Discontinued Thermovape Cera

[OF]

If you want big(ger) clouds make sure you have a full or nearly full battery !
I found out that after a charge I can get clouds compared to pax and INH004 so
not bad at all (again, I don't mind if I have clouds or not, I just let it know for the people
who like to blow some clouds)

Excellent point. If you want 'big clouds' use a fresh battery. Also grind it medium fine, dry it well and really pack it in. Give it a few more seconds at step 1 to get the core as hot as possible before going for a longer, steady step 2 (you want the entire load 'almost there') before you shift to step 3.

You will be rewarded by Cera, to the maximum extent possible. IMO plenty for most, ever enough for some?

OF

 

[pakalolo]

...and really pack it in.

How does that promote better convection?

 

[Tom Funk]

I just want to say I am still very happy with my LLC I took her camping over the weekend and she performed perfectly. I seem to have found the correct draw speed as my abv is now coming out a nice even brow tobacco colour instead of almost black (though this could easily be due to my buds being a lot more damp than last batch)
I set a challenge one night to see if I could finish a bowl in one sitting...


I couldn't it beat me and there were enough goods to give me a few brekkie puffs in the morning. I am determined to try again one day. Also I want to make you all another video but that will have to wait.

R

I never cease to be amazed at how far the herb can stretch with my T1. I usually only vape once a week, and can get proper bent at least twice off one bowl if I stir well and vape until there is no visible vapor in ideal lighting to see it. I would love to be doing this without stirring, clogging and battery changes though.

With my tolerance, I'm certainly no cloud chaser, but belgianvapor's report of doing 3 bowls in ten minutes should indicate that most users should be able to get very medicated easily with the Cera.

Edit: should have said Jcat not Belgian.

TF

 

[JCat]

I never cease to be amazed at how far the herb can stretch with my T1. I usually only vape once a week, and can get proper bent at least twice off one bowl if I stir well and vape until there is no visible vapor in ideal lighting to see it. I would love to be doing this without stirring, clogging and battery changes though.

With my tolerance, I'm certainly no cloud chaser, but belgianvapor's report of doing 3 bowls in ten minutes should indicate that most users should be able to get very medicated easily with the Cera.

TF

To give some perspective ... I had to smoke a few joints in Jamaica for convenience, and I found I got as medicated, if not more, off 3 back-to-back bowls from the Cera vs a good sized joint.

 

[OF]

How does that promote better convection?

It slows the air flow down, forcing a more complete heating of the entire load I think? Remember, there's some first rate insulation going on. And the goal is to get as much mass in production at the same time as possible.

The uniform grind has a lot to do with it too I think. We want lots of small passages rather than a few general paths?

You don't want a hernia from the draw of course, but modest air flow gets the job done. It made little sense to me before I tried it (at Noah's suggestion in fact). Now I just know it works, even if I'm not 100% sure why.

Give it a try, Cloud Chasers wherever you are. See if it works for you?

OF

 

[Tom Funk]

How does that promote better convection?

Oh, come on pakalolo, you are not going to challenge a vaporiser god are you? You've got a reputation with some around here to uphold you know?

TF

 

[OF]

I never cease to be amazed at how far the herb can stretch with my T1. I usually only vape once a week, and can get proper bent at least twice off one bowl if I stir well and vape until there is no visible vapor in ideal lighting to see it. I would love to be doing this without stirring, clogging and battery changes though.

Well I think your in tall cotton with Cera then. Lack of stirring, self cleaning (clog free) "UFO trap" and much improved battery life are only some of the improvements on T1 we asked for and got.

If you like T1, you'll love Cera. I know my much loved T1 has been mighty lonely in it's case....waiting. I took it out for a session the other day, it still works great of course, but with Cera right there it's not hard to pick.

Cera is so good a guy tends to forget the battery does go flat eventually.....you get to thinking it will go for ever if you just add a little bud from time to time.

Oh, come on pakalolo, you are not going to challenge a vaporiser god are you? You've got a reputation with some around here to uphold you know?

While I appreciate the poking in fun part of such comments I'm also more than a little bit sensitive to it as such BS is often leveled at me in personal attacks.

For the record, I'm just another Forum Member with some useful experiences and insights (I think anyway) to offer to good folks in search of answers. Granted I have better access to TV, but I flatter myself in thinking I earned that. I'm happy for that part, I think it benefits us all. As far as possible I state the facts behind my opinions, try to identify the speculations, and encourage owners to experiment with techniques to find the best performance for them. I stand ready to back up my statements as best I can and expect nobody to take anything I say on faith alone.

