Discontinued The Firefly Vaporizer

vapin baby boomer said:

Just curious. Does anybody have what they consider a "hot" unit? Mine will work great, then after about a dozen uses, suddenly I have a session that seams to burn hot. producing combustion or close to it. Does anyone have a unit like this and if so, could that be considered a possible benefit because you can learn to control it and have more options in performance than a "cold" unit could provide? Am I crazy, or just high?

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Yes. I had a "hot" unit. Except mine was combusting using the same technique im using with my current firefly that doesnt even give me brown spots. And my FF would be too hot to touch around the heater part after 2-3 hits... I elected for an exchange instead of trying to fix it myself. But that was when it only took less than a week to get a replacement

ElPic said:

I use a "wispr" screen in my 2 FF, it's the perfect size for the bowl of the firefly. It keep my unit clean. No more mess under the screen and I can use finely grind material. I post pic at page 81.

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Wow thanks for that tip. Just bought some iolite screens works perfectly!

First place i went two, guy tried selling me brass screens. Spent a good time arguing with him before i left and went somewhere else to get the iolite screens. Why would anyone want brass screens?

Mynameismud said:

Wow thanks for that tip. Just bought some iolite screens works perfectly!

First place i went two, guy tried selling me brass screens. Spent a good time arguing with him before i left and went somewhere else to get the iolite screens. Why would anyone want brass screens?

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So you notice no degradation in flavor with the Wispr screen thingy?

http://www.iolite.com/6-pak-fine-mesh-screens.html

These, not the 6 hole screen things
@mitchgo61 no taste degradation but i think you were thinking of the other ones

Mynameismud said:

http://www.iolite.com/6-pak-fine-mesh-screens.html

These, not the 6 hole screen things
@mitchgo61 no taste degradation but i think you were thinking of the other ones

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Now I'm confused . Wasn't @ElPic talking about the other screen, this one?

http://www.vapeworld.com/iolite-screens

So both/either work in the FF?

I use the 7 holes wispr screen and it work perfectly in the FF, no taste degradation like with the arizer basket. I never try the fine mesh wispr screen but I finely grind my herb with my spacecase and it never reach the stainless plate

mitchgo61 said:

Now I'm confused . Wasn't @ElPic talking about the other screen, this one?

http://www.vapeworld.com/iolite-screens

So both/either work in the FF?

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Oh i dunno then...bi asked the guy at the shop for iolite screens and thats what he gave me. He said i would have to probably cut them to get them into the iolite so i dont know if yhey are from iolite directly. But they are fine mesh, are just slightly bigger than the ff screens and fit in perfectly and dont move around.

Now im gonna have to get some of the regular iolite screens

ElPic said:

I use the 7 holes wispr screen and it work perfectly in the FF, no taste degradation like with the arizer basket.

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Thanks for bringing those up again. I meant to get some when you originally mentioned them, but completely forgot about them.

I just bought some to try out.

2 Paces said:

Thanks for bringing those up again. I meant to get some when you originally mentioned them, but completely forgot about them.

I just bought some to try out.

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Sorry, I'm sure this was already mentioned, but why do you want to use these screens instead of the original ones?

2 Paces said:

Thanks for bringing those up again. I meant to get some when you originally mentioned them, but completely forgot about them.

I just bought some to try out.

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Hope you like it!!
The same wispr screen fit tighter in the glass bowl of my the dark grey FF then in the red one. When I unload my grey unit the screen stay in place but in the red one sometime he fall with my avb, but it does not bother me. The glass bowl are slightly different size in every unit I think.

Mrbinky said:

Sorry, I'm sure this was already mentioned, but why do you want to use these screens instead of the original ones?

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Debris seems to get lodged under the screen more often than I would like, and some of that also finds its way into the internals of my unit. On my first unit it did not happen as much because the gap where the screen fits into was very tight. On my replacement unit that gap between the glass & metal plate is larger, so more material gets through.

I prefer a fine grind like EIPic, so the idea of less particles making it past the screen is very enticing to me.

ElPic said:

Hope you like it!!
The same wispr screen fit tighter in the glass bowl of my the dark grey FF then in the red one. When I unload my grey unit the screen stay in place but in the red one sometime he fall with my avb, but it does not bother me. The glass bowl are slightly different size in every unit I think.

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I ordered a set also. Hope I like em!!

vapin baby boomer said:

Just curious. Does anybody have what they consider a "hot" unit? ...snip... Does anyone have a unit like this and if so, could that be considered a possible benefit because you can learn to control it and have more options in performance than a "cold" unit could provide?

