as to the EO core, i am only getting air flow thru the set screw holes. if i cover them i have no air flow. is this normal?
I'm having trouble linking what you're doing at the moment and normal, but that aside if you're not getting air with the holes plugged you're overfilled and/or plugging the vents. Normally you vent in just above the threaded part, under the skirt. Air that gets in past the screws then up the gap between the heater sleeve and the body to make it to the vapor path is normally insignificant relative to that I think.
Maybe. I'm still working on that normal idea......
Enjoying, but still trying to really get the 'feel' for Cera LL. I was reading the vaporpedia entry on using Cera LL and was wondering: Once you successfully complete step 2 and are getting vapor, On step 3 does slow inhale=thicker vapor or does faster inhale=thicker vapor? Or is that simplifying it too much? I thought that pulling the hot air through faster might mean more hot air to the flowers, but maybe it doesn't give the hot air as much 'snuggle time' with the flowers to produce enough vapor?
Great question, not an easy answer in absolute terms. The idea of step 2 is to get the lot right up to the magic temperature so the next little bit of heat transferred in is going to push some lucky part over the edge into vapor and ultimately the happy owner. Not making anything any hotter, using the energy to boil off the good stuff. At that point it's a lot like a pan of boiling water in there, turn up the fire more boiling happens but the temperature doesn't really go up much at all.
If you've managed heat right when you hit the end of step 2 and get a solid test puff, you should be there. Having taken the better part of minute getting there, the zirconia chamber is up to speed with the load insde it. All the inner surfaces of the oven (and everything between) having rocketed up to just under 400F to make that puff happen thick and easy. Honk on it if you want, the more hot air in, the more vapor can be made. Sip if that's the plan. Stuff it in the WT and have a go. Just don't let it cool off too much (or it's back to step 2 looking for a new test puff).
There's a limit of course, several things like running out of THC in the load can spoil the fun. As can having the core cool off too much. To a certain point the ceramic is a great refractory material. You can get if very hot and it's properties don't change much. In practice the core mass gets to the stable state you see watching it. At that point it's not getting any hotter, the extra heat energy is instead now heating more and more of the body nearby the hottest part, the heat is spreading. Slowly, because it's a good insulator, but that just means the center is hotter so it transfers more heat outward and so on. We can draw a fair bit out of the core with drafting without doing much but slow the heat buildup in the body some. This savings is added to the power delivered from the battery to keep the core hotter longer in the hit. This stuff was all scaled carefully, of course. Heater power against load size against insulation against heating speed and so on into the night.
We're given a range of control on this with timing, battery charge, cutting power, draw speed and so on but that control is limited in scope for the obvious reasons.
All in all a pretty well thought out machine I think? By all means try different techniques, it's pretty hard to go too far wrong. Please don't take that as a challenge? You'll find something you'll like, or several techniques. That you shoud take as a challenge.....
Good luck with it.
Don't let this test go on too long though, you'll burn your lips of course…
Sounds like good advice to me. I'll take your word for it, I chickened out and used the hose trick.....
Good observation.
OF