Discontinued The Grasshopper

[Vaporific]

My returned Ti seems to be running fairly well albeit a bit hot for the set temp. I’ve been turning down more, now between 2.5-3.0 and still using it natively with the standard frontend (I don’t have the PFE). I got my batteries back that were out on loan which helps and they seem to hold reasonable charges though they’re a couple of years old (and two of them haven’t been used in the year my unit was in RMAville).

Finished off a load last night with a couple of draws on 2.7 and had a wonderful effect even with a fairly drained battery. I’m gradually reconnecting with my Hopper which is a good thing. It’s almost as if the new heater (aka “heating assembly”) works too well and always hot regardless what I set the temp at. I’m getting vapor which was hard to come by before the RMA. I’ll be dialing it down a bit and continue the short term performance observations. It’s good to have it back thought and glad it’s working well (at least better than it was)!

 

[fiatuno09]

Hi guys, first time visiting this forum since I bought an original GH back in 2016!

My original Ti has been working flawlessly since day one (I must have got a lucky one). It still performs great now, never faltered once.

However, for some reason the front end will no longer screw to the body, possibly the body threads are damaged.

I've emailed GH team and they advised to send it in for repair or replacement.


My question is...

If I get a replacement, presumably it will be the newest model. Are these better or worse than the original? (one which never had any problems) I honestly don't know how it could be any better tbh.

Is there still a huge waiting time on RMA's? Like months?

 

[Vaporific]

Hi guys, first time visiting this forum since I bought an original GH back in 2016!

My original Ti has been working flawlessly since day one (I must have got a lucky one). It still performs great now, never faltered once.

However, for some reason the front end will no longer screw to the body, possibly the body threads are damaged.

I've emailed GH team and they advised to send it in for repair or replacement.


My question is...

If I get a replacement, presumably it will be the newest model. Are these better or worse than the original? (one which never had any problems) I honestly don't know how it could be any better tbh.

Is there still a huge waiting time on RMA's? Like months?

Have you thoroughly cleaned the frontend to remove any debris in the threads? If so, it could be either the body threads or on the frontend itself, or perhaps both. I’m guessing it’s the frontend. If that’s the case, ask for a new frontend - no need to replace or send in everything. Just my .

 

[slozukimc]

Have you thoroughly cleaned the frontend to remove any debris in the threads? If so, it could be either the body threads or on the frontend itself, or perhaps both. I’m guessing it’s the frontend. If that’s the case, ask for a new frontend - no need to replace or send in everything. Just my .

I would certainly try a front end before sending in a perfectly fine working Hopper. Maybe time to get a PFE?

 

[Baron23]

It’s almost as if the new heater (aka “heating assembly”) works too well and always hot regardless what I set the temp at.

Yeah, my OG GH back from 3rd RMA also runs to the hot side.

I'm absolutely fine with this. Way better than sucking on a cool running hopper and wasting flower.

And I can always turn it down on temp, but before I had to run at max temp of 5 just to get mediocre extraction.

To me, this GH is back to running as it should....but that's me :-)

 

[Rel2018]

Hi guys, first time visiting this forum since I bought an original GH back in 2016!

My original Ti has been working flawlessly since day one (I must have got a lucky one). It still performs great now, never faltered once.

However, for some reason the front end will no longer screw to the body, possibly the body threads are damaged.

I've emailed GH team and they advised to send it in for repair or replacement.


My question is...

If I get a replacement, presumably it will be the newest model. Are these better or worse than the original? (one which never had any problems) I honestly don't know how it could be any better tbh.

Is there still a huge waiting time on RMA's? Like months?

Happened to me too. Didn’t work with front end but did work with PFE (the screen gets loose). most likely the problem is with the front end. Save yourself the RMA and order front end/PFE

 

[Baron23]

@Rel2018 @fiatuno09

If its the screen in the MP that has backed off, you can try to screw it back in. I used a set of pointy tipped tweezers but can use almost any thin sharp implement.

I have had the screen back out once and tightened it no problem.

 

[Rel2018]

@Rel2018 @fiatuno09

If its the screen in the MP that has backed off, you can try to screw it back in. I used a set of pointy tipped tweezers but can use almost any thin sharp implement.

