The Grasshopper

It fits in there, but you have to press it firmly against the nano stem to get a good seal. It didn't work well for me, I could only get thin vapor, there wasn't enough suction for a good hit.

I actually tried the same thing with the sticky brick last night, with similar results, the vapor was even thinner with the brick. I put the hopper with silicone tip up to the brick's heat intake. It might work better using the hole at the bottom of the mouthpiece block.

 

This is good information we are all getting....

It does beg the question, in my opinion, that, if cleaning the contacts is "the fix", insofar as this isn't a "fix", per se, but a required maintenance procedure -- then, why would they send a new body when all they have to say is "keep both battery contacts clean". ??

What improvement can they make to keep the mystery gunk (or is it extract?!?!) from appearing on the contacts??

I'm looking at this thing and wondering where this "floss" is supposed to go....? "between the temp dial and the button"? Do you mean that gap that narrows when you push the temp dial down? Unwaxed floss, right??

 

ok guys i just noticed something. on my SS one, my mouthpiece end always rattles because the screen is loose. i just find something sharp to kind of hook into a screen hole to twist it back into stable place (like a dental tool or tweezers in that video we have around here somewhere) but as soon as i close my mouthpiece back on and twist it off, the screen is loose and rattling again.

i found out that if i twist my mouthpiece until it locks into place, it kind of twists off the screen with it when removing the mouthpiece - i have to turn the screen about 2.5 more rotations in the opp direction for it to get locked into place! thats a LOT of turns which result in about a 1mm gap in closed mouthpiece if not fixed right away.

so its kinda annoying but the mouthpiece shouldnt be turned all the way til it locks in...its just there to provide a barrier so nothing gets into your mouth, so just turn it and keep it loose on there when youre on the go cuz otherwise you will have to fix the screen EACH TIME you remove the mouthpiece otherwise it will fall out in about 3-4 mouthpiece removals (also your MP will not screw in all the way when the screen is out of position).

i hope that makes sense...basically the MP grabs the screen and twists it out in the same threading path when its getting removed...anyone have a permanent fix instead of constant adjustments for this yet?

 

I don't know what happened there, that was weird. I tried to finish that stem native, no mouthpiece, and wasn't getting much vapor. I checked the chamber and it was still green. Even at temp 5 I had a hard time extracting that load. It must be because it was a new strain I got a sample of, which has been a little lackluster.

I reloaded with a strain I've been using a lot, and the GH worked just fine with the E-Nano stem and Gong. The Gong gives warmer vapor but protects your lips from the heat. The stem cooled the vapor quite a bit, but was somewhat unwieldy.

I decided to test it with the Sticky Brick heat intake again and got the same results as before, very light vapor.

Then I realized I needed to plug the top air intake hole, I was just plugging the carb so there was a lot of extra fresh air coming in thinning the vapor. Works like a champ that way, although it does seem to add draw restriction. Using it with the hole at the bottom of the mouthpiece block works better as you don't have to mess with carbs and there is less resistance.

 

You may want to try disassembling the mouthpiece and giving all pieces an ISO soak, rinse and let dry, and then reassemble. I wonder if resin got in the mouthpiece grooves so it doesn't tighten completely.

 

I've had my hopper for five months and the screen has never come loose hasn't moved at all I think there might be something wrong with your screen or threading ask hopper labs is my advise

 

And my screen came loose on the 2nd or 3rd day, on 2 hoppers. I found that the right tool makes a big difference. I found precision tweezers at CVS, and they work great to really tighten the screen.

I did reach out to ghl first thinking it was a warranty claim. Caroline said the screen just needed to be tightened. Not to say that some others may be off or damaged in some way, and in need of replacement...

 

might be them new assembly staff getting confused with all 80 parts totally head shot and forgetting the final easy task of tightening them screens
Shit boxed it to late lol

 

This thing rips. I get about two huge rips on a full or close to full load. I haven't tested battery life yet. I charge after about 2 loads. I have three batteries so no need to run them down so low....yet.

 

This is where my OCD gets to have playtime, figuring out the nuances of this thing and sharing it and making sure every single person out there does it or else! hahaha

I'm glad to find out about the Mystery Gunk. It really has made a difference in the vape consistency! I wasn't getting dark-enough ABV to be satisfied (in spite of how ripped I might've gotten anyway ).

