Discontinued The Firefly Vaporizer

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twigs

Pay no mind to those voices in my head
In case anyone was wondering what I mean by hand torn, loosely packed and overflowing the bowl. This is what has given me thee best results to date.*

*Technique always subject to change and improvement

U1WiGAt.jpg


2 huge puff/clouds later

1hscFHE.jpg


From here I will finger grind this down to expose more surface area....

Then
2 more huge puffs/clouds....
rNee4Ro.jpg


I'd get 2 more puffs clouds from here and for me it's spent/cashed after that.
Same technique works for me. Sometimes only 4 hits. I don't understand how others are getting 10 or more, but I'm happy with my four.
 
twigs,
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mitchgo61

I go where the thrills are
Same technique works for me. Sometimes only 4 hits. I don't understand how others are getting 10 or more, but I'm happy with my four.

Packing the bowl very densely. I use around .12 g's and usually get 20-25 hits. All but maybe five are medium-large hits.
 
mitchgo61,

VapechickV

Member
I just took a really awesome picture for y'all but I guess you can't upload images, you have to link them from somewhere? Boo! :(
 
VapechickV,

slick

Well-Known Member
I love this thread and I love my FF. I signed up to this board just to join the discussion.

I've read a few times that the FF might not be a good starting vape. While I can see the reasoning, I would like to point out my experience as a counter argument.

I had very little experience vaping outside the FF. Only a few months of occasional VaporGenie use.
After a while of living with the urge to upgrade from the VG, I bought the FF on a particularly strong whim. There was definitely a few sessions long learning curve, but it seemes a small price to pay for the flavor and efficiency. I still feel like I am improving my experience with each use. This last session I got near zero throat irritation and completely dark brown abv, but very little in the way of cloud production. IMO this was a step up from before where I was getting larger clouds and dark abv, but more significant throat irritation. For me the ideal session would be large clouds with no throat irritation and dark abv. I feel that with continued improvement of my technique I may eventually get there. To those who might be on the fence about the FF because they are new to vaping and have read about its difficulty of use, don't let that be a deterrent. The price? Maybe. The (comparatively) short battery life? Maybe. The (comparatively) steep learning curve? No. The strength of its design, besides ease of cleaning and captivating style, is in the way it lets you customize your use to reach what you feel is an ideal session. You just can't be put off by having to put in some effort.

I have enjoyed all your tips and views on usage and cleaning. I specially would like to repeat something that improved my experience considerably: don't close your lips tightly around the tip, let there be a small gap. You can use the size of the gap and your draw speed to control the air/vapor ratio. Also, there might not be any need to preheat. I just hit from the moment it first glows. From what I can gather everyone has their own method and preferences, this is just what I found to work best for me so far.

After lurking on here for a while I was unable to find anything about the FF and hooking it up to a water tool. Other vapes, notably the SSV and the SOLO seem to have lots of mention of blubbers and the like. Is the FF style just not very compatible with that?
 

natural farmer

Well-Known Member
After lurking on here for a while I was unable to find anything about the FF and hooking it up to a water tool. Other vapes, notably the SSV and the SOLO seem to have lots of mention of blubbers and the like. Is the FF style just not very compatible with that?

The FF gives cool-ish hits so there is no much need for a water tool imo. If someone wants to use one though, it's pretty easy to do so by making a simple stem using some 1/2" silicone tubing and a screen. You place your "SonG" on your water tool and then use the FF as a log vape (without the magnetic lid). Pretty nice results as well. Easier to make your ABV dark brown. :tup:

Just search this thread for "SonG" to get some pics...
 

slick

Well-Known Member
The FF gives cool-ish hits so there is no much need for a water tool imo. If someone wants to use one though, it's pretty easy to do so by making a simple stem using some 1/2" silicone tubing and a screen. You place your "SonG" on your water tool and then use the FF as a log vape (without the magnetic lid). Pretty nice results as well. Easier to make your ABV dark brown. :tup:

Just search this thread for "SonG" to get some pics...

