That's an easier solution but wet2straight's pads are already integrated into my quick grip, and it requires more money. I'm rocking an Irwin clamp and hair straightener because I can't invest in a more powerful setup at this time and am resorting to basic electronics to help reduce the heat output on a budget. Has anyone come across a writeup, video, anyone else trying to do the same?
It looks like power to the heating pads is adjusted via a potentiometer. Underneath the cover it looks like this.
(It's "RP1" on the circuit board with a phillips head in the center.) Potentiometers have three leads this one's on the bottom since its a surface mount pot:
Perhaps if I can find a potentiometer that would allow an increased range of control I could simply desolder this one and put new one in its place.
Any other thoughts?
Yes, you theoretically could do this.. and since your intention is to throttle down the heat on the pads, it's probably safe if you have competent electronics skills which you sound like you do if you can ID the pot and understand how it operates.
I probably don't need to tell you this, but changing the resistance value across the pot to something outside of the intended range can and probably will have unintended consequences, including potentially overheating another part not rated for the new stress. More likely though, is that on the bottom end if you exceed a parts tolerance, the device will likely just fail to operate.
Truth is, you'd really need to understand the whole circuit to anticipate the outcome. However, especially for cheaper devices, the tolerances of all the various parts are likely not very tight... which means there is probably leeway for variation in current & voltage aka watts.
If it were me... I'd probably spend some time tracing the circuit leads from the pot and see what's adjacent. A schematic would be even better. The only potentially dangerous thing I can see would be a capacitor overload and pop, but it
shouldn't be fire inducing.
Don't take my word for that.
The above is a misstatement however in the sense that I would probably assess the situation, and then opt out as it's a cheap AC device and I don't like the prospect of an electrical fire ruining the investment I'm trying to protect.
It's been a while, but IIRC, you could hook up another resister in parallel with the pot and split the voltage between the two path ways. Or, hook up another resister in series and further restrict the current. It depends on the circuit and what the heating pads operate on though.
Good luck!
If you're very confident though, you could definitely do it. Just do it right.
anyone wanting to crank higher than 4 tons better have bigger plates 
) This little press is nice & convenient when I get my hands on some quality flower material and want to do a tasty dab that's solvent free. I used 3 small buds weighing in total 1 gram tonight and pressed myself 3 nice dabs. If people want concentrates on a grander scale than should buy a hydraulic press set-up but this Tarik/Rosin press is more of Saturday movie night with the wife catchin' a buzz & flix...
