The Nomad From Morwood

[seriousTone]

Here is the roast from the 4th bowl. I'm lightly packing due to the unrestricted airflow. Tonight I'm going to switch to the high heater and give that a shot.

Nice, thank you. Just how I like to roast mine.

Damn I'm wondering if I need to add the high heater to my order just because why not have it.

 

[madhockeydad]

Damn! I keep making these battery holes larger and larger... seems like these battery manufacturers keep making the wraps thicker and thicker too! haha. I personally use Molicel p26a cells, they're a bit on the large side compared to other cells I've tried. What I don't like is when the battery hole is so large that the battery fits too loose... so it's a balancing act I suppose.



We love to hear it!

I think it’s a great compromise. Just wanted folks to know that some cells may have too large a diameter. I like the way the battery fits. I don’t want it slipping around in the vape.

As a scientist I could measure the diameter of these problem cells so you have a reference point for future thinking. I’ll measure these and let you know what I find. Typically mfgs start making the dimensions slowly larger. That’s probably what happened here.

I like the current sweet spot you have. Extra play isn’t good either.

 

[namasteIII]

Performance on Nomad is great for anyone asking. They work as good as they look I would say. Really reliable enjoyable on demand vape. It may take a second to learn because it's all manual, and the airflow is wide open so you have to regulate that variable as well. Pretty fun journey to master a weed vape tho so it's not really something to complain about. Maybe not the best to share because of that, but most of us probably treat them preciously and aren't looking to share them much anyway. Flavor is amazing and clear, Hits are big and satisfy even on the low heater. If you want 100% even ABV you have to put moderate effort into how you grind and pack, like talked about in the guide Dan posted about a page to 2 ago. Battery is great. Design and well thoughtoutness of things you all know about. I bought an extra stem to take to a glass blower for a WPA but still haven't bothered, the vapor isn't really hot even on the standard glass stem. Even if it is hot on a hot hit, it's only for a second, it doesn't last in the back of your throat like some vapes. I'm really happy every time I get to use it. (which is every day) It's nice interacting with a beautiful object, not just looking at it like you do some other forms of art. Also the fact that it's a psychoactive interaction with a beautiful object makes it even more so. No screens or buzzing is excellent, the fact that you have to learn it means it's something you own which gets better over time, which is rare and feels good. To me it was really special to wait so long for something and receive it, not that you have to wait for it for it to be good, but something about having expectations manifest and in your hand, and then it being an experience that has life beyond the expectations. It's truly unique in the world, and something you had a hand in the creation of. Not that we really did any of the work, but we did make decisions and have discussions. Anyone here, or probably anyone on this website should try and get a Nomad.

 

[KeroZen]

As a scientist I could measure the diameter of these problem cells so you have a reference point for future thinking. I’ll measure these and let you know what I find. Typically mfgs start making the dimensions slowly larger. That’s probably what happened here.

That being said you mentioned a couple of posts ago that you were using cells from a rewrapping company and not OEM ones. Rewraps have thicker tubing sleeves.

I got a large selection of models (for those who remember from much earlier in this thread, I even ventured into lower CDR territory to test if that would be an option for the low power heater, and I also even tested A123 LiFePO4 etc...) and my very early Nomad 1 was (and still is) over-tight.

Samsung and Sanyo/Panasonic are the thickest in my experience. If Dan can ensure those are supported we should be good.

 

[Copacetic]

We all know Dan has the most aesthetically pleasing portable vape, but would like to hear about the performance from current users. I have read a few reviews on this thread but would like to hear more. TIA

Well, of the portable vapes I own (Milaana, Grasshopper, Davinci mIQro, Dynavap, Vapman, and some lesser ones) the Nomad is the one that nearly always wins the reach test.
All the others get used on occasion, but the Dynavap is the only real competitor in terms of frequency of use, and it's still trailing the Nomad by a fair margin.
.....I tell a lie, now that I think of it, the Milaanas never get used as they are fairly similar in use to the Nomad, but the Nomad can cope with a faster draw, and tastes a little better.
As much as I like the design of the Millana the Nomad is better both in craftsmanship (different league TBH), and aesthetics (ok that one is purely subjective).

But you asked about performance:

There are some who seem to have difficulty with manual vapes, but the Nomad has such good performance, with a broad range of draw speeds possible, that I think it's even easier to use than either of my Milaana's for instance, which are already fairly easy to master IMO.
Flavour from the Nomad is unbeaten in my experience, and I'm even including my one and only desktop (Ed's Woodscent) in that comparison, and that is capable of being seriously delicious with the right herb! (it's a photo finish though!).
The Nomad is the best performing vape I have tried, so far.
It's expensive, for good reason, and extraordinary patience is required when purchasing (again for good reason).
Oh, and the Nomad is the easiest of my vapes to take apart completely and clean (the stem is the only part which requires regular cleaning), no other maintenance has been needed on my Nomad until very recently (I experienced a slight drop in cloudage due to my policy of deliberately ignoring Dans suggested occasional maintenance measures, to test how long the Nomad can go without even minimal care, y'know, for science), except for an issue with my sleeve, which Dan attempted to put right without hesitation.
There's just so little to go wrong that it's approaching Dynavap levels of simplicity and is surely the most robust and minimally designed electric portable available.

Dans commision process is a unique experience in vapes, and customers have more influence upon the finished article (If they want) than any other device available.