My little epiphany today about this is that the "weakest" point in the battery current-flow is the inside contact - because the battery terminal isn't flat, and it's narrow. Does this matter?, who knows, but I bet that GHL had researched and found a much better battery alternative but its cost would've made it prohibitive. I'm sure they'd love a better solution as much as we would.

It would be a stupendous act of perfect business practice if GHL has its eye on perfecting the battery component, and was able to offer it at a fair price. I get goose bumps just thinking about it.

Apologies for the back-to-back! Don't know how to delete a screw-up.
Modnote: Posts merged. You don't delete a screw up, you report it and let the staff fix it.

Regarding a post I made yesterday - http://fuckcombustion.com/threads/the-grasshopper.18482/page-424#post-1004718

I mentioned finding these things but for some reason I forgot to paste this:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B014PRSVIQ/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

The perfect swabs!

 

I think all vapes need maintenance. With my EQ it is costly getting new silicone, washing glass adapters in expensive chemicals, and replacing mesh screens. It takes a lot of effort to get it clean and operating optimally.
With the hopper, it can go for weeks without needing to be cleaned, and the cleaning that's required is simple and quick. But beyond just the business end of the vape, the power side needs a bit of quick maintenance too.
Thorough cleaning helps, but it's so simple a general clean is pretty much as effective/the same thing.

After you clean the threading the difference in turning smoothness is immediately noticeable, so I think if users just keep in mind what it feels like when the unit is new, it's easy to tell when a clean is due. Though it's not often, the hopper is great for those of us who don't mind a thorough glass and unit cleaning session, but don't want to have to do it frequently or spend more than 10 minutes doing it.
Salt+alcohol for glass.
Alcohol+cotton q-tips/pipe cleaners for the unit.

 

They were the same gauge, but the Monster Cable is welding cable fine strand and the standard cable looked like #12 solid that was stranded. Everything travels on the surface of the cable, the more strands the less resistance. We're on the same page for the gold, it would have to place in a unit like this.

I'm just hoping Hopper Labs is reading about thier real world use issues and looking at fixes for V2! If they are, the GH2 could be a burden free beast!

 

Agreed, all vapes need maintenance, as does any machine. It seems to me though that whereas a lapse in maintenance might affect another vape's flavor or draw resistance, the GH displays some basic operational issues when cleaning is required. I'm sure there are other vapes where this is the case, but my experience across vapes is not THAT extensive.

That said, the hopper's maintenance needs do seem very easy to fulfill and I'm a big fan of ritual, so I see regular maintenance as a chance to bond with my vape.

 

So I got my grasshopper in a few weeks ago and it's been working great. Just recently though, the threading on the mouthpiece got fucked and the cap doesn't screw on anymore. I was tightening it and apparently I tightened it a little too hard? Anyway so now the threading is done and I can't even use it outside of my house because the cap comes loose and spills material everywhere. Has anyone had this issue happen to their grasshopper? if so, what did you do?

 

so actually this was the SS that got its 2nd repair after combusting (they replaced the back & mid section totally and gave me my mouthpiece back)...this screen was loose since coming back from GH the first repair (2nd repair was a day after i got it back from the 1st one).

ya not surprisingly, this is how GH sent it back to me after the 1st and 2nd repair...i really wish they put more effort into sending back a 100% fixed device...i think they dont care how many times you have to pay to ship it to them. their constant mistakes are starting to really get to me.

ya no matter how tight i set the screen, it always gets loosened by the mouthpiece rotating out.

so i think this same thing happened to me...i thought it was a threading issue but i think your screen isnt screwed all the way down and i would try to do that before sending it in. basically the screen & the mouthpiece use the same set of threads so when the inner one (screen) isnt totally twisted down, the outer thing (mouthpiece) doesnt have access to enough threads to catch into the pathway...thats my theory.

either way, its kind of disappointing that we are hearing SO MANY instances of this device not working properly...sucks that there is a whole thread dedicated to fixing it yourself because when you get it back from GH, chances are you gotta send it in again...i really wish they put more effort into getting their stuff toegther the first time...its annoying reading all these issues...but im glad that FC is here to brainstorm and figure stuff out for ourselves.

 

I would say this paragraph is a good candidate for the Fixit resource.

 

Alright, I've had a hopper for a while now.

I think I'm ready to give some thoughts on a working hopper now that I've shared many thoughts on the qc issues.

