MiniVAP Vaporizer
- Thread starter stinkmeaner
- Start date
MinnBobber
Well-Known Member
One batch of 2014's had a faulty/ not reliable piece installed which did not show up in testing. This caused that batch of mVs to not heat properly after being used a few hours. Hermes is replacing the faulty heater core and updating the firmware under warranty.
If this makes the mV "shitty" than so be it.
My 2014 from an earlier batch has been flawless and remarkable.
If this singular fault makes the mV shitty, then the Mighty and Crafty must be "really shitty" as they have had multiple system faults like firmware, charging, breakage, etc and some are on their third unit. They are not "really shitty".
Both are very nice units with teething problems that S & B is fixing under warranty.
Your minivAP is just suffering from "premature condemnation"
You're dissing it before you even know it's potential. Patience grasshopper....
Mrmrmrmr
Well-Known Member
Seriously couldn't agree more friend ! It seems like almost every post he makes has some negative remarks about the performance of the MV or Hermes customer service. Kinda odd since he hasn't really had a fully functioning unitOne batch of 2014's had a faulty/ not reliable piece installed which did not show up in testing. This caused that batch of mVs to not heat properly after being used a few hours. Hermes is replacing the faulty heater core and updating the firmware under warranty.
If this makes the mV "shitty" than so be it.
My 2014 from an earlier batch has been flawless and remarkable.
If this singular fault makes the mV shitty, then the Mighty and Crafty must be "really shitty" as they have had multiple system faults like firmware, charging, breakage, etc and some are on their third unit. They are not "really shitty".
Both are very nice units with teething problems that S & B is fixing under warranty.
Your minivAP is just suffering from "premature condemnation"
You're dissing it before you even know it's potential. Patience grasshopper....
Can't wait to vape a nice small mvbasket before i run today !
Vapor and exercising just go together
Michel
Well-Known Member
@MinnBobber : 5 days to warranty a defective S&B portable. End-to-end, sending time included! Got back a new, sealed unit with all accessoires in the box like 2nd charger, 2nd Cooling unit, grinder, filling aid, brush, sieves and o-rings. New batteries since the warranted vape was brand new and never used. No discussions where I bought it from taking weeks and if the housing and battery is under warranty or not. Top on this I got 10 packs of sieves, 8 picking tools, a third CU and some more gifts worth more than 100€. 5 days only to change my mind from being really pissed about shitty breaking housings (I included this statement in a more polite way in the letter I send with my unit to warranty) to make me a fanboy! I really hope my mighty breaks a 2nd time before warranty is over. No joke.
But perhaps I should have been more precise on my previous post. The suppliers Hermes is (currently?) working with are shitty. Look at the housing (even if it's beautiful, it could be very easy to resolve the problems of the mismatching color tones without even generating higher production costs), the inconsistent core, the buttons falling of and their click-feel, the click-feel when screwing on the battery or the AC-plug, the bad battery contacts, the glued lid with glue from 3M and the not ISO-proof plastics not to forget. So some single components of my 2014 tcmv are shitty. And Hermes communication is even worse. At least in my case. Really bad combination of both facts. Does it sound better now?
One last thing I have to add to give you something to discuss on, or at least something to think of, but mostly to call the laminar heat flow in question once again:
A very hard draw increases airflow dramatically and goes turbulent. We all agree on this. But not on the amount of provided vapor after this. Or to be more precise, the "hot-air-to-pure-vapor-ratio" because hot air could be bypassing your load (I don't think it's possible in most cases if you load the bowl/basket right).
When I tamp down or use a finer grind, won't this prevent the airflow to cause a "tunneling" like I saw it once on this thread? I never experienced this with different grinds, btw. Isn't this meant by Hermes with bypassing? If not, how can air really bypass a load by being turbulent if most vapes, the mighty included, are giving great results by just being turbulent on purpose?
If it could really be possible to bypass a load without tunneling, shouldn't the increased airflow give bigger clouds in total anyways, even if the "hot-air-to-pure-vapor-ratio" is getting slightly more hot air in it? This is exactly how a working MV seems to perform. Draw how you want and get clouds in any case, turbulent or laminar. I really don't need a working MV to judge about this, only enough time and frustration to think about such logical breaks the concept of laminar heat flow truely has.
