Hey weedemon, I am currently in contact with PV right now and if all goes well, you will see it on PV very soon!
Thanks for the encouragement! ... many more custom colors to come in the future, so please stay tuned!
FlashVAPE
- Thread starter natural farmer
- Start date
Hey weedemon, I am currently in contact with PV right now and if all goes well, you will see it on PV very soon!
Thanks for the encouragement! ... many more custom colors to come in the future, so please stay tuned!
I've owned a FlashVAPE for almost a week, and I think I have enough experience with one now to feel qualified to comment on it.
The FlashVAPE is a terrific bargain at $129. At almost 18 cm high (7 inches) and 344 g (just over 12 oz) the FV is a portable but not a pocket vaporizer. It is powered by a single 18650 li-ion battery that brings the FV up to vaporizing temperature in about 5 seconds and combustion in 10. There's no temperature control, so this power is a two-edged sword and is dangerous in the hands of the newbie. Fair warning: you will probably combust with this unit at least once, no matter how experienced you are. This should not stop you from getting one because once you learn to control it, the FV delivers in spades.
This is the portrait I shot the day I got it. I love the look. It reminds me of something out of SF from the 50s. If Flash Gordon had a vaporizer, it would have looked like this.
It is heavy but has a really nice feel in the hand. The build quality is extremely high. The swivel cap has a smooth turning action and is held on by friction with two O-rings. I thought this would be a weak point but I've shaken and whacked it mercilessly without a hint of dislodging it. This is a good thing because I shake the FV a lot.
If you use the FV as instructed, it is a conduction vaporizer. The heater is some distance below two fine mesh stainless steel screens that heat up when you press the button. Both screens heat up really fast, and your load sits on the top screen, so most of the vapour comes from conduction. The directions say press for 5 seconds, release, wait a second, then hit it. Shake and repeat for added bliss.
Shake it you must, because the FV is so powerful. Any material that sticks to the screen can easily char the second or third time you hit it. My habit is to open it up and check after the first hit of a new load, because that's the most likely time that I'll get sticking that I can't just shake around. FlashVAPE frowns on stirring because of the screen damage potential, but as long as you're gentle there's no risk. The FV screens aren't as delicate as the LB screen.
Although it's against my religion, the first time I used it I followed the directions to the letter and loaded the bowl about halfway. That's easily 4-5 MFLB trenches. I pressed, counted 6 seconds, and hit it. I got a small wispy stream with nice flavour, but it didn't quite work the way I expected. I expected to see vapour through the window in the swivel cap, but I didn't. Since I was heeding the warning about not holding the button too long, I went ahead and hit it and that's when I saw the vapour. Subsequent hits with longer button times showed thicker vapour, but I've not seen significant vapour through the window until I start to draw. I have, however, seen vapour back out through the air inlets.
If you puff into the stem even slightly, vapour immediately exhausts through the air inlet holes. It's not much but I've seen lots of posts obsessing over the slightest escape of vapour, so if you're one of those people you should be aware that this will happen. It doesn't bother me, since you can avoid it with a little care and the amount of vapour lost is neglible. It also illustrates how open and free-flowing the FV's airpath is. There is almost no resistance in the draw.
Continuing on, I tried a 7 count and got much thicker vapour. I'm methodical about this sort of thing so I then went for 8 seconds. I'd read that it builds power rapidly but I still wasn't prepared for how quickly. 2 seconds makes a huge difference. At 9 seconds, I got a bit of combustion.
I knew I would get combustion sooner or later because it was my intention to keep incrementing until it happened. As I said, I was just surprised at how soon it happened. I might as well mention here that after you combust, the FV tastes awful for a couple of bowls, just like the LB. I was careful to brush out every trace of the ash and do a couple of 10 second burns and then a 20 second one when the taste didn't clear. The bad news is that there's no quick cure. The good news is that the burnt taste fades fairly quickly.
If you follow the directions and never use it any other way, the FV will serve you well and you might never combust. Most people won't, however. It's tempting to try different techniques, and I for one would never be happy with a device that wants .5 g a bowl. So my first deviation was to see how the FV would work with the same load I'd put in the LB, which is usually a little bit less than .1 g. This amount doesn't really cover the screen. The FV has a huge bowl with ceramic sides, as you can see from this photo.