I have had the screen back out once and tightened it no problem.

the threads of the screen OR the front end itself sort of expends or something (sorry if thats the wrong word). I use to be able to screw it tight after every use till even that didnt help

 

[Vaporific]

@Rel2018 @fiatuno09

If its the screen in the MP that has backed off, you can try to screw it back in. I used a set of pointy tipped tweezers but can use almost any thin sharp implement.

I have had the screen back out once and tightened it no problem.

Agreed. Technically, that happened to me after I first got my Hopper in ‘16 - the frontend just spun and wouldn’t stay on. I sent it in and they sent me another. The screen could come a bit loose or it’s debris in the threads. Never had an issue with the frontend since - fine tweezers or similar work to pop it back it in.

I never bothered with the PFE as I didn’t want to capitulate to HL that the original frontend wasn’t optimal and retained too much heat - and I didn’t nor will give HL much more money. My pre-order Ti however is running well - and I’d rather have it too hot than too cold like @Baron23 said...

 

[fiatuno09]

EDIT: That worked!!

I thought I was managing to the screen before but turns out I wasn't - I borrowed a flashlight and saw it rotate, screwed it all the way back in. Perfect!!

 

[vapviking]

EDIT: That worked!!

I thought I was managing to the screen before but turns out I wasn't - I borrowed a flashlight and saw it rotate, screwed it all the way back in. Perfect!!

Welcome to the forum! May you find the FC community interesting.
Your issue was resolved in minutes, you get to keep a gem of a vape. Much better scenario than the alternative.
I've had this issue and it recurs now and then. I think keeping it clean helps. And emptying chamber soon after use (ideally while still warm). Resins can 'glue' the screen to the chamber top and it can then un-screw when you un-screw the mp.

 

[PPN]

Finally got my Ti Hopper back from rma after +1 year!

It doesn't seems to act the same for each hit, first it heat up very fast... 2s before to reach the blue light, after it is less reliable, sometime it works perfectly and led stays blue until I power it off, sometimes there is a regular ticking noise, sometimes led turn red after a few seconds (no heat) and last is the cop light issues which seems to generate less heat. It appears the backend to become very hot (maybe related to the ticking noise...?)... sometimes.

Hits are erratic, sometimes I only get wispy draw and sometimes huges clouds... I remenber it was able to pull out some serious clouds on the first draw... it doesn't seems to be the case anymore, first and second pulls are not huges, my weed is pretty dry but maybe I have to go through the GH learning curve again too.

They included the 2 magnetic chargers I asked for repair, the new ones are very different than the old chargers. They sent me back the GHB2 I sent with the unit but the cell was very dirty and there was a lot of white dust in the battery compartment. The battery was showing at 4.03v on my charger.

Despite the very, very long wait I'm happy to get it back in my hands, it works but I'm afraid the erratics hits are a sign of possible failures. I will try a brand new ghb2 I have storred somewhere to be sure this is not related to a bad battery (although I'm rotating through 2 GHB2s and 2 GHB1s +1 still unusued brand new GHB2). For now the GH didn't cost me too much cause I payed only 100$ for it shipped to me (second hand), I bought 3 GHB2s, payed for shipping back to GHL and the 45$ fees for warranty transfer... not more than 200$ for all, so, despite the rma delays, I'm feeling good!

 

[Vaporific]

Where are those friggin’ batteries? One of the 3 I have left started to shed the blue wrapping circle near the positive terminal and it’s peeled back a bit. Not terrible but at one point the peeled back part likely blocked the connection and I had to reinsert the battery again after pressing it down to get it to work. They’re over 2 years old and one was at HL with my unit for the RMA. I tossed the others as they weren’t holding a charge for more than a hit or two.

My returned Hopper (pre-order Ti) is still working well. My average temp is now 2.5-2.9 and still very warm in the throat but mostly a pleasure to use again. A couple of quick hits and all is good!

