The Vestratto Anvil wins, 8.7 to 8.1 overall. It leads the Vapman 2.0 on vapor, ease of use, value and build, and it gives you a far longer draw window per heat. The Vapman 2.0 wins on portability, so pick it if you want rich flavor from tiny loads in a 50 g body.
Key differences
- US list price: $229 for the Anvil, $199 for the Vapman 2.0.
- Build and weight: 65 g of 316 stainless steel against 50 g of hardwood and gold-plated copper.
- Ready cue: the Anvil's snap discs click when it's hot. The Vapman 2.0 has no click or indicator at all.
- Bowl size: Half, Full and XL Anvil bowls hold about 0.05, 0.1 and 0.2 g. The Vapman tops out at 0.1 g.
- In the box: the Vapman set includes an egg case, a filling funnel and a concentrate screen. The Anvil ships with one bowl and no case, torch or cleaning tools. Vestratto's magnet case adds $42 and extra bowls are $35 each.
Vapor and extraction
The Anvil scores 9.4 for vapor against 8.8, and the difference is heat storage. Its CopperCore oven soaks up torch heat and feeds it back after the click. A hard heat can clear the full 0.1 g bowl in one pull. Through a water pipe, its density approaches what we get from desktop ball vapes.
The Vapman 2.0 plays a quieter game. Its gold-plated copper wok gave us some of the purest terpene flavor of any portable, with no metallic edge. A load runs 3 to 5 short heat cycles, starting thin and flavorful and building to visible clouds by the third or fourth. When the taste turns to roasted popcorn, the bowl is done.
Torch technique and learning curve
Neither is plug and play, but the Anvil is easier to learn, scoring 7.5 for ease against 6.2. Its snap discs click when the bowl is ready, then click again as it cools, so you always know where you are in the cycle. Where you aim the flame sets the session. The top ring gives flavor, and the bottom thermal battery gives full extraction. Vestratto suggests a slower 40 to 45 second heat while you learn.
The Vapman 2.0 leaves you on your own. With a jet flame under the bowl, the listed heat-up is about 3 seconds from cold. A second too long can tip the bowl into combustion, so start with short bursts and build up.
Both skip the battery. Each also has a torch-free option sold separately: the Forge induction heater for the Anvil, and the Vapman Heating Station for the Vapman.
Size, carry and sharing
The Vapman 2.0 leads portability 9.5 to 8.8. At 50 g it sits in your palm, and the egg case protects the wood. The Anvil is still pocket sized at 75 mm tall, but its steel body stays hot for a while after a session. Between bowls, you unscrew the hot Anvil bowl with a magnet before you reload, while the Vapman just needs a quick empty and reload.
Sharing flips the result. The Anvil's long draw window makes it easy to pass around. With the Vapman's small bowl and fussy timing, handing it to a newcomer is stressful, and you reload often.
Microdosing and hash
This is the Vapman's home turf. It works with loads as small as 0.03 g, which makes it our favorite butane vape for microdosing cannabis. Its steel concentrate screen also handles hash, which lasted 10 to 15 heat cycles in our sessions against 3 to 5 for flower.
The Anvil is built for the opposite job: full, fast extraction, ideally through glass. Vestratto sells 14 mm and 18 mm adapters for water pipes.
Which should you buy?
- Big-hit fans and water pipe users: the Anvil, second in our best butane vaporizers ranking.
- Newer torch users: the Anvil, whose snap discs click when the bowl is ready.
- Microdosers: the Vapman 2.0, which stretches cannabis further than any portable we've tested.
- Hash users: the Vapman 2.0, with its concentrate screen.
- Group sessions: the Anvil, with its long draw window per heat.
- Lighter carry: the Vapman 2.0 at 50 g.