As soon as I am able, I will re-join the wait list so I can add a MKII to my collection.
There are only a couple of other dry herb vapes which tempt me, and the Nomad II is well ahead of them in terms of how much I'd love to own one, I just need to find the funds somehow.

This must read like I'm a Morwood fanatic.

That's because it's kinda true.

EDIT: I just realised that an evaluation of performance should mention whether a vape can blow clouds, in this the Nomad stands with the best vapes I mentioned above. HUUUGE clouds man.

 

[seriousTone]

Well, of the portable vapes I own (Milaana, Grasshopper, Davinci mIQro, Dynavap, Vapman, and some lesser ones) the Nomad is the one that nearly always wins the reach test.
All the others get used on occasion, but the Dynavap is the only real competitor in terms of frequency of use, and it's still trailing the Nomad by a fair margin.
.....I tell a lie, now that I think of it, the Milaanas never get used as they are fairly similar in use to the Nomad, but the Nomad can cope with a faster draw, and tastes a little better.
As much as I like the design of the Millana the Nomad is better both in craftsmanship (different league TBH), and aesthetics (ok that one is purely subjective).

But you asked about performance:

There are some who seem to have difficulty with manual vapes, but the Nomad has such good performance, with a broad range of draw speeds possible, that I think it's even easier to use than either of my Milaana's for instance, which are already fairly easy to master IMO.
Flavour from the Nomad is unbeaten in my experience, and I'm even including my one and only desktop (Ed's Woodscent) in that comparison, and that is capable of being seriously delicious with the right herb! (it's a photo finish though!).
The Nomad is the best performing vape I have tried, so far.
It's expensive, for good reason, and extraordinary patience is required when purchasing (again for good reason).
Oh, and the Nomad is the easiest of my vapes to take apart completely and clean (the stem is the only part which requires regular cleaning), no other maintenance has been needed on my Nomad until very recently (I experienced a slight drop in cloudage due to my policy of deliberately ignoring Dans suggested occasional maintenance measures, to test how long the Nomad can go without even minimal care, y'know, for science), except for an issue with my sleeve, which Dan attempted to put right without hesitation.
There's just so little to go wrong that it's approaching Dynavap levels of simplicity and is surely the most robust and minimally designed electric portable available.

Dans commision process is a unique experience in vapes, and customers have more influence upon the finished article (If they want) than any other device available.

As soon as I am able, I will re-join the wait list so I can add a MKII to my collection.
There are only a couple of other dry herb vapes which tempt me, and the Nomad II is well ahead of them in terms of how much I'd love to own one, I just need to find the funds somehow.

This must read like I'm a Morwood fanatic.

That's because it's kinda true.

EDIT: I just realised that an evaluation of performance should mention whether a vape can blow clouds, in this the Nomad stands with the best vapes I mentioned above. HUUUGE clouds man.

Wow now this is going to make the wait worse..

Do you have experience with the mflb? Is draw rate, using low heater, similar to that where you mainly want to sip or you can rip it harder? I don't mind the sipping personally.

 

[Dan Morrison]

One capsule into the high heater. I’m pretty sure it’s going to be my favorite. Noticeably hotter and faster than the low. Very cool. With the low it’s possible to really get every nuance out of the flower. That’s cool.

I tend not to have the patience for the slow roast. Totally the way I’m internally wired. It’s good but I prefer a bit more….. omphffff. The high heater is perfect for that. I’ll give an update tomorrow after a few more samples.

I think this is a great sum up of the differences between the heaters. Personally the new high heater is my favourite, and I use it exclusively with a 'hand plucked' medium-coarse grind.

The low heater still comes into my rotation, however, especially with a medium - fine grind where I think the slower air speed helps with even extraction. The low heater with fine grind will tease out completely different, more herbal, tastes... I guess because you have more green plant material exposed.

For the high heater, my hand plucked method basically means that I am picking apart flower by hand with an ice-pick tool. I try to tease open and preserve each little leaflet (or whatever you might want to call it). My goal is not so much to achieve consistency in particle size, but to just keep every trichome laden surface intact.

The flower is then packed into the chamber very loosely with air space around the particles.

The high heater makes quick work of the surface trichomes, but since there are less broken leaf surfaces, you don't get much of the deeper herbal flavors. The result is a super clean taste, almost like a concentrate. And the high heater will mostly extract a full stem load in 2 hits.

If you want to get the absolute maximum vapor production in a single hit (without over browning the herb) you should use the above technique with the high heater, but take the briar wood chamber out of the stem to increase chamber size. Use a screen in the stem to make a deep chamber. Then, go a bit easy on the first hit...treat it more like a warm up hit to soak the heat into the chamber walls. Then let it rip on the second hit with a relatively fast draw speed. The coarse grind combined with faster draw speed will give a very even extraction all the way down into the bottom of the chamber. Also, use the cooling beads for maximum rippage. Hold on!

Another high heat tip is, if you feel like its too hot in the throat, or scorching the load, instead of regulating the button, or stopping your inhale, just inhale faster. Faster inhale = cooler hit.

_____

Loving all the discussion and reviews!! These positive comments are so so wonderful to hear!

_____

@xtraclipsforxtrashit , From what I can remember, the mflb is way more of a sipper.. like.. a super sipper. And because it's conduction, it's difficult to compare. Perhaps people with more experience with the mflb can chime in. hmm.

 

[Copacetic]

Wow now this is going to make the wait worse..