 

[slozukimc]

I just got an 18” dual perc bong in the mail today so i fired up the Hopper with a full bowl and holy shit! The vapor just keeps on coming and coming. The Hopper really shines with a good water piece. Smooth, potent and powerful is the best way i can say it in this state. Lol

 

[Baron23]

Finally got my Ti Hopper back from rma after +1 year!

It doesn't seems to act the same for each hit, first it heat up very fast... 2s before to reach the blue light, after it is less reliable, sometime it works perfectly and led stays blue until I power it off, sometimes there is a regular ticking noise, sometimes led turn red after a few seconds (no heat) and last is the cop light issues which seems to generate less heat. It appears the backend to become very hot (maybe related to the ticking noise...?)... sometimes.

Hits are erratic, sometimes I only get wispy draw and sometimes huges clouds... I remenber it was able to pull out some serious clouds on the first draw... it doesn't seems to be the case anymore, first and second pulls are not huges, my weed is pretty dry but maybe I have to go through the GH learning curve again too.

They included the 2 magnetic chargers I asked for repair, the new ones are very different than the old chargers. They sent me back the GHB2 I sent with the unit but the cell was very dirty and there was a lot of white dust in the battery compartment. The battery was showing at 4.03v on my charger.

Despite the very, very long wait I'm happy to get it back in my hands, it works but I'm afraid the erratics hits are a sign of possible failures. I will try a brand new ghb2 I have storred somewhere to be sure this is not related to a bad battery (although I'm rotating through 2 GHB2s and 2 GHB1s +1 still unusued brand new GHB2). For now the GH didn't cost me too much cause I payed only 100$ for it shipped to me (second hand), I bought 3 GHB2s, payed for shipping back to GHL and the 45$ fees for warranty transfer... not more than 200$ for all, so, despite the rma delays, I'm feeling good!

This is what you got after a YEAR???

Wow

 

[vapviking]

Hopper Labs September Update

We are here to share an update on a few essential items. A summary is present at the top of this message with details below. Please note you must be subscribed to "Monthly Newsletter" to get these updates.

1. Batteries - After many delays, we are very close. A small amount of the new cells are in-house for testing, and the rest are headed out for shipping from Hong Kong.
2. Social Media / CS - We appreciate the enthusiastic contact on social media but do not currently have the workforce to respond to private messages on the various platforms. Please contact us at support@grasshoppervape.com or through the online warranty portal. Our CS team has dropped response times and should get to you quickly.
3. Warranty progress - There has been a huge amount of progress on the warranty backlog. We are now servicing up to November 2018. Contact us through the warranty portal on the website.
4. Charger and SS Case - While warranty remains our focus we have made good progress on these items and are expecting them around the end of 2019

Batteries
Once again, the focus of the update will be on batteries. The cells have seen delay after delay since the original expected ship date in May. This seems almost impossible given our past relationship with the factory. The development of a custom battery for the Grasshopper was one of the most challenging aspects of its original design. We wanted to make the device smaller than anything else on the market and also have a cell that was both user swappable and had industry-leading power delivery. The development of this new cell was done in conjunction with the factory we have been using for the past six years.


In the past production was both smooth and efficient with no delay. The batteries produced easily met both performance and safety standards. We expected this to continue. By late May it became apparent there would be delays from the factory. As China has tightened environmental regulation (something we support), many battery factories have had to close. Our high-end factory was not directly affected but began to see a much larger volume of orders, pushing our custom order further back.


Production of our cell did eventually finish, and the shipping process was started. Shipping large quantities of lithium batteries is a specialized endeavor requiring specific packaging and contracting with particular cargo aircraft. The eruption of the protests in Hong Kong caused further delays with this. As we prepared to ship the bulk of the batteries a label error, by the factory, and present on every cell was discovered making import impossible. The batteries were returned to the factory for relabeling, causing another delay.


Earlier this month the batteries again began the shipping process. We have already received the pre-bulk-shipment batch for lab safety and performance testing. This is happening now while the remainder of the order is being packed and shipped. Many have asked why we don’t produce the battery domestically. There are a very small number of factories in the US and none that would accept our relatively small volume cell.