I'm not saying the 2014 TCMV is shitty anymore, I just corrected myself. It seems it could perform great, even probably not for me. Just talking about a marketing concept I don't believe in anymore. I didn't sleep until 6 AM and was really clear and pissed in my previous post. It doesn't change anything on my thoughts, but sorry again for ranting, I don't want to offend anybody so please don't take my sometimes rude behavior to personal.
I'm just more frustrated that even Hermes doesn't want to elaborate on this. I definitively would write pages and pages on this if I were him. Sadly I'm not Hermes. We would have defeated the volcano easily in terms of sold quantities if I was. I could give them some good advices, the first one is: plan your product with a FMEA!
But probably I'm just a young grasshopper and should wait until I have warranted my unit several times until I have one I feel comfortable with. But I'm still aware Hermes is doing business in a very improper way. I could tell you some more stories about them and how they are spreading misinformation on purpose to at least one reseller I'm in contact with in person. Isn't VN newly also denying to do warranty for Hermes if iirc? Ask them why. Or ask "Andy" from www.verdampftnochmal.de by yourself what they experienced so far if you don't believe me. Btw, these guys are doing a great job and are trying to help me out as good as they can!
Btw, sadly @Mrmrmrmr still isn't jumping in. I think he left us. I saw him enjoying in the mighty thread those days...
Edit: ok, there he is finally with a really sophisticated post. But what I'm saying isn't about customer service or about my faulty unit only. It's about those thinking I'm weird because I'm experiencing something you aren't agreeing with. And about the laminar heat flow of course. I know it's only marketing. But it seems you are just happy being high. I tried to explain I'm not average by saying the volcano can't get me high properly. It could be me like probably everybody here in this thread is thinking. Or it's the gcmv being much better than the tcmv. Or even the fact that every unit is "handcrafted" by a stoner? Sry I'm a stoner and an engineer too, so I know exactly what I'm talking about. Being high can give you great suggestions and ideas. But it can mess up your work completely, too. At least we have a quality management at work, colleagues and clients are verifying what I'm doing. It's hard for 2 guys to do this, I know. This is why Hermes is probably the wrong company to deal with, at least for me not willing to buy 2 or 3 times the same vape to always have a working one or just wait for weeks. The different batches can't be compared in any way since @lazylightning 's 2014 tcmv is nearly combusting on blue. But I really don't care if you are getting fluid dynamics or not. Btw, great usefull comparison of your "MV vs. Mighty" I asked politely for besides your sophisticated post, thank you very much. This whole scenery going on here reminds me a little of plato's allegory of the cave...
It could be true I'm dissing since I'm not happy with Hermes. But I'm just telling the truth, not spreading misinformation or anything like this. I wouldn't call this dissing. I'm criticizing and pointing out the negative aspects of my unit very clear. I did this with my mighty on the mighty thread, too. But my S&B experiences so far where simply much better in every way than with Hermes and the MV, even when it worked properly, apart taste and the aluminum housing and so on. I wrote all this down in an objective way. You are always overreading it and bashing me with a post you wrote down in probably 2 seconds.
But perhaps I should have been more precise on my previous post. The suppliers Hermes is (currently?) working with are shitty. Look at the housing (even if it's beautiful, it could be very easy to resolve the problems of the mismatching color tones without even generating higher production costs), the inconsistent core, the buttons falling of and their click-feel, the click-feel when screwing on the battery or the AC-plug, the bad battery contacts, the glued lid with glue from 3M and the not ISO-proof plastics not to forget. So some single components of my 2014 tcmv are shitty. And Hermes communication is even worse. At least in my case. Really bad combination of both facts. Does it sound better now?
One last thing I have to add to give you something to discuss on, or at least something to think of, but mostly to call the laminar heat flow in question once again:
A very hard draw increases airflow dramatically and goes turbulent. We all agree on this. But not on the amount of provided vapor after this. Or to be more precise, the "hot-air-to-pure-vapor-ratio" because hot air could be bypassing your load (I don't think it's possible in most cases if you load the bowl/basket right).