So talk of 'gods' (big or small G) is OK for fun, but sadly some frustrated folks pick up on it and use it to attack when they don't get what they want. I don't like that part, needless to say. More over, it and the similar BS about being a secret shill only gets in the way of other Members trying to solve their problems I think. I want folks to have confidence the advice I and others offer is useful so they'll try it. Which is why I remain open to objective review by my peers.....the good folks of this Forum. Gods aren't like that.

Thanks for listening.

OF

 

[nopartofme]

Oh, come on pakalolo, you are not going to challenge a vaporiser god are you? You've got a reputation with some around here to uphold you know?

TF

Nothing wrong with asking a smart guy a smart question. I for one am glad for it!

Besides, have you seen the work pakalolo does around here? I don't know about this "god" title, but maybe in this case he's relatively deserving…

Anyways, I second the fresh battery suggestion of Belgianvapor, the difference is definitely noticeable. I plan to time out the heat-up time of the core at different battery strengths at some point soon to help myself get a nice step 1 in when the battery is a little lower.

 

[OF]

I plan to time out the heat-up time of the core at different battery strengths at some point soon to help myself get a nice step 1 in when the battery is a little lower.

Excellent plan, IMO. I learned a lot that very way. I suggest when you empty the bowl between loads do a quick 'step 1' heat up while watching the core through the bottom before loading the next bowl. By keeping the current battery state in mind as you do so you quickly develop 'a feel' for it without peeking. As with so many things in life there's a lot of power in knowing what to expect and taking note when that doesn't happen.

Besides it's not only fun to watch, but gives you another 'handle' on battery charge levels.

OF

 

[Belgianvapor]

quick battery question, can I put one battery in the charger (both from TET) and then let's say after half an hour or an hour put in another one? Or do I have to put in just one (if I want to charge one) and wait untill it is charged ?
thanks

 

[OF]

quick battery question, can I put one battery in the charger (both from TET) and then let's say after half an hour or an hour put in another one? Or do I have to put in just one (if I want to charge one) and wait untill it is charged ?
thanks

No problem, unlike some others this is a true two channel charger. Each channel is independent of the other. Use it any way that seems natural. Including a quick 'top up', pulling it before it's fully recharged.

OF

 

[Tom Funk]

Well I think your in tall cotton with Cera then. Lack of stirring, self cleaning (clog free) "UFO trap" and much improved battery life are only some of the improvements on T1 we asked for and got.

If you like T1, you'll love Cera. I know my much loved T1 has been mighty lonely in it's case....waiting. I took it out for a session the other day, it still works great of course, but with Cera right there it's not hard to pick.

Cera is so good a guy tends to forget the battery does go flat eventually.....you get to thinking it will go for ever if you just add a little bud from time to time.

OF

I can't imagine I'll be passing up the Cera for the T1 once I manage to get it. The stirring and especially the clogging are things you put up with in order to get the wonderful features of the T1. How could you pass-up something with all the positives but almost none of the negatives.

OF, I remember you saying that you did not recommend the 16w LL core over the 14w one. Out of the 14w and the 12w, which one is your favourite? What are the pros and cons between these? What gives the best flavour for the longest? Jcat is saying that he can get up to 3 bowls in 10 minutes on the 16w, which is consistent with some other reports. How much would the lower power cores change this.

Also do different power cores require a different length draw? I've found that step 2 of the draw is longer for me on the evo than on the T1 and I don't like it. This is somewhat mitigated by keeping the power on between draws on the evo, but is still not to my liking. I don't know if this is because of the lower power of the evo or because of other elements of the design.

I would like the lowest power core for reasons of heat and (I suspect) flavour. I am concerned about longer draws (I like to do steps 2 and 3 without an exhale in between), too narrow a band for effective draw speed and less complete extraction.

Edit: Sorry for the vape god comment. It was really directed at those who give you a hard time and than pak also for pulling them up. The "shill" label I find particularly hard to understand in the context of you publicly disagreeing with TET over the power of the flower cart.

Cheers
TF

 

[OF]

How could you pass-up something with all the positives but almost none of the negatives.

OF, I remember you saying that you did not recommend the 16w LL core over the 14w one. Out of the 14w and the 12w, which one is your favourite? What are the pros and cons between these? What gives the best flavour for the longest? Jcat is saying that he can get up to 3 bowls in 10 minutes on the 16w, which is consistent with some other reports. How much would the lower power cores change this.

I guess I like vapes for what they are sometimes. I like VGs and Vapman, so sue me. I obviously hurry back to Cera, but sometimes 'a little strange stuff' is fun too?

Yes, I found I couldn't use the extra power making vapor. All it did was overheat the body faster. All the energy put in, except that which actually makes vapor, only makes the whole thing hotter. I can't comment on 12 Watts any more, it got made 16 Watts in the Beta Testing. I think it was getting marginal with mostly discharged batteries, 14 or 16 is probably a better call for that reason. The extra warm up time probably adds less than half a minute to a session I'd guess?

