Aromazap/Myrtlezap/CeramicRockZap

[Rick]

Thank you Alan. It really is challenging for this old slow poke. It seems I have eaten an energy pill the way every day flies by. This change, that change. Will this screen work? This clip? About out of screen......what do I order? Then the brass............what size if any to order? Will new SS tips install as easy as the brass?
FYI, our SS stem tips will press in to the nylon handle as always. No threads like Alan does so you got me on that one Alan. We made the decision based on production cost and time. The only way to keep this train moving is to keep it simple as much as possible.

Speaking of simple, I see the Underdog has a winner for his design contest. We learn alot on FC. I guarantee you all, I will never have a design contest. Ideas to be considered, yes. I may have a contest someday, yes.

I will have some proto shots of some of our new designs in a day or two. I get to play with new tools and nice wood this weekend after watching in the classroom several times.

SS tips not out til the 'big' roll out which looks like it is coming sooner rather than later.

 

[al bundy]

i check every day to see if the rock zap is added.
waiting to order a best deal going combo for the rock zap.............

 

[momofthegoons]

I'm really looking forward to seeing the new SS stems. But, what I'm super geeked about is the potential for the use of some of the woods that have been "off limits" to these style vapes because of density issues. Turn me loose....

al bundy, I'm glad to hear it. I was hoping that one of these days you would cave...

 

[wired57]

sigh... gotta wait for my new walnut mz. can't wait to see it rick, 100000832. how long does it usally take anyways?

 

[Rick]

wired57
Thanks for getting on FC and posting here. Welcome to Zapville.
And now you have to wait four weeks.................Just kidding of course. I just checked your order(8/2) and there is still a good sized batch of work before I get to your order so I am thinking yours will get out late this coming week, still very close to a week from order to ship. Thanks much for the order.
The good news is I have 2 'clear' days(no shipping possible) to start getting caught up and even ahead of schedule. New lathe and chuck and other tools made it Friday. Wonderful visit with old friends from the late '60s yesterday. Back to workfun. We love to stay home, especially the big holidays. Labor Day is really crazy where we live because there is so much outdoor recreation area around. Plus this is the first hunting scout for many of them. VERY crazy out there.
I'll try for some pics later today. A pile of SS tips, also electro polished and a pile of the new closed bottom heatports maybe.
Our apologies for some delay on small orders. We are running low on different items like stem stock so save them for regular Zap orders to keep them moving. We will be re-stocked this coming week.

 

[RumbleShorts]

Thanks for the update Rick!
Great that you have a couple days in the workshop with no pesky shipping stuff. I agree with the scouting weekend, we went to the Station Fire area here in Socal yesterday. Even though the area is still closed for this season and maybe next, it was chock full of hunters out looking around. By the time it opens it looks like that area would have been closed for about 4 seasons. It will be overrun with deer by then, good hunting if you can get the tags. The area is open for Bowhunting, and should produce plenty of game.
I'm not much of a hunter myself (fishing is much more my speed) but, I have some friends who love it & are always very generous in stocking up our freezer.

Hope you and everyone else has a great morning & enjoy your Sunday.

Can't wait for the new pics!!

 

[al bundy]

ok when will the rock zap be added to the "best deal going"??
and when could i order one?

 

[BluntMonger]

I also have been waiting on the option for rock to be added to the deal but I also wanted to add that a couple of weeks ago my brass cherry zap has started to rattle some i can hear it when i set it down on a solid table especially if i had to leave it unplugged. I wasn't really worried about it until three days ago now the stem seems to sit a little lopsided instead of straight vertically and it wobbles little in the hole and sounds like something is moving inside the wood when i put my thumb on the stem to brace it. My zap also is running warmer than it used to I can tell because sometimes I'll get a hit that chokes me then maybe another two or 3 more hits and when i look at the top of the packed stem the middle is dark brown while the out part around the edge is still a somewhat yellow to dark green. I planned on selling this and my SSV to get the money to buy the new zap. Steiner told me to expect it to rattle as the metal expanded from the heat or something along those lines but I didn't think it would become worse. The unit still operates the hits I've noticed change greatly based on temp of the room, how much power is being drawn on the same outlet and a few other things. I think ill take a rest on this message and see what people think that and its getting hard to express my thoughts clearly I just changed ADHD medications and they put me on a lower dose than I'm used to being on so I'm a bit all over the place right now.

edit: ok I did take a closer look and the part you put the stem into is moving slightly and the stem wobbles in the hole with just slight movement.

 

[al bundy]

you should email Rick,
I believe that if the wood itself isnt to far gone that rick may be able to put the new SSS heat port in your old log.
like a new engine for a classic car.

 

[BluntMonger]

you should email Rick,
I believe that if the wood itself isnt to far gone that rick may be able to put the new SSS heat port in your old log.
like a new engine for a classic car.

It sounds like solid advice so I'll send Rick an email here in a little bit I mean I've dropped my zap once or twice but that was well before it started to rattle. I remember Rick saying his older ones took beatings from his concrete floor sometimes several times a day and still ran fine. Also it does have two hairline cracks on the wood other than that its still in great condition.

 

[momofthegoons]

Bluntmonger, Rick is in the process of "perfecting" a retrofit for the old Zaps. Instead of buying a new one, he will most likely be able to fix your old one; adding a cement insulator. This is what I plan to do with my older Zaps. Give Rick a shout and see what he says. He might be ready to rock on this by now and it will be cheaper than buying a new Zap.

 

[BluntMonger]

Bluntmonger, Rick is in the process of "perfecting" a retrofit for the old Zaps. Instead of buying a new one, he will most likely be able to fix your old one; adding a cement insulator. This is what I plan to do with my older Zaps. Give Rick a shout and see what he says. He might be ready to rock on this by now and it will be cheaper than buying a new Zap.