Frankly, I think the hopper when functioning as intended is quite possibly the best vaporizer I've ever used.

If you buy one, my advise is where possible to use it heavily and frequently for the first few days and hopefully any issues will rear their head by then. Getting a model with no issues in paramount, especially for those of us with medical needs who wanna use this as an on-the-go driver.

Cons are as follows for me:

* No tool provided to remove mouthpiece screen. If you use a difficult to remove screen or any other such component that will inevitably require thorough cleaning, then FFS include a tool to easily remove it!!!!

* Battery life is very low for concentrates, I tend to get one or two bowls of use with concentrates - these bowls however do give delicious whitewall rips for ages though This issue is very much countered by the fact that batteries are removable/replaceable. I recommend at least 2-3 batteries for every hopper used regularly. One battery is going to leave you spending a lot of time waiting for charging if you are involving concentrates at all. YMMV if you are using only flowers/lower temps though. Multiple batteries will leave even the most ardent concentrate users happy with results These batteries are tiny after all, you can easily carry a lot of them and still have more space free in your pocket than if you had a portable that delivered more battery life (Mighty for example).

* The unit is very hot at the mouthpiece to repeatedly draw through after a few hits. This one really seems to be designed for one or two big rips and then wait til later to reuse from the look of it. It does deliver hits big enough to be used in this way though. With the silicone mouthpiece, it isn't too hot to use except at temps past 4. What I have found is that if you stick a straight glass (like the traditional Ehle style dome design for old school nails) 14mm dome onto the silicone mouthpiece cover and put your lips on the outside on the top edge of the glass (not inside where hot air flows), you can hit at max temp direct from the pen without making it much longer/more unwieldy to hold/use.

* Threads are VERY prone to getting gunked up during filling of the device if you are using very resin coated nugs. It pays to be very careful to keep threads clean! I am sure that @Ratchett products designed for filling the hopper will resolve this issue though! I do wish they made a fill tool that came with the hopper, like the Mighty/Crafty has.

* my inductive charger has not always functioned properly. I have only ever used UL certified power bricks. Not including a USB power brick was an obvious oversight IMO. This unit is really pushing the boundaries of how we store and use energy - shouldn't manufacturers provide this to rule out all possible user errors here?

Now to the positives:

1. The hopper gives bigger rips than any portable I've ever used. In some cases, I find myself swearing that it hits harder than the evo! The heater is a landmark feat and I think hopper labs really deserve kudos for this.

2. The hopper heats up lightning fast! ~5 seconds to heat up to max temp is a dream come true! If you are a medical user who needs big hits, fast on the go - this is indispensable (but until you luck into a fully-functioning model with no QC issues, have a backup vape on hand medical people!)

3. Stealth - it goes without saying but I'll say it. This thing is the stealthiest vape I've ever used, and even smell factor is minimal unless you have reclaim buildup on the silicone tip (CLEAN THESE REGULARLY! Especially if you use concentrates).

4. It doesn't combust! Not with the driest of flowers packed as full and tightly into the bowl as possible run at max temp for a long, big rip through a bubbler!

5. Flavor is outstanding, especially below temp 5. I find that temp 5 the vapor can be very hot and you don't notice the flavor over the heat until you exhale. The flavor is still outstanding but one can be distracted from the flavor by the heat if you are not using water at this temp. Setting 5 is best IMO for water paths or concentrates (which tend to hit smoother than flowers even at hight temps) only lol.

I must qualify my overall praise and view that the hopper is the best portable ever made by saying that this only applies to units that do not have the apparently too-common QC issues.

If they work out the kinks and get working models into every customer's hands in the end, this will be a game changing product! For those of us who have working models already, I think I can safely say that it already is!

 

how do you tighten the screen?

 

A pair of very fine pointed needle-tip tweezers seem to be best so far.

I will add to the helpful post that you quoted here that if your top mouthpiece screen isn't fully screwed in, it also won't be able to fully screw onto the threads on the mid-section.

 

Hey TRAP LARD

I actually just did this today to clean. Just make sure if you use these tweezera to have them as closed in a possible but with a good grip. You don't want the outside of the tweezers scraping the inside of the mouthpeice.

 

ah i have one of those laying around. Sounds good I'll give it a try!