Once the backorders are cleared I expect some serious experimenting with custom power cores. Together we'll sort it out no doubt. For now, the 'as shipped' core I got last from TV is doing Yeoman's Service and then some if you asked me.....which I think you did?

OF

 

[Tom Funk]

Thanks OF. The 14w core sounds good to me. Although if I can manage to order a Cera before custom carts are available I probably just go with the 16w.

Cheers
TF

 

[Highnstein]

I have the Cera EO and the mouth piece gets quite hot. I do not remember it being like this in the beginning. Is it because I overfilled it?

 

[OF]

I have the Cera EO and the mouth piece gets quite hot. I do not remember it being like this in the beginning. Is it because I overfilled it?

No, ironically underfilling it might? I don't see this with oil since I don't seem to have the heater on for more than a minute or two. But if you are having it on for much longer it's going to get hot no matter, full or empty, hitting it full time or not. Running low can get you to keep it on longer of course.

The cover works great for this, as does an inch or so of half inch tube on the end of the ceramic MP (what I used until the cover came out).

Good luck.

OF

 

[SameOldTim]

I have the Cera EO and the mouth piece gets quite hot. I do not remember it being like this in the beginning. Is it because I overfilled it?

OF is onto something here!

What i notice is when the core starts running dry it will get hotter as you try to vape off the last remaining concentrate left in it.

Update: We are sending out about 8 Cera's today, again we are limited by batteries.... Batteries should be in Thursday so we can ship out a big group on Thursday-Friday. Batteries from here on our may have a little different wrapping, i think you will like them!

Cheers,

Tim

 

[jivebuggered]

We are expecting to get caught up in a few week so you should have yours soon!



Thanks for posting that up! In fact i now put a link to it in my signature!! Hopefully more will see it now.



Hey, i forwarded this over to Zeki in the Office. He can help take care of you on this.



Not too much with the new wire, We fire it enough at the shop to let it oxidize.

Thanks OF for helping answer some questions, your a life saver!

As always, we are hard at work getting your Cera's to you! We overcame a few small quirks during assembly and are able to build you a very sturdy vaporizer!

Cheers,
Tim

THanks Tim i have re emailed Zeki about sending me some/ a "pigtail" He/she originally rejected my request so not sure if he/she will do a turn around? Thanks anyway

 

[pakalolo]

It slows the air flow down, forcing a more complete heating of the entire load I think? Remember, there's some first rate insulation going on. And the goal is to get as much mass in production at the same time as possible.

The uniform grind has a lot to do with it too I think. We want lots of small passages rather than a few general paths?

You don't want a hernia from the draw of course, but modest air flow gets the job done. It made little sense to me before I tried it (at Noah's suggestion in fact). Now I just know it works, even if I'm not 100% sure why.

Give it a try, Cloud Chasers wherever you are. See if it works for you?

OF

First rate insulation, eh? That's supposed to be my line. Plant matter is so bad at transmitting heat we do things like set one end on fire and hold the other, as in oh I don't know, a joint. I agree it slows down the air flow for sure. It just seems to me that if you want more hot air in contact with the load then you wouldn't want to pack it and impede the flow. Stirring would be essential then, because I can't see how the centre of the load gets vapourized until long after the edges of the load are done. On the other hand, if it works for you...

Oh, come on pakalolo, you are not going to challenge a vaporiser god are you? You've got a reputation with some around here to uphold you know?

TF

I admit I was (gently) yanking OF's chain. I know that he wouldn't say something that seemed so counter-intuitive without a good reason, and he does—he's tried it and gotten better results. He can't explain it, and neither can I. I guess we're not gods after all.

 

[OF]

First rate insulation, eh? That's supposed to be my line. Plant matter is so bad at transmitting heat we do things like set one end on fire and hold the other, as in oh I don't know, a joint.

Actually I was thinking of the Zirconia which is even tighter than the bud which is why the entire load comes up once the inner wall of the Zirconia 'oven' gets to temperature. It's a bit like a thermos bottle in that respect I think.

T1, being Aluminum, didn't have this going for it.

But if you want to insulate your walls with herb to R12 levels, go for it. If your house ever catches fire though I wanna be on the Volunteer Fire Department that comes....

OF

 

[BLAZING OG]

I ordered a CEO and was wondering if it came with those perfect fitting containers to hold the carts, ? if not can they be made available for purchase?

Also hoping since I already have 2900 mah panny's for my high powered led flashlighs, I will receive my CEO soon!

Thanks Tim, for the blog and FC updates!

OF is onto something here!

What i notice is when the core starts running dry it will get hotter as you try to vape off the last remaining concentrate left in it.