When I tamp down or use a finer grind, won't this prevent the airflow to cause a "tunneling" like I saw it once on this thread? I never experienced this with different grinds, btw. Isn't this meant by Hermes with bypassing? If not, how can air really bypass a load by being turbulent if most vapes, the mighty included, are giving great results by just being turbulent on purpose?
If it could really be possible to bypass a load without tunneling, shouldn't the increased airflow give bigger clouds in total anyways, even if the "hot-air-to-pure-vapor-ratio" is getting slightly more hot air in it? This is exactly how a working MV seems to perform. Draw how you want and get clouds in any case, turbulent or laminar. I really don't need a working MV to judge about this, only enough time and frustration to think about such logical breaks the concept of laminar heat flow truely has.
I'm not saying the 2014 TCMV is shitty anymore, I just corrected myself. It seems it could perform great, even probably not for me. Just talking about a marketing concept I don't believe in anymore. I didn't sleep until 6 AM and was really clear and pissed in my previous post. It doesn't change anything on my thoughts, but sorry again for ranting, I don't want to offend anybody so please don't take my sometimes rude behavior to personal.
I'm just more frustrated that even Hermes doesn't want to elaborate on this. I definitively would write pages and pages on this if I were him. Sadly I'm not Hermes. We would have defeated the volcano easily in terms of sold quantities if I was. I could give them some good advices, the first one is: plan your product with a FMEA!
But probably I'm just a young grasshopper and should wait until I have warranted my unit several times until I have one I feel comfortable with. But I'm still aware Hermes is doing business in a very improper way. I could tell you some more stories about them and how they are spreading misinformation on purpose to at least one reseller I'm in contact with in person. Isn't VN newly also denying to do warranty for Hermes if iirc? Ask them why. Or ask "Andy" from www.verdampftnochmal.de by yourself what they experienced so far if you don't believe me. Btw, these guys are doing a great job and are trying to help me out as good as they can!
Btw, sadly @Mrmrmrmr still isn't jumping in. I think he left us. I saw him enjoying in the mighty thread those days...
Edit: ok, there he is finally with a really sophisticated post. But what I'm saying isn't about customer service or about my faulty unit only. It's about those thinking I'm weird because I'm experiencing something you aren't agreeing with. And about the laminar heat flow of course. I know it's only marketing. But it seems you are just happy being high. I tried to explain I'm not average by saying the volcano can't get me high properly. It could be me like probably everybody here in this thread is thinking. Or it's the gcmv being much better than the tcmv. Or even the fact that every unit is "handcrafted" by a stoner? Sry I'm a stoner and an engineer too, so I know exactly what I'm talking about. Being high can give you great suggestions and ideas. But it can mess up your work completely, too. At least we have a quality management at work, colleagues and clients are verifying what I'm doing. It's hard for 2 guys to do this, I know. This is why Hermes is probably the wrong company to deal with, at least for me not willing to buy 2 or 3 times the same vape to always have a working one or just wait for weeks. The different batches can't be compared in any way since @lazylightning 's 2014 tcmv is nearly combusting on blue. But I really don't care if you are getting fluid dynamics or not. Btw, great usefull comparison of your "MV vs. Mighty" I asked politely for besides your sophisticated post, thank you very much. This whole scenery going on here reminds me a little of plato's allegory of the cave...
It could be true I'm dissing since I'm not happy with Hermes. But I'm just telling the truth, not spreading misinformation or anything like this. I wouldn't call this dissing. I'm criticizing and pointing out the negative aspects of my unit very clear. I did this with my mighty on the mighty thread, too. But my S&B experiences so far where simply much better in every way than with Hermes and the MV, even when it worked properly, apart taste and the aluminum housing and so on. I wrote all this down in an objective way. You are always overreading it and bashing me with a post you wrote down in probably 2 seconds.
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JJ Cool F
Well-Known Member
@Michel
I'm not sure if this has been mentioned, but maybe one of the reasons the Volcano (or indeed the MV teflon core) doesn't hit you as hard as you'd like is the lack of conduction? I'm sure I read somewhere that conduction vapes tend to hit 'harder' than convection, which is why Hermes recommend the glass core (which has some conduction) for more sedative effects. Someone jump in and correct me if I'm wrong about that.
Concerning @Michel's 'negativity', I find it sort of refreshing. He's definitely blunt, but what he says isn't lacking in reason.
