TRANSCRIPT

Eddie: Hey everybody, this is Eddie with Mindful Emergence back with another video. As those of you who have been watching the videos know, the focus on this channel is education. My goal is to continue and expand the conversation on how to use this amazing cannabis plant in the most effective, intentional, and safe way. That's why today I'm joined by Michael Baron, the founder of WeeJets. We're going to have a conversation about pipes. Michael, why don't you give our viewers a brief introduction of yourself so they know your background?

Michael: Eddie, thank you for inviting us. I think we're going to have an amazing series of programs specifically dedicated to helping people learn a few things, confirm what they already know, and get some new information. We're going to spill some secrets about things that lie on the surface, but people don't know about them. I am a biomedical mechanical engineer. I spent my entire career developing medical devices and life-saving technologies, with over 100 patented life-saving technologies, including artificial heart systems—we call them LVADs (Left Ventricular Assist Devices). I've done a lot of work in pulmonary devices for treating COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease), orthopedics, urology, gynecology, micro-invasive surgical instrumentation, and cancer ablation systems. People can look up my last name and search through over 100 patents in the medical device field alone. I still run a company where we design and develop medical devices for big corporations like Johnson & Johnson, Boston Scientific, Thermo Electron Group, and the list goes on. Strangely enough, I found myself in the cannabis device space because my kids started smoking early in school. Instead of prohibiting it—because I know prohibition never works—I decided to do the next best thing: help them smoke a little safer. We all know smoking isn't entirely safe, but neither is eating sugar, butter, or fat. My goal is to make that risk a little less and help people smoke safer, and more importantly, receive a lot more pleasure from it. When you drastically reduce coughing and remove unwanted materials from smoke, people really start enjoying it more because it tastes better, feels cooler, and you don't cough as much. Every segment of the videos we do will focus on one particular device, and today we can start with pipes, because pipes are the most generic way of smoking. I know people will object and say dry vaporizing is better. There are pros and cons to every method. I like dry vaping, but I also really like smoking and combusting material because it gives you the fastest onset for the effects you want to receive, even for medical conditions. So today, let's talk about pipes.

Eddie: Yeah, because people are going to smoke. When I go into dispensaries and see those little glass pipes on the shelves—we've all seen them, and they're beautiful—they're not what we're talking about.

Michael: Exactly, you're absolutely right. Let's start with those pipes because the majority of pipes on the market are what we call direct-flow pipes. The direct-flow pipe is when you burn the material inside the bowl, and it's a direct path right into your mouth and lungs. There are shorter pipes and longer pipes, and we'll discuss that. To me, whenever I select a pipe, the older I become, the more my priorities change. When people go to dispensaries, they look at the most beautiful things. In my 30s, I looked at glasswork as artwork. But the older I become, the more concerned I am about my health and protecting my lungs. If you ask anybody what the most important thing in their life is, it's their health.

Eddie: And 79% of the viewers of this 36,000-subscriber channel are over the age of 55.

Michael: I'm really excited to help people. I still design and develop medical devices, but I co-founded a few companies, one of which went public. I find extreme pleasure in doing something that helps people. We receive so many emails from people with COPD, emphysema, or asthma thanking us. We try to design our products to help even those with decreased lung capacity, and people appreciate it. What I don't like about direct-flow pipes is that when you burn the material at around 1,500 degrees Fahrenheit, it goes directly into your mouth. The smoke contains a lot of resin and tar, but most importantly, it's so hot. That's why we burn our pathways and lungs. Lungs don't like heat, which is why we cough—coughing is our protection mechanism trying to get rid of that hot smoke. We want to decrease the smoke temperature, similar to vaporizers, and filter that smoke. With direct-flow pipes, that's impossible because the last cherry always hits the back of your throat and burns it. We actually have a solution for that: we can put an adapter and a charcoal filter at the end to turn a direct-flow pipe into a much smoother, lower-temperature smoke.

Let's talk about the length of the pipe. It's simple physics: the longer the path, the cooler and better the smoke becomes. As the smoke travels, heavier particles subside and leave residue, making the smoke cleaner and dropping its temperature. But a 14-inch pipe is ridiculous to carry around. I took this into consideration when we designed the Maze X Pipe. Length is important, but path length can be achieved differently.

It's also important to understand materials. There's always a discussion about metal pipes versus glass. Glass is the best because it has zero porosity, so nothing gets stuck there. It's great to have a glass bowl where the heat is highest. Metal pipes have typically been considered bad because people can taste metal. There are thin metal pipes and thick surgical steel or anodized aluminum pipes. When thin metal heats up, oxygen reacts with the lining, causing oxidation. Those metal oxide particles evaporate into the smoke, giving that metallic taste. Thick stainless steel or anodized aluminum doesn't do that. That's why all our pipes use borosilicate glass or ceramics for the bowl.

Let me talk about how people load the bowl. A lot of people grab a bud, chop it up by hand, put it in the pipe, and try to smoke it. The distance between those little buds creates an uneven airflow because you can't pack it properly. In addition, the dense little bud doesn't burn all the way, so you waste material. When you have uneven airflow, you pull fire right through the pipe directly into your lungs, and you taste butane if you're using a lighter.

Eddie: So you want to grind it, obviously.

Michael: Yes, you want to grind it, but the way you grind it is also important. A lot of people use electric grinders that grind the flower too fine. That causes it to burn too fast, clog, and burn unevenly because there's no space between particles. Experts and I recommend medium-ground flower. It leaves chunky pieces that stay nestled in your bowl. Powdery grinds fall through into the pipe or straight onto your tongue, causing restricted airflow and rapid combustion.