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I have two, and one is definitely hotter than the other. Using the same material, with the same loading and drawing technique, my Silver unit will produce much more "charred" ABV than my Grey unit.

Whether a hotter unit is a benefit is a matter of perspective.

For stealth purposes I would avoid the hotter unit because it has the potential to combust (and a history of doing so). I have used my cooler unit much more often, and have practiced the technique to get good results from it much more. I actually have to learn two different techniques for the two different units (mostly a matter of duration of the button presses).

So while I like having both available, I prefer the cooler unit.

I noticed that a lot of you guys have two Fireflys. I'm pretty new to vaping on a regular basis and can appreciate that a back-up could be necessary. Is that the main reason to own two?

fogbank said:

I have two, and one is definitely hotter than the other. Using the same material, with the same loading and drawing technique, my Silver unit will produce much more "charred" ABV than my Grey unit.

Whether a hotter unit is a benefit is a matter of perspective.

So while I like having both available, I prefer the cooler unit.

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As I have mentioned before, I was convinced my Red unit was cooler than my Silver FF, but after a couple weeks of use I felt like they were both operating at about the same temp profile. (This got more complex since my original Silver was replaced after I got the Red, so I had to rely on memory...but overall I think all three ran about the same.)

One thing might make a cooler unit desirable: it's fairly easy to make it run noticeably hotter, by adding glass flowers or something similar that would increase the thermal mass in the chamber and conduct a little heat...I've noticed the couple of times I used the small honeycomb screens in my Red FF that it's made it run hotter, pretty consistently.

vapin baby boomer said:

I noticed that a lot of you guys have two Fireflys. I'm pretty new to vaping on a regular basis and can appreciate that a back-up could be necessary. Is that the main reason to own two?

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Yes it's pretty much a luxury for me...I really wanted to have a second for backup, once I really fell in love with it and started relying on it for my main vape. Given that I've had a couple of returns, it's a good hedge against being without an FF when something goes wrong. I have a bunch of other vapes so it's not an issue of "no FF, back to combustion"...it's more the issue of "no FF, no FF". Which is bad.

The Firefly is special. I could see owning more than one. Like a fine sports car or a fine musical instrument.

vapin baby boomer said:

The Firefly is special. I could see owning more than one. Like a fine sports car or a fine musical instrument.

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I agree but just the same I don't feel I need a second one because I don't rely on the ff as a daily driver. I like its portability, beauty, and taste but I mainly use plug-in vapes along with my lotus.

Just like if I had a mid-engine two-seater as a second car, it's for pleasure on the road

I don't feel the need for a second firefly....as long as I have SOME portable. IMO the ideal situation is to have 2 portables (assuming you need to medicate on the go) and at least a desktop. That way if any given vape fails, you can still medicate in any situation. Of course, some of us hoarders have a few desktops and a few portables. Never hurt anyone besides financially lol.

I got my red FF in the mail this week and I'm enjoying it. I am able to produce cloud vapor roughly 3 times per bowl. The remaining 2-3 hits do not give me any vapor. Is this average or below average?

My method is to just hold the button and inhale at a steady rate. I release the button and inhale for another 3-5 seconds.

Wanker said:

I got my red FF in the mail this week and I'm enjoying it. I am able to produce cloud vapor roughly 3 times per bowl. The remaining 2-3 hits do not give me any vapor. Is this average or below average?

My method is to just hold the button and inhale at a steady rate. I release the button and inhale for another 3-5 seconds.

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Sounds a little below average to me. What kind of grind are you using?

Could be you simply need to slow down your inhalation rate slightly after the first few hits. And maybe a little longer warm-up, unless you're talking about all these hits being back-to-back, in which case you probably wouldn't need more warm-up, but it it would be worth a try.

Can also try holding the button in a bit longer, and continue breathing in longer and more slowly after you've let go of the button. When my FF is warmed-up and I ride that button a bit, I can keep inhaling for quite a while after releasing the button and continue to get vapor production.

But be careful to avoid combustion!

Chances are if you just keep at it, you'll find the right procedure for your needs.

Wanker said:

I got my red FF in the mail this week and I'm enjoying it. I am able to produce cloud vapor roughly 3 times per bowl. The remaining 2-3 hits do not give me any vapor. Is this average or below average?

My method is to just hold the button and inhale at a steady rate. I release the button and inhale for another 3-5 seconds.

