I've heard a few people sing their praises, and a few say that they're not worth it. Some cost $80, some are $400, but I don't really know what makes one better than the other, or either of them better than a $20 glass pipe.
Sometimes if I'm smoking every day I'll develop a cough, so I'm guessing that it's not that great for my lungs. Would a vaporizer be better?
Dynavap is the vaporizer that is closest to a bong rip, but requires a bit of practice to use to its full effectiveness.
You have to heat it up with a torch, basically like a fancy crack pipe?
they sell a fancy little induction heater for them. my friend used to have one it actually gets you blasted, insanely efficient way of using green.
Yup. With the standard version you spin it so that it heats up evenly, but the M Plus, armored cap, and FMJ options are designed so you can just point the torch at a designated spot to get it hot enough.
I highly recommend the magnetic dugouts as they give you a spot to store it as the tip cools down and an easy way to remove a warm tip.
If you are using a standard bic/clipper lighter, then you want to bury the tip in the flame as you spin it.