E-Nano from Epickai

[cosimo]

OK, I guess I am just an old-school, OG E-Nano kinda guy, but I don't get how the XL stems work. (I'm looking at @cosimo 's picture above loaded up with 5 times too much herb and assuming that's an XL stem.)

I understand that screens are put above and below the weed, unlike my little ol' OG unit. And @cosimo has left out the "upper" screen here (not upper in the picture, but upper after the stem pictured would be inverted and placed on the device).

And, finally, I have heard that the lower screens (like the one pictured here) are the "top hat" style, with a rim.

But how does the stem sit on the "stalk" at the core of the Nano, then? Does the top hat screen "engulf" the tip of the stalk? It seems like it would wobble waaay too much if that were the case, just due to the screen being a bit bumpy, and maybe also not enough depth. And the metal-on-metal of screen to stalk would bother me (like nails on a chalkboard, but without the sound, if that makes sense).

Is this what people are talking about with XL screens from Epic not quite fitting well?

I feel like I'm missing something obvious here (despite my recent PhD in weed, see above ).

I have heard of several people now, here and on /r/vaporents, say that they use only one screen on the XL rather than two, without any issues. I certainly have never had any problem on my OG with just the one screen. Maybe twice in 7 years or so I have found a flake resting on the tip of the "stalk", and perhaps every other week I see something smaller-than-a-typical-pepper-flake sitting way down, at the bottom of the the inside of the log (a quick blow and/or a little "tap" with the unit upside-down usually clears it just fine).

Thanks for any enlightenment that you (@cosimo or whoever) can provide!
(Be careful drawing any diagrams, though: tough room!)

Many XL stems (mostly Ice stems) have an interior diameter that is too wide so the fit of the stem's tip on to the heater is too loose and allows fresh air to come into them stem from above the heater. So, if you skip the cap screen and use those stems as you would do with the OG or NXT, you would get very whispy hits or no vapor at all. With the cap, the stems fit more snug and seal better and vapor production improves... and yes, in the case of WPA or if you want to leave the stem on the vape, the cap helps it wobble way less.

But it seems not all cap screens work properly to seal by themselves and thats why some add the oring. It also seems some stems seal well enough without the cap.

Does this clear thins up?

 

[PeteyS]

I don't have a OG nano, but from the reviews and the length of time that is has been on the market(10+ years?) I think it has a better build than the XL.
I do have a XL, so I can answer a few of your questions.

Yes, the stem sits onto of the heater, but it is wobbly, and depending on the stem you get(They are all slightly different depending on the date your kit was assembeled) It might not make a tight seal. I have three stems, and they are all different lengths, and diameters(By just a hair, But you can tell when you put in a basket screen. It will be tight on one stem, but falls out on the other.

Even with the loose connection, I don't really think it hurts the performance that much. I still get huge rips if I want, and can clear a bowl in 1-2 hits anytime I want.

I don't use the top screen anymore, just the adjustable Bottom screen only. I like to adjust it to a small bowl setting, with it being almost touching the heater. This is how I one shot bowls on temp 6.5(Low temp setting). It's a little bit harsher, but unbelievably good if you like convection style hits with lots of punch, and flavour.

If I was to do it again, I would just buy a OG, or the newer NXT, with a few 8 inch long stems, and the Gong adapter. I think I would be happy with this setup over the XL.

 

[cosimo]

I don't use the top screen anymore, just the adjustable Bottom screen only. I like to adjust it to a small bowl setting, with it being almost touching the heater. This is how I one shot bowls on temp 6.5(Low temp setting). It's a little bit harsher, but unbelievably good if you like convection style hits with lots of punch, and flavour.

With my adjustable screen stem I dont use the cap either and I also push the screen close to the tip to microdose, but 6.5 is waay too hot for me and the toasty flavour come up very fast... in my XL 5.5 is enough for good vapor production and no toasty flavor with stems that seal well. If it doesnt seal well, I gotta increase temp at least 1 point to get good vapor production.

I dont think the problem is with the log itself, its just an issue with the stems.

 

[PeteyS]

Sounds like we both vape similar on the e nano.
I'll try a lower temp, as I love flavour. How many hits do you take at 5.5 before you dump it? And how long of a hit do you take?

 

[cosimo]

Sounds like we both vape similar on the e nano.
I'll try a lower temp, as I love flavour. How many hits do you take at 5.5 before you dump it? And how long of a hit do you take?

First hit with fresh herbs, 7 to 10 seconds long hits, and next hits of the same bowl can be shorter.
The quantity of hits per bowl varies with herbs... with my more resinous herbs I think can get up to 7 flavourfull and varpor dense hits, after that the flavor starts diminishing and i stop hitting that bowl when vapor production stops or if flavour is too diminished; with not so resinous herbs I some times get just one hit or up to 3.
Bare in mind this is all at 5.5 with the adjustable stem, no cap, and load close to heater. I think with the JoDa stem Ill
be able to go ever lower in temp.