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The inhale on the release is important. 3-5 seconds sounds good. I think of it like clearing the carb, theres plenty of residual heat to use, and its usually tasty.

I also notice a drop in visible vapor as the bowl goes on.. But I think that just means good extraction. FF can milk the herb pretty far if you're not afraid to draw hard. It's the reason a medium grind is key.. Small particles block the airways.

EveryDayAmnesiac said:

Sounds a little below average to me. What kind of grind are you using?

Could be you simply need to slow down your inhalation rate slightly after the first few hits. And maybe a little longer warm-up, unless you're talking about all these hits being back-to-back, in which case you probably wouldn't need more warm-up, but it it would be worth a try.

Can also try holding the button in a bit longer, and continue breathing in longer and more slowly after you've let go of the button. When my FF is warmed-up and I ride that button a bit, I can keep inhaling for quite a while after releasing the button and continue to get vapor production.

But be careful to avoid combustion!

Chances are if you just keep at it, you'll find the right procedure for your needs.

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I'm hand grinding. Just ripping up little pieces. I do inhale back to back but I still think I should get 5 good hits out of a bowl. Right now it's the first flavor hit then 3 vapor clouds then nothing. Even though I shake up the material I generally have some green leaves left along with some charred leaves.

Well, if I'm taking pretty decent sized tokes, I can finish a bowl off in just 3-4 hits, but that's unusual for me, so I guess we'd have to know how long you're hitting it for.

Also, do you grind or break up the material a bit after you've hit it a few times? That'll get some more hits out of it.

I prefer to put in one piece, hit it, flip it, hit it, split it, hit it, mash it, hit it, mash it, hit it, stir it, hit it until I can't hit it no more.

I tend to get charred bits if I press the button again too quickly, too long, or if I'm simply inhaling too slowly. Rarely happens anymore. Never been able to combust.

Sometimes just a tighter seal around the mouthpiece can make a difference for me too when I'm trying to coax another hit out.

It can take a while to get the technique down that works best for you from the FF.

Wanker said:

I got my red FF in the mail this week and I'm enjoying it. I am able to produce cloud vapor roughly 3 times per bowl. The remaining 2-3 hits do not give me any vapor. Is this average or below average?

My method is to just hold the button and inhale at a steady rate. I release the button and inhale for another 3-5 seconds.

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Sounds like way too low for number of hits. I know I'm on the high end of the scale (pun intended) but I get a minimum of 12 really good hits from every bowl and another four or five smaller ones. Make sure you are putting enough in (I personally pack it fairly densely but others like less)....draw fast and hard enough to feel resistance but no faster/harder....press the heat button for four seconds before drawing. In the latter stages, when vapor seems more elusive, do a pre-draw heat of six seconds, draw longer, hold the button down longer. Make sure you stir and re-compact during the bowl several times. That's my general approach, and always yields north of 12 good hits.

From Stacey at FF,

"Our Returns Technicians have confirmed the errors and were unable to repair. So we had a Brand New Firefly opened and inspected. The unit is found to have no imperfections. However if you receive the unit and happen to notice something, we would like to know about this immediately.

I apologize, I would have had the order shipped out yesterday however I wanted to assure the inspection was thorough. Your unit is now set to ship out today with our FedEx 2-Day shipping method. So you can expect to receive your unit first thing Tuesday morning!"

Then this, also from Stacey the next day,

Dear Michael,

"Thank you for choosing Firefly! I am reaching out to you today to provide you with the correct shipping information. I apologize the previous tracking provided was incorrect as the unit first inspected did in fact have some blemishes.

However the second unit opened is found to be in perfect condition."

This is the new return policy...

"*Once we process your RA, we will contact you via email with further details. You may expect your return to process within 7-10 business days from the delivery date to us, assuming the above conditions are met. However as I stated I am expediting this process. I will personally be in contact once I have an update. Please let me know if you have any questions during this time. Have a wonderful day!"

Stacey @ FF waited until they recieved my returned unit before thinking about sending a replacement...if I would not have been a little grumpy my FF would still be in transit there. Buying two units from this company is what I desire but not what I will do. They need to get some problems worked out of the system before that extra investment. My unit failed, no heat and FF wanted me to pay shipping to them. This change in the warranty procedure has me frustrated with them. Return number 264, my first was nuber 26. This will be number four replacement, over 100 miles driving to FedX and I'm still without. Being grumpy saved me some time but still will end up taking 9 days. Grumpy without me FF.