What Is a Shotty on a Bong? Australian Bong Terminology Explained
What is a shotty on a bong? Learn what the shotty hole does, how it differs from removing the cone piece, and why many Billy Mate bongs include a removable shotty plug.
If you have shopped for a bong in Australia, you have probably seen the word shotty in a product description. For Australians, it is a familiar term. For someone new to glass bongs, however, it can be confusing.
A shotty is a small opening built into the side of a bong that can be covered or left open depending on how the bong is configured. Internationally, you may hear a similar feature referred to as a carb hole or carburettor hole.
Many Billy Mate bongs include both a shotty and a removable rubber plug, giving you the choice of using the bong with the traditional shotty configuration or keeping the shotty sealed. Billy Mate beaker bongs are a good example. Let's look at exactly what that means.
A shotty is a small hole positioned on the body of a bong, normally somewhere near the lower chamber. It is separate from:
- The cone piece
- The downstem
- The main glass joint
- The mouthpiece
The shotty provides an additional air opening in the bong. It is usually small enough to be covered by a finger, or on some designs, sealed using a removable plug.
The exact location depends on the bong design. On many glass bongs, including some Billy Mate beakers, you will find the shotty on the side of the lower chamber.
A typical layout runs from the mouthpiece down through the neck, the ice catcher and into the water chamber. The cone piece and downstem enter on one side of the chamber, while the shotty sits on another section of the chamber. It is usually very easy to identify once you know what you are looking for.
A shotty gives the bong an additional airflow opening. Traditional Australian bong designs commonly included one, which is why the term is so familiar locally.
However, many modern glass bongs, particularly international designs, are made without a shotty. Instead, those designs rely on the removable cone piece and joint configuration. Neither approach means the bong is necessarily better. They are simply different styles of construction.
This is worth highlighting because it is a useful feature across many Billy Mate bong designs. Most Billy Mate bongs that include a shotty also come with a removable shotty plug. That means you are not locked into one configuration. You can leave the shotty available, or insert the plug and keep the shotty sealed. This gives you more flexibility from the same bong.
Billy Mate beaker bongs are a good example of this design. Many include:
- A glass cone piece
- A removable diffused downstem
- An ice catcher
- A shotty
- A rubber shotty plug
So if you prefer a bong with a traditional Australian shotty, you have it. If you prefer the shotty sealed, simply use the supplied plug.
A shotty plug is a small removable plug designed to seal the shotty opening. Billy Mate commonly supplies a rubber shotty plug on compatible bong models. When fitted correctly, it closes the opening. This effectively gives the bong two possible configurations.
Shotty Open
The bong retains its traditional shotty opening.
Shotty Plugged
The shotty remains sealed.
This is particularly convenient because you do not need two different bong designs to have both options.
Because people have different preferences. Some Australian customers specifically want a bong with a shotty. Others prefer a modern glass configuration without one. By building the shotty into the bong and supplying a plug, Billy Mate can accommodate both preferences. It is a small detail, but a practical one.
Billy Mate beaker bongs are a particularly good example. Depending on the model, a Billy Mate beaker may include a wide beaker base, borosilicate glass construction, a glass ice catcher, a removable diffused glass downstem, a 14mm glass cone piece, a shotty, a rubber shotty plug and Billy Mate branding. Some are available in different heights and glass thicknesses as well.
This means the shotty is only one component of the overall design. When comparing Billy Mate beakers, check the full product specifications because measurements and features can vary between models.
This is where people sometimes become confused. The shotty and cone piece are completely different parts.
Cone Piece
The cone piece is the removable glass or metal component attached to the bong's downstem or joint.
Shotty
The shotty is a small opening built directly into the bong body.
They may both affect airflow through the bong, but physically they are completely different components.
They are also not the same thing. The joint is the ground-glass connection used to attach components such as the downstem, cone piece, ash catcher and adapter. A shotty is simply a separate hole in the bong body.
A bong can therefore have a 19mm joint, a 19/14mm downstem, a 14mm cone piece and a shotty with a rubber plug all at the same time. Our 14mm vs 19mm Bong Joints guide explains the joint sizes.
Internationally, the term carb hole is more commonly used. In Australia, shotty is the familiar term. The two terms are often describing essentially the same type of feature, although terminology can vary between manufacturers and bong designs. For the Billy Mate website, we use shotty because it is immediately recognisable to Australian customers.
No. Billy Mate has many different bong designs, and features vary by model. However, many Billy Mate bongs, particularly our beaker-style models, include a shotty together with a rubber plug. Always check the product specifications. If a bong has one, we will generally list it as something like "shotty with rubber cap" or "shotty with plug". This lets you know that the opening can be sealed.
No. Beaker describes the shape of the bong, not whether it has a shotty. A beaker bong has a wider lower chamber shaped somewhat like laboratory glassware. A manufacturer can make a beaker with a shotty, without a shotty, with a plugged shotty, or with different joint configurations. So never assume a bong has a shotty simply because it is a beaker. Our Beaker Bong vs Straight Bong guide explains the shape in more detail.
