Discontinued The Grasshopper

[disGRUNTled]

You just gotta try it and see if it works for you, it's impossible to guarantee you'll get a working hopper, even a 1% (pure example, HL claim less than 2%) failure rate is a guarantee that someone is going to get a failure. Luckily HL seem to have a fairly good RMA process, however there are always the few unlucky customers who have fallen through the cracks and have been mistreated (IMO).

There is also no guarantee you'll even like the vape signature, the are people who have owned the GrassHopper and sold it on as it doesn't work for you.

All I can say is:

• the price is going up imminently
• i've had mine for almost a year and I love it
• it fucks you up like a punch to the head
• it's stealthy - like really stealthy
• swappable batteries go along way to mitigating low mAh
• it's shocking how well this thing runs through water
• it's going to get better with a water pipe adapter on the way and hopefully an oils front end too
• it's versatile and in my book that makes it good value for money
• it's easy to clean (although there is debate about material dropping down onto the heater when left in and upright position, this is a fairly new discussion though and I don't really have enough data to comment on)

Regarding the issues the GrassHopper has I'd say the largest is perception.

This has been a long running thread based on a long running tech startup.

They have finally breached the Pre-Order threshold and are amending their pricing model to better support their business model. This to me is a sign of growth that should lead to company stability. I can however only assume that the company stability results in a better production effort and smoother customer service, from what I've been reading over the last couple of months I'd say there has been considerable improvement in both areas.

Areas for improvement:

• Shipping method - people have been complaining of the cheaper shipping method losing tracking details when leaving the states.
  
  
• Formfactor - Some people don't like the custom sized 750mAh batteries and would prefer something like an 18650. For now that's not what the Hopper is
  
  
• Communications - whilst improved by the use of a blog it would in my mind (and I suspect many) be a good idea for HL to get back involved with at the very least the FC community. I don't think this is going to happen, I think they'll favour their own blog as they'll be able to control the content
  
  
• Don't talk about putting the customer first, actually do it - When a priority customer who has invested additional funds for a premium HT unit receives one without a screen get them a screen pronto and chuck in a free battery for their patience. I'd also like to see a policy where a customer receive priority treatment if they have had more than 4 or 5 RMA's in a row. It doesn't happen often but when it does, look after that customer.

Thanks for the response mang, thought about it for a couple of days and went ahead and purchased .

I followed your postings in the hydro maxx thread and did see you use glass... gh is ideal for glass, especially if you like really big clouds of dense vapor... to be honest I can not achieve such big dense vapor clouds with my sticky bricks hydro maxx dry... but this could be because of user error... got ly sticky bricks hydro maxx a week ago...

Ha yeah mang I got a bitch made throat so I def use glass like 99 % of the time with all my vapes.

 

[GreenHopper]

Thanks for the response mang, thought about it for a couple of days and went ahead and purchased .

Ha yeah mang I got a bitch made throat so I def use glass like 99 % of the time with all my vapes.

Nice, I hope it fits in well with your vape preferences.

Here are a few quick tips that work well for me:

• Fill bowl about 2/3 full
• Medium fine grind
• Well cured and dry material
• The better the bud the bigger the cloud
• Empty directly after use, if at home then while the grasshopper is still warm use a cotton swab and keep the oven running fresh
• Clean the mouthpiece regularly, keep the airflow high
• Check out @Ratchett's store Delta3dstudios.com, i use the following daily:
  • Funnel
  • Stand
  • Battery Caps

Hope it works out for ya, good luck bud.

 

[abcd5432]

Nice find bud,

Just came across this one, similar concept:
Smoking Dogo 2016 New Arrival Perc Glass Water Pipes Bongs Bubbler 14mm Joint Female

This style of piece is GREAT for flavor chasers and people who want something on the go that can handle big hits as well as small. I have a piece like this with simple percs. It's amazing. Just a cheap chinese trash piece I picked up at a gas station but great for vaping.

As for DHGate vs authentic glass. Instagram glass is a great choice for those willing to spend more. $160 though is more than 4-5 of the DHgate pieces I have purchased combined. Many a time I'm getting decent pieces for under $40. At most ~$45.

I've got about 4-5 more DHGate pieces I want to try before I move to instagram glass, but instagram glass is definitely a whole different beast/goal. If you're purely looking at it from a cost/perf then it's almost impossible to beat the Chinese due to labor costs.

Edit: I've seen better value on instagram as well I believe. Isn't the guy in the glass section of the forum, Joda Glassworks, he has great pieces for cheap. I'd go with him if I wanted something that was "stylish" but for pure function, I'd just get chinese glass. The benefit of the authentic piece like my authentic mobius is not worth the massive additional cost for the majority of people. I do plan on getting some instagram glass though this year.