Social Media / Customer Service
We encourage customers to interact on Social Media, sharing both the good and bad. We do read these comments and respond when we can, but our staff for this work is very limited. Almost all of our resources over the last year have gone to fixing devices in the warranty backlog. We do ensure that we get to every email sent to support@grasshoppervape.com and the requests submitted to the online warranty portal.


Warranty Progress
Progress on the warranty backlog has continued to accelerate. We did move through some months in 2018 that had a large number of requests and are now working on devices up to November 2018. We are expecting to enter December 2018, January, and February 2019 within the next 60 days. Feel free to contact us directly on the warranty portal to see where your device is at. If you heard from us recently, your device will be done shortly.


Some customers have been concerned about our request for a rapid response once your request is finished. We do request that customers respond quickly 5-10 days, on their request once it is finished to keep the process moving smoothly. If they do not, we must place there Hopper in storage to allow enough room in the facility so we can service other units that are waiting. If a customer misses the window, we will arrange to get their unit back to them once pulled from storage.


We do require that everyone confirm their address before we send it back to them due to the large number of devices that were previously lost.


Thanks for reading.

Hopper Labs

 

[Hammahead]

Got his mail right now...

There has been a huge amount of progress on the warranty backlog. We are now servicing up to November 2018.

Following this story, that sort of makes sense. I just imagine anybody NOT familiar with it reading that.

Some customers have been concerned about our request for a rapid response once your request is finished. We do request that customers respond quickly 5-10 days, on their request once it is finished to keep the process moving smoothly. If they do not, we must place there Hopper in storage to allow enough room in the facility so we can service other units that are waiting. If a customer misses the window, we will arrange to get their unit back to them once pulled from storage.

That. Is. Grand. So if you happen to miss their time frame, what exactly happens? This sounds as if Will Ferrel made that company up...

 

[PPN]

Since I removed faulty batteries from my routine I get a very good experience with my Hopper! Still not 100% reliable but it works perfectly at a 90% rate, it happens for the least 10% I have to power it off/on a few time before to get it back in action (it is not turning blue/blinks red/cops light... even with a well charged battery). Easily fixed every time, a bit awkward but I can live with that!
Taste is phenomenal and effects are intense as hell when loaded with this recently harvested "Douce nuit" strain (homegrown, seed by a french seeds producer). Just a bit harsh on the throat but it depends the strain too... weed from my 2018 harvest is a lot smoother. Clouds are very, very big, even at 3-3.5 and I love the device can work well even without to get mind about packing, just throw a pinch in, put the mp on and vape that!

Hope this Hopper will last!

 

[elykpeace]

Hope this Hopper will last!

 

[Vaporific]

Since I removed faulty batteries from my routine I get a very good experience with my Hopper! Still not 100% reliable but it works perfectly at a 90% rate, it happens for the least 10% I have to power it off/on a few time before to get it back in action (it is not turning blue/blinks red/cops light... even with a well charged battery). Easily fixed every time, a bit awkward but I can live with that!
Taste is phenomenal and effects are intense as hell when loaded with this recently harvested "Douce nuit" strain (homegrown, seed by a french seeds producer). Just a bit harsh on the throat but it depends the strain too... weed from my 2018 harvest is a lot smoother. Clouds are very, very big, even at 3-3.5 and I love the device can work well even without to get mind about packing, just throw a pinch in, put the mp on and vape that!

Hope this Hopper will last!

My recently returned RMA’d unit is working well. I don’t get cop lights (never did) but they go from solid blue to flickering pretty quick with the 3 batteries I have which are a couple of years old. I would say my reliability has been very good, perhaps in excess of 90% however new batteries, in which an order was placed in April, will be a welcome change. Hopefully soon from HL’s last newsletter. When you have a fresh batt and flower, the Hopper is pretty hard to beat.

 

[slozukimc]

My recently returned RMA’d unit is working well. I don’t get cop lights (never did) but they go from solid blue to flickering pretty quick with the 3 batteries I have which are a couple of years old. I would say my reliability has been very good, perhaps in excess of 90% however new batteries, in which an order was placed in April, will be a welcome change. Hopefully soon from HL’s last newsletter. When you have a fresh batt and flower, the Hopper is pretty hard to beat.

