Discontinued Thermovape Cera
- Thread starter SameOldTim
- Start date
Vapouring
Member
Hi everyone, just registered to post this http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/battery-mods/260516-copper-tube-mod.html
pretty advanced diy but it's got my creative juices flowing. maybe just maybe switch mechanics could be adapted to cera. smaller gauge threaded section and stainless contacts but could well be too much of a squeeze. can't really tell without cera here.
package took a little bit of a battering on it's way to the uk and my cera broke the lid of the TET tub mouthpiece first. this left a nice stainless stain on base of the UFO from the EO cart so must have been quite an impact and i guess weakened that copper attached to the floating section.
worked fine and i sessioned the LL for three days solid then cores would only fire when pressed down. discovered i could limp along and test the EO before returning cera. by clamping cart (with a smooth-flow) with my thumb and switch with middle finger of my long alien hands. no problems with arthritis here but i guess i will in the future!
unpleasant on the thumb too but cera EO hits too hard to care.
glad i tested it though as i planned not to send EO but i've got similar flow issues to GR(?). there where minute fragments of ceramic kicking round when i unboxed, it leaked when i initially loaded .24g and i can only see one of the air intakes. all good reasons to send for a check up i think.
VP
pretty advanced diy but it's got my creative juices flowing. maybe just maybe switch mechanics could be adapted to cera. smaller gauge threaded section and stainless contacts but could well be too much of a squeeze. can't really tell without cera here.
package took a little bit of a battering on it's way to the uk and my cera broke the lid of the TET tub mouthpiece first. this left a nice stainless stain on base of the UFO from the EO cart so must have been quite an impact and i guess weakened that copper attached to the floating section.
worked fine and i sessioned the LL for three days solid then cores would only fire when pressed down. discovered i could limp along and test the EO before returning cera. by clamping cart (with a smooth-flow) with my thumb and switch with middle finger of my long alien hands. no problems with arthritis here but i guess i will in the future!
unpleasant on the thumb too but cera EO hits too hard to care.glad i tested it though as i planned not to send EO but i've got similar flow issues to GR(?). there where minute fragments of ceramic kicking round when i unboxed, it leaked when i initially loaded .24g and i can only see one of the air intakes. all good reasons to send for a check up i think.
VP
druminfected
Well-Known Member
Would love to see a video on this being done. Not exactly sure what your doing to do your clean out process, could you please give more detail?
just curious how often do you all of you do the full clean method? (the water,iso,water clean way) is there a visual sign I be aware of as a indication to clean?
Herbalist23
Well-Known Member
Hey Vapouring, welcome to the fun!
I was just reading this e-cigarette forum you linked, AWESOME!!!
On the end they did a new tread:
http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/fo...elfmade-big-genisis-style-atomizer-howto.html
Here you can see the whole ingeneering step by step
I think this is something for our friends here with the skills to copy it(you know who you are
)
BTW what kind of packaging was it, the big jar with charger or just the tube with only the Cera?
I'm just asking because my Cera is on its way to me again, but now without charger/ wall plug,
so now its in this tube and I was a bit concerned if it is strong enough to take some impact/hits?
EDIT: I thought there was the ingeneering of the switch, but its only the atomizer
Herbalist23
I was just reading this e-cigarette forum you linked, AWESOME!!!
On the end they did a new tread:
http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/fo...elfmade-big-genisis-style-atomizer-howto.html
Here you can see the whole ingeneering step by step
I think this is something for our friends here with the skills to copy it(you know who you are
)BTW what kind of packaging was it, the big jar with charger or just the tube with only the Cera?
I'm just asking because my Cera is on its way to me again, but now without charger/ wall plug,
so now its in this tube and I was a bit concerned if it is strong enough to take some impact/hits?
EDIT: I thought there was the ingeneering of the switch, but its only the atomizer
Herbalist23
Vapouring
Member
i compared the main pic of the parts with the diagram of the switch and i can kind of see how it goes together... got me thinking of mounting a mini version of it in a rubber/silicone/sugru puck 5-10mm thick, relying on battery pressure to hold it in and attaching the female threaded switch through the safety pin hole. no materials though and i guess could cause resistance issues if the stainless used was too thin(even heat under these high drain conditions?). damn tempted to make the whole thing but in stainlessHey Vapouring, welcome to the fun!