Edit2:
To be clear, the main reason I think people look to China glass is because of how cheap it is and therefore the idea of it breaking isn't too bad. I just let a guest smoke my piece. If she dropped the glass, it's under $40. I can accept that. Many people I know would be very unhappy to lose a $160 piece. I actually just knocked over a $50 piece while sitting at my desk. Didn't break, but happy that I didn't have to worry about it, vs when I tipped my authentic mobius over. Thank god for cushioned rugs.

@disGRUNTled I have baby lungs too that I always use glass for as well. Did you just order your hopper? Why is it showing a February ship date? It would have to ship int he next 2 days? Did something change here are grasshoppers shipping far quicker now?

 

[btka]

Thanks for the response mang, thought about it for a couple of days and went ahead and purchased .

Ha yeah mang I got a bitch made throat so I def use glass like 99 % of the time with all my vapes.

hope to see nice posts in the gh thread with nice pictures.... good choice... the grasshopper is my favorite vape...

 

[disGRUNTled]

This style of piece is GREAT for flavor chasers and people who want something on the go that can handle big hits as well as small. I have a piece like this with simple percs. It's amazing. Just a cheap chinese trash piece I picked up at a gas station but great for vaping.

As for DHGate vs authentic glass. Instagram glass is a great choice for those willing to spend more. $160 though is more than 4-5 of the DHgate pieces I have purchased combined. Many a time I'm getting decent pieces for under $40. At most ~$45.

I've got about 4-5 more DHGate pieces I want to try before I move to instagram glass, but instagram glass is definitely a whole different beast/goal. If you're purely looking at it from a cost/perf then it's almost impossible to beat the Chinese due to labor costs.

@disGRUNTled I have baby lungs too that I always use glass for as well. Did you just order your hopper? Why is it showing a February ship date? It would have to ship int he next 2 days? Did something change here are grasshoppers shipping far quicker now?

I ordered it today. Site said 5-7 day wait.

 

[abcd5432]

I ordered it today. Site said 5-7 day wait.

Depending on when you get yours it may be time to get a hopper this is what I've been waiting for. God I spend too much on this hobby but I love it

 

[jules172]

Well. Gotta blame good advice from @Mr. Me2 and the price change warning email. Mine is ordered. 5-7 days is nothin'!!

This will round out my collection nicely. Also went ahead and checked out @Rachetts stuff as well-- I've bought from him before for my Pax 2. the wait begins!!

Depending on when you get yours it may be time to get a hopper this is what I've been waiting for. God I spend too much on this hobby but I love it

Same here!! I have VAS for sure but it's so fun to try out the different technology and effects. The price goes up 2/27 so it may be better to do it now than later.

 

[AJS]

I keep wanting to buy one to take advantage of the -$15 before they go up and then I remember I already have one ....

 

[Vapor_Eyes]

I keep wanting to buy one to take advantage of the -$15 before they go up and then I remember I already have one ....

I want to buy a third one but I have neither the money nor the need for one. I keep dreaming about a blue Grasshopper with a bronze mouthpiece, I think that would look nice. A bronze backend would look good with that setup too.

It would be cool if you could do custom orders like that. Maybe once immediate delivery is available...

 

[Mr. Gweilo 420]

Well I got mine and I have to say it is a case of the good, bad and the ugly. First off it worked awesomely and I got to see what a beast it is. Then the mouthpiece wouldn't stay on and then it stopped producing heat. Warranty request has been sent and I am obviously very dissapointed. It seems this company has very poor QA. I'm international so I'm assuming their incompetence will be at my expense

 

[abcd5432]

***mods please merge--

Same here!! I have VAS for sure but it's so fun to try out the different technology and effects. The price goes up 2/27 so it may be better to do it now than later.

I wish I could. Just spent a ridiculous amount of money on surgery and classes. $15 isn't bad though. I can wait a month or two. Ya I feel this is definitely one of the technologies I need to have as a vaporizer enthusiast.

Once I get a raise or new job, that's definitely at least another $1000 on vaporizers and glass. Probably more like $2000. I definitely want to get 2 grasshoppers

I have 2 minivaps which is a far more expensive vaporizer, so 2 grasshoppers isn't too bad.

 

[beiberhole69]

So Thurs Night my hopper dies. And it just so happens that I had just boxed up my backup Hop to send so someone I just sold it to. FML, right? Luckily my GFs bro has a friend that has one, so I asked to get hooked up with this guy so I could do some troubleshooting (filed my RMA claim before I headed over). Surprisingly, (or not, IDK) it worked with my back end, but not the body. But I happen to have another body from the first RMA on it (which I was supposed to send back but never did)... and now my Hopper works fine with that. So I guess I'll cancel my RMA and keep enjoying vapor.

crazy right?

 

[biohacker]

I'm international so I'm assuming their incompetence will be at my expense

Whether international or not, their incompetence is on our expense. It's just cheaper not being international, and way faster.

