A ball vape is a dry herb vaporizer that uses a heater filled with small ruby or quartz balls. The balls act as a heat exchanger, storing thermal energy so your inhale gets hit with a stable wall of hot air for very fast, efficient extraction.

Ball vapes run hot, so you should avoid touching the heater and let the device cool fully before handling. With the Elev8 Baller Series, the ruby media is sealed inside a thick glass heater cover on a stable angled base, which helps keep the setup secure when used responsibly.

Do I need a water pipe for a ball vape?

You do not need a water pipe, but ball vapes are often used through glass because the vapor is denser than a standard desktop. The Elev8 Baller Series still works well with whips and wands, and you can pair it with water when you want maximum cooling.

What is the difference between 3 millimeter and 6 millimeter rubies?

Three millimeter ruby balls give more total surface area and create the strongest heat wall effect, which means faster and heavier hits. Six millimeter rubies use fewer balls and provide a slightly more open airflow with a softer ramp. Both are strong upgrades over a stock heater.

Can a ball vape handle concentrates?

Many ball vapes can be used with concentrates when paired with the right accessories and lower temperatures. The Elev8 Baller Series keeps compatibility with existing Surfer concentrate attachments, while focusing on elite performance with dry herb.

Ball vapes and the Elev8 baller series heater

Ball vapes are the heavy hitters of dry herb. They use ruby balls as a heat exchanger so your inhale is met with a solid wall of hot air instead of random wisps of hot and cold.

The Elev8 baller series turns the Silver Surfer, Super Surfer, and Da Buddha into modern ball vapes while keeping everything people love about our desktops: Angled design, ceramic heater, and hand blown glass made in colorado springs.

Learn about the SSV Learn about the Super Learn about the DBV

Already own a Surfer? just grab the baller series heater conversion and upgrade your existing unit.

Shop baller series heater covers

Silver Surfer Baller Series heater glowing with ruby balls

Da Buddha vaporizer upgraded with baller series heater

What is a ball vape

A ball vape is a desktop dry herb vaporizer that uses a heater packed with tiny ruby or quartz balls. Those balls act like a thermal battery. They soak up heat from the coil, then blast your airflow with a consistent, high energy stream of hot air when you inhale.

Classic desktops still rip, but the airflow passes over hotter and cooler zones on the heater, so you get small variations in temperature. You can think of it as little wisps of hot air and little wisps of cooler air. A ball vape evens that out. Air is forced through a dense bed of hot ruby, so almost every bit of air gets charged to vaping temperature.

The result is denser clouds, faster extraction, and deeper effects from the same amount of flower, especially through a water pipe or bubbler.

Uses ruby or quartz balls as a heat exchanger
Massively increases convection surface area
Concentrates heat into a stable wall of hot air
Optimized for heavy hits through glass

Cutaway diagram showing ruby balls packed around a heater coil

Think of the ruby balls as a turbocharged heat exchanger for your flower.

How ball vapes work: From wisps of heat to a heat wall

Standard desktop heater

Our classic ceramic Surfer heater is already incredibly capable. air passes over a hot element, picks up heat, and extracts your bowl over several tasty pulls. Like most traditional vapes, the airflow can move across slightly hotter and cooler zones.

That means your inhale sometimes experiences wisps of hotter air and wisps of cooler air. You still get full extraction. it just takes a few more pulls and the vapor ramps up gradually.

Illustration of uneven ribbons of heat from a standard heater

Ball vape heat exchanger

With the baller series heater cover, the heater cavity is filled with ruby balls. when the coil warms up, those rubies all come up to temperature and store that energy. Now every bit of air you pull has to weave its way through a packed bed of hot ruby.

Instead of streaks of hot and cold, you get a solid wall of hot air that hits your herb at once. That is why ball vapes can crush a bowl in one to three pulls and feel close to a dab while still using flower.

Illustration of a uniform wall of hot air moving through ruby balls

Ruby sizes: 3 millimeter and 6 mm

We offer two baller series heater options so you can tune the way the hit feels:

3 millimeter baller cover: 150 to 200 rubies for maximum surface area, the fastest extraction, and the strongest heat wall effect.
6 millimeter baller cover: around 35 rubies For more open airflow and a slightly gentler ramp while still hitting very hard.

Both options keep the classic surfer feel while adding serious horsepower.

Photo of 3 millimeter and 6 millimeter ruby balls used in baller series

Types of ball vapes

Most ball vapes fall into two main groups: injector style and diffuser style. Knowing the difference makes it easy to see where the Elev8 baller series fits in and why our design is safer.

Injector style (elev8 surfers)

Injector ball vapes park a hot, ball filled heater above a bowl and send a tight column of hot air down through the herb. the hit is almost all convection and it absolutely rips, especially through water.

A lot of injector heads sit bare on an exposed coil stand. the elev8 baller series keeps that same injector-style airflow but locks the heater safely inside the surfer body. The ruby packed heater cover lives inside a solid desktop shell, so the hottest parts are protected and much harder to bump or knock over.

Injector style ball vape with heater safely enclosed in the vaporizer body

Diffuser style (not the Elev8 line)

Diffuser style ball vapes drop the hot ball filled heater directly onto a metal or titanium bowl that is also packed with herb. As the bowl heats up, you get a mix of convection from the hot air and conduction from the hot metal.

This hybrid approach can make extremely dense, heavy hits, but the bowl and heater hardware stay very hot and are usually exposed on the desk. that is not How the Elev8 Surfers work. our bowls are glass, and the heat comes from the ruby packed heater above, not a glowing metal cup under your herb.