The diameter of that circle is 25 mm or about an inch. The depth is 15 mm or about .6 of an inch. You could keep your whole stash in there. FlashVAPE advises us to half fill that bowl! Fortunately, unlike the Pax you don't pack it down, because you want it loose so you can shake it around between hits. Now if you do that and don't burn your load, the bowl will last you a really long time. I can't tell you how long because a) I lost count almost immediately thanks to the effectiveness of the FV; b) I stopped when I burnt the load; and c) I am not inclined to ever load that much in a bowl again. I don't have to anyway, because the FV works just as well with a light load.
My next departure from the directions was to try hitting it while the power was on. I figured this would cool down the load enough that I'd have a bigger margin of error on the button, and it would also add some convection vapourizing. The ABV from my first couple of loads was uneven, so I was thinking this would make it come out nice and even, and it does. You can also get evenly browned ABV if you shake it properly, by the way, but I like the taste and thickness of the vapour I get this way: press power button, wait 5 seconds, hit for 3 seconds, release the button and finish the draw. This gives me a nice smooth hit that's full of flavour.
Let me digress for a moment to point out that the FV doesn't add any flavour of its own as far as I can tell, unless you've combusted in it recently. When I got it one of the first things I did was draw through each piece and then the whole unit, looking for any odd tastes. Everything was completely neutral to me.
Where was I? Concentrates. The instructions say you can use solid concentrates. I had nothing solid but I did have a vial of kief, so I figured I'd see what happened. It works. I was afraid that the kief would melt and stick to the screen. It did. I though maybe then it might combust, but I was conservative with my power button, and it never did. I should mention that I wouldn't have done this if the FV didn't have its two-screen system. In the picture above you can see a little tab on the top screen. Pull on that and the screen comes out easily, so it's really easy to clean if you clog it up with kief (which I did). The top screen protected the bottom screen perfectly. I don't think the FV would work for oils but it should handle bubble hash without any problem at all, and the only issue with kief is that you might be facing a little extra cleaning.
There's a lot I've left out but instead of turning this into a novel I'll wait for questions.
tl;dr buy a FlashVAPE. Be prepared for mistakes while you get the hang of it, but once you do, you'll love it.
Rest of my pictures are posted on Imgur.
The FlashVAPE is a terrific bargain at $129. At almost 18 cm high (7 inches) and 344 g (just over 12 oz) the FV is a portable but not a pocket vaporizer. It is powered by a single 18650 li-ion battery that brings the FV up to vaporizing temperature in about 5 seconds and combustion in 10. There's no temperature control, so this power is a two-edged sword and is dangerous in the hands of the newbie. Fair warning: you will probably combust with this unit at least once, no matter how experienced you are. This should not stop you from getting one because once you learn to control it, the FV delivers in spades.
This is the portrait I shot the day I got it. I love the look. It reminds me of something out of SF from the 50s. If Flash Gordon had a vaporizer, it would have looked like this.
It is heavy but has a really nice feel in the hand. The build quality is extremely high. The swivel cap has a smooth turning action and is held on by friction with two O-rings. I thought this would be a weak point but I've shaken and whacked it mercilessly without a hint of dislodging it. This is a good thing because I shake the FV a lot.
If you use the FV as instructed, it is a conduction vaporizer. The heater is some distance below two fine mesh stainless steel screens that heat up when you press the button. Both screens heat up really fast, and your load sits on the top screen, so most of the vapour comes from conduction. The directions say press for 5 seconds, release, wait a second, then hit it. Shake and repeat for added bliss.
Shake it you must, because the FV is so powerful. Any material that sticks to the screen can easily char the second or third time you hit it. My habit is to open it up and check after the first hit of a new load, because that's the most likely time that I'll get sticking that I can't just shake around. FlashVAPE frowns on stirring because of the screen damage potential, but as long as you're gentle there's no risk. The FV screens aren't as delicate as the LB screen.
Although it's against my religion, the first time I used it I followed the directions to the letter and loaded the bowl about halfway. That's easily 4-5 MFLB trenches. I pressed, counted 6 seconds, and hit it. I got a small wispy stream with nice flavour, but it didn't quite work the way I expected. I expected to see vapour through the window in the swivel cap, but I didn't. Since I was heeding the warning about not holding the button too long, I went ahead and hit it and that's when I saw the vapour. Subsequent hits with longer button times showed thicker vapour, but I've not seen significant vapour through the window until I start to draw. I have, however, seen vapour back out through the air inlets.