Do you have experience with the mflb? Is draw rate, using low heater, similar to that where you mainly want to sip or you can rip it harder? I don't mind the sipping personally.

Sorry, no mflb experience here
With the low heater I feel it's best to draw slow, and long to get best results, not really sipping though, as I tend to think of conduction vapes as 'sippers' where a short draw can still yield a thick, cloudy rip.
The Nomad, like other convection vapes requires a longer, slower draw than a conduction model, but on the medium heater that I use almost exclusively (which I strongly suspect is similar to Dans new revision of the high heater) I can take a series of short puffs chained together and get decent results, but it's not my preferred technique.
I briefly tried both low and high (1st gen) heaters, but almost immediately settled on the medium for my own tastes.
I confess I've no idea how to compare the Nomads best results technique to the mflb's as I have zero experience of that vape.
Hard rips (by convection vape standard that is, a conduction vape can be sucked like the proverbial ball-hitch and still get the same results as a moderate draw) are entirely possible as airflow is very open, and the heaters (excepting the low) can keep up with a huge draw and put you on your back in a hurry. Be warned though, that pulling TOO hard will cause 'tunneling' through the centre of your payload, leaving the herb nearest the wall of the stem underdone compared to the over-toasted centre core. That doesn't happen with conduction vapes in my experience.
The Nomad is no more prone to this than any other manual convection stem vape I've tried though.
To compare hard rips on the Nomad to my Hopper (a huge hitter), I'd say that the Nomad can match it for cloud size, but the Nomad tastes better (GH tastes pretty good to me BTW) and doesn't get uncomfortable on the lips the way the GH can, it just requires a little more attention to rip hard than the GH, but only until you get used to it. The Nomad quickly becomes a 'brain off' vape that can be used easily IMO, even for big rips.

Ooh, I just remembered that the Nomad does particularly well with herb/concentrate combo's when ripping HARD. I know this is the case for other vapes too, but the Nomad can deliver better flavour and cloudage when used this way than any other vape I've tried, even the Woodscent or GH.
The only advantage either of these has over the Nomad for these type of rips is that the WS neatly avoids tunneling by virtue of a much smaller skinny chamber, and it's possible to go full ham on the GH without any risk at all of scorching/combustion.
I've never yet combusted in the Nomad (full on cherry), but have scorched on a handful of occasions. I find it very easy to manage/avoid scorching on the Nomad though, even through BIG rips.

 

[Dan Morrison]

@Copacetic , Love to hear it. I forget, did your Nomad come with the in-body diffuser screen? One small difference between the Nomad I and Nomad II is that I added a double-layer diffuser into the Nomad II's, compared to the optional single layer diffuser in the Nomad I (most of them didn't come installed by default).

This diffuser layer helps with the tunnel effect on the bigger rips, and it can be added to any of the Nomad I's.

And your medium heater is very close to the new high heater.

 

[Elfstone]

@madhockeydad , hahah! I'm afraid my skills only go so far... sorry about that. Hopefully you've got the weekend free!

Feathering the airflow hole is fair game, whatever works for you is alll good.

I'm glad the battery life is working out for you so far! Be sure to periodically check the voltage level on your charger to keep track of when it gets to about 3.5v, this is where you should recharge the battery. Going below 3.2v may damage the battery. Once you "feel" what 3.5v is like, you'll pretty easily be able to intuitively tell when to charge. Performance drops off dramatically around that point, so it's fairly obvious!

After you get a few sessions in to get the hang of your draw speed, you can try those cooling beads! The cooling beads adds a little air restriction which I find helpful.

Here's a little example of how the beads are loaded into a glass stem. This image shows it half full, but there are enough beads to fill to the top in each set. You can adjust for the amount of cooling you like.

Apologies for my ignorance, does the Nomad II come with the beaded glass stems? Or is it something we can order when our NM II is ready to build? if the glass stem dose come with glass beads, it nice to know that they can be removed from the stem. Funny, I am probably the 300th person on the waitlist, and I already know what I want, unless I win the lottery. And, then all bets are off HA!

 

[Copacetic]

@Copacetic , Love to hear it. I forget, did your Nomad come with the in-body diffuser screen? One small difference between the Nomad I and Nomad II is that I added a double-layer diffuser into the Nomad II's, compared to the optional single layer diffuser in the Nomad I (most of them didn't come installed by default).

This diffuser layer helps with the tunnel effect on the bigger rips, and it can be added to any of the Nomad I's.

And your medium heater is very close to the new high heater.

Hey Dan
You included a single screen, but I didn't use it for ages, as I stuck to your stock setup of two stem screens on either side of the wood capsule.
I did fit it a few weeks back to try a single screen-no capsule arrangement again. Before I received my Nomad this is how I thought I would probably use it, but in the end my preferred method is the capsule/2 screens method as it allows me to slide it from end to end, which means I rarely have to clean the stem, but the edges of the screens get dirty quicker as they 'clean' the reclaim off the inside of the stem.
I confess that the single body screen has made so little effect to function that I just left it in place after returning again to your stock setup. I forgot it was in there to be honest!
I can however imagine a second screen making a more significant difference.
I get such good results on rips of all types that I feel little need of a second screen though. Maybe if I go back to 'single stem screen' though.
Tunneling is only really an issue if I go ham on the draw without the capsule.