When you pack the bowl with medium-ground flower, we recommend packing it to the top and slightly tamping it—compressing it a little bit. It's like rolling a perfect joint: packed tightly, but not too tight. When you burn a little material, you can tamp it down further so you aren't just burning oxygen around the flower.

Eddie: Right.

Michael: Next, when you light the bowl—whether using a lighter or hemp wick—you need to pull as slow as possible. This is extremely important. When people rip the flower, they burn their lungs and cause coughing. When you pull slowly, the smoke is cooler by the time it reaches your mouth. When smoke is cooler, you taste the terpenes better. Think of eating hot food: if your dinner is piping hot, you burn your tastebuds and can't enjoy the flavor.

Eddie: I'm so glad you brought this up, Michael, because I'm sure people get your pipe and expect it to be cool, but then they hit it the same way they've been ripping bongs for the last 10 years and wonder why it's still a bit harsh.

Michael: Absolutely. It takes five minutes to learn a different way, but once people do, they never go back. Education expands your horizons. Pulling slow with short puffs is key. If you eat a sandwich, you don't stuff the whole sandwich in your mouth—you take small bites. The same principle applies to cannabis.

Eddie: I think of it as sipping, in a way.

Michael: Exactly, sipping. You don't need to overfill your lungs. Another mistake people make—including myself in the past—is holding the smoke in their lungs for 5 to 10 seconds.

Eddie: I did a video on that. THC absorbs almost instantly.

Michael: It takes one second for THC to absorb. Holding it in deprives your brain of oxygen, which makes you dizzy, but that's not from THC.

Here's another technique: if you pull a little bit of fresh air into your lungs first, and then pull a little bit of smoke on top of it without exhaling, you won't cough. The layer of fresh air protects your lung linings from the heat. Taking a sip of water beforehand also helps cool your throat.

Eddie: You live in Florida where they have medical marijuana. When you guys reached out to me, I mentioned I had been using your Maze X Pipe for years because a friend recommended it. But what I didn't know back then was how to use it properly—I was using it the same way I used to hit bongs.

Michael: It requires a little bit of learning. On our website, we have written instructions, video guide reviews, and even a tab on the pipe itself reminding people not to rip it. Our goal is to help people. That's why Rohan Marley, Bob Marley's son, collaborated with us for his Lion Order brand. He told me this is where culture meets science.

Our products center around filtration and cooling. ACNA (American Cannabis Nurses Association) tried our products and said it was better than vaping because when this pipe is smoked properly with our charcoal filter, the smoke temperature coming out of the tip is around 110 degrees Fahrenheit, compared to vapes which run much hotter.

Let's talk about the design intent. The Maze X Pipe is only 5 inches long, but the smoke path inside is about 14 inches long. It uses a removable borosilicate glass bowl where you burn the flower. You can pre-pack multiple bowls, put them in a smell-proof case, and take them hiking or fishing instead of reloading on the go.

When you burn flower in the glass bowl, the smoke hits the floor of the chamber, leaves heavy resin and tar behind, elevates, and enters the maze. The pipe easily disassembles in seconds, exposing all internal surfaces for easy cleaning. The body is anodized aluminum, which cools the smoke down further.

Inside the maze, the smoke doesn't travel on a simple helix. It hits walls, stops, changes direction, and zigzags. This maze path accelerates and cools the smoke over a 14-inch journey within a 1.25-inch chamber. That's why you only need a slight, slow pull for 1 to 1.5 seconds.

Eddie: There's a carburetor hole on the side. What I do is hold the pipe in my left hand with my thumb over the carburetor, take a couple of sips, then cover the carburetor and close the cap to put out the cherry and save flower.

Michael: Exactly. The cylindrical shape of the bowl keeps the cherry lit for 5 to 7 seconds if you want to take another puff, but putting the cap on cuts off oxygen and saves your flower.

For new smokers, you can also draw a tiny bit of fresh air from the sides of your mouth while sipping.

After about a week of daily use, you'll see resin trapped in the first few rings of the maze. The flexible maze material is medical-grade silicone—one grade above food-grade silicone used in baking molds. It's non-toxic, highly inert, and completely safe.

At the end of the pipe, there is a removable filter tip. If you're sharing with a friend, you can each use your own filter tip for hygiene. Inside that tip is a stainless steel screen that catches unburnt particles, resin, and tar before it reaches your mouth. Removing those unwanted elements unlocks the taste of the terpenes.

Eddie: Let's talk about cleaning. I keep my devices clean—I clean my pipes every time I use them. You can submerge the disassembled parts in isopropyl alcohol in the included case or a Ziploc bag for 10 to 15 minutes to loosen up resin, then wipe with a Q-tip and wash with dish soap.

Michael: Clean pipes directly improve your experience. Ultrasonic cleaners also work amazingly well for glass bowls.

We also designed a small tamping tool that attaches to a Bic lighter. You can scoop ground flower into the bowl without touching it with your fingers, preventing sticky hands or allergic reactions, and then use the other end to tamp the bowl down.

Everything we do has a design intent to solve a specific problem. We ship worldwide, carry products online, and focus heavily on safety and education.

Eddie: We'll put a link in the description. Even if you don't get the Maze X Pipe, consider these design principles when evaluating other products.

Michael: Absolutely. We want to help people make informed decisions. We have 12 people in our company, live support with no automated replies, and we are dedicated to helping people live better and smoke safer.

Eddie: Well, thank you, Michael. We look forward to our next conversation where we talk about the one-hitter system. For those watching, check out the link in the description for a discount. Thank you all for watching, and we'll see you in the next video.

Michael: Thank you very much.