A bit of a criticism post incoming while still appreciating how great this vape is. I know some of these gripes have been talked about but I don't think I've chimed in much here.
I love the performance of the XL, but i will say, the stock stem system isn't a great experience in my opinion.
Would just like to revisit this. I've been using the XL almost exclusively with the stock system since this post to try to get a better feel for it.
What I've found so far, best results have been …
-Using the screen basket style as opposed to flat
-Moving the screen very close to the heater, just slightly below physical contact between the herb and the heater
-Not leaving it loose pack, but instead using something flat and giving it a nice solid tamp down
-I pack just above the walls of the screen depending on consistency of the herb, and tamp down to a flat level with the screen edges
-Not using the SS basket screen at the tip to make a seal, and instead putting the glass directly to the heater
The biggest issue with the native glass on heater, which translates directly to the WPA issue as well, is creating good contact. I have found you can make this much easier by keeping your fingers very close to the bowl end of the stem. If you hold your stem towards the mouthpiece, there is significantly more play. When you hold closer to the bowl, you can feel a firm seal happen much easier. This has been feeling like a much more classic E-Nano experience for me.
This leads to why the WPA still isn't resolved in my experience, as the nature of the nano being on top of something that wobbles will inevitably make it very difficult to seat properly. With the stem, you have much more control.
Moving on to the SS basket tip making contact with the heater, I just haven't been able to find a good balance of hits/flavor. It's much easier to make the seal as the basket tips are very flat, but it feels like a "diet" version of a hit compared to if you went with the native glass tip. It lacks the punch in my experience.
Using all of the methods above, I am consistently getting great hits, and very good flavor, and loving the experience. I do wish it was a bit more effortless to make good contact, but I'm happy I've found consistency in the XL stock stems.
Used as a stem, I have been preferring the stock stem dry compared to the Ed WPA dry, simply for the fact I have more control over how I pack it due to being able to adjust the screen. For water though, the Ed WPA blows the stock system away.
Little tip. As the bowl goes on and once most of the terpenes are released and you don't care about flavor, you can cigar puff the stem until vapor forms then move on to the lung hits. Prevents a lot of unnecessary hot air from hitting the throat/lungs. Of course, most seasoned vaporists already know and use this technique, and it works on most convection vapes
. The Roffu suggestion. I still enjoy the XL when i get home in the am. Did you get yours customized?
