Arizer Solo

[steven22]

Hey guys, from the last couple posts, and from my own experience, Does any believe the smell issues have anything to do with the color of the unit? (im reading about more black units smelling more than silver units) and from my experience I have a stinky black 104, and a perfect silver M103.

pretty much, does anyone have a stinky silver unit and perfect black units? (ceramic or silver)


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I finally had a chance to test out the battery on the silver ceramic M103, and wasnt too impressed. I was able to go for 13, twelve minute rundowns.. equates to 2.6 hours run time before it stopped.
my temps were always above 2, usually at 4, and would shoot up to 6 or 7 to get the last bit out before a new bowl and going back down to 2.

I always felt that my black stinky 104 had a slightly better battery life than the m103. but I didnt get a chance to test it out and I have returned it already.


if a ceramic only gets 2.6 (compared to the advertised 4hrs) I cant imagine what an SS would get.

I try not to look at it as 2.6hours of vaping time, I see it more as getting a chance to run the unit 13 times before it goes out. (im not always drawing on it while its on)


I Would love to hear other's results.

to the ones that are inclined in electronics, have any upgrades for battery life?... (Swap out battery for stronger one)


thanks in advance

 

[darkrom]

It's not that it's to much work, I just feel I shouldn't have to. And mine still has an awful smell with the cap off, a solder smell that differs from the paint smell, so just cleaning the cap wouldn't do it.

Arizer did offer me another replacement for my replacement, I'm considering it but I'm not in a lot of hurry. I don't use the Solo much anymore anyways.

Fair enough, but do you clean a new grinder when you get it or leave the manufacturing residue on that too because it isn't your job to clean it?

In regards to still having a smell with the cap off, since the bottom of the shell and the cap seem to have been come from a single piece it is a safe assumption that residue can be on the bottom 3/4ths of the shell just as easily as the top 1/4th (cap) and can also be cleaned off the exact same way.

Those that have gotten residue from ISO wiping the cap and still have taste/smell issues seem to have the issue solved completely by wiping the interior of the bottom of their shell as well as the cap.

So if you decide to keep your smelly unit instead of sending it in for replacement you should definitely consider taking 10 minutes out of your day to fix the issue yourself.

Man, you're dense. Read my posts please, next time you get the urge to respond to them.

Do you seriously want to compare a 15 euro grinder against a 200 euro piece of electronic equipment? Have fun dude.

As much as I got torn apart for hating on the solo (after loving it more than any vape every at the time, so how I could be accused of being a shill I'll never understand) there are people who will defend it to the death. I honestly understand that mentality because I was touting the solo like it was the holy grail when it was new. It is an excellent device to extract vapor, but I have no doubts that the vapor is far from pure with the smells and other issues beaten to death in this thread. IMO what is going to happen is people like me and you who loved it originally will simply stop suggesting it. Since they are running a more or less word of mouth campaign (STILL not mentioning the product on their own site) I expect it to fade in popularity and of course there will be many people still using it, but I no longer consider it THE portable to have. When I loved it I convinced 2 people to get it. Since my issues occurred I don't even tell people about it.

I don't mind CIVIL conversations on the subject, but just like I respect the fact that some people have flawless solos, they need to respect the fact that some of us got truly shafted with horrible quality devices of questionable safety. I shouldn't be flamed for having a bad review anymore than anyone should get flammed for a glowing positive review. That is the intended purpose of the site after all.

I think one big thing they could do (but wouldn't count on it) would be to make the whole casing of the vape out of a different material and send that out to people who had smell issues (since they can't smell a SINGLE vape apparently )

If it is simply a wipedown of the case that have people insisting the vape is fine, this should be a solution that would make everyone happy. If 100% of the smells and flavors and headaches were gone with a new case material, I'd be happy and we'd know what caused the issues. Because they most likely will not do anything to improve this vape (since they deny the issues in the first place) we will almost surely never know if the issue is the case or something inside the unit itself. The community can only do so much of Arizer's troubleshooting. If they are not willing to get involved in fixing their own flaws then I will continue to pretend the solo no longer exists. IF Arizer steps up and makes this right than I'd consider them still in the running for best portable. But judging on their responses and claiming that units like mine had no odor well.... I don't know how that can be without questioning their honesty on that subject.

