'The Misty Log' - DIY wooden Log Vaporizer

If interested in the hand railing idea, consider the 1 and 3/4 inch diameter wood dowel from Bell Forest, linked here.

blokenoname said:

And please don't ask me, how I managed to solder the connector pole to the nichrome... had s/thing to do with me getting pissed with the soldering iron & taking the jet flame to it

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Shouldn't be afraid of a little torch action when soldering I use it to get the solder off of the barrel jacks for reuse, or preheat big stuff. All about getting the heat where it needs to be.

@Flotsam Good luck with the build. This project has really showed me how simple a vaporizer can be. And thanks for the link to the dowels @darkstar72.

I've been working on a new halogen design, incorporating the larger 2mm tubes for heater sockets. I think that forming these into sockets can actually work quite well. Been using a pair of round nose pliers, like this: https://www.michaels.com/product/bead-landing-round-nose-pliers-10035773 to form the contacts. I use the small flat part to crush the tube flat while the bulb pin is inside it, then take out the bulb and gently compress using the round part until the pin fits tight. If you go too far you can squeeze it back. Once the tubes are mounted in a base its pretty easy to take the bulb in or out.

The complication has been in design of the body. Something has to come apart for access to the bulb. I think my 1" heater well is a bit too narrow to be reaching into for that. So I have been looking at a 2-piece design sort of like some of the HIs. I also don't really like the idea of reusing wood screws/threads many times, so I want it to go together with threaded inserts or captive nuts. My first attempt worked but is a bit wonky. Was hard to drill straight by hand, but I will be able to use a drill press for the next design.




I think maybe the next one should have the heater cover screws coming in from the top hold it all together. But the space for screw heads gets pretty cramped with the 11mm OD heater cover, and 1" drilled heater well. I also found some nice hardwood plugs that can replace the cork, or maybe be used in a bottom-loading design, similar to the screw-in core from above.

Latest update, on this idea of an easily serviceable/long lasting halogen log. This one has a nice machined socket for the 10W halogen bulb, and is held together by just the 2 heater cover screws. Same 11mm/10mm heat island style cover, and square walnut body. I am pretty happy with the design overall. The bulb will eventually break, but it just requires 2 screws to be removed for replacement. And this shouldn't wear out the threaded inserts or bulb sockets for a very long time.




Mill-Max sent me a free engineering sample of the socket contacts I requested, along with some cool catalogs . These press into the 2mm OD, 1.7mm ID SS tubing nicely. The insertion/removal force on the bulb is light much lighter than the formed contacts, and lighter/smoother than the G4 sockets. The bulb pin goes in a little less than halfway. No scratching of the nickel plating on the bulb pins, or sockets, after 10-20 cycles. I think they will hold up very well, could reccomend them to try out. But I still might prefer a plain SS tube with a formed socket, though, since this fully covers the bulb lead, and feels more secure.



Was able to use a small drill press for this body, which made a big difference in the quality, especially for the heater well. 2 4-40 (about M3) screws hold down the heater cover, and the top piece of wood, to the base, which contains the bulb socket/support tubes, threaded inserts, power jack and wiring. The center hole is 3/8", allowing the bulb to pass through the top piece. In the bottom piece, it is instead filled in with 3/8 walnut plug, which has 2 5/64" holes for the bulb tubes. This makes it easier to replace the sockets if needed, and much easier to crimp copper wires to the SS tubes for the jack connection.

There are some minor things I still don't really like. One is that the threaded inserts and the outer bodies of the pin sockets are brass, which is leaded. I don't think this is an issue, since the pin sockets are gold plated, and the threaded inserts are well away from the vapor path. Could be fixed by using the SS tube formed sockets, and SS nuts rather than brass inserts. The other thing is that getting the heater cover screws in is a bit fiddly-requires holding the tube carefully in place, while using a thin screwdriver to get the screws in. It could be easier if they went in from the bottom, into a tapped washer or something.