Ah, read the first 40ish pages and then the last ten. I missed the gooey middle! The pics made it much more clear, I was confused on how you would remove the lid but still hook it up. I anyways imagined hooking up the tip
 

Smknbud

Well-Known Member
Couldn't resist the urge to add the FF to my portable collection. Glad I did actually. The hits are very smooth and the unit is very efficient. I guess from using the DaVinci Ascent for quite sometime it lent to easing the learning curve of the FF, because using the advice in this thread, I had no issues at all in getting nice vapor clouds from this thing from the get go. And it medicates me well. Very pleased.

I'd like to see version 2 up the battery life and add temperature control. It wouldn't hurt to see the battery case latch a little better. Maybe add magnets to the cover?

I still will primarily grab my Ascent for on the go, mostly because of bowl size, but the FF has definitely become the at home portable go to vape.

Love this thing!
 

Henry81

Well-Known Member
I find all the double clicking the button does is drain the battery and make the unit hot. On first hit hold button for five or so seconds then start to draw, with visible vapor. After that hold about three and draw, resulting in clouds. Each draw ranging 10-15 seconds. Being a convection style the heating element is only running if your not inhaling, IMO wasting battery life. It's during the inhale that the ff vaporizes. Happy vaping
 

Trogdor

Vapinating the peasants
Really not digging these torx bits on the lid right now. :cuss: Although I suppose they don't want especially curious owners taking stuff apart and then not being able to put it back
 
Trogdor,

mitchgo61

I go where the thrills are
Really not digging these torx bits on the lid right now. :cuss: Although I suppose they don't want especially curious owners taking stuff apart and then not being able to put it back

You having issues removing them? (Not that I'm endorsing removing them!) I was just tightening them the other day...either a Torx 5 or 6 should work. I think it's the 5, but I always end up grabbing the wrong one first.
 
mitchgo61,

Trogdor

Vapinating the peasants
You having issues removing them? (Not that I'm endorsing removing them!) I was just tightening them the other day...either a Torx 5 or 6 should work. I think it's the 5, but I always end up grabbing the wrong one first.

Well, for some odd reason, despite all the tool boxes and tool kits I have, I don't have any tiny torx bits. And nor do any of the hardware stores around me. Smallest I could find was a six, which was just a bit too big, so I had to resort to ordering a little kit with tiny bits. I'm hoping to get some kind of WPA set up before D020 gets here, not too sure how that's going to turn out
 
Trogdor,

mitchgo61

I go where the thrills are
Well, for some odd reason, despite all the tool boxes and tool kits I have, I don't have any tiny torx bits. And nor do any of the hardware stores around me. Smallest I could find was a six, which was just a bit too big, so I had to resort to ordering a little kit with tiny bits. I'm hoping to get some kind of WPA set up before D020 gets here, not too sure how that's going to turn out

Yeah I had to buy a whole mini-bit kit from Amazon. 14 bucks, has the two Torx bits I need for the FF, and a thousand bits I will likely never use. I just tried it, and yes, it's the 5. The 6 fits the screws on the main body but not the port assembly.

Again, be careful with that gasket! Good luck....
 
mitchgo61,

Trogdor

Vapinating the peasants
Yeah I had to buy a whole mini-bit kit from Amazon. 14 bucks, has the two Torx bits I need for the FF, and a thousand bits I will likely never use. I just tried it, and yes, it's the 5. The 6 fits the screws on the main body but not the port assembly.

Again, be careful with that gasket! Good luck....

Yeah, gotta love how the only ones they give are the ones you'll never need. Are there any machinists that frequent this board that you guys know of? If this does work, it would be nice to not have to cut up a lotus WPA every time
 
Trogdor,
Here are my very first impressions of the silver Firefly unit I just received:

The packaging is very Apple-esque, nice presentation. The build quality of the unit is good. I like the size and weight of it in my hand. My only nitpicks so far would be that the heating button feels a little cheap for the price, and the battery door could close more securely. Also, the screen seems to move around easily, and there's a slight gap between the glass bowl and the (ceramic? stainless steel?) plate the screen sits on. This seems like a potential spot for bud to get stuck in, but I'll have to read up on the design more to understand better. The 45 minute charging time was impressive.