 

[OhTheAgony]

Steven22: I don't think it has anything to do with the color, my M102 and M105 are both black. The first one is flawless except for a slight chipping of the ceramic bowl after extensive use. The other one really stinks though. & this is not a subtle smell people with a bad sense of smell or taste could easily overlook, it's right there in your face. I can clearly distinct a paint smell and a solder smell.

Since others report having a smell free M105 or a stinking M102 I can only conclude that Arizers quality control is very poor at least if not non existent. I personally asked them what kind of paint they use to determine if it's safe or not, I've asked them if they still haven't been able to determine that there is a smell issue with at least some of the units, I asked them about the air path & how come there is a solder-smell on some of the units while they claim there are no electronics in the air path, I even asked them to come by here every once in a while to talk to their costumers or at the very least keep us informed from time to time about whats going on and what kind of changes they are making, all to no avail. The list of questions that never got answered goes on and on, but there really is no point in writing it all down here because they didn't go in to any of the subjects. All I got from Kevin was a "sorry you're not happy with your unit & would you like us to replace it". Very decent of course, but I'd rather have an explanation. Kevin did say he'd forward my suggestion about coming to FC to his manager which was the first time I heard about this manager, so my next step will be trying to talk to that guy in person. Perhaps we'll get some answers that way, but I wouldn't wait for it though.

I hear you Darkrom. Like you I was a down right fan boy of this bad boy as well at first. I wish I still could be, but there's just to much shit going on to keep that up now imo. If people choose to stick their heads in the sand and deny the problems that's their good right of course, I just hope they realize they are actually breathing through this thing on a daily bases.

 

[vape4life]

Add ac power and she is no different than the cloud , except digital readout . .

dude, you didn't just say that! lol

 

[vape4health]

Ok I took some measurements on the Solo stem and black ring in the heater. I checked one 3 hole and one 2 hole (I dont have any 4 hole) I got a width of .573" or 14.55mm
And on the heater black ring I got .583" or 14.81mm. So a male gg joint with a stub that measures 14.5mm-14.6-7mm (should) fit. If anyone finds one I'll order it to try.

I hear you guys on the smell, its not just a case of the person having sensitive smell, it blows my mind that not one single person at Arizer can smell it. Has anyone gotten a replacement just because of a smelly unit yet, did they make you pay shipping to send it back.

edit: wall thickness of the bowl is .055" or 1.4mm
Ok I'm looking for a glass joint 14/20 on a 14.6mm tube, time for searching.

 

[steven22]

Steven22: I don't think it has anything to do with the color, my M102 and M105 are both black. The first one is flawless except for a slight chipping of the ceramic bowl after extensive use. The other one really stinks though. & this is not a subtle smell people with a bad sense of smell or taste could easily overlook, it's right there in your face. I can clearly distinct a paint smell and a solder smell.

thanks for getting back to me.

another reason I asked was because I feel that the paint or the painting process on the black is different from my silver. to the touch, the silver seems to have a smoother texture to it. the black feels a tad rougher. figured it has something to do with the chemistry of the paint or painting process

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I am surprised as well that no one at arizer can notice the smell, I had asked multiple people to smell both my units blindly, and each one pointed out the stinky one right away with ease.

but I can tell you , the stinky one isnt AS stinky as it was from day 1. It did subside quite a bit after baking the cap , iso wiping the cap and few days of usage. but it didnt go away completely at all, it still smelled if I took my nose right into the unit to smell it. It did stop stinking up my room though.

and I am not too sure about the case being the only source of the stink. I have ran the stinky unit without the cap and bottom case, it still stunk around the heater area.

 

[darkrom]

Steven22: I don't think it has anything to do with the color, my M102 and M105 are both black. The first one is flawless except for a slight chipping of the ceramic bowl after extensive use. The other one really stinks though. & this is not a subtle smell people with a bad sense of smell or taste could easily overlook, it's right there in your face. I can clearly distinct a paint smell and a solder smell.

and I am not too sure about the case being the only source of the stink. I have ran the stinky unit without the cap and bottom case, it still stunk around the heater area.

