Discontinued Zion vaporizer

KeroZen

Chronic vapaholic
Glad it's sorted out, but you do realize this thread is not RBT public technical and after-sales support forum right? :D It's clear nobody excepted RBT could help you with money refund issues...

I hope you'll still catch the Zion train later! I'm hanging firmly to the locomotive myself, and have no intention to let it go at all! :D
 

pakalolo

Toolbag v1.1 (candidate)
Staff member
Here's another clip of me trying to demonstrate the vapour production of Pauahi and failing, or at least not showing the full capabilities. You can see that I stopped part way because I'm no good at pulling huge lungfuls, and if I hadn't I probably could have gotten the vapour a lot thicker. Also, it's only .03 g.

 

doubledown

Well-Known Member
Glad it's sorted out, but you do realize this thread is not RBT public technical and after-sales support forum right? :D It's clear nobody excepted RBT could help you with money refund issues...

I hope you'll still catch the Zion train later! I'm hanging firmly to the locomotive myself, and have no intention to let it go at all! :D

Thanks. I really appreciate your opinion. Everyone has one.
Just an update for anyone interested in RBT customer service. Once I posted, RBT emailed me within an hour and I received a refund in full tonight. Thanks to RBT for getting me all squared away! Looking forward to getting back in on the fun the next go round!
 

RastaBuddhaTao

Well-Known Member
Manufacturer
NP @doubledown ... Sorry for the oversight.

I spent some time making some updates tonight to the web page FAQs if anyone is interested. I also added a page with a plan and an update that I will do periodically. Unfortunately I can't predict when you will receive your Zion but I can give you a plan. For those who are uncomfortable with the uncertainty please feel free to request a refund. For those who are in for the long haul I hope the plan and updates give you better clarity of the progress.

I believe I am up to date on my form replies so if you didn't get a reply your answer was probably already in the FAQ. If there is content that is still lacking please submit a form with your questions as it helps build out the FAQ for future customers. Please continue to be patient as the focus continues to remain on the development of the Zion.
 

Shit Snacks

Milaana. Lana. LANA. LANAAAA! (TM2/TP80/BAK/FW9)
Your struggle to get Pauahi back on the stem got a little audible giggle out of me. Good to know that it works as expected... ;)

Oh yes, I know and miss that struggle!

And :drool: at the prospect of more betas (mine?!) going out soon, missing Zion-izing big time.

Will Ziggy get upgraded internals too @RastaBuddhaTao? Or just a repair job?
 

downivan

New Member
Hi guys, sorry to post this here, but I'm having problems with the site. I tried submitting a refund form last week. Been waiting for a week, so figured you were busy, but saw the quick response here so I don't think you got it. I tried submitting the form again today but keep getting error messages. I've tried with both Firefox and Chrome to no avail.
 
downivan,

phattpiggie

Well-Known Member
Accessory Maker
@RastaBuddhaTao I really like the 'Zion Progress' page on the site. Hopefully this will keep folk informed as to how things are going with the production issues. Fingers crossed for all the Zion customers that we don't see to many additions to said page before Zions start being boxed up and sent out.
All the best RBT.
 

RastaBuddhaTao

Well-Known Member
Manufacturer
Oh yes, I know and miss that struggle!

And :drool: at the prospect of more betas (mine?!) going out soon, missing Zion-izing big time.

Will Ziggy get upgraded internals too @RastaBuddhaTao? Or just a repair job?
Why have a hamburger when steak is on the menu
Hi guys, sorry to post this here, but I'm having problems with the site. I tried submitting a refund form last week. Been waiting for a week, so figured you were busy, but saw the quick response here so I don't think you got it. I tried submitting the form again today but keep getting error messages. I've tried with both Firefox and Chrome to no avail.
Hmmmm tried the form and it seemed to work for me? I sent you a PM to get your info.


Some General responses that answer questions contained in the FAQ:

We currently are not seeking any partnerships with retail establishments
We will not be shipping any additional vaporizers internationally and plan to only sell into US markets
The Zion is Sold Out and no more orders will be taken until we have stock to ship which is not anticipated until early 2016.

Please read the FAQs prior to submitting a question as it prevents having to answer questions that I already answered which is taking my time from making progress on the Zion. Other than requesting a refund I can't think of any urgent correspondence that is required. I apologize to all who feel that this is bad customer service but without a product to sell I have no customers but rather a collection of people most of which I don't believe want progress slowed by me answering trivial questions. Again, the option of a refund is available so please take advantage if you are the least bit dissatisfied with RBT in any way.

In the spirit of the Zion only Pak's positive terminals are labeled... Nope, no negative here, just one big happy Cult family ;

Lastly a reminder that as a rule I will no longer answer questions here on FC but rather officially through RBT www.

If you get bored there is over a hundred pages here and the technology page on our www details the patented Zion heater technology. There will be a test during cult initiation to determine your ranking.
 
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phattpiggie

Well-Known Member
Accessory Maker
IMO nothing is more important than dealing with the production issues. Once they are in hand RBT will have more time to sort out any other queries people have. As you say nothing is more important than getting a quality product out the door. 'Trivia' can be dealt with after.
The positive spirit is what brought me here in the first place. That and what's turning out to be a damn fine vaporizer. A step in the right direction no matter how small is still a step closer to Zions going out to customers.
Once again in the positive vibe we all have love about this thread
COME ON RBT. :tup:
 

Copacetic

Somewhere North of The Wall
I know RBT has plenty on his plate, and in the works, but I hope that one day, a model designed specifically for use on water tools is released!

