Wood is here.
Just some thoughts for those who maybe ordering their first Tempest in next few days and are unsure on which config to go for.
I have used the TI and glass stems a lot. I have not vaped with the wood stems yet (lungs a little sore from COVID) but I've tried heating the device up 4 times in a row to see how much heat gets transferred, which is the main performance benefit of wood. I can confirm it does a great job of not absorbing the heat. Wood is an exceptionally poor conductor of heat. Something about it not having movable ions. This makes wood a brilliant material choice for some vapes or accessories. This also means there is less mass absorbing the heat, which gives it less cooling. However this seems negligible due to the cooling properties inherent in the Tempest system. You can simply adjust the device anyway you choose and get more cooling whenever you want. I will test this in the coming days. Brenyo confirmed a while back that the wood stem cools less, but only by a small degree. We will have more than enough leeway in our settings to make up for that.
So a quick run down.
TI - Well rounded. Indestructible. Perfect ergonomics, as the rocker action when using the carb is perfect. Looks cool as hell. Easy to clean as submergible in iso. Can get a little hot to the touch lower down the stem when doing back to back heat cycles. I consider this stem to be the one I would most advise for most use cases, as it's so well rounded. If you have this stem, you don't need any others. But you will probably want others for reasons below.
Glass - My least favourite due to lack of ergonomics. Just feels like a smooth tube of glass in the hand. Easy to clean. Possible to break. Also gets hot to touch on repeated heat cycles. I actually think the glass is a little worse than TI for this. Confers better flavour, which is noticed more with low temp vaping. I use this stem when I'm consciously deciding to vape at low temps.
Wood - Again, lovely ergonomics. Nice thickness. Feels really nice rocking on the carb. It does convey a blunt like hand feel. Stays cool to touch, best stem for extended sessions with repeated heat cycles. Looks really nice. I prefer the Ebony which I'm surprised at. It has a more subtle beauty that is only revealed in the light. The Rosewood has a more obvious smack you in the face beauty (both seen below) Most difficult to clean, as it's not submersible. You don't want to get iso on the beautiful wood. You just need some q-tips and iso, to wipe the inside of the lined wall. It's not difficult to clean relative to other devices, just takes more considered effort than the other two stem choices. The quality of these wood stems are top notch. Great value for how much they cost. I would consider these MH wood stems over third parties currently just due to the ergonomics. How these stems feel in the hand is important I feel. I consider the wood stem also a good choice for those of us who covertly use vapes outdoors and don't want to draw too much of an eye. The TI stem is so futuristic and cool looking that people look at it and want to know what it is. A sleek dark wood stem is much more covert, and will be my choice when I'm have a cheeky vape outside a cafe in the springtime (illegal country, but not heavily enforced).
Due to the price of glass and wood stems from MH, I would consider them must haves accessories for future purchases fron Tempest owners. For those who only want one stem I would suggest TI, closely followed by wood. The glass stem seems more supplementary, due to it's breakable nature, and lack of ergonomics. The bonus taste from the glass is nice, but it must be noted that Tempest is a great tasting vape, regardless of stem choice. So it's a minor gain, but will be worth it for low temp flavour chasers.
Please note this is all subjective, but hopefully it can help prospective buyers make a decision based on what is important to them.
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