This is something Arizer could put to rest nearly immediately. Make one case out of stainless steel or whatever, don't paint or treat or do ANYTHING to it other than wash it with soap and water. Then ship it out to owners of some stinky solos with instructions to NOT use it at all. They could make ONE of these and send it out for "picky" user smell approval. Either they are stating "we can't smell it so it's not there" or they are simply saying too bad. I don't see how there could be any other scenario going on. Either you don't believe us or you just don't want to fix it. If it was one or 2 people, that would be one thing. There a quite a few of us here alone. The thing I personally don't trust is their report that other users (non-FCmembers) seem to have no complaints according to Arizer. Apparently they don't like us enough to post here or communicate with us about important matters in any way, yet they must have re-designed the stainless bowl JUST for us, since their official claim was that we are a small portion of the users and only users here are reporting these issues.

Honestly, and I hate to say it, but I SUSPECT (not accuse) that there is some blatant lying going on here on their part. The only way to refute this would be to come talk to us, something they are unwilling to do so far. I guess their plan may be to stall with a "no comment" approach to these issues and just let them sell while they sell. Really really disappointing if you ask me.

 

[guitarscreamngrowler]

i feel bad reading this forum i have a flawless m103 ceramic silver i paid 270 for it, love it the extreme q an ssv only come out when i wana do big load. the solo is always out tiny load size mega hits an freedom to walk everywhere love it.

 

[darkrom]

i feel bad reading this forum i have a flawless m103 ceramic silver i paid 270 for it, love it the extreme q an ssv only come out when i wana do big load. the solo is always out tiny load size mega hits an freedom to walk everywhere love it.

I'm glad you are happy with yours. Don't feel bad for anyone, you got a vape and are happy with it. We should feel envious if anything. How often do you use it? How many bowls would you say you've run through it? I hope it continues to satisfy you day in and day out.

 

[guitarscreamngrowler]

im a ig guy i can do alot haha. probably 6-8 times vape probably run a g through it a day maybe little more. iv been using it constantly iv only used ssv 3 times for vape bong but i use solo to vape bong to which is amazing only one hand needed. an tiny load size is the best part blows my rockzap away

 

[WatTyler]

Apparently they don't like us enough to post here or communicate with us about important matters in any way

I'm not so sure that that's fair. They're communication isn't at all bad compared to many manufacturers of many other appliances, it's just direct with their customers. It seems crystal clear to me that Arizer are particularly keen to keep a certain distance in the public eye from anything directly MJ related themselves. Just look at how the Solo is packaged- blatantly as an aromatherapy tool, even to the extent of including a useless diffuser bowl and pot pourri. Maybe FC is too direct a link to the use of the product for illegal purposes? I can appreciate that concern for their business.

I can't pretend to understand the legal issues that might be associated with such a clear connection, but it doesn't surprise me for a company that is global, and relies on importing into the USA, past the customs man, for most of it's business. Maybe it's just better to be safe than sorry from their perspective?

It's interesting that Oglesby and Butler also pulled back from participation in FC, and even tried to erase all visible input. Whether that was motivated by legal concerns I guess we can only speculate.

 

[darkrom]

Apparently they don't like us enough to post here or communicate with us about important matters in any way

I'm not so sure that that's fair. They're communication isn't at all bad compared to many manufacturers of many other appliances, it's just direct with their customers. It seems crystal clear to me that Arizer are particularly keen to keep a certain distance in the public eye from anything directly MJ related themselves. Just look at how the Solo is packaged- blatantly as an aromatherapy tool, even to the extent of including a useless diffuser bowl and pot pourri. Maybe FC is too direct a link to the use of the product for illegal purposes? I can appreciate that concern for their business.

I can't pretend to understand the legal issues that might be associated with such a clear connection, but it doesn't surprise me for a company that is global, and relies on importing into the USA, past the customs man, for most of it's business. Maybe it's just better to be safe than sorry from their perspective?

It's interesting that Oglesby and Butler also pulled back from participation in FC, and even tried to erase all visible input. Whether that was motivated by legal concerns I guess we can only speculate.

I didn't think of it that way. That is a valid claim, however if pretending to be something you are not hinders your ability to support your product that may be an issue. My underdog came with a (functional aroma therapy device) but that is probably a whole new issue since it is made in the USA.