I ground up .1g of Bubblegum to the same consistency I always use (medium fine from a small Space Case). I loosely packed it in the bowl and turned the unit on. I first held the button down for around 8 seconds to preheat the device, followed by a second button push where I waited a few seconds and then inhaled for around 10 seconds. I took 7 or 8 draws in total, slightly varying the amount of time I held the button down, as well as my draw speed, each time. I tapped the unit a few times throughout the session to promote even extraction. Does anyone think doing this could potentially mess with the heating coil alignment?

Overall, I got solid clouds, and the flavor was good. On some hits, I think I pushed the button a bit too long for my liking, resulting in vapor that was a little too hot and a little too toasted taste wise. I did not seem to approach combustion temperatures at any time. The resulting ABV was pretty evenly cooked, and there was no charring. I'd say it was fairly similar in appearance to ABV from the Herbalizer.

Perhaps most important is that the effects have been profound. I'm actually a bit too stoned for my liking right now, which is what would have happened if I took the same amount of hits in a row from my Herbalizer. I'm sure the unfamiliar vape signature is playing a role here, as well as the fact that I haven't used marijuana in nearly a week (I typically vape daily), but it's impressive nonetheless. It does appear as though the unit is utilizing a significant deal of convection, which is much more efficient than conduction IME. I wouldn't have been anywhere close to this high if I took 7 draws from my Solo.

I feel like keeping the unit 100% spotless will be a challenge, as bud seems to make its way into all the little crevices in the bowl and lid. However, it'd be pretty quick and simple to wipe the unit down after each session. Is it no problem to wipe the device down with some ISO on a microfiber cloth? It looks like the magnetic lid features some sort of rubber (or is it silicone? either way, I'm hoping the material used is high temp resistant), so I wonder if getting ISO on that part could become an issue. For now, the brush works well enough for cleaning. I already use a similar brush that came with a beard trimmer.

In sum, my initial impressions are pretty positive, and I'm looking forward to experimenting a bit more. Will report back.

 
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mitchgo61

I go where the thrills are
Also, the screen seems to move around easily, and there's a slight gap between the glass bowl and the (ceramic? stainless steel?) plate the screen sits on. This seems like a potential spot for bud to get stuck in, but I'll have to read up on the design more to understand better. The 45 minute charging time was impressive.


I feel like keeping the unit 100% spotless will be a challenge, as bud seems to make its way into all the little crevices in the bowl and lid. However, it'd be pretty quick and simple to wipe the unit down after each session. Is it no problem to wipe the device down with some ISO on a microfiber cloth? It looks like the magnetic lid features some sort of rubber (or is it silicone? either way, I'm hoping the material used is high temp resistant), so I wonder if getting ISO on that part could become an issue. For now, the brush works well enough for cleaning. I already use a similar brush that came with a beard trimmer.

1. There's an o-ring between the bottom of the glass bowl and the stainless steel plate; this prevents debris from falling onto the heating coil or inside the unit. If you brush very gently under the bowl you can keep it clean...be gentle and don't press on the o-ring. I personally like the Iolite Wspr 7 hole discs as a replacement for the bottom screen, but not everyone loves 'em.

2. The seal is silicone and yes you can use iso on it but I keep it very minimal...just a slightly damp paper towel wiped very gently against the seal. Lighter, more frequent cleans are preferable to less-frequent, heavier cleanings...you don't wanna have to use too much iso or be abrasive on the seal.

 
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@mitchgo61 Thanks for the info. I'm assuming all silicone used is medical grade/high temp resistant, but do we have confirmation on that? Also, are the o-rings replaceable (it looks like there is one around the mouthpiece as well) or are they meant to be permanent? I ask because I seem to remember people in the Solo thread changing their o-rings after a while. Does the constant exposure to heat wear them out?