 

[nicknobody]

Thanks Cosimo, Thats how I currently wash my baller stem. Do you wait for the stem to fully dry, or do you start vaping right away with it?

I haven’t seen anyone talk about drying cleaned vape parts. I don’t have an enano (yet maybe) but my other logs and all my other devices I dry with this.

RYOBI ONE+ 18V Cordless High Volume Inflator (Tool Only) PCL016B - The Home Depot

The 18V ONE+ High Volume Inflator is the go-to solution for effortless inflation and deflation. With the power to rapidly inflate a queen-size air mattress in under 90 seconds, this inflator boasts the

www.homedepot.com

There are other branded mini inflator/deflators that are exactly the same. Also say you have a collection of different brand tools and batteries, amazon has an adapter for that

I don’t have the patience to wait for pieces to dry with a fan or time

It’s a useful tool for me in many ways. Works great as a mini blower for messes. When I car camp I use it to inflate and deflate air mattresses. Also rafts.

Fairly inexpensive too. Harbor freight sells a re brand. The Ryobi is OFTEN on sale at home depot

 

[PeteyS]

Haha, that's a great way to dry out stems. I actually have one somewhere for camping and bike tires. Maybe I should find it.
I also hate waiting for stems to dry. It takes literally 24 hours most of the time.

Cosimo, thanks for sharing your info about temperatures. I will try out 5.5 next. Im guessing it's a very light/soft hit. Have you ever tried a larger than normal bowl size at low temp. I was thinking that it might hit harder, but still have low temp effects. As I really miss the "throat hit." whenever I vape low temps.

 

[nadia_epic]

@nadia_epic what's your correct website address? I'm getting two on Google: https://epicvape.com/ and https://epickaisupply.com/

Always Epicvape.com or Epickai.com, the staging site has been removed.

 

[cosimo]

Have you ever tried a larger than normal bowl size at low temp.

I have, but stirring would be required and I hate stirring.

On the "throat hit" subject, I avoid feeling anything in my throat (quite sensitive there), and not even the IcE stem is enough for me to tolerate the vapor at 6.5 or more. And the adjustable stem alone at 5.5 as I normally use isnt enough either to cool vapor enoguh for my sensitive throat but lf i try to go below 5.5 vapor prodcutoon reduces drastically but Im 99% sure its because the stem doesnt seal properly. Thats why I got a JoDa stem with internal spikes and about 7 inches long... it should either cool vapor enough for me at 5.5 or seal well enough to allow me to go even lower on the dial . I tried one of JoDa WPA 5.25 and vapor production was amazing and that WPA has barely any play so it seals quite well.

 

[cannasoor]

Does this clear thins up?

Absolutely! Thanks for the labeled pictures—that helps a lot! (I'll get your Weed PhD in the mail ASAP! )

Yes, the stem sits onto of the heater, but it is wobbly,

I have to agree, I think the OG E-Nano stem system sounds and looks a little easier to manage, but as you say, they (really: just Andy?) have had a long time to re-work and fine tune the OG system. Hopefully the XL situation will settle into its optimum place soon (if it's not there already—I've never tried one, so who am I to say?)

With my adjustable screen stem I dont use the cap either and I also push the screen close to the tip to microdose, but 6.5 is waay too hot for me and the toasty flavour come up very fast...

7 to 10 seconds long hits

Yes, 6.5 would be too hot for me to start under normal circumstances, too: that's usually more where I end up! Just last night I tried some (for me) veeery hot start / quicker-up / bigger step stems. Specifically, two stems with about 0.02g each. I started at 6.0, took 18 hits there (per stem), then up to 6.5 for another 6 on one, 9 on the other. I just checked one of those stems, and it's barely graham-cracker brown, with just a hint of green. But it was a wild ride, for sure.

Generally I start at 4.7 for a longer, slower session and go up by 0.3 each step, finishing at 6.2 or 6.5 if it needs it.

Re numbers of hits: the more I hear others talk about their Nano habits, or other-vape habits, the more I feel out in left field on this (and to be completely honest, a bit anxious to admit my outlandish ways). When I start at lower temps, I usually get around 100 hits, maybe 120 for a "full board" sesh. (These are about 15-second hits—I count and have adjusted for my own counting speed after multiple tests.) And even when I start way up at 5.3, I usually get at least 60. So for me to start at 6.0 and to get only get to 20+ hits, as above, is very rare—but I am always seeking to broaden my repertoire of session strategies!