I understand there are probably legal issues involved, but at the same time if it is simply easier/cheaper to sell an aromatherapy device than a vaporizer, I'd say it is not worth calling it that if the user suffers. There is nothing illegal about vaporization in general, so to sell a vaporizer as a vaporizer is perfectly legal. Just because we "misuse" these device (just like tobacco bowls at headshops) doesn't mean it is illegal to sell them.

I will assume that some of their closed door approach is probably related to legal reasons, they still need to support the product and our concerns or not bother half assing the product.

Thanks for that though, I never thought that they would be hiding behind legal reasons or something like that. I just wish they'd come in here to post about how our aromatic blends are giving off bad smells haha.

 

[MG23]

It's not that it's to much work, I just feel I shouldn't have to. And mine still has an awful smell with the cap off, a solder smell that differs from the paint smell, so just cleaning the cap wouldn't do it.

Arizer did offer me another replacement for my replacement, I'm considering it but I'm not in a lot of hurry. I don't use the Solo much anymore anyways.

Fair enough, but do you clean a new grinder when you get it or leave the manufacturing residue on that too because it isn't your job to clean it?

In regards to still having a smell with the cap off, since the bottom of the shell and the cap seem to have both come from a single piece it is a safe assumption that residue can be on the bottom 3/4ths of the shell just as easily as the top 1/4th (cap) and can also be cleaned off the exact same way.

Those that have gotten residue from ISO wiping the cap and still have taste/smell issues seem to have the issue solved completely by wiping the interior of the bottom of their shell as well as the cap.

So if you decide to keep your smelly unit instead of sending it in for replacement you should definitely consider taking 10 minutes out of your day to fix the issue yourself.

Man, you're dense. Read my posts please, next time you get the urge to respond to them.

Not sure which part of your post you think I didn't read, as I addressed everything you said.
And as I said if you decide to keep your unit instead of sending it back for replacement it would be worth the 10 minutes of your time to fix it yourself instead of just accepting it as permanently stinky.

If anything you didn't read what I said.

Also not sure why you felt the need to throw an insult for advice meant only to help, but it is what it is.

 

[cow-a-bunga]

I just got my first Solo ever in house. A black M105 from ebay. I paid $189 including shipping to norway. That is IMO an amazing deal.

I'm heating the Solo as I type.

The only smell I can detect is coming from the potpourri (wild flowers). I can smell it on the Solo itself, and I don't like it. I can hear the high pitch noice, but its very faint. Don't think it will bother me.

The instructions says "Important Note: Do not fill heater. Instead use glass dishes provided". Why? Won't the herbs fall from the glass into the heater when I vape, or should I hold the Solo upside down to prevent that?

 

[Stu]

If you fill the heater, you wouldn't be able to put the stem in without a lot of effort. I usually invert my solo and stem when inserting or removing a stem into the heat chamber, but that's just a habit. Once the herb gets roasted slightly, it tends to stick to the walls of the glass stem and not much (if any) herb will fall from the chamber when you remove the stem. Of course if you pack too loosely it may fall down more easily from the stem. Just invert when inserting and removing the stem and you should be golden.

 

[propjoe]

im loving my solo. i use this one as my primary home device. hits are huge. i have to remember to not take such a huge hit sometimes. i then cough like crazy if i forget.
huge hits from the solo.

 

[OhTheAgony]

Not sure which part of your post you think I didn't read, as I addressed everything you said.
And as I said if you decide to keep your unit instead of sending it back for replacement it would be worth the 10 minutes of your time to fix it yourself instead of just accepting it as permanently stinky.

If anything you didn't read what I said.

Also not sure why you felt the need to throw an insult for advice meant only to help, but it is what it is.

If you feel I insulted you I apologize & I do appreciate your efforts to help, but in my defense I had already written twice that it's not just a paint smell coming from my unit. I started to think you either weren't reading my entire posts or didn't take my claim serious & got a little impatient with you.

I've read this entire thread at least twice and I've been posting here since page 27 or so, and have even advised others myself to do the bake or wipe if they are desperate enough because it was their only vape. I know the options, I just refuse to do it myself out of principle since it's simply ridiculous that one should have to in the first place with a product in this price range. If I wanted that shit I would have stuck with cheap Chinese boxes & not spend 200 euro's on a vaporizer. I just assumed that active posters in this thread like yourself already got that about me from my previous post so I didn't have to spell it out, my bad.