Parts used:
heater cover: 11mm OD, 0.5mm wall 304 SS tube https://www.amazon.com/dp/B099QMDZRY
bulb tubes: 2mm OD, 0.15mm wall 304 SS tube https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09R9B592L
bulb contacts: Mill Max 0303-0-19-15-26-27-10-0 (BeNi contact, press fit) https://www.mill-max.com/products/p...tacle-crimp-type/0303/0303-0-19-15-26-27-10-0 available at Mouser https://www.mouser.com/ProductDetail/Mill-Max/0303-0-19-15-26-27-10-0
bulb: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09BC9NQGR
barrel jack: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07MPS3QD8
screens: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07QF5TLZV
2x2 (1.5inx1.5in) walnut about 4" overall length (from Home Depot) https://www.homedepot.com/p/Swaner-...lnut-S4S-Hardwood-Boards-08011636WA/318989598
M10 SS washer, 10.5mm ID 20mm OD (from Ace Hardware) https://shop.hillmangroup.com/ccrz__ProductDetails?sku=4122&cclcl=en_US
2x 4-40x3/4" pan head SS machine screw (from Ace Hardware) https://shop.hillmangroup.com/ccrz__ProductDetails?sku=828432&cclcl=en_US
2x 4-40 brass threaded insert for wood (from Ace Hardware) https://shop.hillmangroup.com/ccrz__ProductDetails?sku=3015&cclcl=en_US
3/8" walnut plug (from Ace Hardware) https://shop.hillmangroup.com/ccrz__ProductDetails?sku=412218&cclcl=en_US

Very tidy indeed.

Thanks brainy! It passed its first test well and stood up to a very hot burn in at around 12.3V overnight. No visible oxide discoloration on the bulb tubes, pins, or contacts. While the heater cover and screens got that slight yellow tint. So it seems that system isn't getting too hot, like the cheap ceramic sockets did.

The wood plug is more heat resistant than the cork, and better mechanically, but isn't 100% airtight. I kind of liked the idea of sealing off the base so the airpath is isolated. So I put a small cork in the bottom of the same hole as the wood plug sits in, to back it up. Easy to do if you get it in before soldering. The cork/wood plug combination might work well for protecting any cork pieces used in logs/stems from heat or crumbling. Curious to try it with a larger cork and dowel, to fit a 1" hole. Could allow for a full heater assembly to slide into a simple tube wood body. I think that's kind of like how some of the HI's are? And some of bloke's earlier builds in this thread, though I can't see the pictures.

Another small tip I have is for cutting the tiny SS tubes without a dremel, and without crushing them. If you use a hacksaw, it binds up on the tube, since it's thinner than the tooth pitch. But if you cut backwards, it can be very gentle and leave the end pretty clean. Very quick and just needs a touch of the file to deburr the OD. The ID can be deburred with a drill bit, twisting by hand. Since this leaves the tube round, its easier to make into a socket that won't scratch the plating off of the bulb pins.

So I was thinking about woods and in particular which types of wood I like. Iam really font of Scandinavian style and specifically teak. I take note that teak never seems to be used in vaporizer. I am guessing because of all the oils teak wood has?

Flotsam said:

So I was thinking about woods and in particular which types of wood I like. Iam really font of Scandinavian style and specifically teak. I take note that teak never seems to be used in vaporizer. I am guessing because of all the oils teak wood has?

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If you go to @underdog 's vape archive and search for teak you'll find a few examples there. Sadly though, nothing in stock.

Also, most teak comes from Myanmar which is under sanctions atm due to civil rights violations and oppression.

Been thinking about logs and halogen bulbs some more, and looking back at my heat transfer textbook, trying to understand what is happening in logs/other vapes. I think I found some interesting ideas/observations.

Anyone try using some high-power (AC) bulbs way below their rated voltage? This should shift a lot of the output to IR by lowering the filament temp. There are also screw-base type bulbs available, at least here in the US, which would be easy to replace. I think someone mentioned this earlier in the thread, for possibly using the 20 or 50 watt bulbs.

For example, something like https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00NLO3TN2 is 250W, 120V. So should run at at least 7W at 20V. It should be more than that, since the bulb is not ohmic, it has higher resistance at higher filament temp. If the filament is 3000K at the rated power, it should be about 1200K at 7W, which is a dim red hot, almost all IR. Glass is more opaque at those temps too, so it may help to keep the heat in. I guess this probably wouldn't be as viable for 220 or 240V bulbs/countries, though. I did a little experiment with my 10W bulb running on my power supply, and resistance increases about 6% per watt between 2-7W (while allowing time for the temp to stabilize). The current decreases during warmup and increases a bit during a hit.

