how to free a stuck GonG joint?

[2clicker]

TGMan... thanks for the quote. looks like thats what ill be doing.

i know the gong joint is supposed to be air tight, but there was clearly a visible amount of water it. you know when the ground glass part of the joint is wet that is looks clear? well my gong looked completely clear even when stuck. plus i could also see very small bubbles floating around in the joint. so last night i took a torch to it and instantly i could see and hear the water boiling away. and the ground glass then started to look ground or frosted... you know what i mean. so at that point i was thinking that i was heading in the right direction. i let it cool down and began to tap (on the lip of the diffy), but to no avail. gong is stuck like cement.

about the tapping... i suppose i will start to tap ON the joint itself instead of the lip of the diffy. the tapping i did do was with the side of the torch. so basically a lighter. i will use a wooden spoon and see if that makes a difference. how long will one have to tap? the tapping ive done so far has seemed worthless.

 

[ThirdGunman]

Yeah, don't tap an the lip of the diff (aka stem, male joint, or the part your trying to pull out), and I wouldn't even tap on the lip of the of the female joint itself as to avoid breaking or chipping the more vulnerable part of the glass. Tap around the middle part the of the female joint using the side of the spoon portion of a wooden spoon... Gonna go take a picture now. I bet that will be better than me trying to explain this . Also, It is possible to get a surprising amount of leverage from a wooden spoon, so start with taps like 1" away or less and tap all around the joint, repeat this until your diff breaks free. You should be slightly pulling and trying to twist the diff the entire time, but not too hard as you don't want to slam to two pieces of glass together when they surprisingly break free. If the joint allows, use just your thumb, middle and pointer finger muscles to pry the joint free softly instead of using your arm and wrist muscles to pull on the diff.
First time I had this issue I tapped for like what I would assume was 2 hours one night, then got frustrated and just went to sleep. Woke up the next morning, tried pulling and twisting the stem but it didn't budge, so I then went straight back to tapping. It came free in less than 5 minutes (guesstimation of course)... and then I laughed at myself .

Here, hope these help:

That's how I do it . Let me know if that was unclear, I'm definitely capable of babbling on some more .

 

[Cleanfiend]

All great ideas!

It's funny to step back and observe how everyone has their own "best method". I guess it goes to show you that every stuck joint situation is unique, and thus there is no "best method". There are some good ideas here -- overall, just remember to be gentle.

 

[tdavie]

Have you tried using a sonicator (jewellers ultrasonic cleaning bath). I 'fix' my stuck GonG pieces by putting them in a 50/50 methanol bath and sonicating it for about 30 minutes.

We do get stuck GonG pieces at work and always use a sonicator to fix things.

Tom

 

[ThirdGunman]

Have you tried using a sonicator (jewellers ultrasonic cleaning bath). I 'fix' my stuck GonG pieces by putting them in a 50/50 methanol bath and sonicating it for about 30 minutes.

We do get stuck GonG pieces at work and always use a sonicator to fix things.

Tom

I like this idea, but when I look for "sonicator" on a popular shopping search it seems like they're all $1,000 plus. Is there a cheaper version, maybe <$100? Could you use a sonicare toothbrush head submerged in water? And where do you get this methanol, methanol right, not menthol, isn't that like racing fuel....?

Edit: Sorry, answered my own question. Search for the "jewellers ultrasonic cleaner" instead of "sonicator" there are some small ones (one said it holds 1 pint) for less that $50. That is pretty small, but I bet it would probably fit a hands free GonG whip attachment or something, but it probably wont help with a tube, which is the case here.

 

[nr-cole]

I have always found that rocking the stuck joint back and forth (without pulling it up and out) has helped the situation. I will echo that elbow grease is not the answer: give it time to dry out, and be patient

This works for my beaker. It seems stuck then u rock it and it slide right out

Damn, this worked like a charm for me.

 

[2clicker]

i have yet to purchase a wooded spoon and try this. however im a bit concerned that the area that i need to tap may chip. i say this because its a mobius tube and it has a nice deep sandblasted logo right there on the side of the joint. right were i would be tapping. im afraid i may chip the side of it or something. who knows.

you can see it in these pics. its deeper than it looks. i suppose ill have to be extra careful on that spot... yikes

 

[StickyShisha2]

there is a tool for that.

this looks like it isn't a bad idea

 

[2clicker]

there is a tool for that.

http://www.ilpi.com/glassblowing/images/glasspuller1.jpg

ill bet that jaw puller thing is pricey. if i was dealing with a bowl the hook puller method may be effective, but there is no way im pushing anything through the end of the mobius dstem.

i finally got a wooden spoon and will be going that route tonight

ill post my results

 

[Irie]

Heat the outside of the joint. Ice cube on the inside stuck piece, pot holder to twist and pull.
Most basic principle available; expansion.

 

[raoul leduc]

I have an EXTREME problem with my Q

OK, so got my new unit yesterday, was happy as fuck to get it too after having used the older model extreme for years....

first thing I did was take my tuff bowl off my old extreme and put it right on my Q. The thing fucking sealed shut permanently it seems, and I cannot for the life of me get the damned thing off!!! I've had a brutal experience in the past where I actually broke the glass cover heater, so I REALLY do not want to have to deal with that disappointment all over again.