Valid reasoning Wat, I hadn't thought of that myself.

 

[dinged]

For any of you know who own a smelly SOLO: Have you confirmed a ceramic heating element. And if so, have any of you tested the fumes or ceramic for toxins such as lead, antimony oxide, barium of any form, beryllium, borax, cadmium, selenium, cobalt, colemanite (or gerstley borate), copper, chromium (chrome), lustre preparations, manganese, nickel, potassium dichromate, vanadium, and zinc?

These toxins are prevalent in cheap ceramics. I wouldn't be surprised even if assembled locally, the parts have been sourced from a cheap chinese toxic ceramics factory, even if unknowingly by Arizer.

I'd like to get a SOLO but the fumes people are complaining about seem hazardous.

It would be great if any of you who owned one, would do a test and report the results: leadcheck dot com
http://leadcheck.com/

 

[WatTyler]

^^^^ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ds4yiERTZj8

 

[VapeNStone]

Oh crap, and then you get a post like that ^^ lmao

Did you have the smell-issue with your other SS unit, VapeNStone?

no not a thing. I ran 2 burn in cycles just to be safe and started hitting.

 

[VapeNStone]

i feel bad reading this forum i have a flawless m103 ceramic silver i paid 270 for it, love it the extreme q an ssv only come out when i wana do big load. the solo is always out tiny load size mega hits an freedom to walk everywhere love it.

don't feel bad man. I have two great working solo's now that I got the new SS. I love the solo and always have that is why I got so defensive when I was told I was wrong. But now I have two working solo's!!! Oh and I usually use mine when I go out, which is alot lol. So I use it 4 times a week 2-3 each time. My ceramic is great with a little chipping and the new SS hits the same as that one with just one level up.

 

[vape4life]

i feel bad reading this forum i have a flawless m103 ceramic silver i paid 270 for it, love it the extreme q an ssv only come out when i wana do big load. the solo is always out tiny load size mega hits an freedom to walk everywhere love it.

don't feel bad man. I have two great working solo's now that I got the new SS. I love the solo and always have that is why I got so defensive when I was told I was wrong. But now I have two working solo's!!! Oh and I usually use mine when I go out, which is alot lol. So I use it 4 times a week 2-3 each time. My ceramic is great with a little chipping and the new SS hits the same as that one with just one level up.

Hey man, does it reach temp as fast as the one you sent in?

 

[Happy2vape]

Where have you guys been getting replacement straight stems for the best price?

Great Vape has straight or bent 4-hold stems for $9.95 ($8.95 for the old 2-hole bent stems) and reasonable shipping costs. I strongly recommend them.

http://greatvape.com/items/accessories/arizer-solo-tube-so601-detail.htm

Great vape has been great both times I've purchased from them.

 

[VapeNStone]

i feel bad reading this forum i have a flawless m103 ceramic silver i paid 270 for it, love it the extreme q an ssv only come out when i wana do big load. the solo is always out tiny load size mega hits an freedom to walk everywhere love it.

don't feel bad man. I have two great working solo's now that I got the new SS. I love the solo and always have that is why I got so defensive when I was told I was wrong. But now I have two working solo's!!! Oh and I usually use mine when I go out, which is alot lol. So I use it 4 times a week 2-3 each time. My ceramic is great with a little chipping and the new SS hits the same as that one with just one level up.

Hey man, does it reach temp as fast as the one you sent in?

No it goes up way slower than that one. Although I still think its a little fast everything seems to work as it should(meaning the SS runs cooler and most usually use it at 1 setting higher) which is now the case but before I couldn't even get hits on 7.

 

[steven22]

anyone have any ideas on extending battery life?.... what kind of numbers are you guys seeing with the battery? (specify ceramic or SS ) are there any better batteries that users can swap in here?

One gripe I really have is the fact that it doesn't charge and operate at the same time. I know there is an adapter to purchase, but even that one doesn't charge the battery. It only allows operation straight from AC. Pretty much I would have to carry 2 sets of adapters to charge and run the unit. (takes away from its portability)


any electrical gurus know why they chose this route?... and if there is a way to work around it?.. (perhaps a better type of aftermarket adapter that does both?)


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my solo lasted 13 intervals of 12 minutes. about 2.6 hours of run time. at temps from 2 - 6.
I want more.