If you puff into the stem even slightly, vapour immediately exhausts through the air inlet holes. It's not much but I've seen lots of posts obsessing over the slightest escape of vapour, so if you're one of those people you should be aware that this will happen. It doesn't bother me, since you can avoid it with a little care and the amount of vapour lost is neglible. It also illustrates how open and free-flowing the FV's airpath is. There is almost no resistance in the draw.
Continuing on, I tried a 7 count and got much thicker vapour. I'm methodical about this sort of thing so I then went for 8 seconds. I'd read that it builds power rapidly but I still wasn't prepared for how quickly. 2 seconds makes a huge difference. At 9 seconds, I got a bit of combustion.
I knew I would get combustion sooner or later because it was my intention to keep incrementing until it happened. As I said, I was just surprised at how soon it happened. I might as well mention here that after you combust, the FV tastes awful for a couple of bowls, just like the LB. I was careful to brush out every trace of the ash and do a couple of 10 second burns and then a 20 second one when the taste didn't clear. The bad news is that there's no quick cure. The good news is that the burnt taste fades fairly quickly.
If you follow the directions and never use it any other way, the FV will serve you well and you might never combust. Most people won't, however. It's tempting to try different techniques, and I for one would never be happy with a device that wants .5 g a bowl. So my first deviation was to see how the FV would work with the same load I'd put in the LB, which is usually a little bit less than .1 g. This amount doesn't really cover the screen. The FV has a huge bowl with ceramic sides, as you can see from this photo.
The diameter of that circle is 25 mm or about an inch. The depth is 15 mm or about .6 of an inch. You could keep your whole stash in there. FlashVAPE advises us to half fill that bowl! Fortunately, unlike the Pax you don't pack it down, because you want it loose so you can shake it around between hits. Now if you do that and don't burn your load, the bowl will last you a really long time. I can't tell you how long because a) I lost count almost immediately thanks to the effectiveness of the FV; b) I stopped when I burnt the load; and c) I am not inclined to ever load that much in a bowl again. I don't have to anyway, because the FV works just as well with a light load.
My next departure from the directions was to try hitting it while the power was on. I figured this would cool down the load enough that I'd have a bigger margin of error on the button, and it would also add some convection vapourizing. The ABV from my first couple of loads was uneven, so I was thinking this would make it come out nice and even, and it does. You can also get evenly browned ABV if you shake it properly, by the way, but I like the taste and thickness of the vapour I get this way: press power button, wait 5 seconds, hit for 3 seconds, release the button and finish the draw. This gives me a nice smooth hit that's full of flavour.
Let me digress for a moment to point out that the FV doesn't add any flavour of its own as far as I can tell, unless you've combusted in it recently. When I got it one of the first things I did was draw through each piece and then the whole unit, looking for any odd tastes. Everything was completely neutral to me.
Where was I? Concentrates. The instructions say you can use solid concentrates. I had nothing solid but I did have a vial of kief, so I figured I'd see what happened. It works. I was afraid that the kief would melt and stick to the screen. It did. I though maybe then it might combust, but I was conservative with my power button, and it never did. I should mention that I wouldn't have done this if the FV didn't have its two-screen system. In the picture above you can see a little tab on the top screen. Pull on that and the screen comes out easily, so it's really easy to clean if you clog it up with kief (which I did). The top screen protected the bottom screen perfectly. I don't think the FV would work for oils but it should handle bubble hash without any problem at all, and the only issue with kief is that you might be facing a little extra cleaning.
There's a lot I've left out but instead of turning this into a novel I'll wait for questions.
tl;dr buy a FlashVAPE. Be prepared for mistakes while you get the hang of it, but once you do, you'll love it.
Rest of my pictures are posted on Imgur.
NotPotRelated
MFLB Pro
^^^^ great overall review.. anyone have a video of its use?
AGBeer
Lost in Thought
I think that I am now inches away from getting this vape now.
The price is right, the warranty is on par, and the fact that a TRUSTED retailer is behind this (okay, and a trusted member gave a solid and thorough review)
The cool thing about getting older is that you tend to get a few gift cards around the holidays
Im sure my review will be in this thread shortly as well!
The price is right, the warranty is on par, and the fact that a TRUSTED retailer is behind this (okay, and a trusted member gave a solid and thorough review)
The cool thing about getting older is that you tend to get a few gift cards around the holidays
Im sure my review will be in this thread shortly as well!
Thanks for the great review pakalolo!
..... agreed. if you are gentle, stirring is ok. another method that also works great is to tap the top of the FV against the palm of your hand between use to redistribute the materials inside, as an alternative to shaking.
