Pre-Roll 101: How To Choose a Filter Tip

When it comes to essential smoking accessories, a filter tip comes in many varieties and materials are absolutely crucial. This is not only to avoid any ash, stray particles, or “scooby snacks” that can come with unfiltered joints and blunts but also to have an undeniably smoother smoke. Filter tips can even wildly change the flavor of the smoke itself to flavors that Willy Wonka could only dream of.

Filter tips are made from materials that range from spiral paper all the way to ceramic and each provides a unique taste and experience to the smoke session. 

Glass Tips

For starters, there are the luxurious glass filter tips and the many benefits that these filters, in particular, offer. Unlike other paper or cardboard-based filters, glass filter tips don’t heat up nearly as quickly when the joint is running low, so consumers won’t have to worry about unnecessary or uneven burning of their flower. Specifically for environmentally conscious consumers who roll their own joints and blunts, most glass filter tips are reusable, can be used with almost any cone or blunt wrap, and are very easily cleanable. Several glass filter tips also have a natural cooling effect on the smoke, ensuring cleaner smoke and smoother hits.

Wood Tips

The next choice would be wood filter tips, which also offer various smoking benefits. Unlike other materials, wooden filter tips are undeniably the sturdiest base for hand-rolled joints. Even safer, the wooden filter tips don’t conduct heat nearly as much as some other filter materials, so your fingers won’t get burned. Wood filter tips are a perfect fit for joints and blunts alike and even a suitable fit for illustrious cannagars, meaning that the wood filter tips are endlessly useful. Even better, some of them can be flavor-scented and will add all types of tastes to the smoke. 

Spiral Tips

In terms of the strongest protection from stray particles and other unpleasant matter that sometimes gets through the filter, the spiral filter tip has a natural advantage over the other types with its tightly spinning design. This design provides the necessary protection from unwanted elements. As opposed to a more traditional W filter tip, the spiral design provides more stability and firmness to the base of the joint than most other filter designs. Given the cylindrical design of the filter, the spiral filter tips are a perfect fit for tube wraps in particular. However, blunt wrap cones with spiral filters are becoming more common, too. And because paper is far easier to print on than glass or wood, most spiral filter tips are also customizable, so designs and logos could be memorably printed on them.

Ceramic Tips

In terms of unique design, ceramic filter tips certainly take home the award. Looking wildly different from the spiral or W filter tip, the rounded ceramic filter tip possesses nine small holes and carries the advantage of being nearly unbreakable and uncrushable because of the strongly durable material. Even more similar to its glass counterpart, ceramic filter tips are also decently heat-resistant, so consumers also won’t have to worry about getting burned. Also, like glass, ceramic filter tips are fully reusable for most types of other rolling papers, from refined white joint papers to the most amber of blunt wraps.                          

Final Thoughts

The subjective question of which filter tip is truly the best is hard to answer, as each type of filter tip brings its own special benefits to smoking pre-rolled cones and tubes. Which filter tip a consumer will enjoy the most depends on personal preference and taste, but luckily, there are a plentiful number of creative options for cannabis connoisseurs to pick from.