The Magic-Flight Box

[max]

I have the same charger Vicki, and mine don't get hot. This model is supposed to drop to a 24mA trickle charge after the bats are charged. It IS a smart charger and should know when charging is complete. Do you use the discharge function? I nearly always do. If the bats are fully discharged the light goes right back to red after pressing the discharge button(s). Takes longer if you use 'discharge', but I find that I seldom fully drain a bat with the LB, and you have plenty of bats, so I'd recommend that method. Also, be sure to remove the bats when they're charged. Even a trickle charge on charged bats isn't good for them long term. The only other difference I can think of, your charging vs. mine, is that I haven't bought any low discharge bats yet, and I think that's all you use. That shoudn't be a problem though. It says right on their site that the 204 charger is fine with this bat type.

"Do these Low Discharge Batteries such as the Sanyo Eneloop, EnergyOn, Acculoop, Hybrio require a special charger ?

These new batteries can be fully charged with any good quality charger such as our Maha MH-C204W, MH-C401FS, MH-C204GT, MH-C9000, MH-C800S, MH-C801D, or the MH-C808M. Basically you can use charge these batteries like you would any NiMH rechargeable batteries. All of these batteries come charged and ready to use right out of the package, and can be recharged at any time without any fear of memory effect."

If you continue to have the hot bat problem, I'd definitely report the problem to Thomas Dist. You can use me as a reference-long time C204F owner with no heat issue.

A good charger and six good batteries for $30 is a great deal. But the charger won't do any of the fancy things that expensive chargers do, if you really want that.

This really isn't that great a deal. In fact, you can get 6 low discharge bats and a MAHA charger for about the same price at Thomas Dist. The MAHA 204GT is only $15, charges 4 bats instead of two for the Apple, conditions the bats as they're charged, and has a lower trickle current than the Apple.

 

[Vicki]

I have the same charger Vicki, and mine don't get hot. This model is supposed to drop to a 24mA trickle charge after the bats are charged. It IS a smart charger and should know when charging is complete. Do you use the discharge function? I nearly always do. If the bats are fully discharged the light goes right back to red after pressing the discharge button(s). Takes longer if you use 'discharge', but I find that I seldom fully drain a bat with the LB, and you have plenty of bats, so I'd recommend that method. Also, be sure to remove the bats when they're charged. Even a trickle charge on charged bats isn't good for them long term. The only other difference I can think of, your charging vs. mine, is that I haven't bought any low discharge bats yet, and I think that's all you use. That shoudn't be a problem though. It says right on their site that the 204 charger is fine with this bat type.

"Do these Low Discharge Batteries such as the Sanyo Eneloop, EnergyOn, Acculoop, Hybrio require a special charger ?

These new batteries can be fully charged with any good quality charger such as our Maha MH-C204W, MH-C401FS, MH-C204GT, MH-C9000, MH-C800S, MH-C801D, or the MH-C808M. Basically you can use charge these batteries like you would any NiMH rechargeable batteries. All of these batteries come charged and ready to use right out of the package, and can be recharged at any time without any fear of memory effect."

If you continue to have the hot bat problem, I'd definitely report the problem to Thomas Dist. You can use me as a reference-long time C204F owner with no heat issue.

I asked Thomas if I should use the conditioning feature everytime, and they said that wasn't necessary. You really think I should? I always remove the batteries immediately after the charge is finished. I do use only low discharge batteries, so maybe that does have something to do with it as well, maybe.

 

[max]

I agree that discharging every time isn't necessary, but it doesn't hurt either. NiMH bats do have a memory effect, although it's negligible compared to NiCADs. For new bats, they don't reach their potential until they've been fully charged/discharged 3 to 5 times, so the discharge feature is handy for that purpose. Bottom line, with a smart charger, your bats should not be hot when they're finished charging. Your charger may not be switching to a trickle charge like it's supposed to. And if you're removing them after 3-4 hrs., the current may be too high during the normal charge time.

 

[flouris]

Ah. I had no idea the battery lost its juice so quickly

A few seconds to reach vaping temp- maybe 10 sec. for a hit- about 15-20 hits per bat. How many hits do you need to get one or more people high? What other vape on the market can even operate on a single AA rechargeable battery?