I think this is something for our friends here with the skills to copy it(you know who you are
BTW what kind of packaging was it, the big jar with charger or just the tube with only the Cera?
I'm just asking because my Cera is on its way to me again, but now without charger/ wall plug,
so now its in this tube and I was a bit concerned if it is strong enough to take some impact/hits?
Herbalist23
cool male bayonet fitting on the battery cover too i thought, clever german geezer for sure!my packaging was the jar/tub with the charger. i'd guess the tube would be much better! everything was rattling around in mine. LL had punched through it's small tub thread first and i found a set screw chilling in the bottom but it still worked( i got the ok to replace set screw surprisingly, maybe i passed The test). also the smoothflow had rattled around so much that it grated plastic dust off its tube.
i had a chat with zeki to say how whack it was to send international like this risking plastic fragments in medical grade apparatus and he agreed and said it was unusual. if there had been a small amount of packaging inside tubs it would've made all the difference! i've just returned cera and carts and opted for a well padded tube with nothing rattling in the cart tubs.
EDIT: Ta for the welcome chap, i've been here a while
(where's the smiley with the bleeding eyes from reading such long threads!)Sorry a video is just not going to happen.
I am still in the learning curve of when to clean but since I run around 5g of oil per week through the Cera I am getting a good lesson, lol.
I was cleaning every time some dark sludge came bubbling up out of the core, a boil, ISO, boil. That was refined to just ethanol soak and pumping ethanol through the core. The thing is I get the sludge about every two grams and that meant a lot of down time for cleaning multiple times a week. Now I am scraping out the dark sludge when it bubbles up, checking with a small new load of oil to make sure if anymore sludge comes out to get it, after that I am good for two grams of good flavor before the sludge reappears. The sludge does not taste good at all but I do collect it for cooking with when I can ( I get a ton from Health Stones so I have plenty to use).
So far I have run six grams through without a full alcohol cleaning and changed oils twice, I am getting the flavor I should with very little effort of keeping it clean, this make me very happy. When my new core arrives I will see how close to original weight I can get my first core with only battery power heat as Zeki has recommended to me and then do my Ethenol soak and pump to see how much closer I can get, depending on those results I will pick up a heating ultrasonic machine to see if that can get any closer to original weight if necessary.
If anyone tries pumping alcohol through the core be careful! Eye protection is a must, keeping your mouth shut is optional with Ethanol, but be warned alcohol going through the core under pressure is certain to go spraying at times.
It was a crazy idea but I put a shot of Everclear in my mouth and gently blew it through the core. It worked great but was not fun. Try at your own risk. Also I have noticed with the core if you keep the end that touches the battery clean by gently scraping it and a little ISO the connection is 100%. I had my core acting funny so I got a magnifier and had a closer look at the end that touches the battery, I noticed there was a small (almost microscopic) piece of what looked like the plating off the positive side of the battery. With some ultra fine sandpaper I gently buffed the core end and the battery positive end and my connection has never been better. Just a heads up for you guys the smallest of pieces(.) will affect the connection. Peace be the journey
Lol, that's how I started and now look at me, it only leads to harder stuff.
Good point about the connection tip, soaks in various degrees of dirty alcohol can leave a residue behind, just gave mine a cleaning. Holy milk cloud batman, I owe each of my batteries an apology, I thought they where getting low in performance.
I've given up on anything custom. $550 is the cheapest quote I received.
Does anybody know the exact diameter for the piece of stainless steel that screws into the body? How about threading? I think I'm going to buy a nice stainless steel pipe fitting and mount in a larger non-threaded piezo switch. It's 22 MM and it's rated for 5A DC which should be perfect.
Does anybody know the exact diameter for the piece of stainless steel that screws into the body? How about threading? I think I'm going to buy a nice stainless steel pipe fitting and mount in a larger non-threaded piezo switch. It's 22 MM and it's rated for 5A DC which should be perfect.