But I happen to have another body from the first RMA on it (which I was supposed to send back but never did)... and now my Hopper works fine with that. So I guess I'll cancel my RMA and keep enjoying vapor.

crazy right?

You're cancelling your RMA because you've decided to keep the body that you were supposed to send back?

Hopper Karma!

 

[btka]

So Thurs Night my hopper dies. And it just so happens that I had just boxed up my backup Hop to send so someone I just sold it to. FML, right? Luckily my GFs bro has a friend that has one, so I asked to get hooked up with this guy so I could do some troubleshooting (filed my RMA claim before I headed over). Surprisingly, (or not, IDK) it worked with my back end, but not the body. But I happen to have another body from the first RMA on it (which I was supposed to send back but never did)... and now my Hopper works fine with that. So I guess I'll cancel my RMA and keep enjoying vapor.

crazy right?

Whether international or not, their incompetence is on our expense. It's just cheaper not being international, and way faster.



You're cancelling your RMA because you've decided to keep the body that you were supposed to send back?

Hopper Karma!

on the other hand this behaviour could be one of the reasons why they stopped sending replacement parts and ask you to send in the whole hopper... also as far as I know they want warranty next time if you do not send them parts back they asked for ... they know you did not send it back when you RMA... if not sending back parts HL asked for is the reason of the change of their warranty policy (asking for the whole hopper to be send in then shipping replacement parts and asking to send back faulty parts after receiving replacment parts) then I want to say thank you to you and the other guys behaving like this sorry....

 

[JCat]

So got my hopper in today, and just tried my first session after charging the battery ... wow! It is everything I hoped for. This thing is absolutely great! I used it at setting 3.5, dry, and although the vapor was warm, it was very tasty and not too hot at all. Got 4 or 5 really nice hits, and it was done. Really nice clouds from this thing and great taste! First impressions are very, very good.

I'm a little concerned about the cleaning/maintenance but we'll see how that plays out in the long run.

 

[abcd5432]

So got my hopper in today, and just tried my first session after charging the battery ... wow! It is everything I hoped for. This thing is absolutely great! I used it at setting 3.5, dry, and although the vapor was warm, it was very tasty and not too hot at all. Got 4 or 5 really nice hits, and it was done. Really nice clouds from this thing and great taste! First impressions are very, very good.

I'm a little concerned about the cleaning/maintenance but we'll see how that plays out in the long run.

How is the hopper compared to the MInivaP? I have the Teflon and Glass core of the Minivap.

 

[Baron23]

Well I got mine and I have to say it is a case of the good, bad and the ugly. First off it worked awesomely and I got to see what a beast it is. Then the mouthpiece wouldn't stay on and then it stopped producing heat. Warranty request has been sent and I am obviously very dissapointed. It seems this company has very poor QA. I'm international so I'm assuming their incompetence will be at my expense

Unfortunate and sad. They really need to cut this crap out. Infant mortality and ambiguous failure symptoms need to be reduced significantly IMO.

My device is still kicking hard after nine months, and I love it, but I hesitate to buy another as they still seem to be shipping duds from time to time and units with almost idiosyncratic behavior.

Cheers

 

[Icon13]

So got my hopper in today, and just tried my first session after charging the battery ... wow! It is everything I hoped for. This thing is absolutely great! I used it at setting 3.5, dry, and although the vapor was warm, it was very tasty and not too hot at all. Got 4 or 5 really nice hits, and it was done. Really nice clouds from this thing and great taste! First impressions are very, very good.

I'm a little concerned about the cleaning/maintenance but we'll see how that plays out in the long run.

Do yourself a favor and go get a nice glass water piece, Crank that shit to 4.5, and be blown away.

 

[Gramin]

Decided before I RMA my hopper to give it a thorough examination. Never taken the screen of the oven off before so I thought why not?

Look at this horrid shit I found?

No wonder my sensors are fucked?

For the record taking the screen out was easier than the MP screen. I will from now on be adding the oven screen to my heavy cleans routine.

I don't even know how this shit got there? I 9/10 times have my hopper upright in the D3D pyramid stand and only invert to fill or store after the unit has cooled.

Going to clean this up and laugh my arse off if this fixes my issue and I end the day with two working hoppers!

 

[JCat]

Do yourself a favor and go get a nice glass water piece, Crank that shit to 4.5, and be blown away.

Had a bowl at 3.5 and 4 a little bit ago through water, and very nice. ABV was quite dark after a few very large hits. This thing definitely extracts!

Edit:

Decided before I RMA my hopper to give it a thorough examination. Never taken the screen of the oven off before so I thought why not?

Look at this horrid shit I found?

No wonder my sensors are fucked?

For the record taking the screen out was easier than the MP screen. I will from now on be adding the oven screen to my heavy cleans routine.

I don't even know how this shit got there? I 9/10 times have my hopper upright in the D3D pyramid stand and only invert to fill or store after the unit has cooled.