Yes. A straight bong can also have a shotty. Again, the bong's external shape and the presence of a shotty are separate design choices. You might find a straight bong with a shotty, a straight bong without one, a beaker with a shotty or a beaker without one. The individual product tells you what is included.
The shotty itself is normally built into the bong. It is an opening formed through the glass body. The plug is removable. So you would not normally replace the shotty itself like you would replace a downstem or cone piece. If the supplied rubber plug becomes lost or damaged, however, the plug can potentially be replaced with the correct size.
No. A bong with a removable downstem normally has a much larger ground-glass joint where the stem enters. This might be a 19mm connection. The shotty is much smaller and does not hold a downstem. That gives you two separate openings on the bong.
Main Glass Joint
For the downstem and cone piece assembly.
Shotty
A smaller secondary air opening.
Look around the bong chamber for a small circular opening separate from the downstem joint. If it contains a small rubber plug, that is another strong indication you are looking at the shotty. On product photographs, it may look like a small dark or black dot if the rubber plug is already installed. This is why some customers do not immediately realise their bong has a shotty.
On many Billy Mate models, that small black rubber component is the shotty plug. It is intentional. It is not packaging, a shipping protector, part of the downstem, or a piece that needs to be discarded. It is supplied so the shotty can remain sealed when desired. That is worth mentioning because someone unfamiliar with the feature could otherwise remove it and throw it away.
Yes. That is one of the reasons Billy Mate supplies the plug. If you prefer the bong configured without an open shotty, the plug can remain installed. If you want access to the shotty, remove the plug.
So a compatible Billy Mate bong effectively gives you two setups. For the traditional configuration, remove the plug and use the shotty. For a sealed setup, keep the plug installed. Simple.
Yes. Because the plug sits directly against the bong body, it can collect residue over time. When cleaning the bong:
- Remove the rubber plug
- Clean the plug separately
- Clean around the shotty opening
- Rinse everything thoroughly
- Allow the components to dry before reassembling
This also prevents residue from accumulating around the edge of the opening.
Shotty plugs are small. They are also very easy to put down during cleaning and forget about. Billy's practical rule is to put the shotty plug beside the cone piece and downstem whenever you disassemble the bong. Keeping all three removable components together makes them much harder to lose.
Not significantly. It actually provides another opening into the chamber, although residue can accumulate around its edges. When cleaning a bong with a shotty, pay attention to the inside edge of the hole, the outer glass around the opening, the rubber plug and the small groove where the plug sits. The rest of the cleaning process remains much the same.
A plug should sit securely in the opening it was designed for. If it becomes loose, split, damaged, hardened or misshapen, replace it rather than trying to force it into position. A plug that does not fit properly may not seal the opening as intended.
Yes, particularly when replacing the plug. Unlike standard ground-glass joint sizes such as 14mm and 19mm, shotty openings are not necessarily described using the same universal sizing system. If you need a replacement plug, it is better to match it to the actual bong or original plug.
No. These are separate measurements. Your downstem is selected according to specifications such as joint size, overall length, joint-to-bottom length and diffuser design. The presence of a shotty does not turn a 19/14mm downstem into a different size. Our How to Measure a Bong Downstem Correctly guide explains how to find the right replacement.
A typical Billy Mate beaker may combine several features:
- Mouthpiece: the opening at the top
- Neck: the long vertical glass section
- Ice catcher: glass pinches inside the neck
- Beaker chamber: the wide lower section
- Shotty: the small side opening
- Rubber shotty plug: used to seal the shotty
- Downstem: often a removable diffused glass stem
- Cone piece: often a removable glass cone with a handle
- Glass joint: commonly part of a 19/14mm stem configuration
- Base: the wide bottom of the beaker
The ice catcher is one of the features that many buyers ask about. Our Bong Parts Explained: Complete Diagram and Guide covers all of these components individually.
Australian bong culture has its own terminology and preferences, and the shotty is part of that. Rather than removing it completely from traditional-style designs, many Billy Mate bongs retain the feature while adding a removable plug. That means someone who wants the traditional configuration can have it, while someone who prefers the shotty sealed can do that too. One bong, two options.
If having a shotty matters to you, check the specifications for wording such as "shotty", "shotty with rubber cap" or "shotty with plug". Also check the other important specifications:
- Bong height
- Glass thickness
- Base diameter
- Joint size
- Downstem size
- Cone piece size
- Ice catcher
- Percolator
The shotty is only one part of the complete bong.
Billy's Tip: If your new Billy Mate bong arrives with a small rubber plug in the shotty, keep it. It is there deliberately. The plug gives you the option to keep the shotty sealed rather than limiting the bong to only one configuration.
So what is a shotty on a bong? A shotty is a small secondary opening built into the bong body. In Australia, shotty is the familiar name for this feature. And on many Billy Mate bongs, including many of our beaker models, we include a shotty plus a removable rubber plug, so you can configure the bong with the shotty open or with the shotty sealed. It is a simple feature that gives you more choice.
Billy Mate beaker bongs are available across different heights, glass thicknesses, base diameters, colours, downstem lengths and cone piece designs. Many models combine a shotty and removable plug with other practical features such as diffused glass downstems and ice catchers. Check the individual product specifications to see exactly what each model includes.