In the end it may end up costing me more though because I need new stems and ive fixed my tooty 3 times now with loctite glue I just figured going the route of the best deal would get me another tooty and some stems I'm not even sure where my other plastic stem is anymore the screen came out of it a few days after using it and I put it up someplace safe and forgot where. the tooty happened seconds after i took it out of the box I remember telling rick and he was really nice and sent me a new one for free and then a few seconds after i take it out of the box I tripped over one of my cats and it hit the wooden frame of my couch and broke at the dimple I figured since rick had been kind enough to send me the first replacement I didnt want to come back and say i broke the replacement and have him think I was trying to pull a scam so I glued it after finding out it was non toxic and wouldnt dissolve in rubbing alcohol. errr so anyhow thats why I was just going to get a new best deal going package. I guess I'll email rick now about this and see what its all going to cost.

 

[Nycdeisel]

He might be ready to rock on this by now

looks the zapville train is still runnin smooth

 

[momofthegoons]

Nyc, I'm looking forward to hearing how you like your new Zap. When do you get home?

 

[Nycdeisel]

thursday

Im excited!

 

[Rick]

We'll get a pic or two up later today. Got sidetracked yesterday at the lathe with no lunch even. Got all the boring done on the lathe BEFORE finish turning the outside of the piece. This was on the traditional top mount install design with no cement liner as we still have plenty of those to do. Drilled bottom, flipped it and drilled the top, leaving solid wood in the middle of the unit. No more off center holes and a little trim around the top hole since I can work from either end of the piece now. Anyway, got carried away with a bunch of those.
Then got a call late in the afternoon from the man. More progress on turning techniques and a jig to make it all even quicker. I hear he may have some examples. Back over again this morning for another lesson. His thing is the bottom install with the insulating liner. New design, fuck the old design. We will keep the traditional heatport in wood design for now as it works very well with the right wood.
The 'man' as I refer to him is pushing me hard. I am not used to that so need to adjust much of my pace. He is also learning that Rick learned how to say no long ago. I think that is one reason we get along well. We have similar personality traits. His shop is. No, his shops are........full of alot of stuff and not organized(seemingly). Whatever the case, I have extreme gratefulness for his interest helping us move forward. He especially loves the woodwork end. The technical SS stuff is decided and agreed to quickly. The wood is another story.
I'll have SS stem tip info and some more stuff later in the day.

 

[steiner666]

awesome, cant wait to get me some SS tips One thing I think would be cool is if there were different color options for the nylon used on the stems. Not so much for trivial cosmetic reasons, but for help identifying the stems. For example, when i have friends over we each use our own stem so we're not swapping germs and because IMO one stem load is the perfect dose of herbage, sharing one just wouldnt be ideal. Sometimes the stems get sat down or put in the stemholder and we have trouble figuring out which one belongs to who. I guess its not too huge of a deal to me since i usually use the tooty and let other ppl use the reg stems lol. I thought about marking the stems differently with notches or something, but i just think different colored tints to the nylon would be cooler. But just the plain white looks better in general... bah just a thought. I have been thinking about gettin another tooty tho.. and while i'm usually clear, clean and simple sort of guy as far as glass goes, i think it would be cool to see some color worked stems

and my SSS is still goin strong, as expected. she's definitely leveled off as far as temp and dryness goes, and isnt sucking up the wax as much these days, so I dont have to wax her as much. I was waxing a couple times a week at first, now im just doing it once every other week or so now that the woods darker and doesnt feel as dry. this wax just goes a long way too. i've waxed almost a dozen times and still havent used up the little tin that came with my zap, havent even touched the big tin.. other than to sniff its lemony deliciousness. btw, thanks again for the wax and tips and all that rick.

 

[Rick]

Some RockZap porn. We have some others but did not want to let them all out at once. These are all RockZaps with concrete liners and ceramic insulators top and bottom. These are turned by someone else who will be making more.
I would be interested in comments on favorite styles.
Also, these are still protos as we are playing with the wood still. If anyone is interested in any of them, Email me. Zaplady already has claimed the 'shroom.

Front view

Top, showing ceramic insulator and SS heatport

These are smaller in diameter and a bit shorter than wood insulated log vapes. They fit in the hand nicely and are good and warm to hold. A little larger than a small juice can. Next pic will have a beer can for reference.

 

[Nycdeisel]

WOW

those are the most adorable little zaps I have seen! Im sure they fit very well in the hand especially with all those different shapes!

which of those is your favorite Rick? Or is yours camera shy?

 

[BluntMonger]

Hey Rick I sent you an email about my zap

 

[steiner666]

Some RockZap porn. We have some others but did not want to let them all out at once. These are all RockZaps with concrete liners and ceramic insulators top and bottom. These are turned by someone else who will be making more.
I would be interested in comments on favorite styles..

I like the second one from the left personally. kinda looks like a chess piece or something, like a pawn. thatd actually be a cool thing to go for, a zap chess piece set - collect them all! every time you take one of your opponents pieces you get to hit it

 

[momofthegoons]

These are too cool. I like them all. I do think my favorite is the one Zaplady has her sights set on. But the shapes are great. What kinds of wood are these Rick?

And look at those SS tips! I'll tell you what; the moss isn't growing under Rick's feet these days. One new thing after another!

 

[Irie]

Whoa! Killer Zaps, Rick!!
So sweet! Looking forward on seeing some video of these things, sound like a nice size and great idea.
Stepping it up!

 

[placetime]

Some RockZap porn.

Those are awesome. You are pushing logvape evolution

 

[Vitolo]

The Shroom, sports a beautiful "wood look'.. (color and grain)
My favorite is the orangish tinted unit.. the one that has "finger grooves". (what wood is that?)