The 2 screen/capsule arrangement is a little fiddly on the move however, and I'm keen to buy one of your glass (or wood!) stems with the new wood basket once you are able to offer them, as that would be the best of all worlds, and would allow me to carry pre-loaded baskets while out & aboot (, sorry....we say aboot too!).
Are you still planning on making these available separately?

 

[Dan Morrison]

@Copacetic , Ahh okay! With the basket screen ontop of your load, you're already getting most of the effect of the double layer diffuser. So it's all good!

I like hearing that you're using that method of stem loading, The versatility of the straight stem is hard to beat... so many options for setting it up.

I offer the wood capsule equipped stems now. $15 for the glass stem, with a fitted wood capsule that is matched to that specific stem.

Capsule holder for on-the-go storage of multiple capsules is almost done prototype stage.

@Elfstone , The cooling beads are an add-on item, $5 for enough to fill one stem. They can be loaded into the glass or wood stems. You can do a full load for maximum cooling, or take beads out to get your perfect balance of heat, flavor, and coolness.

 

[Copacetic]

@Copacetic , Ahh okay! With the basket screen ontop of your load, you're already getting most of the effect of the double layer diffuser. So it's all good!

I like hearing that you're using that method of stem loading, The versatility of the straight stem is hard to beat... so many options for setting it up.

I offer the wood capsule equipped stems now. $15 for the glass stem, with a fitted wood capsule that is matched to that specific stem.

Capsule holder for on-the-go storage of multiple capsules is almost done prototype stage.

@Elfstone , The cooling beads are an add-on item, $5 for enough to fill one stem. They can be loaded into the glass or wood stems. You can do a full load for maximum cooling, or take beads out to get your perfect balance of heat, flavor, and coolness.

I've actually been getting good results with just a single screen between heater and load too, I just can't take really strong draws without a bit of tunneling, but I just don't draw that hard.

I didn't realise you'd made the glass stem/wood basket stems available already!
Gonna email you right now

 

[Elfstone]

@Copacetic , Ahh okay! With the basket screen ontop of your load, you're already getting most of the effect of the double layer diffuser. So it's all good!

I like hearing that you're using that method of stem loading, The versatility of the straight stem is hard to beat... so many options for setting it up.

I offer the wood capsule equipped stems now. $15 for the glass stem, with a fitted wood capsule that is matched to that specific stem.

Capsule holder for on-the-go storage of multiple capsules is almost done prototype stage.

@Elfstone , The cooling beads are an add-on item, $5 for enough to fill one stem. They can be loaded into the glass or wood stems. You can do a full load for maximum cooling, or take beads out to get your perfect balance of heat, flavor, and c

I am looking forward to getting there, and I’m glad to be here with the rest of the FC peoples to learn the how and what I’ll be needing to make my experience the best. I need to start a list of the little extras I’ll be needing with my order.

 

[Ramahs]

Performance on Nomad is great for anyone asking. They work as good as they look I would say. Really reliable enjoyable on demand vape. It may take a second to learn because it's all manual, and the airflow is wide open so you have to regulate that variable as well. Pretty fun journey to master a weed vape tho so it's not really something to complain about. Maybe not the best to share because of that, but most of us probably treat them preciously and aren't looking to share them much anyway. Flavor is amazing and clear, Hits are big and satisfy even on the low heater. If you want 100% even ABV you have to put moderate effort into how you grind and pack, like talked about in the guide Dan posted about a page to 2 ago. Battery is great. Design and well thoughtoutness of things you all know about. I bought an extra stem to take to a glass blower for a WPA but still haven't bothered, the vapor isn't really hot even on the standard glass stem. Even if it is hot on a hot hit, it's only for a second, it doesn't last in the back of your throat like some vapes. I'm really happy every time I get to use it. (which is every day) It's nice interacting with a beautiful object, not just looking at it like you do some other forms of art. Also the fact that it's a psychoactive interaction with a beautiful object makes it even more so. No screens or buzzing is excellent, the fact that you have to learn it means it's something you own which gets better over time, which is rare and feels good. To me it was really special to wait so long for something and receive it, not that you have to wait for it for it to be good, but something about having expectations manifest and in your hand, and then it being an experience that has life beyond the expectations. It's truly unique in the world, and something you had a hand in the creation of. Not that we really did any of the work, but we did make decisions and have discussions. Anyone here, or probably anyone on this website should try and get a Nomad.

Well, of the portable vapes I own (Milaana, Grasshopper, Davinci mIQro, Dynavap, Vapman, and some lesser ones) the Nomad is the one that nearly always wins the reach test.
All the others get used on occasion, but the Dynavap is the only real competitor in terms of frequency of use, and it's still trailing the Nomad by a fair margin.
.....I tell a lie, now that I think of it, the Milaanas never get used as they are fairly similar in use to the Nomad, but the Nomad can cope with a faster draw, and tastes a little better.
As much as I like the design of the Millana the Nomad is better both in craftsmanship (different league TBH), and aesthetics (ok that one is purely subjective).