OF
Well-Known Member
Wow, bummer that. Prices like that sure discourage a guy fast......
I think you may be in luck with that switch. The stock is one inch (same as the ceramic tube) but the thread is a non standard AFAIK......however (and isn't there always one?) the factory end cap is threaded for a standard commercial switch about that size. The switch itself (with the spring) unscrews from the end cap with a little effort you an see one sans switch in one of my earlier kluges:
That's it on the extreme left, the wires are going through the hole where the switch was. The OD of the switch is .741 if that's any help?
Tim posted the specs or the switch (body length, thread size, contacts, etc) on the closed thread you might search his posts on that thread that have "switch" in them? Or PM him maybe?
*********
In other news, I just got back from a visit to TV. I got a chance to meet with Nate (he's busy these days with political and medical stuff around the e-cig industry as well as TV stuff directly). I got an update on several topics, including the 'mini Cera' (which is not all that much smaller probably since it will use the 18650.....although it probably will also have 18350 as an option). Nothing firm yet, of course, but lots of pretty drawings on the computer.
The drivers in the new design are to make it tough, smaller and tough. The focus will shift back toward the e-cig base (where their core customers are, remember they were in the 'smoking cessation' business, Nicotine, not THC). The design on the computer was the new EL core, which of course will fit Cera (they booth use the same cores). It's based on the successful AVA carts (same heater as Revolution/DART).....at least for now.
My best guess it still 'Fall' for Beta units, with luck (and few problems) delivery about Thanksgiving? Christmas? That's just my estimate, lots has changed in the design. While it seems pretty complete to me, more changes can easily happen.
Don't take it to mean it's going to happen, but a thumb operated switch on the side is still part of the design, a neat little unit of their own design (no vendor issues.....) but it will not be latching. No 'hands free' operation, momentary contact only. A 'deadman's switch'. If the designed end cap latching switch is included it will be as a safety, the side switch will still have to be pressed to make vapor. The new latching base switch will not be retrofitted into Cera since there's no side switch. This area seems taboo there.
I suggested an idea I had for a latching (rotary) switch for Cera, it was politely declined for the above reason. Too many problems with the latching switches in the Beta testing. Those holding their breaths hoping for a TV supplied latching switch (for 'hands free vaping') should exhale and resume breathing. IMO it's not happening.
OF
OF
Well-Known Member
Easy to test. Unscrew the end cap, jam a walnut size wad of foil in behind the battery. You need solid contact with the bottom of the battery and the SS ring the end cap screws into.
Good luck. I was just by the shop and forgot to ask, but as of last week none of the soldered or welded straps had failed at the connections. If it's not the switch, the 'smart money' is on the strap breaking at the top where it takes the turn. It's glued to the wall and solidly attached to the plate. If it's too short or the plate too loose it breaks it seems?
OF
bassplayer
Well-Known Member
So the Cera works out of the box with a piece with an 18mm male joint? use glass adapters for other joints (18mm female, 14mm male and female?)
OF
Well-Known Member
It does just fine on 18mm female GonG connectors, and I'm pretty sure 14mm as well. I don't have one handy to check but if I'm lying we're sure to both find out about it real quick. I never tried 14mm male.
OF
Thank you OF! Super easy check, my kind of test, but alas it is not the switch. Looks like Cera is going for a trip.
The rest is good news bad news. Good news is I had just ordered another Cera to give to a friend along with a second core for me. The bad news is my friend will not be getting his Cera until my body returns, all good for me though.
Edit: so if I understand correctly the strap is going to fail at the 90degree bend before it even attached to the nut? Makes sense but then a new solution needs to be figured out to keep these failures from happening. I figure I run my EO cart closer to how most run the LL, I will have 10 min session with the EO and get it very hot, I am not on the power the entire time but lets just say I have gone through 4 batteries in an evening. So I take it the more heat and cooling going on the more stress the 90degree bend takes?
OF
Well-Known Member
You're welcome. Sorry it's not the answer you wanted, but at least now you know. I'm not sure I agree about the bad new part, you get a unit to keep you going until the original returns and your friend gets a well checked out Cera, sounds like a win-wim more than bad news to me?