It also seems like halogen/radiant heating gives a unique possibility for closing the loop on temp control. While it is not capable of heating the air significantly, it can apply heat directly to an opaque surface. And the surface is also the only place that heat transfer by convection can take place. I think that taking advantage of this could create a device that can keep up with changing draw rate, and heat up very quickly, while using power efficiently. Effectively, the need for high thermal mass to keep the heater surface temps up during a draw could be eliminated. Could be good for a portable.

jackrod said:

Been thinking about logs and halogen bulbs some more, and looking back at my heat transfer textbook, trying to understand what is happening in logs/other vapes. I think I found some interesting ideas/observations.

Anyone try using some high-power (AC) bulbs way below their rated voltage? This should shift a lot of the output to IR by lowering the filament temp. There are also screw-base type bulbs available, at least here in the US, which would be easy to replace. I think someone mentioned this earlier in the thread, for possibly using the 20 or 50 watt bulbs.

For example, something like https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00NLO3TN2 is 250W, 120V. So should run at at least 7W at 20V. It should be more than that, since the bulb is not ohmic, it has higher resistance at higher filament temp. If the filament is 3000K at the rated power, it should be about 1200K at 7W, which is a dim red hot, almost all IR. Glass is more opaque at those temps too, so it may help to keep the heat in. I guess this probably wouldn't be as viable for 220 or 240V bulbs/countries, though. I did a little experiment with my 10W bulb running on my power supply, and resistance increases about 6% per watt between 2-7W (while allowing time for the temp to stabilize). The current decreases during warmup and increases a bit during a hit.

It also seems like halogen/radiant heating gives a unique possibility for closing the loop on temp control. While it is not capable of heating the air significantly, it can apply heat directly to an opaque surface. And the surface is also the only place that heat transfer by convection can take place. I think that taking advantage of this could create a device that can keep up with changing draw rate, and heat up very quickly, while using power efficiently. Effectively, the need for high thermal mass to keep the heater surface temps up during a draw could be eliminated. Could be good for a portable.

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Those are some really interesting points. All of my halogen projects so far have centered on low DC voltages.

My question is conceptually about convection is about air movement. It seems every design relies solely on lung power. I always wonder if low pressure air pump might be the way to go.

They use a 50W bulb in the Highlighter
I don't know if you're going to have issues running a higher wattage bulb at the power level required for a log tho to be honest
and whether it will be hot enough to cycle and regenerate the bulb

@Flotsam: I think you may be right, and the Volcano, EQ, etc with the bags/fan follow that principle, though don't seem to be too popular now. Does anyone know whether there ever any fan powered portables? That could be an interesing approach, too. But I think most people, myself included, prefer the experience of a lung-powered device. Modeling heat transfer, especially by convection, can get really complicated, and I think that vaporizers almost defy it, with the wide range of effective designs, and transient nature of how they are used.

@Hippie I will have to try it out. I don't think the halogen cycle will be too important if the bulb is run cold. My understanding is that it is just a way of enabling the filament to run hotter without evaporating, so the bulb emits more in the visible spectrum. But if we avoid that anyway, the tungsten evaporation will be much slower.

so i wanted to throw out a question. I have been looking for a good piece of wood to use for a log project like this.
My brother in law suggested this place https://hardwoodstore.com/ i want to go in person as he said they had good prices on scrap sizes which they have available. My brother in law bought a slab of live edge Olive wood 8 ' for an art project he is doing.


Looking through some stuff i have on hand i do have a ceramic piece i could use for a log. Not wood but it is a potential idea to try out. I am looking how i can repurpose some halogen heater parts i had been playing with. Its about 5 inches tall and 1 in internal diameter opening. Thoughts on ceramic? I have found ceramic easy to drill w glass bits.

Sounds cool to me. Glazed on the inside would be ideal I guess, to avoid any cleaning/dust coming off issues, but I wouldn't worry too much about it. 1in ID is what I used on my wood units with 11mm heater cover (~7mm gap), they get pretty warm on the outside but easily holdable. It's a bit tight to work in there when using screws to hold the heater cover down. If your halogen heater parts are larger, it may be tight to work in, get hotter on the outside, and/or require more watts. None of those needs to be a deal breaker. You could hold the heater cover in the ceramic with a drilled cork, or make a small wood puck for it to sit on, which fits tightly inside the ceramic.

What kind of halogen parts have you been playing around with? I'm always curious to see what has worked. Lots of the old threads here don't have the pictures anymore.