So I did some homework, read leaving it in the fridge would help, so I did that..... left it there for a good 8 hours.... came back to it and the thing still won't goddamned even budge. it has become a permanent fixture to my Q....

I am thinking about taking the whole thing apart so I can actually get ahold of the glass heater and bowl stuck together so I don't have to risk pulling all of the machine's guts out.

but yeah, before I do that, does anyone have any suggestions??? It is totally fucking stuck, in the 3 years I owned my original extreme, I only ever had to deal with shit like this once, and I broke it cuz I "twisted" it off (definitely woulda came loose has I wiggled).... so I've got a good idea on how strong these parts are and REALLY don't want to be breaking them again ESPECIALLY since I just got the damned thing yesterday. I'm really starting to lose patience with this, but hopefully someone out there knows some goddamned magickal trick to get this shit to get unstuck.

Modnote: The following 6 posts were merged.

 

[raoul leduc]

should I have posted this topic in another forum? sorry for being a n00b

 

[J.R.R.Tokin']

Ok, should have posted in Ask FC, but never mind.

As to your problem. I think most EQ owners encounter this problem at one point. Happened to me where my bowl was stuck for 3 days. All I was doing to empty was tipping the whole machine upside down, with tuff bowl still attached. Over the 3 days I 'wiggled' my heart out whenever I remembered and eventually it came off.

Good luck getting it sorted.

 

[MarcellusWiley]

Mine hasn't gotten THAT stuck yet...but personally I always use the "slight wiggle" movement, just back and forth with the bowl on the joint and it will usually come out. I think that is the best movement you can use with your hands to manipulate it tbh. Not sure what else to tell you as I haven't had to take it apart.

 

[raoul leduc]

Thanks for the replies!!! Glad to hear I'm not alone! I just got the thing yesterday so I was really starting to get bummed out.... I will keep you all updated....

And yes JRR, I am loading/unloading the whole unit, ahahahha the issue doesn't prevent kush from entering lungs, lol. Just an inconvenience.....

 

[gn0me]

One thing to remember about ground glass joints is that very, very few of them (almost none) are perfect matches, and they all have a little wobble one way or another. When you're wiggling it around, change the way you wobble, or wiggle it in a circular motion, and eventually you'll find the imperfection that lets it break free. If wiggling alone doesn't work, stick it in the fridge, and when you bring it out, warm the outer joint with your hand while doing the same. You could also potentially use a hair dryer to warm the outer joint, but wrap the inner in a cloth or something to insulate it while you do so.

Good luck!

 

[raoul leduc]

yeah, still wiggling it back and forth and every which way imaginable.... have tried the fridge already... this morning instead of a hair dryer, I used a space heater to try and heat it from the outside.... but I really have no way of insulating the inner piece unless I take the whole unit apart.... which is most likely going to happen this weekend... I'll torch it and should get some results hopefully.

I was also told that coating the glass with chapstick would prevent this shit from happening again.

 

[raoul leduc]

So I took the unit apart today and tried going at these two pieces of glass with a blowtorch and am STILL having no luck at all here! I tried insulating the heater with a cloth (to keep it cold... left it sitting outside for a bit)... and yeah... still no luck... I'm seeing if I can ship the parts back to arizer.... what a fucking go I've been having!!

 

[raoul leduc]

just wanted to report that I got the damned things apart on Sunday... soaked the pieces in 70% isopropyl alcohol and some coarse pickling salt.... let it sit for over an hour and slowly worked the two pieces apart. It was a miraculous moment when it happened.

 

[2clicker]

my shit is still stuck, but i gave up on it for a bit

gonna try the damn wooden spoon method again and do some serial wiggling

*edit* i got it unstuck just moments ago! i hit it with a torch for a min to remove the water that was clearly in the joint. after that was gone i started to tap it from all sides with the wooden spoon as it cooled. i started to wiggle the joint as soon as it was cool enough to handle. feeling like it wasnt going anywhere i started to tap again for another few mins. then i noticed that the edge of the wooden spoon fit perfectly between the two flanges of the joint. i used it to slowly start prying. barely any pressure, but did so all around the joint. after a few rotations it just came loose. finally i can really clean this puppy.

im going to start to make sure the joint is DRY every time they connect. what are some other solutions for keeping a joint from getting stuck? i know of the teflon sleeves and just keeping it dry, but what are some other methods?

 

[jackmormon]

Hey 2clicker,

There is a commercial product called "Joint Wax" that looks like a tube of chapstick. I have a tube and I think the main ingredients are just bees wax and petroleum jelly. I have used petroleum jelly before, in a very thin layer and it works just as well as the Joint Wax. The Joint Wax container recommends a slight twist when pulling out of the joint which also helps. It is weird, I only have one piece where the tolerance is a little too tight and connectors sticking is a problem.

 

[2clicker]

thanks Jack! ill check it out.

 

[ninjamaster]

2Clicker,

Wrap something around the JOINT BEFORE TAPPING like a couple paper towels!! You'll Still GET THE BUMP you need but won't damage the Print!

Master

 

[NewVape]

I am SO glad I found this thread. I've had a stuck joint for something like 3 weeks now. I used the same method as 2clicker, heated it a little with a torch and then tapping all around with a wooden spoon and Bingo Bango it came right apart with just a little pull. Thanks guys!

 

[t-dub]

From the makers of Joint Wax . . .