In the meantime, I intend to get a single batt' and use it the way I currently use my INH 05; on my DO20 - D
The INH is pretty good, but I feel the need to graduate to something a bit better, with more class, and glass, and Ziontech looks to me like it will match my needs pretty damn close.
 

grokit

well-worn member
It's more of a state of mind than an actual place :whoa:

a1747754399_10.jpg


It's reportedly a pretty good vaporizer too :tup:
 

pakalolo

Toolbag v1.1 (candidate)
Staff member
Can the Zion be used with water tools?

The Zion is designed to be a handled vaporizer and has not been tested with water tools. Customers may choose to use the Zion with water tools but should be aware that there might be interference issues with the heater screen. Although the heater screen is robust, it can be forced out of position creating a crevice where debris can collect and potentially damaging the heater. Care should also be taken to not support the unit by the heater glass as undue stress can crack the glass. The heater itself has proven impervious to water spills but the electronics compartments, knob and switch should not get wet.

Basically, @RastaBuddhaTao is saying that the things you see me doing those videos—basket screens, bubblers, inverted use—are not endorsed. RBT has to define limits for warranty purposes, and it's prefectly reasonable to disqualify some practices. That doesn't mean you can't do them, it means that if your Zion fails as a result, he can refuse to cover it under the warranty. If you take proper care, however, you can do everything you see in my videos and the Zion won't ever need service.

Let's discuss the fact that the joint of ISO stems is too long. This will undoubtedly lead to some frustration since you probably never had to pay attention to this before. It's quite possible that the shoulder of the joint of your existing water tools and connectors will stand as much as 3 mm above the lip of the Zion bowl. Because of the slope, there will be a gap all around at the top of the bowl, which my gauge tells me is usually about .1 mm. The diameter of an ISO joint is about 13 mm at the bottom so there's an even larger gap all round there. Any part of the stem that contacts the bowl screen adds some pressure, and if this screen is dislodged your Zion is busted. Using an ISO joint means that the bottom of the joint rests on the screen. Add to that the fact that RBT warns against having things rest on the bowl screen, and the prospects look dim—but not so fast!

In Pauahi, I am confident that the weight of a connector or stem is not risking or weakening the bowl screen. I've therefore done some testing to see how well ISO joints work. My theory was that the gaps shouldn't matter. Once you are drawing on the stem, all the air will flow through it and you are almost certainly drawing air down the bowl into the stem. The added air should not be enough to notice. Tests quickly confirmed this. All of my ISO glass performed beautifully. There is a down side: with a loose fit, you are vulnerable to lipstick pulling out the stem and dumping your load.

It's up to you to decide whether you want to take the chance of doing damage that might not be covered by warranty. I'm not encouraging anyone to do what I've been doing. I think many Zion owners will go ahead, however, since the 18 mm bowl is irresistible. If you do, take extra care to put the minimum pressure on the bowl screen.

Can basket screens be used with the Zion?

The Zion is intended to be used with the supplied fixed screens as prescribed. If a basket screen has a rim it will add pressure to the heater screen. Although the heater screen is robust, it can be forced out of position creating a crevice where debris can collect and potentially damaging the heater. The other danger of using a basket screen is that the ID of the load chamber is a smaller diameter than the rest of the mouthpiece thereby creating an unsafe condition allowing someone to inhale a screen. Therefore we only recommend using the supplied screens firmly fixed in position. The screen being fixed in place is useful when string and inserting the Zion mouthpiece.

The Arizer elbow screen has a rim that will definitely add pressure to the bowl screen. I don't use mine any more. The basket screens I'm using all came from RBT. Some of them came with Jessica. These are slightly larger than the screens that will ship with production Zions, and they seat nicely wherever I position them in Jessica's stems. The production stems have a smaller ID: 8 mm instead of 8.5 mm at the tip of the stem. They also have a constriction inside the stem right at the shoulder of the joint. When the screen is inserted from the top, dome-style, it gets firmly lodged at this constriction. What RBT is advising against is inserting it from the top, basket-style. If you do that, the screen might not stay in place and you could inhale it.

I don't have any basket screens in the production stems because I don't have any that will fit into the smaller diameter stem tip. Both of the stock Pauahi stems are fitted with dome-style stock screens. This creates a much larger bowl: I just measured .17 g without packing, so maybe .2 g packed. (In my experience, the Zions prefer loosely packed loads, but I digress.) If you don't fill it (I wouldn't) it is much easier to stir than my basket screen stems. That's because I usually position the basket screen just inside the tip of the stem. That means there is no added pressure on the heater screen, but it also means a smaller load limit and more difficult stirring. (There are ways to use the Zion that don't require stirring but I digress.)

I prefer the basket screens at the tip. I've told RBT this and he concedes there could be demand for this style, but right now he's got much higher priorities than adding a second style of screen. In other words, it might happen but not any time soon.

I know that some of you will want to know why I prefer baskets at the tip. There are pros and cons to both types of screen, but Pauahi does not have a production heater so I really don't want to go into details. The differences are small enough to me that a production heater could change my opinion.
 
Just out of curiosity, I remember talk of a wick below

I think a picture of the Zion and what comes with it with a list of things would help. Pretty simple, Zion, stir stick, stash cap, medium stem, long stem, five screens, e-cig stainless wick material. We will be putting packages together with batteries, chargers and extras in order to offer reduced cost / free stuff to our customers.

Is this still a thing, or has it been abandoned.
 
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