Update: We are sending out about 8 Cera's today, again we are limited by batteries.... Batteries should be in Thursday so we can ship out a big group on Thursday-Friday. Batteries from here on our may have a little different wrapping, i think you will like them!

Cheers,

Tim

 

[JCat]

Alright ... so here's a more thorough review (to-date ... I'm not done experimenting and I do think my results still will improve even though I'm happy with the current results).

I loaded a few more bowls today in my Cera, despite being back home and having access to my MiniVAP (which is my primary again being that I am currently still Cloudless and I got say the MiniVAP is a great unit but again I digress ... ... habit of mine ...). The fact that I've even bothered to use my Cera is a good sign for it.

My technique is as follows and I get some pretty nice Clouds ... and the smoothness/coolness/taste of the vapor without any water filtering is better than any other vapes I own (except for the MiniVAP and Cloud which are in a class of there own but not one that the Cera competes in as it is a completely different device):

1. Preheat bowl for 60-90 seconds (I preheat without the mouthpiece on and just wait until the core is pretty warm/hot to the touch)
2. Load bowl packing down nicely
3. Inhale relatively hard/fast until you can taste/feel the heat of the vapor than keep going for another little bit
4. Exhale small amount of vapor but nice taste and effect on first hit
5. Take cap off and pack down the load a little
6. Take long/large inhales of varying speeds based on desired temperature/feel of vapor until bowl is spent and vapor/taste gets wispy ... this is 3-4 hits for me so about 2-3 minutes after warmed up and loaded

Notes:
- I preheat holding it "Tweek" pencil style in my left hand and keep it on while loading ... I actually don't find this very difficult FWIW
- I switch to my right hand "Tweek" pencil style after loading the bowl
- One issue I have with good quality bud is that after I initially load it, and after my first good inhale, the load compresses such that it's down a bit in the chamber and when pulling hard the whole load pulls up as opposed to it evenly pulling up which results in hard pulls yielding little vapor as the bulk of the air goes around the bud ... I'm working on figuring this one out.

I gotta' say though ... I used my INH004 when I got back from vacation but before I drove back (outside the hotel a handful of times between 2:30am and 8:30am) and it's definitely not as nice of a device as the Cera ... it produces thicker vapor more easily and the loads are easily prepacked ... but it's harsher and I find it almost unusable without the TV SmoothFlow which makes the vapor much less harsh ...

The Cera produces unbelievably un-harsh vapor even while vaping a bowl nice and dark to completion ... my other portables I find irritate my throat after frequent use without water (or even worse affect my mouth and give me canker sores which suck and are painful .... the INH without the SmoothFlow does this to me rather quickly--4-6 bowls--whereas the Cera I can use as my primary going through 2-3 bowls in quick succession every 1-4 hours for a week straight with no ill effects on my throat, mouth, or lungs ...)

I'll keep you posted on my progress (FWIW the INH004 is still my primary in country travel portable with the Cera behind it and finding less and less use for my Solo)

 

[J.D.420]

Regarding the smootheness of the vapor I gotta agree 100%. The first time I hit the cera was convinced it wasn't working until I exhaled and saw a light stream of vapor. Was so used to the harsh hits of some other vapes that I thought that was par for the course with portables unless you used water filtration. especially cool considering how short the vapor path is.

 

[OF]

1. Preheat bowl for 60-90 seconds (I preheat without the mouthpiece on and just wait until the core is pretty warm/hot to the touch)

5. Take cap off and pack down the load a little
6. Take long/large inhales of varying speeds based on desired temperature/feel of vapor until bowl is spent and vapor/taste gets wispy ... this is 3-4 hits for me so about 2-3 minutes after warmed up and loaded


The Cera produces unbelievably un-harsh vapor even while vaping a bowl nice and dark to completion ...

Wow! First off, thanks for the excellent review. Some great stuff in there. I like the preheat idea, it never occurred to me but I can see how it would change how the load heating starts out, it should get a larger percentage to the magic temperature at the same time you'd think......cool.

The repack is also a neat idea, something like the processing I routinely do to MFLB trenches (dump and regrind in my palm after the herb breaks down a bit). I wonder if adding a bit more bud to fill the bowl solidly back up would improve it even more?

I don't hit my LL loads near that hard, a matter of preference, but it's good to know it does it well that way for you routinely as I'm sure others will want to do this.

Finally, I agree with you and JD420, the use of the ceramic in the MP catches you by surprise. It works amazingly well at trapping the debris without jamming up and making the vapor sweet. I bet it would make a funny looking but effective accessory for other vapes.

Thanks again, good stuff.

OF

 

[Belgianvapor]

quick cleaning tip :
A normal tooth pick fits perfectly trough the holes of your mouth piece tip's air inlets
so you can just pull it trough from one side to another and taking all (if any?) debris
with it.