I've never actually seen a broken strap, only had the break location described to me a trip or two back when we were discussing what the failures they were seeing were. We thought it was the float issue, it didn't seem to happen while the strap was clamped under a split steel ring with an o-ring backing that up (had some 'give') but once it got soldered solidly instead this problem showed up. The heat cold thing we didn't consider, but I think it has merit. It should be easy to rig up a timer and supply to cycle power on and off to a core and see if we can force a failure that way......food for thought.
I'd intended to get into this area with 'the guys' but the talk about the new model took over instead. Then lunch time came and a couple of the usual suspects had to leave.....so I did too. I have to go back next week and modify some gear for them next week. I think I'll see if I can get this conversation going. Someting is going on that needs understanding I think, lots of units are humming along with heavy use, some with almost no hours are failing on the strap at that point.
Fun stuff. Frustrating, but fun. There has to be an answer if we can only ferret it out....
OF
WOW Thanks a lot!! My cera EO seemed to be taking a long time to heat up and produce lots of vapor like it did when I first got it. I've cleaned it probably twice, but I had never wiped the the contact tip of the core, the part that touches the positive end of the battery. After I gave it a rub, it seemed to heat up a LOT quicker. There must have been something coating the tip of the core. It didn't look like there was anything on the tip, but after rubbing it a little it seemed to polish up. I also rubbed the terminals of the battery. I was starting to wonder if my battery was dying or something because the vapor production just wasn't there. I'll definitely be wiping down the whole core next time I clean it. Maybe it's oxidation or even minerals from the boiling water.
I think in the end I will be testing his unit out and have a back up sent to me as well. I have a two week right coast beach vacation coming up, one week I am with intimate friends, the other week is 45 family members not including people under 18. 15 of these so called adults are vacation warrior smokers, Cera will be in heavy use personally for stress relief and comunitively used for said warriors. I hope I remember to take it easy on these souls, muwahahaha,. did I say that out loud?
Well I certainly don't know the answer to fix the problem with the strap but it nailed me twice with failure with heavy use. I wonder if the failure rate is higher with those of us that have high heat use followed by cool down, then repeated multiple times a day?
I am enjoying nail hits and some flavors I can't get from the cera only because the Cera gave me a long deserved vacation from the torch and nail. Before the Cera I was saturated from the nail and couldn't get more then two dabs without fear of a coughing fit. I am not having that problem with the nail since Cera came along and took the heavy hitting. So Cera has made me healthier! And able to abuse myself when I want to! Maybe LOL.
Wow sure is quiet in here... just thought I'd give you all an update, my baby is on her way home has been for a while, but then it took nearly there Weeks to get to TET so still a bit to go I guess. I started my new job and no drug test yet so I am getting pretty keen for her return cause I am gonna go to town on Cera until I just can't take it any more ;-) of course totally in the name of science, I will make many videos so you can join me in my welcome home ceremony.
R
R
Herbalist23
Well-Known Member
I was thinking the same (silence)
BTW, my Cera seems to be here in a few days (if the customs dont fuck me up again
)
When it arrives I will make a review as well
I hope its getting more active in here again!
Just to mention, in case of another hold by the customs or if the Cera will maybe fail one day and need to be shipped back, I just ordered a MFLB as a backup
Herbalist23
BTW, my Cera seems to be here in a few days (if the customs dont fuck me up again
)When it arrives I will make a review as well
I hope its getting more active in here again!
Just to mention, in case of another hold by the customs or if the Cera will maybe fail one day and need to be shipped back, I just ordered a MFLB as a backup
Herbalist23
My fingers and toes are all crossed for you brother I really hope it gets through to you I'm sure you will love it. I used to find myself inventing excuses just to touch her (hehehe sounds dirty).I was thinking the same (silence)
BTW, my Cera seems to be here in a few days (if the customs dont fuck me up again
When it arrives I will make a review as well
I hope its getting more active in here again!
Just to mention, in case of another hold by the customs or if the Cera will maybe fail one day and need to be shipped back, I just ordered a MFLB as a backup
Herbalist23
R