Going to clean this up and laugh my arse off if this fixes my issue and I end the day with two working hoppers!

Is that another screen that's under the first oven screen?


Here's a question for everyone as well ... as opposed to Blu Tack, would Elmer's Tac'n Stick or Ross' Tac'n Stik be good alternatives? (would have to order the Blu Tack online but can get the Elmer's and Ross' in town)

 

[Jah1975]

When ordered through GHLabs, how is the item shipped? I will have to have it go to my workplace, is it safe? Thanks!

 

[vapviking]

Decided before I RMA my hopper to give it a thorough examination. Never taken the screen of the oven off before so I thought why not?

Look at this horrid shit I found?

No wonder my sensors are fucked?

For the record taking the screen out was easier than the MP screen. I will from now on be adding the oven screen to my heavy cleans routine.

I don't even know how this shit got there? I 9/10 times have my hopper upright in the D3D pyramid stand and only invert to fill or store after the unit has cooled.

Going to clean this up and laugh my arse off if this fixes my issue and I end the day with two working hoppers!

And another layer of the onion is peeled back.
Wow, look at all that crap in uncharted territory. I was also just talking yesterday about gunk to which we haven't exactly had access (Achilles heel?), and this surely is some. If I hadn't just mailed Hopper today I'd have been tempted to try this. Maybe just as well!
Is the chamber screen threaded in or does it pop out and back in?
We are all wanting to hear more about this, thank you @Gramin !

 

[Gramin]

Here's the after. I used qtip with ISO and then some brushes. Some of these holes look permanently closed. Might need to think on this.

After this I attached the oven to a manual air pump set on deflate and "simulated" some draws. 1 to dry the ISO quicker and 2 to try and suck this gunk out.

Yes I had to keep my finger over the backend or else I wasn't sucking air from the intake holes.

I'd be willing to try a finer suction from my air pump to try and clear some of those holes.

The screen came out easy but getting it back in was finicky as you'd imagine. The screen is only held in via tension.

If you do try this I *think* GHL intend to keep the 3 tension tabs lined up with the 3 indents around the oven as this keeps the tabs from making contact with the 3 dots of metal poking out on the oven.. Something to be aware of.

I'm almost tempted to take the screen out from my new Hopper just for a reference on how it should look.

 

[Mr. Me2]

Here's the after. I used qtip with ISO and then some brushes. Some of these holes look permanently closed. Might need to think on this.

After this I attached the oven to a manual air pump set on deflate and "simulated" some draws. 1 to dry the ISO quicker and 2 to try and suck this gunk out.

Yes I had to keep my finger over the backend or else I wasn't sucking air from the intake holes.

I'd be willing to try a finer suction from my air pump to try and clear some of those holes.

The screen came out easy but getting it back in was finicky as you'd imagine. The screen is only held in via tension.

If you do try this I *think* GHL intend to keep the 3 tension tabs lined up with the 3 indents around the oven as this keeps the tabs from making contact with the 3 dots of metal poking out on the oven.. Something to be aware of.

I'm almost tempted to take the screen out from my new Hopper just for a reference on how it should look.

I'm REALLY impressed with your work, but for me I think I'll leave it to ghl. That's the beauty of a lifetime warranty!

 

[biohacker]

@JCat welcome to the GH clan!!!

So I received my 3 RMA GH's today, very professionally packaged, but @Jah1975 heads up that under the description it did say "herbal vaporizer".

I thought it was kinda cool that they packaged my 3 battery purchases inside the front ends! Super professional with all new thick quality plastic zip bags.

I have not had a chance to test them yet but have noticed a couple of things....

HopperLabs....seriously, I sent you 3 GH's that were SPOTLESS, I cleaned them up properly, front ends, bowl, threads, everything was mint...... I received all 3 in a condition that I would simply describe as "dirty". All 3 hoppers had some ABV in the bowls (as well as cotton swab evidence lol), my front end replacement for dark grey ti, has a chip in it but it's cool because my old one was scratched anyway, so can't really expect a BRAND NEW front end I guess. And my brand new SS has an obvious tiny "dent" in the front end (hole) that i'm pretty damn sure I didn't do, but who knows, so i'll let that one slide too.....all good, it's all about the PERFORMANCE anyway!

So the performance testing is imminent, but the first thing I did was charge up the brand new GHB2 batteries (not needed already at 4.20v!) and tested heat up times!

With all three GH set to temp 5, and a stopwatch I found out that my new SS is the fastest with around 5-6 seconds to blue, my dark grey ti is similar, maybe a 1/2sec or second slower, and my new raw Ti is the slowest by a second or so. Not very scientific, but I just wanted to make sure that all three were around 5-6 seconds, and not 10.

So, with the preliminary out of the way.....off to do some serious testing after an all day T-break!