It's weird that you say "blow a new bubble on the end" cuz it definitely shows the differences in different parts of the world.
The old taking a test tube & blowing a bubble thing hasn't been the norm, hell, hasn't really been done much at all the last few years. At least where I'm from.
It's just so much easier to walk to your nearest clinic or convenience store and pickup/buy one. The clinic gives handfuls away for free, & the convenience stores sell them for varying prices.
(My old town used to sell them for $2, the place I live now sells em for $7. But I've seen them as low as $1.25 and as high as $13).
But I agree fully with the torch method. It's crazy to me that I've not seen (or don't recall seeing) any clean pipes in the media tho. Like what are the odds that nobody has gotten busted shortly after cleaning their pipe?