But you asked about performance:

There are some who seem to have difficulty with manual vapes, but the Nomad has such good performance, with a broad range of draw speeds possible, that I think it's even easier to use than either of my Milaana's for instance, which are already fairly easy to master IMO.
Flavour from the Nomad is unbeaten in my experience, and I'm even including my one and only desktop (Ed's Woodscent) in that comparison, and that is capable of being seriously delicious with the right herb! (it's a photo finish though!).
The Nomad is the best performing vape I have tried, so far.
It's expensive, for good reason, and extraordinary patience is required when purchasing (again for good reason).
Oh, and the Nomad is the easiest of my vapes to take apart completely and clean (the stem is the only part which requires regular cleaning), no other maintenance has been needed on my Nomad until very recently (I experienced a slight drop in cloudage due to my policy of deliberately ignoring Dans suggested occasional maintenance measures, to test how long the Nomad can go without even minimal care, y'know, for science), except for an issue with my sleeve, which Dan attempted to put right without hesitation.
There's just so little to go wrong that it's approaching Dynavap levels of simplicity and is surely the most robust and minimally designed electric portable available.

Dans commision process is a unique experience in vapes, and customers have more influence upon the finished article (If they want) than any other device available.

As soon as I am able, I will re-join the wait list so I can add a MKII to my collection.
There are only a couple of other dry herb vapes which tempt me, and the Nomad II is well ahead of them in terms of how much I'd love to own one, I just need to find the funds somehow.

This must read like I'm a Morwood fanatic.

That's because it's kinda true.

EDIT: I just realised that an evaluation of performance should mention whether a vape can blow clouds, in this the Nomad stands with the best vapes I mentioned above. HUUUGE clouds man.

I couldn't agree more with the both of you!

 

[seriousTone]

For the high heater, my hand plucked method basically means that I am picking apart flower by hand with an ice-pick tool. I try to tease open and preserve each little leaflet (or whatever you might want to call it). My goal is not so much to achieve consistency in particle size, but to just keep every trichome laden surface intact.

The flower is then packed into the chamber very loosely with air space around the particles.

The high heater makes quick work of the surface trichomes, but since there are less broken leaf surfaces, you don't get much of the deeper herbal flavors. The result is a super clean taste, almost like a concentrate. And the high heater will mostly extract a full stem load in 2 hits.

@xtraclipsforxtrashit , From what I can remember, the mflb is way more of a sipper.. like.. a super sipper. And because it's conduction, it's difficult to compare. Perhaps people with more experience with the mflb can chime in. hmm.

This is a very interesting way of packing and I think I would quite like this method. Do you find that the leaflets are cooked through thoroughly?

Sorry, no mflb experience here
With the low heater I feel it's best to draw slow, and long to get best results, not really sipping though, as I tend to think of conduction vapes as 'sippers' where a short draw can still yield a thick, cloudy rip.
The Nomad, like other convection vapes requires a longer, slower draw than a conduction model, but on the medium heater that I use almost exclusively (which I strongly suspect is similar to Dans new revision of the high heater) I can take a series of short puffs chained together and get decent results, but it's not my preferred technique.
I briefly tried both low and high (1st gen) heaters, but almost immediately settled on the medium for my own tastes.
I confess I've no idea how to compare the Nomads best results technique to the mflb's as I have zero experience of that vape.
Hard rips (by convection vape standard that is, a conduction vape can be sucked like the proverbial ball-hitch and still get the same results as a moderate draw) are entirely possible as airflow is very open, and the heaters (excepting the low) can keep up with a huge draw and put you on your back in a hurry. Be warned though, that pulling TOO hard will cause 'tunneling' through the centre of your payload, leaving the herb nearest the wall of the stem underdone compared to the over-toasted centre core. That doesn't happen with conduction vapes in my experience.
The Nomad is no more prone to this than any other manual convection stem vape I've tried though.
To compare hard rips on the Nomad to my Hopper (a huge hitter), I'd say that the Nomad can match it for cloud size, but the Nomad tastes better (GH tastes pretty good to me BTW) and doesn't get uncomfortable on the lips the way the GH can, it just requires a little more attention to rip hard than the GH, but only until you get used to it. The Nomad quickly becomes a 'brain off' vape that can be used easily IMO, even for big rips.

Ooh, I just remembered that the Nomad does particularly well with herb/concentrate combo's when ripping HARD. I know this is the case for other vapes too, but the Nomad can deliver better flavour and cloudage when used this way than any other vape I've tried, even the Woodscent or GH.
The only advantage either of these has over the Nomad for these type of rips is that the WS neatly avoids tunneling by virtue of a much smaller skinny chamber, and it's possible to go full ham on the GH without any risk at all of scorching/combustion.
I've never yet combusted in the Nomad (full on cherry), but have scorched on a handful of occasions. I find it very easy to manage/avoid scorching on the Nomad though, even through BIG rips.

Yes, I forgot about the Grasshopper. My fiancé has one and I don't see it much to use. I do like it though, so the Nomad is similar to hitting that; very nice to know.

This discussion has got me re-thinking the heaters now. But if I'm not mistaken - the same results can be achieved by either or? The high heater just gets hotter faster, so if you like to draw fast - this is the one for you. Draw too slow and it'll scorch.

The low heater, you have a little more leeway but want a hotter hit and can just keep the button pressed longer before hitting or stop/slowdown your draw to get it hotter.

Would you say the low heater is the best all around heater? I think I read that by you at some point but could be wrong. @Dan Morrison

 

[Elfstone]

This is a very interesting way of packing and I think I would quite like this method. Do you find that the leaflets are cooked through thoroughly?



Yes, I forgot about the Grasshopper. My fiancé has one and I don't see it much to use. I do like it though, so the Nomad is similar to hitting that; very nice to know.

This discussion has got me re-thinking the heaters now. But if I'm not mistaken - the same results can be achieved by either or? The high heater just gets hotter faster, so if you like to draw fast - this is the one for you. Draw too slow and it'll scorch.

