Sorry for the back to back post but I want to share how much I like this vape under some conditions:
- water filtration (helps to handle the hot vapor)
- small amounts (avoids hot spots)
- more Watts for micro loads (28-32), less Watts for larger loads (20-28)
- stirring needed except for micro-doses
I think I agree with all points, excepted I don't do water filtration so I have no other choice but to bare with it. The vapor is hot indeed and it's due to 3 things: the 18mm format, the super short stock stem and the fact the stem is made of wood.
I much prefer 18mm in terms of air flow as it gives a very pleasant "free-flowing" sensation, but the downside is that you draw a lot of hot air and your throat (or worse, your teeth if you are not careful) will feel it. I don't have this issue with 14mm systems as the hot air beam is more focused, but I find them more draw restricted and I have to draw for longer, which I don't like. They also tend to clog easier with their smaller screens. Ah, trade-offs... always a matter of trade-offs in life...
For the hot spots, I find that they are easier to avoid in TC mode. In power mode the iHeat has the same bad tendency as the Milaana. Make a single timing error and you get a darker spot. Not charred for sure, but enough to spoil the taste. When taste is spoiled, your mind is tricked into believing the bowl is soon cashed where in fact it's not. That damn ABV taste is a trigger... Again, it's less of an issue with 14mm systems as the bowl surface is smaller.
Your remark about the Watts difference vs small and larger loads makes sense. The bigger the load the gentler you have to extract, otherwise you end up with something very uneven with a clear color gradient, the exposed surface of the bowl getting brown while the material touching the screen is still green.
Stirring in indeed necessary, even in TC mode. I stir at least once near the end, but with some strains I found myself having to stir twice per bowl. I never had to stir twice with my other on-demand convection vapes. I believe this is due to the wooden stem: there's no conduction to even things out like we have with glass ones.
And this is the two other reasons that I cited for the hot vapor: stem is not only shorter than the Milaana one, which is already at the limit of what I can support, but wood has a lower thermal conductivity coefficient. It might rob less heat from the system but it cools the vapor much less.
The I-Heat is sadly difficult to use dry for me, hot vapor, stirs and the separate stem don't make this vape a good candidate for vaping "on the go"... but it's a perfect micro log you can carry around. Although I still hope the blackwood mp I'm awaiting for will fix my dry hits issues!
Why do you expect the blackwood stem to improve things? Will it be longer than the stock one? Denser wood perhaps, so slightly higher thermal conductivity?
I remenber to like the dry hits while using the device in TC mode, I will try again but encountered some issues with this mode despite some success in the beginning.
Yes it's a pain to make it work right on the Joyetech devices, even with custom firmware. Drop me a MP if you want and we'll discuss it more in detail. But it's finicky and inconsistent to say the least...
ps: I want to confirm and say you "sorry sir"
@KeroZen the wood shield might become very hot if you chain hits without any pause, although never tasted the wood at all and most of the time I take 1 and half or 2 hits per minute. I didn't noticed the hot shield cause, with my Evic, I haven't to touch the I-Heat shield while in use. Not a real issue imo.
Yes perhaps we are not supposed to chain hit like this, so this would be "user error" (but the fact we can do it is the proof the iHeat can deliver big and fast)
In my case, the bamboo shell has a pretty unpleasant smell. It's quite obvious as soon as it gets warm. When I stick my nose near the air intake holes I can smell it and I don't like it.
To me this is a downside of this vape: going glass-less is without a doubt more efficient energy-wise, it's also pretty nice in a portable as there's nothing to break, but this vape has a woody taste. Not a signature, it's really a part of the experience and the higher the temperature the more present it is.
I won't talk too much about my concerns around the presence of high levels of cyanide in most parts of the bamboo plant, they are most probably unfounded in this case, but this is still something that sticks to my mind and I wish it was not the case or that it was properly boiled, let's say just for my peace of mind. If I had the choice I would most definitely have gotten a blackwood version instead.
Guys, If anyone is still looking for a Box on which to attach an iheat I found a really inexpensive box mod (...) There are duals available for under $20 up to over $40 just buy the cheapest
No please don't! There are so many fake mods floating around. You could even get clone PCBs of the Eleaf Pico for less than $10 on fasttech at some point. These clones have lower quality boards, lower quality parts and some lack protections. Their firmware is most often not updatable etc.
Plus these Joyetech mods are dirt cheap in the first place. Talking about fasttech, you can find them for about the same price but they are genuine. Just make sure that the product title says "authentic" and it's the real-deal. Any product lacking that word or having the adjective "styled" is a clone.
A quick question please.... Is the new firmware from the Tubo would work with the Evic Mini and the I-Heat? Is it a true upgrade?
@KeroZen did you still downloaded this upgrade? did it help for TC mode and I-heat?
Yes, most definitely. I use ArticFox myself instead but the tuboevic firmware is pretty good too.
Still as I said, it will be finicky and have some quirks, but it's already night and day compared to the stock TC implementation in Joyetech/Wismec/Eleaf mods. Make sure to enable the PI(D) algo though.