No offense meant there, max My question wasn't about trying to get as many people high as I could off it so much as having a discreet/portable vape that didn't require so much battery rotation. Just a personal preference.

 

[stuey]

Just buy an extra pack of batteries.

 

[flouris]

Yea I might do that. The battery thing hasn't deterred my desire to get a launch box. The more I think about it, the more I think 4 rechargable batteries would be more than sufficient.

Also, yeah.. I did just see that new battery charger pack Apple released today. Pretty cool.. would that be an efficient battery to use with this? Too early to tell?

 

[max]

No offense meant there, max My question wasn't about trying to get as many people high as I could off it so much as having a discreet/portable vape that didn't require so much battery rotation. Just a personal preference.

I took no offense. I just think complaints about the battery drain with this vape aren't justified, and there have been quite a few. If it took a minute or two to reach vaping temp then there would be room to complain. Could be that the perception of a problem is due to people not realizing the differences in power requirements for different devices that are battery powered. When the goal is to immediately produce a high temp, the battery drain is in a different ballpark than when you're pressing a few buttons on your TV remote. I don't see anyone coming up with a small stealth vape you can run for an hour (or even a quarter hour) with an AA bat any time soon, not with current technology. All it takes with the LB is a few extra charged bats, depending on how much you use it. I think stealth fans should be thrilled that they can get a vape that only takes a single AA to run it.

I did just see that new battery charger pack Apple released today. Pretty cool.. would that be an efficient battery to use with this? Too early to tell?

I already stated my case on the Apple deal-not a good one. The bats are just low discharge-more and more of those are coming out all the time, and the charger can easily be beat with a $15 MAHA.

For batteries you have two choices. Regular NiMH, if they're up to date (2700 mAh or higher), will last longer in the vape if they're fully charged. If they've been sitting around for weeks though, they'll be partly discharged. The low discharge type don't lose power while sitting on the shelf, but the output is typically 2000-2100 mAh. Ansmann has a 2500 mAh low discharge now. If they work well then the LD type could be set for a big gain in popularity.

 

[flouris]

I understand what you're saying, I had simply hoped the battery would go a bit further. I doubt it will dissuade me from buying one though.

 

[Pappy]

Apple takes a page from MFLB!
http://www.macrumors.com/2010/07/27/apples-battery-charger-sets-new-standby-usage-benchmark/

 

[Vicki]

your bats should not be hot when they're finished charging. Your charger may not be switching to a trickle charge like it's supposed to. And if you're removing them after 3-4 hrs., the current may be too high during the normal charge time.

It sounds like I should call Thomas because my batteries are very hot at the end of the charging cycle. It's always been this way, and my batteries are performing good, so that's a good thing.

 

[Budz Bunny]

your bats should not be hot when they're finished charging. Your charger may not be switching to a trickle charge like it's supposed to. And if you're removing them after 3-4 hrs., the current may be too high during the normal charge time.

It sounds like I should call Thomas because my batteries are very hot at the end of the charging cycle. It's always been this way, and my batteries are performing good, so that's a good thing.

Too hot to hold in your hand?

 

[TwztedVaper]

damnit, my batteries got hot again last night too. theyre so hot i have to leave them in the charger for 5-10 minutes before i can pick them up. i made sure both batteries were discharged before putting em in this time and they still got hot.. i think the charger keeps charging them even though theyre full. i hope it doesn't affect their capacity or anything

@magic-flight: is there perhaps a fault in the charger or should i try something different?

i love my mflb though getting baked off it right now

EDIT: just discharged the batts and put them in the charger again and sure enough they are like burning hot to touch again by the time the charger says full. i hope this isnt gonna fuck up the batteries

 

[bluntfaced]

Yo Max thanks for the battery info, you're the man!

 

[Wesley Pipes]

can you use just any AA rechargeable batteries for this thing? and how long does a charge last?

 

[Vicki]

your bats should not be hot when they're finished charging. Your charger may not be switching to a trickle charge like it's supposed to. And if you're removing them after 3-4 hrs., the current may be too high during the normal charge time.