The low heater, you have a little more leeway but want a hotter hit and can just keep the button pressed longer before hitting or stop/slowdown your draw to get it hotter.

Would you say the low heater is the best all around heater? I think I read that by you at some point but could be wrong. @Dan Morrison

Yes sir, since I’m a novice at on demand vapes, I’m trying absorb as much as I can about the Nomad II, as make the learning curve less intimidating. I have so long to before my time comes, so I’m grateful that the folks here ask good questions. I’m a sipping type of fellow and I’m thinking the low heater may be what the doctor ordered. Then I’m like, I don’t what to miss out on anything good. Might need both low and hot heaters. Glad I have plenty of time to hang out here and learn as much I can before the time.

 

[Dan Morrison]

@xtraclipsforxtrashit , The 'leaflets', end up looking like a bunch of nacho chips, or petals. If you think of the flower bud, its basically made up of a bunch of little petals growing into tight or loose spherical shapes.

The actives are all contained inside the trichomes on the surface of these leaflets. So my thinking is that we don't really need to extract what's inside the leaflets, but what's on the surface.

A perfectly plucked leaflet that is unbroken has 100% of its outer surface exposed. I feel like if you are able to evenly expose this outer trichome laden surface to the heat, you'll mostly get an extraction of the trichomes, without liberating as much of the volatiles that are contained inside the leaflet (moisture, chlorophyll, etc... ). This isn't to say that is a bad thing, but it's just a slightly different taste.

If you imagine a fine grind, you have many broken leaflet particles and trichomes all packed together into a puck shape. I feel like with a convection only setup it's harder for the heat to reach the trichomes when they're all packed into said puck. You're also extracting a lot of the stuff contained inside the leaflets, and so your vapor probably contains a lesser percentage of actives (even though it doesn't necessarily appear less dense).

I find that with the hand-plucked method, you don't need to push the extraction to reach a dark ABV. You'll likely end up in a more caramel or straw colour when you've reached near complete extraction.

I also feel like this method gets closer to the vapor produced from a concentrates hit. You're increasing the percentage of actives in the vapor.

Mind, you... this is all speculation based on what I think is going on...who knows! haha.

Anyhow, to answer your question, "Do you find that the leaflets are cooked through thoroughly?", I think my answer would be that... well, it's better if you don't cook them all the way through, it's only necessarily to cook the outer surface.

___

An unexpected bonus of the hand-pluck method is the meditative process. At first I was sort of put off by the process... It's definitely way slower than just using a grinder. But then I started to really get into the flower...the way each strain looks close up. There is definitely a "zen garden" sort of feeling to the process... slow and methodical. I imagine it's sort of like pruning a bonsai, haha.

I really want to make a little african blackwood dish or tray, with a built-in magnifying lens and light. This would be my plucking station, haha! I could peer into the lens and get an amazing view.... using little surgical-type tools to carefully open up the flower. I would then carefully transfer each little leaflet into the briar wood capsule.

___

The high heater just gets hotter faster, so if you like to draw fast - this is the one for you. Draw too slow and it'll scorch.

The low heater, you have a little more leeway but want a hotter hit and can just keep the button pressed longer before hitting or stop/slowdown your draw to get it hotter.

Would you say the low heater is the best all around heater? I think I read that by you at some point but could be wrong. @Dan Morrison

You got it.

But, I've since changed my mind on the best all around heater. I think that crown goes to the new high. It's easier to make the high heater function similar to the low, than it is to make the low heater function similar to the high.

Pushing the low heater to be hotter feels more tedious, where as using a little restraint with the high heater is much more effortless.

Based on what you've said in this thread I do think you would be happier with the high heater. You can swap your heater choice anytime during the crafting process, no problem at all! And if you ever wanted to get the other heater down the road, you can always order one separately.

 

[Copacetic]

This is a very interesting way of packing and I think I would quite like this method. Do you find that the leaflets are cooked through thoroughly?



Yes, I forgot about the Grasshopper. My fiancé has one and I don't see it much to use. I do like it though, so the Nomad is similar to hitting that; very nice to know.

This discussion has got me re-thinking the heaters now. But if I'm not mistaken - the same results can be achieved by either or? The high heater just gets hotter faster, so if you like to draw fast - this is the one for you. Draw too slow and it'll scorch.

The low heater, you have a little more leeway but want a hotter hit and can just keep the button pressed longer before hitting or stop/slowdown your draw to get it hotter.

Would you say the low heater is the best all around heater? I think I read that by you at some point but could be wrong. @Dan Morrison

Get the high, if you find yourself combusting a lot (wildly unlikely IMO, but not impossible) then you will almost certainly be able to learn not to combust, and even if you can't (we're piling unlikelyhoods up here, like jenga) then as Dan says below, just buy the low heater then.

@xtraclipsforxtrashit , The 'leaflets', end up looking like a bunch of nacho chips, or petals. If you think of the flower bud, its basically made up of a bunch of little petals growing into tight or loose spherical shapes.

The actives are all contained inside the trichomes on the surface of these leaflets. So my thinking is that we don't really need to extract what's inside the leaflets, but what's on the surface.

A perfectly plucked leaflet that is unbroken has 100% of its outer surface exposed. I feel like if you are able to evenly expose this outer trichome laden surface to the heat, you'll mostly get an extraction of the trichomes, without liberating as much of the volatiles that are contained inside the leaflet (moisture, chlorophyll, etc... ). This isn't to say that is a bad thing, but it's just a slightly different taste.