I spent a year or more tracking my sessions in great detail, counting seconds of draw and numbers of hits, trying lower and lower temps, etc. After a long time of close scrutiny and fine adjustments, I can say for absolute certain that I'm not imagining the flavors and effects I get … though I do admit the effects may be muddying the clarity of my investigations!

The warmer or hot-start sessions give a different, interesting, tasty, and faster alternative … but I almost always have some regrets over losing out on the earlier, lower temp flavors when I start higher up.

Eventually, I adjusted my session structures to take more hits at the lower temps, and then decreasing numbers of hits at each temp as I go up. Since I also usually do multiple stems, the whole business got difficult to track (esp. as the effects settle in), so I developed a "tracker board" for my sessions. Really just a piece of paper at first, with some temp numbers, spots for "stops" along the way, and a button to mark where I was at the time.

But as I used the system, I really began to like it. So I built a little "manipulable" board to track my sessions. It lets me pick out strategies in advance and then offloads the mental effort of remembering where I am during the process. Of course, I don't have to follow the dictates of the plan, and I usually make some dynamic adjustments as I go … but now even when I "free-ball" it, with no board to back me up, I usually have it in the back of my mind as I go. I am branching out to some other configurations, and possibly boards for other vapes, or multi-vape sessions.

[And yes, I get how insane and cringe-worthy this all sounds, but hyper-organization and over-thinking things are just my way—different pokes for different folks and all that.]

The board itself is made from a small picture frame, with a printed sesh map inside, then a layer of this craft foam under that, with magnets in place under the "stops" or spots along the route, so to speak. Temps are indicated on the left, and there are a few other markers and visual aids. Finally, a little hand-made pawn with a magnet allows me to track my progress.

I think I showed a pic that had my original board in an earlier post (may have been another thread), but the current one looks like this:

Each of those "stops" (the little circles) is 6 hits of 15 secs. each. The colors and other divisions of the rows allow me to adjust temps and visualize stem alternation and number of hits per row in various ways.

Like I say, it will look way over the top to most people here, I'm sure, but using it has become pretty sub-conscious to me at this stage, and it's brought me to a really happy place in my vaping journey: very consistent sessions and fine control over every aspect … well, except for the OCD! (Again, undiagnosed—no offense intended to real sufferers.)

OK, now I will finally shut up … and get back to vaping! Sorry for the (once again) way too long post.

 

[cosimo]

When I start at lower temps, I usually get around 100 hits, maybe 120 for a "full board" sesh. (These are about 15-second hits—I count and have adjusted for my own counting speed after multiple tests.) And even when I start way up at 5.3, I usually get at least 60

wow, from just one bowl?

 

[cannasoor]

wow, from just one bowl?

Yes, so when I do two stems at once (my usual compare-and-contrast, or just random pairings), I am getting about 75 hits on each stem in a warm-start / medium session, and 120 on each in a 4.7-start "full-board" sesh. Getting meticulous about it was at first a sort of defense mechanism, against the disbelief I knew it would engender in others. But it was also a response to my own disbelief at what I was getting. Was I just too high? Was I somehow losing track of things? But I kept starting a little lower, taking a little longer (esp. at earlier stages), loading a little lighter, etc. And I kept getting better flavor, top-notch effects, and long, slow, terpy sessions that I love. Were I to document it in the detail I've experienced it in myself, it would sound outrageous … assuming that what I wrote above wouldn't already consign me to most people's whacko bin.

I wonder what it is that I do to get these "numbers"? I know I grind really way too fine—bad habit from M-F Finishing Grinder days, though I use a BCG nowadays.

I mean, there's the whole low-temp start, small-step up, etc., pattern: that much others might easily test and (hopefully!) replicate.

I think I get great quality stuff here in Oregon's mid-Willamette Valley, but I honestly don't have much to compare it to. Some people complain about how the dispos here typically store their stock in large, oft-reopened apothecary jars (concerned it'll lose flavor over the days/weeks). A lot of my stuff is lower-end, $2-$5 in single grams, so I don't think I'm (usually) getting what others might consider "best quality". (Though I love it to death!) Top end around here is usually $15 per single gram, $18 very rarely, just for comparison.

Anyway: I can't explain it. And the level of effects I get make me unreliable as a witness, I must admit, at least to others. Maybe those same effects magnify the flavors "unduly", in that ever-so-much-more-so way that weed does for sensory things.

But then … I'm getting great effects and sublime flavor, for hours on end, from 50-75¢ worth of herb. Even if it's all an illusion, somehow, it feels pretty great from in here. So what's not to love?