..... actually, we suggested 1/2 bowl as a maximum upper limit to how full you should load the bowl. you can go as little as just a thin layer to barely cover the screen, (or about 0.1g as you mentioned) if you wish. The FV works great with small amounts as well as large bowls. The large capacity is an added bonus for those that prefer the bigger bowls, and for the convenience of being able to physically carry more for storage or transportation.
..... the directions we have outlined in our instructions are really a flashvape 101 kind of very basic way of operating the FV, the very simplest way of using this unit that anyone can understand and find easy to follow initially to get to know this powerful vape.
HOWEVER... as you mentioned afterwards, there are indeed more advanced way of hitting the FV for more thicker hits to your own preference. The method you mentioned of power on for 5 seconds, then draw with power for 3 seconds and continuing to finish with power off works great. We dont mention too many methods in our basic instructions to avoid confusing the novice flashvaper, especially after some testing, given how well the FV works
What we have done with the FV is to put a powerful tool in the hands of the user, so that they can customize their own portable vaping experience based on their own preference. We encourage each FV users to try and test the FV, find out what the upper limits are for yourself. and even if you combust once or twice while learning, you will soon find your own favourite way of getting a quick and satisfying vape experience out of the FV based on your own preferences. we'd love to see all the different ways the FV is being put to good use!
..... agreed. if you are gentle, stirring is ok. another method that also works great is to tap the top of the FV against the palm of your hand between use to redistribute the materials inside, as an alternative to shaking.
..... actually, we suggested 1/2 bowl as a maximum upper limit to how full you should load the bowl. you can go as little as just a thin layer to barely cover the screen, (or about 0.1g as you mentioned) if you wish. The FV works great with small amounts as well as large bowls. The large capacity is an added bonus for those that prefer the bigger bowls, and for the convenience of being able to physically carry more for storage or transportation.
..... the directions we have outlined in our instructions are really a flashvape 101 kind of very basic way of operating the FV, the very simplest way of using this unit that anyone can understand and find easy to follow initially to get to know this powerful vape.
HOWEVER... as you mentioned afterwards, there are indeed more advanced way of hitting the FV for more thicker hits to your own preference. The method you mentioned of power on for 5 seconds, then draw with power for 3 seconds and continuing to finish with power off works great. We dont mention too many methods in our basic instructions to avoid confusing the novice flashvaper, especially after some testing, given how well the FV works
What we have done with the FV is to put a powerful tool in the hands of the user, so that they can customize their own portable vaping experience based on their own preference. We encourage each FV users to try and test the FV, find out what the upper limits are for yourself. and even if you combust once or twice while learning, you will soon find your own favourite way of getting a quick and satisfying vape experience out of the FV based on your own preferences. we'd love to see all the different ways the FV is being put to good use!
..... the directions we have outlined in our instructions are really a flashvape 101 kind of very basic way of operating the FV, the very simplest way of using this unit that anyone can understand and find easy to follow initially to get to know this powerful vape.
HOWEVER... as you mentioned afterwards, there are indeed more advanced way of hitting the FV for more thicker hits to your own preference. The method you mentioned of power on for 5 seconds, then draw with power for 3 seconds and continuing to finish with power off works great. We dont mention too many methods in our basic instructions to avoid confusing the novice flashvaper, especially after some testing, given how well the FV works
What we have done with the FV is to put a powerful tool in the hands of the user, so that they can customize their own portable vaping experience based on their own preference. We encourage each FV users to try and test the FV, find out what the upper limits are for yourself. and even if you combust once or twice while learning, you will soon find your own favourite way of getting a quick and satisfying vape experience out of the FV based on your own preferences. we'd love to see all the different ways the FV is being put to good use!
I can see I've still got a lot of testing to do. One thing I didn't mention is sharing. Because it is so powerful, it's easy for anyone to reach combustion with it. This would make it dangerous to share with a novice, but you can avoid trouble by simply taking over the button pressing yourself. The heating chamber is huge and vapour stays there until you draw (or blow it back out the air inlets, heh) so you can do the pressing and pass it to someone with instructions to just take a hit without pressing the button.
I also want to emphasize that it is the equal of the LB in terms of how quickly it starts producing vapour. I know some of you need that nearly instant vapour production at times, and this device definitely gives you that.
You're welcome for the review, FlashVAPE. It was a pleasure getting to know the unit.
Just had one of these beauties show up in the mail today. I like to take a bit of time with a unit before giving my full opinion, but so far I am very impressed. I am uploading a very short video right now, of the vapor as it looks coming from the air vents. Had some difficulty seeing it through the top glass, but I will see what I can do.