If you imagine a fine grind, you have many broken leaflet particles and trichomes all packed together into a puck shape. I feel like with a convection only setup it's harder for the heat to reach the trichomes when they're all packed into said puck. You're also extracting a lot of the stuff contained inside the leaflets, and so your vapor probably contains a lesser percentage of actives (even though it doesn't necessarily appear less dense).

I find that with the hand-plucked method, you don't need to push the extraction to reach a dark ABV. You'll likely end up in a more caramel or straw colour when you've reached near complete extraction.

I also feel like this method gets closer to the vapor produced from a concentrates hit. You're increasing the percentage of actives in the vapor.

Mind, you... this is all speculation based on what I think is going on...who knows! haha.

Anyhow, to answer your question, "Do you find that the leaflets are cooked through thoroughly?", I think my answer would be that... well, it's better if you don't cook them all the way through, it's only necessarily to cook the outer surface.

___

An unexpected bonus of the hand-pluck method is the meditative process. At first I was sort of put off by the process... It's definitely way slower than just using a grinder. But then I started to really get into the flower...the way each strain looks close up. There is definitely a "zen garden" sort of feeling to the process... slow and methodical. I imagine it's sort of like pruning a bonsai, haha.

I really want to make a little african blackwood dish or tray, with a built-in magnifying lens and light. This would be my plucking station, haha! I could peer into the lens and get an amazing view.... using little surgical-type tools to carefully open up the flower. I would then carefully transfer each little leaflet into the briar wood capsule.

___



You got it.

But, I've since changed my mind on the best all around heater. I think that crown goes to the new high. It's easier to make the high heater function similar to the low, than it is to make the low heater function similar to the high.

Pushing the low heater to be hotter feels more tedious, where as using a little restraint with the high heater is much more effortless.

Based on what you've said in this thread I do think you would be happier with the high heater. You can swap your heater choice anytime during the crafting process, no problem at all! And if you ever wanted to get the other heater down the road, you can always order one separately.

I like your 'bud teasing station' idea Dan, add a tiny webcam, sell a few, and we can all have picture frames live streaming each other teasing bud!

But that doesn't really fit your M.O. does it?
Perhaps a woodcut print or a cyanotype of your favourite bud of the week, distributed by great relay chains of longbowmen or heraldic criers going village to village declaiming rastafarian haikus to the macro-bud faithful.
I feel strongly that instead of a crucifix we should adopt a loup containing a cannabis leaf as the shibboleth of our devotion thereby to recognise fellow members of our Morwood magnifying doctrine 'ALLELUJAH!

Sorrypeakingonamanicphase

All jokes aside, a nice little tabernacle or devotional to the tending of our beloved herb would be very cool. I'm gonna make one too!

 

[seriousTone]

Yes sir, since I’m a novice at on demand vapes, I’m trying absorb as much as I can about the Nomad II, as make the learning curve less intimidating. I have so long to before my time comes, so I’m grateful that the folks here ask good questions. I’m a sipping type of fellow and I’m thinking the low heater may be what the doctor ordered. Then I’m like, I don’t what to miss out on anything good. Might need both low and hot heaters. Glad I have plenty of time to hang out here and learn as much I can before the time.

Haha, I hear that. When I first found the fc forums, I couldn't get enough and devoured the information constantly for months.

@xtraclipsforxtrashit , The 'leaflets', end up looking like a bunch of nacho chips, or petals. If you think of the flower bud, its basically made up of a bunch of little petals growing into tight or loose spherical shapes.

The actives are all contained inside the trichomes on the surface of these leaflets. So my thinking is that we don't really need to extract what's inside the leaflets, but what's on the surface.

A perfectly plucked leaflet that is unbroken has 100% of its outer surface exposed. I feel like if you are able to evenly expose this outer trichome laden surface to the heat, you'll mostly get an extraction of the trichomes, without liberating as much of the volatiles that are contained inside the leaflet (moisture, chlorophyll, etc... ). This isn't to say that is a bad thing, but it's just a slightly different taste.

If you imagine a fine grind, you have many broken leaflet particles and trichomes all packed together into a puck shape. I feel like with a convection only setup it's harder for the heat to reach the trichomes when they're all packed into said puck. You're also extracting a lot of the stuff contained inside the leaflets, and so your vapor probably contains a lesser percentage of actives (even though it doesn't necessarily appear less dense).

I find that with the hand-plucked method, you don't need to push the extraction to reach a dark ABV. You'll likely end up in a more caramel or straw colour when you've reached near complete extraction.

I also feel like this method gets closer to the vapor produced from a concentrates hit. You're increasing the percentage of actives in the vapor.

Mind, you... this is all speculation based on what I think is going on...who knows! haha.

Anyhow, to answer your question, "Do you find that the leaflets are cooked through thoroughly?", I think my answer would be that... well, it's better if you don't cook them all the way through, it's only necessarily to cook the outer surface.

___

An unexpected bonus of the hand-pluck method is the meditative process. At first I was sort of put off by the process... It's definitely way slower than just using a grinder. But then I started to really get into the flower...the way each strain looks close up. There is definitely a "zen garden" sort of feeling to the process... slow and methodical. I imagine it's sort of like pruning a bonsai, haha.