It sounds like I should call Thomas because my batteries are very hot at the end of the charging cycle. It's always been this way, and my batteries are performing good, so that's a good thing.

Too hot to hold in your hand?

Yes, too hot to hold in my hand.

 

[stuey]

I would suggest getting a better charger.. a smart charger that does refreshes and discharges etc.

i.e. the bc-900

The charger supplied is OK but not great.. its cheap and it keeps the overall costs down thus making the LB more accessible to first time users.

Once you realise you like the whole LB vape thing.. upgrade the charger. Periodically refreshing the batteries does make a difference.

 

[Vicki]

I would suggest getting a better charger.. a smart charger that does refreshes and discharges etc.

i.e. the bc-900

The charger supplied is OK but not great.. its cheap and it keeps the overall costs down thus making the LB more accessible to first time users.

Once you realise you like the whole LB vape thing.. upgrade the charger. Periodically refreshing the batteries does make a difference.

I did get a better charger from Thomas, I provided the link a few posts up.

 

[stuey]

Sorry I didn't notice that.

The Maha's are supposed to be good.

 

[george]

Love my LaunchBox

 

[JDSupreme]

Ordered my LB Sunday evening and the email I got from Blissville said it would be here by Thursday. Mail just came and my little buddy has arrived! Like a kid on xmas I immediatley unboxed and loaded it up with some new goodies. OMFG I have a new fav!! It was smaller than I expected but thats a good thing. I see a very happy future with this little guy and now I guess I should get a better charger and batts. Im so fucking impressed with this thing. And it has me writing my name in the clouds

 

[stuey]

Ordered my LB Sunday evening and the email I got from Blissville said it would be here by Thursday. Mail just came and my little buddy has arrived! Like a kid on xmas I immediatley unboxed and loaded it up with some new goodies. OMFG I have a new fav!! It was smaller than I expected but thats a good thing. I see a very happy future with this little guy and now I guess I should get a better charger and batts. Im so fucking impressed with this thing. And it has me writing my name in the clouds

Awesome.

I did loads of research before buying mine.. I basically knew pretty well everything there was to know before it arrived. That said, when you see it for the first time, it is much smaller than anyone could imagine. I was surprised, dispute all the research.


Of course by research I dont mean white coat stuff.. I just mean there were a few vapes I was interested in (I had never used a vape before) so I read up loads on each before making a choice. For me it came down to the LB or the iolite. Whilst I cant really comment on what the iolite is like in practice, I personally cant see it topping the LB. I think the only advantage to the iolite is that its easier to pass around a group.

 

[JDSupreme]

hmmm i used a battery for a few trenches (15 hits?) and stuck it in the charger and the charger blinked green like it was fully charged. I had to run back to work so i'll have to further investigate when i get a lil more time. does the charger it comes with blink green when the batts r done or solud green?

 

[george]

hmmm i used a battery for a few trenches (15 hits?) and stuck it in the charger and the charger blinked green like it was fully charged. I had to run back to work so i'll have to further investigate when i get a lil more time. does the charger it comes with blink green when the batts r done or solud green?

if you have the blissville charger (white with magicflight logo on it), then the light blinks WHILE charging. When it's done, the light stays on.

 

[JDSupreme]

hmmm i used a battery for a few trenches (15 hits?) and stuck it in the charger and the charger blinked green like it was fully charged. I had to run back to work so i'll have to further investigate when i get a lil more time. does the charger it comes with blink green when the batts r done or solud green?

if you have the blissville charger (white with magicflight logo on it), then the light blinks WHILE charging. When it's done, the light stays on.

Haha I got all baked on this thing and this other battery charger I have blinks like that when they r done. My high ass didn't even think to read the damn directions. Disregard previous THC-induced rambling hahaha im good now

 

[max]

I think the only advantage to the iolite is that its easier to pass around a group.

Hate to go off topic but the iolite has a big advantage in ease of use, since it has a fixed temp. Of course fixed temp can also be a disadvantage if it's the only vape you own-prohibits vaping the ABV at at higher temp. The iolite can also be more stealthy in some situations. I use both and would hate to give up either one, but if forced to, and if I had no home vape, I'd have to go with the LB as the more versatile (and silent) model.