I had a second bowl last night and found that holding the button for around 5 seconds with very little preheating produced better flavor for my tastes. It's definitely going to take some more experimenting to get my technique down. Also, no sign of the battery dying yet. I stretched the second bowl out for 15+ hits and it probably could have kept going.

EDIT: Those Iolite screens look pretty good. I may have to grab some!
 
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mitchgo61

I go where the thrills are
@mitchgo61 Thanks for the info. I'm assuming all silicone used is medical grade/high temp resistant, but do we have confirmation on that? Also, are the o-rings replaceable (it looks like there is one around the mouthpiece as well) or are they meant to be permanent? I ask because I seem to remember people in the Solo thread changing their o-rings after a while. Does the constant exposure to heat wear them out?

I had a second bowl last night and found that holding the button for around 5 seconds with very little preheating produced better flavor for my tastes. It's definitely going to take some more experimenting to get my technique down. Also, no sign of the battery dying yet. I stretched the second bowl out for 15+ hits and it probably could have kept going.

EDIT: Those Iolite screens look pretty good. I may have to grab some!

Yes...FF confirmed some months ago that the seal is medical-grade silicone. No worries. I don't think, technically, that the o-rings are user replaceable...you can technically void the warranty by dismantling any of those components. (However, FF has amazing service, and have replaced entire units even when users have violated the warranty...so while I'd be super careful with anything you attempt with the FF, the company has been extremely lenient about replacing and repairing at their expense). I don't know, yet, if heat exposure causes issues. So far, no, but thankfully we have a five year warranty to find out. :)

The learning curve seems to stretch a long way with the FF. Eight months and four units and I'm still improving technique-wise. As the Grateful Dead song goes, at least I'm enjoying the ride...
 
mitchgo61,

slick

Well-Known Member
y'll
Perhaps most important is that the effects have been profound. I'm actually a bit too stoned for my liking right now, which is what would have happened if I took the same amount of hits in a row from my Herbalizer. I'm sure the unfamiliar vape signature is playing a role here, as well as the fact that I haven't used marijuana in nearly a week (I typically vape daily), but it's impressive nonetheless. It does appear as though the unit is utilizing a significant deal of convection, which is much more efficient than conduction IME. I wouldn't have been anywhere close to this high if I took 7 draws from my Solo.

Did you notice any difference in the high vs your previous vape/smoking experience? I was reading around page 104 and someone mentioned that the high they get off the FF was more heady then normal. I found I've had a similar experience. This may just be from my conservative use of the heat. I tend to keep low throat irritation a priority.
 
slick,
y'll


Did you notice any difference in the high vs your previous vape/smoking experience? I was reading around page 104 and someone mentioned that the high they get off the FF was more heady then normal. I found I've had a similar experience. This may just be from my conservative use of the heat. I tend to keep low throat irritation a priority.

I wouldn't say there was a significant difference, it just got me really high really quickly.
 
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cawshook

Solod out.
I wouldn't say there was a significant difference, it just got me really high really quickly.
I'm glad I'm not the only one. I'm not sure what it is either, but I think it has to do with hitting multiple different temperatures instead of maintaining the same temperature. I think that is a better way to release the goods. The hits just seem more potent than hits off the e-nano, which I haven't touched it for two days now.
 

fizzy1000

Well-Known Member
The first time I used my FF last December I got higher than I've been in years. That immediately endeared me to vaping with this tool. The Lotus is the only other vape I have used which also has this effect on me. I do believe it might have something to do with using the full temp range but that's speculation on my part.
 

invertedisdead

PHASE3
Manufacturer
Interesting replies. I've been curious about riding the "wave" as Firefly calls it. This is one of the vaporizers that finally doesn't seem to suck. Waiting for the grasshopper to come out first though before I mess with this one.
 
invertedisdead,
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