 

This was just addressed to what I quoted before. The effect of cognitive dissonance here is that for quite a few people the most expensive equipment sounds best. As in HiFi shops there are no double blind tests (which are pretty hard to do anyway in this area), people will be biased towards the more expensive stuff, and once they are using it at home, the cognitive dissonance effects will prevent them from having second thoughts.

 

Another good tip for the Fixit resource?

 

Ah, OK, I get that. That does happen a lot in consumerism. I was coming from more of an engineering design perspective. Granted, the "consumer" may not dig the differences we've discussed, but OCD engineers like me parse shit to death!

 

I just wanted to follow up now that I've had my xtar VC2 plus a few days. It seems like a great portable charger. The important features are that you can charge from a USB source like a wall wart, battery or solar and it has the option to switch between .5 and 1 amp. At 750mAh, I'd generally stick to .5 with the gh batteries unless you are in a hurry. The display itself is not very useful. It does show you basically how close it is finishing, which can be useful in a situation where your on the go and charging/vaping, but its not sufficient for determining battery health or capacity. It looks like the VP series from xtar at least provides voltage, so that would make a better home and car charger. I wish there was something similar to my maha c9000 for li-ion which provides a lot of data and several modes for conditioning, but I don't know of one.

A few notes on my GH experience, which I've been pretty quiet on. My first impressions of the vape were that its an absolutely stunning piece of kit. The hype is real.

I have to be honest, though. I've seriously struggled with using the GHs I have natively and I don't have glass to use them through. I didn't want to come in here and be all negative, so I've been experimenting on my own with tons of help from rereading parts of this thread.

The first few days, I flat out hated the experience. It was so scorching, even on the first few draws, I was never able to get the unit hot enough to complain about the mouthpiece being hot. I felt burning all over my mouth and down my throat the following morning after 3-4 hits over two "sessions." There was no taste because all my taste buds were knocked out of commission. I could barely taste my morning coffee. By the end of the second day, I was about ready to give up. I was concerned for my teeth and soft tissues. I went back and watched the Vape Critic's review, because I remembered him having a similar experience. I was like, "he's totally right, why were they so hard on him?" I then watched @BuzzDanklin 's demo where he passed it back and forth with a friend. I thought, "that would literally put me in the hospital." I even coincidentally was vaping Pineapple Express just like he did in that video. WTH???

I really couldn't get above heat level 3. Extraction was low and pain was high. Material was coming out green and sticky. I got frustrated and looked for something to vape it through. I settled on a wine decanter that you just stick on the top of the bottle (a Soiree, if anyone is bored. Consider the honey recovery options. : ) It's tiny and I didn't give it much of a chance of being impactful. I totally fogged up my office in one minute with very little discomfort. It was pretty badass and gave me the will to keep experimenting. Such a nice and extremely uplifting feeling. I decided to take two days off of vaping to let my mouth recover and give me time to reread some of this thread.

Yesterday I had a much better native experience. The key, which has been subtilely harped on around here, was a VERY SMALL amount of material. I had been going in the opposite direction because it was intuitive to me that cramming more stuff in there would protect me from the heat. This is wrong. I loaded up with a pinch and had a much more comfortable experience. Messing with my draw a little bit to be harder and quicker pushed me a little further into satisfaction. I got medicated twice and was shocked this morning when I poured it out. I marveled at how little was in there. If you laid it out flat, it would barely cover a dime. It was also the right color. I hit it at 4, so a golden-brown.

Maybe what was more important than the amount was the way I loaded it. Previously I had been dipping it into my space case to scoop and I think that naturally tamps things as you go making for a pretty tight pack. I can't recommend this even though it's really tempting. I still have a lot more experimenting to do because I'm not at a level where I'd generally go for it over my FF2 natively. I don't expect it to reach FF2 comfort or flavor, but I would like it to make a compelling enough case for me overall. I've ordered a few glass stems and am trying to get a quote on some glass tubing I can cut myself into different lengths for experimenting. (I guess, I've never cut glass before, but I'm the type to just go for it.) I'm wondering if just adding a stem or a stem with a carb would get me to heaven with this thing. I'll also likely order the tiny focus hydrotube from sunshine. I will report back if I have any kind of success crafting a glass mouthpiece/stem. I have some ideas to keep it portable. I still have to try my crafty CU as well.

Thanks for all the info in this thread from all the ultra early adopters. Without it, my grasshoppers would be a couple of novelty pieces or gifted to friends by now. We need to nominate some items here for a best of thread!