I don't have a dog in this fight because I don't own a MV, so I like to read as much as I can about something [expensive] before I buy it. I'd be worried about the integrity of a forum if there was nothing but positive reviews on certain products because I haven't yet heard of a mass-produced product free from any faults or bugs.
Hermes' customer service is shocking. When they're too busy to answer emails, they simply ignore them. That is extremely poor, imo. I also feel their product is over-priced for the failure rate expressed on this forum. Yes, other manufactures' make products which also fail, but how many at the same rate as the MV and which cost a similar amount, and have been around for years?
If the MV was 1/3 the price it is today, there would probably be far fewer ranting complaints. Customers would accept that they aren't buying a premium and reliable product. At $500 though, I would have a certain level of expectation (given other similarly priced products in the same market), and I don't think @Michel's has been met by Hermes.
I've been so close to buying a MV for a couple of years now, but every time I fill my shopping basket with one on the Hermes website, I read another FC member describing their beautiful-when-working unit starting to fail, and the long, expensive and painful returns process awaiting them.
What most MVers do agree on, all things aside, is a fully-functioning unit is a great device. Whether it's worth the price tag and aggro is still up for debate.
Peace in the Middle East.
I'm not sure if this has been mentioned, but maybe one of the reasons the Volcano (or indeed the MV teflon core) doesn't hit you as hard as you'd like is the lack of conduction? I'm sure I read somewhere that conduction vapes tend to hit 'harder' than convection, which is why Hermes recommend the glass core (which has some conduction) for more sedative effects. Someone jump in and correct me if I'm wrong about that.
Concerning @Michel's 'negativity', I find it sort of refreshing. He's definitely blunt, but what he says isn't lacking in reason.
I don't have a dog in this fight because I don't own a MV, so I like to read as much as I can about something [expensive] before I buy it. I'd be worried about the integrity of a forum if there was nothing but positive reviews on certain products because I haven't yet heard of a mass-produced product free from any faults or bugs.
Hermes' customer service is shocking. When they're too busy to answer emails, they simply ignore them. That is extremely poor, imo. I also feel their product is over-priced for the failure rate expressed on this forum. Yes, other manufactures' make products which also fail, but how many at the same rate as the MV and which cost a similar amount, and have been around for years?
If the MV was 1/3 the price it is today, there would probably be far fewer ranting complaints. Customers would accept that they aren't buying a premium and reliable product. At $500 though, I would have a certain level of expectation (given other similarly priced products in the same market), and I don't think @Michel's has been met by Hermes.
I've been so close to buying a MV for a couple of years now, but every time I fill my shopping basket with one on the Hermes website, I read another FC member describing their beautiful-when-working unit starting to fail, and the long, expensive and painful returns process awaiting them.
What most MVers do agree on, all things aside, is a fully-functioning unit is a great device. Whether it's worth the price tag and aggro is still up for debate.
Peace in the Middle East.
Michel
Well-Known Member
@JJ Cool F , thank you for your open mind. I have nothing more to add on this so far.
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Who is the grasshopper? Read the manual! It is called auto-shut-off. Just to show to everybody you are probably typing faster than you are thinking...
Edit: it would probably cause the same reactions if I would formulate my thoughts clearly about the MFLB in the thread over there... Same with the Solo. I have both, but imo it's not even worth reading those threads. I start to feel the same here because some aren't simply getting the meaning of my combined words....
Group dynamics I guess...
---------------------------------------------
Wow...first time going below 185 for me. Started at 175 and I am still blowing clouds 10min later. I assumed the mighty killed your load quickly no matter what temp. Boy was I wrong
Looks like I'm going to tap out before the bowl is done.
Quite honestly thinking about selling a couple vapes and buying another mighty.
Something interesting has been happening since I've typed all that. Mighty keeps wanting to turn off
It's done so 4 times now and never has before. Malfunction maybe ?
Who is the grasshopper? Read the manual! It is called auto-shut-off. Just to show to everybody you are probably typing faster than you are thinking...
Edit: it would probably cause the same reactions if I would formulate my thoughts clearly about the MFLB in the thread over there... Same with the Solo. I have both, but imo it's not even worth reading those threads. I start to feel the same here because some aren't simply getting the meaning of my combined words....