I just tinkered with mine and got it to work for a while. Recently got a Grav Circuit rig in a trade and let me tell ya they are one hell of a sweet combo. The hits are huge, smooth and cool. Amazing for such a little setup.

 

[Hopper Labs]

Hey,

Hopper Labs here. Decided it was time to check-in. We want to say we have been reading this thread from the beginning and it is an excellent discussion of the Grasshopper, the good, the bad, and what has changed over time. Thanks for that!

We have tried to do our best to address concerns on FC in both updates to customers and with changes to products and Customer Service. We have obviously not always done a great job with these items, but we have always stuck with it. We've had the same core team from the start working every day to solve problems, some of which we created and brought upon ourselves — certainly a learning experience.

The warranty situation has been horribly frustrating for customers and for us too. The story of how this happened has been told already, but after laying off almost all our staff, hunkering down to fix the issues in-house we did succeed and subsequently proceeded on the long process of fixing everyone's device. This is still ongoing, and perhaps from the outside, it looks like we have not made desirable progress, or we did not care, but nothing is further from the truth.

The warranty has been our top priority since the first major problems with the heater were discovered. Although before that device had issues, we did fix them quickly and got them back to customers. Some people have been waiting over a year at this point to finally get replacment heater assemblies which we have been producing as fast as we can. We are sorry for this, but putting everyone in a vast line was the only path open to us. Although the Grasshopper has seen some success from a number of units sold standpoint, the company has never been profitable as the device's cutting edge techlongly came with problems that have taken years to fix. This is our fault, but pushing the envlope and industry forward were and remain primary goals. That said, there have never been piles of cash to throw at the problem to achive results quickly. A narrow "golden path" was open in which we could contiue to operate repairing units as fast as we could and remaining solvent with new upgraded unit sales. This has been successful thus far thanks to long hours and a supportive community — work continues.


Products such as the SS case and External Charger were all delayed by this process. We had to become intently focused on the core product and warranty to survive. Hopper Labs has a long history of delays, but it also has a history of delivery. The Grasshopper was delayed years from the IndieGoGo campaign and against the odds of any given company on that platform delivering a hardware product, we did deliver. We know the delays are frustrating, but we will get it done. We are here and motivated as ever. There is so much more we could cover but need to keep this somewhat short. Actions speak louder than any words, and so back to it.

We hope you enjoy the little extra insight. If you have specific service requests or CS questions, please use our normal channels at support@grasshoppervape.com and the warranty portal on the website. We will get back to you there. We will check in on this thread as much as we can to give more detail or shed light on questions you might have.

Thanks,
HL

 

[Baron23]

Hey,

Hopper Labs here. Decided it was time to check-in. We want to say we have been reading this thread from the beginning and it is an excellent discussion of the Grasshopper, the good, the bad, and what has changed over time. Thanks for that!

We have tried to do our best to address concerns on FC in both updates to customers and with changes to products and Customer Service. We have obviously not always done a great job with these items, but we have always stuck with it. We've had the same core team from the start working every day to solve problems, some of which we created and brought upon ourselves — certainly a learning experience.

The warranty situation has been horribly frustrating for customers and for us too. The story of how this happened has been told already, but after laying off almost all our staff, hunkering down to fix the issues in-house we did succeed and subsequently proceeded on the long process of fixing everyone's device. This is still ongoing, and perhaps from the outside, it looks like we have not made desirable progress, or we did not care, but nothing is further from the truth.

The warranty has been our top priority since the first major problems with the heater were discovered. Although before that device had issues, we did fix them quickly and got them back to customers. Some people have been waiting over a year at this point to finally get replacment heater assemblies which we have been producing as fast as we can. We are sorry for this, but putting everyone in a vast line was the only path open to us. Although the Grasshopper has seen some success from a number of units sold standpoint, the company has never been profitable as the device's cutting edge techlongly came with problems that have taken years to fix. This is our fault, but pushing the envlope and industry forward were and remain primary goals. That said, there have never been piles of cash to throw at the problem to achive results quickly. A narrow "golden path" was open in which we could contiue to operate repairing units as fast as we could and remaining solvent with new upgraded unit sales. This has been successful thus far thanks to long hours and a supportive community — work continues.