 

[cosimo]

Yes, so when I do two stems at once (my usual compare-and-contrast, or just random pairings), I am getting about 75 hits on each stem in a warm-start / medium session, and 120 on each in a 4.7-start "full-board" sesh. Getting meticulous about it was at first a sort of defense mechanism, against the disbelief I knew it would engender in others. But it was also a response to my own disbelief at what I was getting. Was I just too high? Was I somehow losing track of things? But I kept starting a little lower, taking a little longer (esp. at earlier stages), loading a little lighter, etc. And I kept getting better flavor, top-notch effects, and long, slow, terpy sessions that I love. Were I to document it in the detail I've experienced it in myself, it would sound outrageous … assuming that what I wrote above wouldn't already consign me to most people's whacko bin.

I wonder what it is that I do to get these "numbers"? I know I grind really way too fine—bad habit from M-F Finishing Grinder days, though I use a BCG nowadays.

I mean, there's the whole low-temp start, small-step up, etc., pattern: that much others might easily test and (hopefully!) replicate.

I think I get great quality stuff here in Oregon's mid-Willamette Valley, but I honestly don't have much to compare it to. Some people complain about how the dispos here typically store their stock in large, oft-reopened apothecary jars (concerned it'll lose flavor over the days/weeks). A lot of my stuff is lower-end, $2-$5 in single grams, so I don't think I'm (usually) getting what others might consider "best quality". (Though I love it to death!) Top end around here is usually $15 per single gram, $18 very rarely, just for comparison.

Anyway: I can't explain it. And the level of effects I get make me unreliable as a witness, I must admit, at least to others. Maybe those same effects magnify the flavors "unduly", in that ever-so-much-more-so way that weed does for sensory things.

But then … I'm getting great effects and sublime flavor, for hours on end, from 50-75¢ worth of herb. Even if it's all an illusion, somehow, it feels pretty great from in here. So what's not to love?

Fine grind, good resinous herbs and really low temps could explain it. I cant wait to get my JoDa stem and try even lower temps like you are doing.

 

[cannasoor]

Fine grind, good resinous herbs and really low temps could explain it. I cant wait to get my JoDa stem and try even lower temps like you are doing.

Hmm, I’m not sure my herbs would be described as “resinous”, at least not overall. Some are a bit sticky, but most are drier. I have had budtenders and shoppe owners exhort me about curing times and the like, so I think most of the stuff available here (Oregon) is considered well grown and well handled. But not much is especially sticky. (Of course that could be me fishing around on the low $2-5 end of things. I got three strains of Deep Creek Gardens’ good stuff on sale tonight; I'll have to see how that works out.) But, mind you, I am veerrry happy with the overall state of the herb I buy.

I did think about the fact that I don’t really “chase clouds” or, frankly, even look for visible vapor as a special sign that I am vaping properly. These days when I am running a low-start sesh, I often don’t see visible vapor except for a few hits around 5.3-5.9 on the dial. But I’m fine with that: I always took visible vapor to be a sign of wasted “good stuff” (cannabs, terps, flavinoids?). I've heard various discussions about what is being seen in those clouds, but my instinct is to conserve and experience every last droplet of stuff while vaping (and every last crumb while handling and grinding, etc.).

Hey, what's your JoDa stem like? Did you request something specific, or work with him to get a design you’ll like? Or is it more a surprise? (I doubt completely a surprise … .)

Oooh, do have a sketch or something? (If you showed it earlier in the thread, I must have missed it.) Heh, now I’m waiting for you to get your stem, too!

I am a bit spent out at the moment after a long dry spell of purchases (during Covid) and then a quick spurt of activity over the winter holidays. And now this Deep Creek triple purchase tonight (ran me $34 … ). But I need to get some nice, fancy stems for my OG Nano, which I understand he does. I’ve seen his stuff here on FC and to a limited extend on his Instagram (I can’t get an account for some reason) and I really like it a lot.

That is one thing about the E-Nano that could improve, just the amount and variety of third-party accessories and the like that are available. I think he (JoDa) is the only one making them.

Well, if you decide to experiment, try a (for you) very low start, then just stick with it for a while, see how the flavor is, before temp-bumping and proceeding. One way I got to that “wing shape” on my board (longer earlier stages, shorter later ones) was just realizing “Hey, the flavor is great right here: why bump it up prematurely?” and then seeing where that led.

Well, I had an interesting experience last night with the board that I’ll describe later, as I am starting to run on at the mouth again.

 

[cosimo]

Hey, what's your JoDa stem like? Did you request something specific, or work with him to get a design you’ll like? Or is it more a surprise? (I doubt completely a surprise … .)

Kind of a surprise. I just know it has internal spikes, and should be 7 inch long. My sister who received it (and will bring it to me by the end of May) hasnt sent me a photo of it yet. Will share it as soons as I can.