I really want to make a little african blackwood dish or tray, with a built-in magnifying lens and light. This would be my plucking station, haha! I could peer into the lens and get an amazing view.... using little surgical-type tools to carefully open up the flower. I would then carefully transfer each little leaflet into the briar wood capsule.

___



You got it.

But, I've since changed my mind on the best all around heater. I think that crown goes to the new high. It's easier to make the high heater function similar to the low, than it is to make the low heater function similar to the high.

Pushing the low heater to be hotter feels more tedious, where as using a little restraint with the high heater is much more effortless.

Based on what you've said in this thread I do think you would be happier with the high heater. You can swap your heater choice anytime during the crafting process, no problem at all! And if you ever wanted to get the other heater down the road, you can always order one separately.

Damn, very great explanation; it makes total sense to me but hey what do I know as well haha.

I dig your zen like experience tearing the flower apart. I've been growing some trees in hopes of them becoming bonsai for the past few years so can totally relate.

Here's my only thing - otherwise I'm inclined to take your advice. While I do enjoy a big hit from the vapcap per say, I'm mainly of the mindset that exhaled vapor is wasted vapor - just like the mflb folks say. I mean, I go so far as to inhale, exhale slightly until I see vapor, then re-inhale, exhale a little until I see vapor, etc.

Soo I think this means I need to just get both heaters.

 

[namasteIII]

I really want to make a little african blackwood dish or tray, with a built-in magnifying lens and light. This would be my plucking station, haha! I could peer into the lens and get an amazing view.... using little surgical-type tools to carefully open up the flower. I would then carefully transfer each little leaflet into the briar wood capsule.

I really like this part.

Also I recommend people get both. Take advantage of the fact the the vape is modular and offers different heaters. Also its already expensive, get what you want.

 

[Ramahs]

I do't regret buying both heaters. I use both, depending on mood.
Though, I mostly use the high heater.

 

[KeroZen]

The actives are all contained inside the trichomes on the surface of these leaflets. So my thinking is that we don't really need to extract what's inside the leaflets, but what's on the surface.

But are we even sure of that? And by actives what are we talking about? Cannabinoids only? Terpenes? Even the stems have a strong smell, so a lot of terpenes have to be in the green parts.

What about all precursors? My understanding is that the trichome is like a hair but stuff is secreted at its base and flows outwards towards the tip where it's stored in the head. If that's true then there should be plenty of stuff still inside the flower cells. That's counter speculation on my part tho...

I often do the hand tearing technique you describe when the material is dense and sticky. For drier stuff I crumble with my fingers. I've never used any grinder tho.

With the whole bits technique though, there's something I don't like: often said bits can create a very flat surface when unfolded and when said surface is put at the entrance of the bowl, on the top layer, it can create a kind of heat deflector. Air can't pass through so it goes everywhere around. You end up with this flat bit considerably browner but what's directly below is still green.

 

[Dan Morrison]

@KeroZen , From the research I've seen, I don't think there is much value in extracting what is contained inside the epidermis of the plant. From what I understand, the cannabinoids and terpenes are produced inside of certain types of trichomes.

Whether or not you want to extract the inside of the plant material is totally personal preference, and I'm definitely not saying its bad.. just different. Depends on your goals.

The trichomes are present on every part of the plant (including the stems as you mentioned), but the concentration of the specific types of trichomes we want is highest on the flowers.

This Is an interesting read. It's dense, and I certainly don't understand all of it, but there's some good stuff in here.



This is a cool image!



"Bona fide sessile glandular trichomes (left) contain numerous small droplets of red-shifted intrinsic fluorescence, eight disc cells and sit directly on the epidermal surface. The sessile trichomes produce greater amounts of sesquiterpenes relative to monoterpenes. Stalked glandular trichomes (far right) develop from pre-stalked trichomes (center). Both pre-stalked and stalked trichomes have a greater number of disc cells, and they produce greater amounts of monoterpenes relative to sesquiterpenes. As the multicellular stalk lifts the glandular trichome head above the epidermis, the extracellular storage cavity is filled with a large droplet of blue-shifted intrinsic fluorescence, which is correlated with high cannabinoid content. Yellow indicates cuticle and cell wall surrounding the disc cells and storage cavity."



Here (its a .pdf) is another good journal article. It's also a dense read, but skimming the abstract/intro and photos gives a pretty good overview.

"Cannabinoids and terpenoids are synthesised by a cluster of secretory cells located
at the base of the glandular trichome head, referred to as disc cells. Secondary metabolites
accumulate in the sub-cuticular cavities located between the disc cells and the cuticle of the
glandular trichome head."

The description under this image goes into the 'precursors' you mentioned, which are sugars as far as I can tell. To me it seems like the plant supplies the trichomes with very basic building blocks. All the magic happens in the trichome itself.




____

I know what you mean about the air deflector leaf. I try to arrange the pieces so that doesn't happen, but I'm sure there is a happy middle ground somewhere between too coarse and too fine. I have yet to figure out my favourite.

 

[Ramahs]

From the research I've seen, I don't think there is much value in extracting what is contained inside the epidermis of the plant. From what I understand, the cannabinoids and terpenes are produced inside of certain types of trichomes.

It looks like you've done more research into the science than I have. And I recognize that What I'm about to say is purely anecdotal, and so should be taken with a grain of salt...but I've vaped stems only, and gotten plenty high. Ever since then, I've not bothered from removing small stems when I grind for vaporizing.