How is cleaning the Temptest, and how often does it need to be done? I'm seeing about cleaning the balls, and that sounds like a PITA. I'm wanting one to compliment my Anvil, but I find I have to clean and maintain it very little. I won't go into comparing or asking for comparisons, but I love the little maintenance required, so I'm hoping I can get away with the same if I pick up a Tempest with the rosewood. Any insights? Can I just soak the whole thing (without the wooden shield) and be good to go?
I throw the stem and bowl parts in my usual jar of iso so those bits won't be any different to your regular method I would think.
I do those bits every 7-10 days, or just when it feels like it needs done.
Others just sit the whole thing in iso overnight and rinse/dry in the morning.
I don't clean the head/balls as often as the rest of it, but when I do clean that, I just drop the head in enough fresh iso to totally cover it, leave it for a few minutes then give it a good rinse with really hot water, I would do this if I'd combusted for instance.
I've had mine since around the end of november and the balls have only really needed one proper clean as they were a bit grimey, it will happen eventually but 3 months isn't bad. I admittedly have cleaned them more than once, but only because I'm a bit ocd and I also really like taking my toys to bits.... But yeah, they have only really needed to be cleaned once so far.
For cleaning the balls, I put them in a tub with sugar soap, let them soak, give them a shake and a good rinse and that got them back to more or less new.
Someone else here puts the balls in a tea strainer and torches them, going by the photos that worked really well too and probably a little faster.
It is not complicated to clean, like anything you get used to it and when you know the device it takes no time at all.
put it this way even if i do clean the balls, it only takes slightly longer to clean than a normal dynavap would.