Group dynamics I guess...
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momofthegoons
vapor accessory addict
You've now stated your experience and opinion several times. And I am not saying that your opinion isn't valid. But calling on other members to try and get them to post negatively about their unit borders on rabble rousing to company bash.
We also have another rule;
- Please do not revisit an issue unless you have helpful information or constructive comments to add.
Michel
Well-Known Member
Sry, I already said I'm out of this thread several times by now. Sry I did not behave like I should. I should know it better by myself, too. I just felt I have to defend myself since I'm alone with my opinion and people aren't stopping quoting me. But it's ok. Apologizing again and waiting for warranty patiently now.
Edit: I was not calling on other members. I could have just quoted them, too. But you are right in some way!
Edit 2: oh sry, I totally did call on Mrmrmrmr to jump in. But it was only because I thought he could be more objective than me, since he is liking both units! It really wasn't to bash Hermes with his help. I knew he wouldn't agree on most aspects, anyways. Sry forgot the first "Edit". I didn't say nothing...
Edit: I was not calling on other members. I could have just quoted them, too. But you are right in some way!
Edit 2: oh sry, I totally did call on Mrmrmrmr to jump in. But it was only because I thought he could be more objective than me, since he is liking both units! It really wasn't to bash Hermes with his help. I knew he wouldn't agree on most aspects, anyways. Sry forgot the first "Edit". I didn't say nothing...
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xhexk
Well-Known Member
I've had a week to enjoy the Mv now and its pretty good. I can't help but feel my unit has lower temps than average. I mean, I'm medicated, but when I look at my bowl its pretty light brown with tints of green in it. I wasn't getting more vapour and ran the unit at red-green but I feel the abv wasn't quite finished.
scottg402
Well-Known Member
Honestly it sounds like something is wrong with your heater core. I find the MV to be on the hot side and I have never seen green in my ABV. That said if you are running it completely out to no vapor then what I just said makes no sense???
Mrmrmrmr
Well-Known Member
Yeah I agree with @scottg402 if your seeing green flecks on red green then something is up with your core. I can get brown abv on any setting if I vape long enough.
Btw scott how does the hydra base work with the MV ?
Btw scott how does the hydra base work with the MV ?
scottg402
Well-Known Member
I use the MiniVap with all my glass and just love the power you get in this cordless machine.
If you are referring to my VXL Hydrabase Bomb Edition, I have never used it with just that. I typically throw my HydraHoneyComb on top. This setup gives you a lot of diffusion so you do sacrifice taste. This is ok with me because I usually savor most of the premium taste earlier in the session by running it dry or through one of my Vape tamers. While you do sacrifice the taste, you can get some monster rips off it and it's about as smooth as they come.
The Mini can milk out the HydraHoneyBomb (my name for this two piece setup) pretty easily which which is surprising considering the volume. I think I posted a video a while back and can dig it up if you want to check it out. I do remember that was at the end of a session so the video really doesn't do it justice on the milk factor. Some day I will make a new one on a fresh basket starting at green or even red!
If I want a more free-flowing experience which saves the taste I reach for my SSFG Hydraline.
I really feel very fortunate to have the access to different vapes and glass pieces. I am constantly changing up my setups and rarely use the same one two days in a row. They all give a bit different experience and more importantly it keeps me interested!
lwien
Well-Known Member
Three questions for those that are using the Herbie whip.
Did you cut it down or are you using it full length?
Also, what about clearing the whip after your hit? With whip based vapes, it's easy to clear just be pulling it off the heater but what about when it's used with the MV? I guess I can just draw really slow it clear it, eh?
Typically, I really don't like to use whips because they have a tendency to add some taste of it's own. Are the Herbie whips different in this regard?
Did you cut it down or are you using it full length?
Also, what about clearing the whip after your hit? With whip based vapes, it's easy to clear just be pulling it off the heater but what about when it's used with the MV? I guess I can just draw really slow it clear it, eh?
Typically, I really don't like to use whips because they have a tendency to add some taste of it's own. Are the Herbie whips different in this regard?
xhexk
Well-Known Member
Yeah I ran it until no visible vapour came out any more. I've contacted Hermes, time to play the waiting game.
