I just got my FF yesterday and I got combustion on the third try with the device. It was not warm already when it was being used. Now my entire unit smells of charcoal. I am unhappy with this unit so far. Combustion should not happen that quick with a brand new vaporizer. I've read that the grind size...wawawawa. None of those things should cause combustion that quick. I've used it one more time and didn't get combustion. Are these random acts of combustion normal? If so, this device is not worth $270. Everyone on here debates conduction versus convection. For me so far, my pax destroys this product because of the combustion issue that I experienced. I shouldn't be "walking on egg shells" with a prodct like this in order to prevent combustion.
Discontinued The Firefly Vaporizer
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TimeCapsuleMonkey
Active Member
I agree, this was my mistake at first too. You don't need to seal your lips around the mouthpiece. Just loosely place your lips on the mouthpiece and suck in air from around the mouthpiece as well.
Also if your not getting enough vapor, try the micro-draw technique I described in earlier post on page 20 or 21. Basically push the button once, then don't draw consistently, rather introduce a few 1-2 second breaks in the draw.
Also I have found I don't need to open the top to stir. Just shake! It stirs just as well and I can complete a whole session (5-7 draws) without opening it. I do a medium grind and never have a problem with bits blocking the air-path.
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mitchgo61
I go where the thrills are
Read this thread before posting this? If so you'd know...
A. You may possibly have a defective unit. There aren't many, but you may have one. I had one myself. Had a replacement in 24 hours. I called the FF folks and they were amazingly helpful and supportive.
B. If you "pulse" the button during a hit, it will cause the unit to run too hot. Press the button once and draw slowly and release the button during the draw.
Still having trouble? Give FF a call. They'll fix you up, fast. Complaining about the manufacturer on this forum may be fun (then again, it may not) but it won't fix your issues.
You can absolutely make a tight seal on the mouthpiece and get great hits and, yes, STILL not pull too hard. How hard you pull has nothing to do with the seal you make on the mouthpiece. I've used two FF's, one for two weeks now, always make a tight seal, never pull too hard, never have any problems. One thing has nothing to do with the other. Personal preference is fine, but don't confuse the act of sucking too hard with the seal you make on the mouthpiece. The FF is designed to allow you to make a seal on the small metal mouthpiece and it works just fine that way once you get your technique down.
TimeCapsuleMonkey
Active Member
In my experience with a tight seal around the mouthpiece there is to much draw resistance for my liking. That is why I recommend people who like a really easy draw with almost no resistance to do this.
If you have a tight seal around the mouthpiece, you have to pull much harder. This only makes logical sense since your air intake is constricted to the small airway in the device itself. If you draw in, without the seal, you take in air from the sides too which lowers the resistance, and makes it feel more like your just breathing in, instead of sucking through a straw.
If you have a tight seal around the mouthpiece, you have to pull much harder. This only makes logical sense since your air intake is constricted to the small airway in the device itself. If you draw in, without the seal, you take in air from the sides too which lowers the resistance, and makes it feel more like your just breathing in, instead of sucking through a straw.
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mitchgo61
I go where the thrills are
Airflow restriction is part of the design. A slower, stiffer draw enhances the depth of the vapor. Just ask any Solo user.
I'm glad you have a technique you like, but it's not necessary, it's not how it was designed to be used, and some folks may find it deleterious to getting thick vapor.
Zero combustion with my replacement unit. The first unit appears to have been faulty.
Zero combustion with mine also. It really is a great vape.
TimeCapsuleMonkey
Active Member
Zero combustion with mine as well.
When listening to the podcast from the creators, the draw technique was never to be a deterministic by design. So it is left up to the user.
If you are feeling like the air resistance is too much with a tight seal around the mouthpiece, then without the seal, loosely wrap your lips around the mouthpiece and breath in. I agree with @mitchgo61 this will lead to less dense vapor but to mitigate this problem, try using a micro-draw technique in which you stop inhaling for 1-2 seconds a few times during the entire draw. The heater button is continuously depressed during the entire draw though.
When listening to the podcast from the creators, the draw technique was never to be a deterministic by design. So it is left up to the user.
If you are feeling like the air resistance is too much with a tight seal around the mouthpiece, then without the seal, loosely wrap your lips around the mouthpiece and breath in. I agree with @mitchgo61 this will lead to less dense vapor but to mitigate this problem, try using a micro-draw technique in which you stop inhaling for 1-2 seconds a few times during the entire draw. The heater button is continuously depressed during the entire draw though.
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paul-is-dead
Member
Thanks for the input. So I should be seeing a significant cloud? Like smoke but dissipating like vapor?
Can you describe your draw technique? Like puliing a milkshake through a straw? Or like a standard breath but longer? Even slower? How long are you drawing?
Can you describe your draw technique? Like puliing a milkshake through a straw? Or like a standard breath but longer? Even slower? How long are you drawing?
I preheat before the first hit for 4-8 seconds, then let off the button and press it again and hold it for my hit. I take long slow sips. I get very nice dense clouds.
You aren't adjusting your draw, so you're still pulling too hard. The correction isn't to add another path for incoming air, it is to pull more gently. Your method results in a higher air-to-vapour ratio.
Having said that, if that's how you like to do it and it works for you, who am I to tell you that you're doing it wrong? I'm posting this not to correct you, but to explain what's going on so that people can choose for themselves.
mitchgo61
I go where the thrills are
Exactly. Thanks for codifying. People should find a technique that works for them...I'm just trying to mitigate the (ever-increasing) ambiguity on how it's *designed* to be used, and the risks of certain approaches.