Diffuser style ball vape with metal bowl and hybrid conduction convection heating

Safety and why elev8 is the perfect ball vape

With the baller series, the ruby media is sealed inside a thick glass heater cover, mounted on a proven ceramic core, and all of it is housed in a stable, angled desktop shell. there is no loose coil stand and no bare metal bowl glowing on the table.

You still get modern injector-style ball vape performance, but wrapped in the same safe, durable design we have been building since 2004. That balance of power, control, and protection is what makes the Elev8 Surfers an ideal daily driver ball vape.

Elev8 baller series desktop showing stable base and protected heater design

The Elev8 Baller Series Heater

The baller series is our answer to the ball vape world. instead of building a whole new device, we redesigned the heater cover so your Silver Surfer, Super Surfer, or Da Buddha becomes a true ball vape while keeping the proven angled body and ceramic core.

Silver surfer baller

The original Surfer turned into a heat exchanger monster. Perfect for people who want artisan glass, angled design, and ball vape performance in one unit.

Super Surfer baller

All the fun of the Super Surfer with lights, fan, whip or bag, now with ruby powered extraction that can keep up with any modern ball vape setup.

Da Buddha Baller

The workhorse DBV upgraded with a compact ball heater cover. simple, rugged, and now capable of thick, fast extractions with three millimeter or six millimeter rubies.

Shop baller series conversion View all Elev8 desktops

Baller series vs other top ball vapes

Reviewers like troy and jerry and 420 vape zone often highlight devices like the Universal Baller, Vapvana Natural, Screwball, and Terp Hammer with dab ready as some of the hardest hitting ball vapes on the market. This table shows how our baller series stacks up in the real world.

Device	Style	Heater and vapor path	Use case and strengths
Elev8 baller series (SSV, Super, DBV)	Angled desktop with ball heater cover, so your weed only vapes when you use the vape	Ceramic ruby core with glass heater cover packed with three millimeter (150 to 200) or six millimeter (around 35) rubies. Glass, whip, and water pipe options.	Combines classic surfer feel and handmade glass with modern ball vape extraction. upgrade path for existing owners. very flexible for whip, wand, and water setups.
Universal Baller	Corded or cordless diffuser head	Glass lined ball chamber inside a metal housing, filled with small ruby balls and used on a desktop coil station.	Extremely bright flavor and high power. highly modular ball head for coil based setups.
Vapvana Natural	cordless crystal injector	Crystal heater and vapor path originally packed with small gem cut sapphires and now often using two millimeter balls.	Very pure flavor and cordless operation at a premium price. best for flavor focused users who are comfortable with more fragile glass.
Vapvana Screwball	Corded diffuser	Metal housing with a large ball chamber and options for glass or metal bowls for heavy hybrid extraction.	Known for wide open airflow, big bowls, and aggressive power for people who like huge, fast extractions.
Terp hammer with dab ready	Cordless injector on a desktop station	Ball filled injector running on a coil inside the dab ready base. Often used with four millimeter balls and upgraded to three millimeter for stronger hits.	Convenient all in one station for both dabs and dry herb. good if you want a single base for concentrates and flower.

Note: Devices and descriptions are based on public reviewer information. Always check each manufacturer page for the latest specifications, prices, and configurations.

Lineup of different ball vapes on a table

If you already have a surfer, upgrading to the baller series is often the most cost effective way to join the ball vape world. you keep your existing base, glass, and workflow while jumping into modern heat exchanger performance.

Why upgrade your surfer to a ball vape

Big milky cloud from a ball vape through glass

Bigger, faster hits

Ball vapes can fully clear a bowl in just a couple of pulls. If you like big, face melting clouds or need fast relief, the baller series gets you there while you keep your same favorite desktop.

Better efficiency

The heat wall effect extracts more evenly and more deeply. most users find they can use less flower per session while getting stronger effects, especially through water.

Artisan glass on an elev8 surfer vaporizer

Keep the elev8 feel

You still get the angled design, custom glass, and the same ceramic heater technology we have been refining since 2004. you just add ruby media to supercharge it.

Upgrade to a Baller

Close up of ruby balls glowing inside a heater cover

Ball vape faq

Is a ball vape safe

Ball vapes run hot, so you always want to treat the heater like a hot piece of glass or metal. with the baller series, the ruby media is fully enclosed inside a thick glass heater cover and the heater is mounted in a stable, angled surfer body, which keeps things secure and predictable. always keep cords clear, do not touch the hot glass, and let everything cool before handling.

Do i have to use a water pipe

Ball vapes shine through water because of the density of the vapor, but you can still use whips and wands just like a normal surfer. many people like the baller series dry for flavor testing and then switch to a bubbler for full power sessions.

Which should i pick: 3 millimeter or 6 millimeter rubies

If you want maximum punch and the strongest heat wall effect, choose three millimeter rubies with 150 to 200 balls. if you prefer slightly more open airflow and a softer ramp while still getting heavy hits, six millimeter rubies with about 35 balls are a great choice. both are strong upgrades over a stock heater.

How much herb can i load

Most people use similar bowl sizes to their standard surfer sessions. small to medium loads work incredibly well with ball vapes. because the extraction is so fast and even, microdoses hit harder than you would expect.

Can i still use concentrates

Yes. you can still use your surfer with concentrate accessories just like before. ball vapes really shine with flower, but you can still enjoy concentrates using the appropriate attachments and lower temperatures.