Did I just make a huge mistake?

[OrganizedMadman]

I've been a pipe smoker for about a year, in that time I've amassed a collection of about 20 briar, clay, & cob pipes, and around a dozen jars of English, Danish, German, & American premium pipe tobacco. I'm comfortable with the tobacco pipe smoking world and its selection, quality, etc.
Hookah/shisha however is a different story!
I've enjoyed the occasional hookah at my local 24hr "hippie" eatery/hookah bar, but I have a pretty good idea that there is better shisha than what's offered there.
So here's where I may have messed up...I'm on a tight budget at the moment and I ended up buying
ONE OF THESE right before I registered here, and learnt me some much needed edumacation!!
I should be receiving it in a couple days.
Just how badly did I waste my money?
(In my defense I knew enough from my little research to buy a few 50g boxes of Al Fakher instead of Starbuzz)

[blink182]

You should just ask for a refund because you thought it was something else.

Really badly...those are cheaper than smoking dried wheat or grass

[Aesir Elite]

There are numerous options that are slightly more expensive that smoke far better. See MYA QT or Petite.

[Zyst]

What they said, if you can go the distance and buy a cheap KM from ultimatehookah.com or 5starhookah.com (Ultimate hookah has a 30% discount on all KMs, so you can get them relatively for CHEAP) you will NOT regret it, and with proper maintenance they could very well last you a life time. That pumpkin with frequent smoking would last uhm... 3-5 ish months? Myas are not that bad, never owned one and don't really plan on buying one but if that's your cup of tea then that's fine. I think 5star gives you some free tobacco and coals with your purchase, sadly quick lights.

But welcome to the forum, you've made the first big step into becoming REALLY good at this stuff.

Happy Smoking!

[gagli011]

Sorry...but a hookah like that is what a lot of member on here probably had before they really understood what hookah was all about. Don't feel bad, most people have owned a Chinese hookah at one point without knowing the quality. Send it back, or smoke it for a a few weeks and trash it at the first sign of rust. You will learn much here at HP, as I did.

[CenlaKokem]

That actually looks like the very first hookah I ever purchased. Needless to say, I ended up buying something better just a couple months down the road. Luckily you got off a lot cheaper than I did. I didn't know any better but totally could have bought a better pipe than I did. AF is good and you will recieve a lot of bashing around here for smoking SB, but if that's what you like then it's all good man. Don't listen to a lot of that hate. I still smoke it. You can get some good sessions with that pumpkin but don't expect it to last you too long.

[Zyst]

Originally Posted by CenlaKokem

That actually looks like the very first hookah I ever purchased. Needless to say, I ended up buying something better just a couple months down the road. Luckily you got off a lot cheaper than I did. I didn't know any better but totally could have bought a better pipe than I did. AF is good and you will recieve a lot of bashing around here for smoking SB, but if that's what you like then it's all good man. Don't listen to a lot of that hate. I still smoke it. You can get some good sessions with that pumpkin but don't expect it to last you too long.

The thing about pumpkins (one of my friends has one) is that the pull is incredibly restricted, you can't really use a better hose on it to help with the pull because they are too light and get toppled over really easily. He came here soon and has a chance to return it and he should.

But good advice. AF is one of my favorite brands, probably my favorite after nakhla (haven't tried tangiers yet).

Happy smoking!

[Crossfire82]

eh for 12 bucks it will serve its purpose. Maybe just for a couple months but just long enough for you to get some experience and know what you like and dislike.

[uglybiker]

Well, you didn't waste too much money. Just write it off as 'live and learn'.
Anyways, you'll most likely be wanting something better before too long. Great places to start will be at socialsmoke.com with their Magdy Zidan hookahs or Hookahstore.com with their egyptian style Nours. Both are great brands that are priced inexpensively.
And don't forget to check our Vendor's forum as both offer discounts for Hookahpro members.

And before I forget, welcome to HP!

[FenriaTheWolf]

be glad you didnt pay more for it ^_^

[Twitchy15]

everyone makes mistakes when there new to hookah, at least it was under 30 bucks, if you cant get a refund i would just research more and then figure out what you want to buy !

[ozdrummer]

Originally Posted by blink182

You should just ask for a refund because you thought it was something else.

Really badly...those are cheaper than smoking dried wheat or grass

haha yea this is true. just save up and get a Mya or a KM.

but at least you opted for AF instead of Shitballz.

[Improvise]

For a cheap hookah look at the KM monarch from Southsmoke.com

its about 70 bucks and will last forever, plus it will smoke great

[Gemini]

Myas will smoke smoke great !
Inexpensive, small and portable.

KM's are more expensive
But even better hookahs.
Come in many sizes and styles.
Lasts pretty much a life time

Never tried the nours before, I actually might grab one myself to find out.

[Jtrainx5]

your lucky i blew $60 on my first cheap rig on ebay. went to a mya Vento and love it. ordered my first KM last night.

almost everyone starts that way

[Spudz]

Well, yeah...that prolly won't last too long. Just clean it and dry it after each use as best you can. But, seeing as how you are used to the briar. Let me tell you, there is a whole word of Black Leaf tobacco waiting out there and I am sure you will enjoy it!

[OrganizedMadman]

Thanks for the awesome welcome guys!
When I first plunged into pipe smoking I bought a little $9.00 estate pipe off eBay and ordered a tin of MacBaren Vanilla Cream Flake.
The pipe smoked hot and gurglely but the MacB's still holds a fond place on my heart, I still keep it in my rotation.
I keep hearing about Black Leaf, what is it all about exactly?

Sent from my iPod Shuffle using Forum Runner

[uglybiker]

Blackleaf is the older style moessel. No flavorings, just tobacco and molasses. Easily available are Nakhla Zaghloul, Khan el Khallili, , Al Fakher Soft Black and Desi Murli Plain.
As a pipe smoker, I imagine you will enjoy those.

[ProHookahGamer]

Well you probably messed up by buying it from a local shop, wasted probably a lot of money there. But a pumpkin hookah is a great starter hookah so i don't think it was a total waste. But you will have to replace it soon within 3 months.

[OrganizedMadman]

Originally Posted by ProHookahGamer

Well you probably messed up by buying it from a local shop,

But I didn't buy it from a local shop. :P
The link in my original post is the merchant I purchased it from.

Sent from my iPod Shuffle using Forum Runner

[OrganizedMadman]

Thanks for all the info guys!
What's the ideal height for basic hookah?
And in a smoke-off who would win, Nour or MZ? They both seem so similar.

[Nimbusman2012]

Yea i mean for a first hookah, its whatever, and the link said it was pretty cheap so its not like your not getting what you paid for. Also all my friends beg me to bring my KM to parties and i never do(out of fear), so you could make that into a little party hookah

[OrganizedMadman]

It's something to start out with I guess.
I've picked two models and posted here:
http://www.hookahpro.com/forum/showthread.php?t=50583
I don't know which one to pick yet.

[momentum]

This is not a huge mistake, it's a small mistake. Trust me I've seen people drop so much cash on the shittiest hookahs/coals/herbal shisha. For the price, this learning lesson was a bargain. I've done much worse in my early days.

[john_6_2]

Originally Posted by Improvise

For a cheap hookah look at the KM monarch from Southsmoke.com

its about 70 bucks and will last forever, plus it will smoke great

I ordered the Monarch from here got it in the mail yesterday & I love it.