Edit: Here is a link to the vid...I held the button down 4-5 seconds max.
Edit: Here is a link to the vid...I held the button down 4-5 seconds max.
Nice. You won't see much through the top window using normal technique. You have to build up quite a bit of vapour for it to show up there if you're not inhaling. Once you are comfortable with your timings, you can try pulsing the button and just building vapour until you see it forming in the window. I don't do this because the cloud that you build up is too much for my lungs, I'd just cough it away.
marduk
daydreamer
Does the area around the air inlets stay cool enough so that you could block the inlets with your thumb and index finger while pressing the button to generate vapor?
And for vapor demo purposes, is it possible to remove the screen in the swivel top so the video will show the vapor as it forms?
I definitely see what you mean about the top window. I tried to push it a bit, to get a good vapor shot, and it combusted. This thing is a beast heat wise, and timing is definitely important. Got some pics uploading now...not as swanky as yours, but I tried
Its best feature is also its worst: instant power and lots of it. You have to learn how much to hold the button, but once you get that right then the results make it worth the effort.
Remember that as you vapourize you're drying out your load. Dried material burns more easily. 7 seconds on a new load might be fine, but on the fifth hit, you might be pushing your luck. You have to adjust your button time accordingly.
I don't want to make it seem that this is hard. Most experienced vapourizer users will be able to figure it out quickly.
It doesn't get hot all...at least not so far. The instructions say not to block the holes, but I am not sure if this means at all times, or only when drawing air. Perhaps Flashvape can chime in on that?
Even if I took the screens out, it would be hard to see in there. But let me see what I can rig up in a bit.
yes, the top window shows much better the stream of vapor as it rises from the core, while you are drawing. its a cool feature that lets you visualize the amount of vapor you are actually drawing in, while you inhale.
..... totally agree.
no, the area around the inlet holes do not get hot so you can block them when you want. however, i dont think that its really necessary, unless you are shaking the unit when you power-on. the air exchange through the small holes are minimal under normal circumstances and does not exchange air fast enough to make any meaningful difference.
you should not block the air vent holes while you draw, as airflow will be restricted, and you wont be able to draw properly. the 6 air hole vents (3 on each side) provides great, unrestricted air flow through the vape core while you draw.
Taking micro hits off this device is really enjoyable. I will hit the button for 5 sec, release and draw a bit, then shake, press the button again, hit...you get the idea. Allows me to build a nice cloud in my lungs. The device is very responsive this way.
I see what you mean about the vapor window. I enjoy seeing that little swirl of smoke as I draw. I am going to see if I can capture that on video.
Edit: This thing is solid. I swear you could use it like a club if you needed to defend yourself
I was not so keen on the looks at first, but now that I see it up close, I can see how stealth this can be. Definitely does look very Philip K Dick futuristic.
I see what you mean about the vapor window. I enjoy seeing that little swirl of smoke as I draw. I am going to see if I can capture that on video.
Edit: This thing is solid. I swear you could use it like a club if you needed to defend yourself
I was not so keen on the looks at first, but now that I see it up close, I can see how stealth this can be. Definitely does look very Philip K Dick futuristic.
marduk
daydreamer
Yes, Puffitup will be one of our first authorized dealers
Are you still on schedule with this? US dealers will have it about 4 days from now?
No no no, Flash Gordon, I tell you!
natural farmer
Well-Known Member
Ohhh.... Got so jealous of you guys... 
The post office could be a tad faster for sure...
The post office could be a tad faster for sure...Alright, video of the vapor through the window is up. Sorry for the poor video quality, but since it's the holidays, I don't have access to better gear (work), so I had to use my I-potato filming with one hand. Best shot is near the end.
Here are some pics so far. Having trouble uploading the rest, so they will come later to the same album.
http://imgur.com/a/a9HRB#0
Here are some pics so far. Having trouble uploading the rest, so they will come later to the same album.
http://imgur.com/a/a9HRB#0
unfortunately, there are some delays with getting the units stocked at us dealers due to the Christmas busy season. dealers are swamped with orders and find little time in getting a new product listed and stocked. please stay tuned to your favorite dealer for updates on when this item will be in stock.
it is available for immediate purchase and delivery on our site (http://flashvape.com) though, as many have found out
nopartofme
Over the falls, in a barrel
I'm curious to see someone run this with some glass. With that huge herb chamber…