The Tempest 2 edges the Vestratto Anvil, 9.0 to 8.7 in our reviews. It leads on flavor, ease and value, and its heat gauge makes good sessions easy to repeat. The Anvil is the pick for dense hits and shared sessions, since one heat cycle gives you a long, unhurried draw.
Key differences
- Heating: a zirconia ball cap with convection-heavy heating (Tempest 2) against a CopperCore thermal battery with hybrid heating (Anvil).
- Feedback: a three-line visual gauge on the Tempest 2; loud snap-disc clicks on the Anvil.
- Draw window: a long, unhurried draw per heat cycle on the Anvil, thanks to its CopperCore.
- Bowls: an adjustable 0.1, 0.15 or 0.2 g chamber on the Tempest 2; Half (0.05 g), Full (0.1 g) and XL (0.2 g) bowls on the Anvil, with one bowl in the box and extras at $35 each.
- Size: the Tempest 2 is 46 g and 122 mm long, the Anvil 65 g and 75 mm tall.
- Price: $225 US list price for the Tempest 2, $229 for the Anvil.
- Warranty: one year from Mad Heaters; Vestratto handles claims case by case.
Anvil vs Tempest 2: flavor and vapor
Both pack desktop-style density into a pocket body, but they get there differently. The Tempest 2 heats a bed of zirconia balls in its cap. That stored heat flows through your cannabis as hot air on each draw. In our sessions, it gave cleaner flavor and extracted in fewer draws.
The Anvil stores heat in a copper layer between steel walls. Where you aim the torch shapes the session: the top ring for flavor, lower down for heavy extraction. Through glass, its density approaches a desktop ball vape, while dry hits get harsh at higher extraction temperatures. Both run through water: Vestratto sells 14 mm and 18 mm adapters for the Anvil, and the Tempest 2 works with 10, 14 and 18 mm glass through the matching adapter.
The vapor scores are close, 9.6 to 9.4, with the edge to the Tempest 2 for taste.
Heating and ease of use
The Tempest 2's visual gauge takes out most of the guesswork. A green pointer climbs across three lines, and stopping at the same one gives very similar draws. We found our favorite heat level easier to hit again than with the Anvil's clicks.
The Anvil's click is loud and hard to miss, but how much heat sits behind it depends on your torch aim. That takes practice, and a magnet makes handling its hot bowl far easier. It scores 7.5 for ease against 7.8 for the Tempest 2.
Neither one is built for quick reloads. The Anvil stays hot for a while after a session. The Tempest 2's balls hold heat for several minutes, and its click won't re-engage until the cap cools.
Sharing and session style
This is where the Anvil fights back hardest. After the click, its CopperCore keeps feeding heat through a long, unhurried draw. Standard torch vapes cool faster and need reheating sooner, so the Anvil makes passing it around a group genuinely practical.
The Tempest 2 suits a more focused solo session instead. At its default 0.15 g setting, we cleared the bowl in a single heat cycle with rich, clean flavor.
Size and build
Both score 9.8 for build, with threads that mate with zero play. The Tempest 2 is Grade 5 titanium, 46 g and cigar-shaped at 122 mm. The Anvil is 316 stainless steel, 65 g and just 75 mm tall, closer to a thick marker.
The Tempest 2 is lighter in the pocket, while the Anvil is shorter and disappears in a closed hand.
What it costs to get started
Neither vape ships with a torch, so budget for a good single-flame butane torch lighter either way. The Anvil comes with one oven and one bowl at $229, extra bowls are $35 each, and the magnet case is $42. Vestratto sells it as a pre-order with no returns. If you'd rather skip the flame, the Forge Version 2 induction heater costs $369 before its Milwaukee M12 battery. The Tempest 2 is $225 with all three chamber sizes built in, and it also works with the YLL 3.0 or Ispire Wand induction heater, sold separately.
Which should you buy?
- Flavor-first solo sessions: the Tempest 2.
- Passing it around a group: the Anvil, with its long draw window.
- Bong-style density through glass: the Anvil, via a 14 mm or 18 mm adapter.
- Repeatable results with less practice: the Tempest 2 and its gauge.
- Microdosing: the Anvil, since its Half Bowl takes 0.05 g, half the Tempest 2's smallest 0.1 g setting.
- Tinkerers: the Tempest 2 for swappable ball media and a three-position chamber, the Anvil for three swappable bowls and a choice of ThermoCore or DuraCore oven.
Both rank on our best butane vaporizers list, with the Tempest 2 on top. Our ball vape explainer covers how the Tempest 2's heat matrix works.