Products such as the SS case and External Charger were all delayed by this process. We had to become intently focused on the core product and warranty to survive. Hopper Labs has a long history of delays, but it also has a history of delivery. The Grasshopper was delayed years from the IndieGoGo campaign and against the odds of any given company on that platform delivering a hardware product, we did deliver. We know the delays are frustrating, but we will get it done. We are here and motivated as ever. There is so much more we could cover but need to keep this somewhat short. Actions speak louder than any words, and so back to it.

We hope you enjoy the little extra insight. If you have specific service requests or CS questions, please use our normal channels at support@grasshoppervape.com and the warranty portal on the website. We will get back to you there. We will check in on this thread as much as we can to give more detail or shed light on questions you might have.

Thanks,
HL

This level of direct communications w the community would have been appropriate and welcomed....2 or 3 years ago.

Can you please help us understand why some GH are returned from RMA in a few months while others have been waiting over a year?

 

[Hopper Labs]

This level of direct communications w the community would have been appropriate and welcomed....2 or 3 years ago.

Can you please help us understand why some GH are returned from RMA in a few months while others have been waiting over a year?

In the past it is true we have not put as much effort into communicating directly on FC but we have been posting updates for years. We are sorry if this did not seem adequate and if any of the updates sounded like the same story. Many times, there has not been much to say. We were working through the problems and didn't always have quick solutions or know all the answers. We made hard decisions that were guaranteed not to make everyone happy but also gave us the best shot at survival and in turn, the best chance of fixing more units. The community has been supportive but also at times incredibly critical which is expected, especially without having the same set of problems in front of them. Ultimately it is on us to choose how to handle difficulties and deal with the consequences.

I am sure there are examples of units being serviced out of order. Either by mistake or customer pressure on our service representative. We have tried our best to repair units primarily in order if they are waiting on the same part/fix. The heater issues caused the most extensive line because we did not have an instant fix for that problem. Some units needed just a new heater; some required heater assemblies and others have other much smaller and less prevalent issues. Our goal is both to be fair but also to get as many customers their units back as possible. If a customer has a minor issue that does not require parts that people are already waiting for we will fix it. Throughout 2019 more of these small fixes have been done. Sorry if this does not seem perfectly fair, but in our eyes, it is both efficient and serves the community as a whole best.

 

[Baron23]

So, I'm not out to bash Hopper (well, not more than I have already done in the past LOL) and a lot of this is water under the bridge, however:

In the past it is true we have not put as much effort into communicating directly on FC but we have been posting updates for years.

How about you didn't put ANY effort into actual dialog with your owners here or really anywhere else. There is a whole resource here that resulted from people trying almost anything to keep their GH's working and trying to understand the often capricious seeming behavior. Everything from Blue Tack on the threads to almost the level of sacrifices to the GH gods. If you have read this thread as you say, then you know people have floundered for years trying to keep their devices going....all of it to the sounds of crickets from Hopper Labs.

I am sure there are examples of units being serviced out of order.

Well, this doesn't really require any surety or level of belief. The stories....and the owners...are still right here. Just talk to them.

The heater issues caused the most extensive line because we did not have an instant fix for that problem. Some units needed just a new heater; some required heater assemblies and others have other much smaller and less prevalent issues. Our goal is both to be fair but also to get as many customers their units back as possible. If a customer has a minor issue that does not require parts that people are already waiting for we will fix it.

This is addressable via your CS ticket system. Triage the device. If the repair part is a long lead or critically short inventory item, then tell the owner via the ticket. If its not and is expected to be repaired in the short term, then tell those owners that.

This presumes you guys have improved testability and you can indeed isolate the fault during triage.

This isn't hard...this is just core CS competency.

Out of my two GHs and I believe 5 RMA actions, one works great (after returning it after RMA after returning it from RMA...right) and I love having it back and working properly. Its an outstanding device when working properly.

My other GH came back from RMA running cool and TBH, I just don't have it in me to do the Hopper RMA dance right now.

I'm glad you guys are working on stuff and improving. I'm going to leave it right there.