Smknbud
Well-Known Member
Could you clarify that comment?
Two of your own posts ago you said you got 20 hits with good clouds?. I wasn't sure what you meant with that comment either to be honest.
MinnBobber
Well-Known Member
............................................................................
I used the Herbie whip full length but for most whip use now, I go with the MFLB water whip. It has a nice wooden hand hold piece and a 14 mm glass joint so I can use as a direct draw whip on low temps and then plunk the 14 mm glass into a bubbler for high temps.
For clearing, the MFLB and bubbler are easily cleared after each hit as I use the Ratchett Song and just lift up a corner of the silicone cover and draw / clear the whip and bubbler. Pic below:
stickstones
Vapor concierge
I'm not so convinced it is bad, since it is a newer unit. Where did you get it and when? Are you preheating the unit or hitting it as soon as it gets to color?
lwien
Well-Known Member
That's a good point. As an example, Mrm....has one of the older units so using the way his works does not equate to how the newer units work. It's kinda apples and oranges.
xhexk
Well-Known Member
Yeah I would get about 15-20 medium 2-4 second hits. I wasn't checking the abv and wasn't getting "that" high but the bud wasn't the best so I thought that was the problem.
I let it preheat up to red then let it drop to green. When I go to remove the bowl right after the session its semi-warm if that helps.
stickstones
Vapor concierge
I feel like this vape's recent problems have gotten us accustomed to saying the unit is bad a little too quickly. When someone gets a new vape any problems can be attributed to either a bad unit or user error. I've had over 40 different vapes and I still need time to get to know a vape well enough to get it working right. If the MV was purchased recently from Hermes chances are it is user error. If it was bought from VN in the last year the chances of a defective unit go up.
scottg402
Well-Known Member
Yeah I agree with that @stickstones.
I'm probably quicker than others to say so because I had one of those bad units. I guess it could be a subconscious natural reaction?
That said, what else could be causing this? Grind consistency? Packing the basket too full?
Also why wouldn't the basket be hot coming out the vape after a session?
I can't even handle mine by the silicone until it cools for a minute.
I'm probably quicker than others to say so because I had one of those bad units. I guess it could be a subconscious natural reaction?
That said, what else could be causing this? Grind consistency? Packing the basket too full?
Also why wouldn't the basket be hot coming out the vape after a session?
I can't even handle mine by the silicone until it cools for a minute.
stickstones
Vapor concierge
Those are all good questions. And he may well have a bad one. But he just got it, so I'm wondering where from. if it's recently from Hermes, then I think we need more info on his technique. Unless he already posted it and I missed it, which is very possible!
MinnBobber
Well-Known Member
..........................................................................
IMO, it could very well be your technique.
If you are taking 2-4 second draws, this might not be enough time to really extract!!!
With a conduction vape, you've got the hot coil sitting right next to the herb and it hits NOW.
With a pure convection like the MV teflon core, 2-4 seconds has to draw the air in from the bottom,
up thru the heater core, pass thru the herb AND also heat the herb, then thru whatever mouthpiece and into your lungs.
I don't think 2-4 second pulls get any kind of meaningful extraction.
Note: this is why Hermes recommends long slow pulls.
From another discussion--- I think fast/ hard pulls still work.
I don't think short pulls work, especially if some are closer to your 2 second mark.
I think this is why it is very important to post all details when asking for help in sorting out a "problem" as it could be technique or setup or accessories or herb or??
How EXACTLY is it assembled with what baskets and whips?? As some (me included) initially had it assembled wrong since their instruction are a piece of cr#p.
Searching for details I see have only had it for a week. Did you get it directly from Hermes?
lwien
Well-Known Member
Yup. For me, I've found that 10 second pulls works great, especially after the first pull.
It's kinda like priming an carburetor...............for those of you who are old enough to know what a carburetor is.
Gotta pull that heat up there before things begin to happen.
It's kinda like priming an carburetor...............for those of you who are old enough to know what a carburetor is.
Gotta pull that heat up there before things begin to happen.
Smknbud
Well-Known Member
That's what I kinda thought you were alluding to.
I'll just repeat what @MinnBobber said. Technique. Take longer draws. Vary it length wise and see if you notice improvement. You should.