glass producers make fab egg water pipes that are affordable for any budget. Given the design’s history of producing superior taste and smoothness, it would be a good investment for any smoker to pick up a fab egg for their glass collection.