You are correct, the podcast didn't mention it. But I have emails with detailed usage instructions from both of the founders/designers, which is where my "this is how it was designed" perspective comes from. Once I started following their detailed advice, I got much better, more consistent results. Perhaps they should publicly share the stuff they sent me in mail, but since they haven't, I'm trying to share what they told me here in FC.
Yes, in the early stages of a bowl, you can absolutely pull thick bong-like clouds, if you wish. More heat+longer, slower draw=bigger clouds.
I have described my drawing approach several times in this thread, but to summarize....
1. Press heat button. Wait 4-6 seconds. Enjoy looking at the glow.
2. Make a seal around the mouthpiece. Draw SLOWLY and GENTLY like you are "sipping tea" as they say with the MFLB. (though you don't need to draw that gently, in my experience...just a steady, EASY draw.)
3. Let off the heat button somewhere during the draw. Keep drawing to carb out all the vapor and air after you release. Don't even THINK about pressing the button again till the next draw.
How long to draw? You have to experiment. I can usually feel how big the hit is midway through, which is where I let off the button. I then continue to draw to finish the hit.
Keep at it. Experiment. You'll find a technique that works for you. It'll just take a few days.
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TimeCapsuleMonkey
Active Member
It seems like a higher air-to-vapor ratio but your forgetting one step that equals it out. I use a micro-draw technique that gives me more vapor per draw because when you stop pulling for a second or two, the heater heats up a little, and creates more vapor next time you start to draw.
This technique is purely for people who do not like the air resistance constricted to the device itself. I like to use less effort so I do it this way and I get quite dense vapor.
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tufftitty
Well-Known Member
Thanks for all your efforts and I'm sure with this thread I won't have any trouble getting the results I want
..maybe you could (when you have moment) cut and paste the emails into this thread?? I'd really like to see what they had to say in their own words if at all possible.
Thank u
mitchgo61
I go where the thrills are
Totally agree...you develop an intuitive connection with the device, but it takes time and practice.
Here's exact verbiage from one of the mails...though nothing I haven't shared in pretty much the same words....
"One main thing that will improve your experience with the Firefly is to grind your dry material to a coarse chop, not a powder. When you grind your material to a powder consistency it will tend to have much more surface area and a much smaller grain size; this makes it much easier to overheat a single particle that might result in combustion.
One other thing that will improve your experience with the Firefly is getting the "feel" of the temperature of the device so you may press the instant heating button for a shorter time after the device is already warm. The method I use is:
1. Press and hold the heating button for just a few seconds (between 5 -8 seconds) and watch it glow before I start my draw
2. Begin to draw from the unit while continuing to press the heating button for a short time
3. Keep drawing from the unit after you release the heating button to “carb” the vapor. This will give you a beautifully smooth finish.
4. Keep in mind to not let go of the heating button between steps 1 and 2 or it will start the heating cycle again, which will lead to a hot draw."
mckeen
Tumrgrwer
Even after overheating the device and getting the no-go Amber light, there has been no combustion here, and the clouds are clouds that make you choke a bit...I think it may be the strain. We make my own meds and have about 8 or 9 varieties. Some make small clouds other nock your socks off. I'll talk to my son and ask him which strains are which and get back to ya.
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TimeCapsuleMonkey
Active Member
I agree the more you use it, the more you discover about how to control it and get the right draw you want from it. I am getting much better results then when I first used it!
I am also happy to say that shaking the device works to stir the blend which makes completing a session easy.
Another thing I like is how clean the glass bowl area stays! Since the heater element it not directly touching the blend, you don't get resin buildup in the chamber, but you do get some on the lid.
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mitchgo61
I go where the thrills are
Totally know what you mean. I suspect it's the "carry-over" heat, like an oven that keeps heating when it's turned off and the food is taken out. There's still heat in the chamber, and even though it's no longer actively heating, you're still getting deep vapor as the hot air is pulled over the material. Your perception that the bulk of vapor seems to come after you release the button is the same as mine. In fact, if you feel vapor in your lungs, and you haven't let off the button yet...that's when I get massive hits that are really too large and ultimately wasteful. Lesson for me: release the button before I feel like I'm getting too much vapor, and then keep drawing.
Yeah, it's a pretty amazing little piece of vape-manship.
grokit
well-worn member
I like the firefly more and more every time I use it.
I get 2/3 good hits (at least one with HUGE clouds) out of a loosely-packed bowl.
No combustion here yet, no amber light either.
The abv gets very dark if I want it to.
The vapor is quite smooth, I seem to cough more with the evo through water.
There is no draw resistance compared to the pax, I have to consciously slow my draw.
As roger ebert would say...
!
I get 2/3 good hits (at least one with HUGE clouds) out of a loosely-packed bowl.
No combustion here yet, no amber light either.
The abv gets very dark if I want it to.
The vapor is quite smooth, I seem to cough more with the evo through water.
There is no draw resistance compared to the pax, I have to consciously slow my draw.
As roger ebert would say...
!
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Yes, Just tried it and you are indeed correct!
mckeen
Tumrgrwer
My feelings precisely. Had to unbox mine, coudn't take it...had to have one last session before she goes back tomorrow morning. Really hoping they get my replacement to me quick. Being without is heartbreaking. In the future, I will be buying a new lid when something like this happens. Not very good doing without.
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