Two week hiatus to cool down and I decided to try the Herc out again today. I mean, I'm not perfect. I could just be fucking up, right?
I try the Black Rod again for the second time since buying. Not only does it not heat up, the fucker gets stuck inside of the chamber. I try every method used to prize the White Rod out, and nothing works. Finally, after wrapping the bottom of the rod in a bit of cloth to protect it, I try to use pliers to spin it out, and something happens!
THE ROD BROKE. So now I try to take out the remaining piece from within in the heating chamber, and guess what, IT SNAPS THERE TOO. Now I have an amazingly durable piece of ceramic stuck inside the top chamber. I don't know what kind of weapons grade ceramic is used in production, but NOTHING got it out. I ended up having to bend the thread slots away and knock that piece of shit out with no small measure of effort and with the loss of one of the thread slots. Cool! Now it matches my receiving slot.
So now I have a broken Black Rod, a broken top chamber, a gram of wax, and absolutely no faith left. I am down to my last one percent with trying to make this work. I mean, my first Persei comes broken. My Herc comes broken then blows the brand new tops I drove to LA to swap out. And I'm not sure the San Diego session really fixed the issue more than make the Herc work for about 3 days. Ever since it's been on and off performance.
Now don't get me wrong, when the Hercules works it kicks ass. But mine works less than half the time and that sucks ass. I'm tired of wasting time and money. Of reading everyone else's success and feeling like a retard. I'm really appreciative @THCSCIENTIFIC that you even drove here to help, but it really shouldn't take a trip by the manufacturer to have the product resemble what it should be. And really, my friends with G Pens shouldn't be able to top the performance of the Persei, they should be tripping over themselves asking about the Hercules. But they can't. Because mine has always been broken.
Now what can I do to get this fixed permanently? To not spend half my afternoon trying to get it to work. To get it working, set it down, and have it not working again? It's not user error any more, I have ruled that out in such meticulous, soul sucking trouble shooting.
G, I need a new unit that you can guarantee, without a doubt, and without a drive to San Diego, works. Please. I'm done wasting time, money, oil, and happiness. I take wax to lower High blood pressure, dude. Not to increase it.
edit: As I go to the sink to retrieve my pieces drying from alcohol, I knocked the mouthpiece in to the drain. Today gets better and better.