Tom Funk
Well-Known Member
The point of the ceramic is that has all the advantages of glass but is much stronger. So yes, it is much stronger than the alternatives given what TET was aiming for. I don't see a need for it in the handle though.
TF
Discontinued Thermovape Cera
- Thread starter SameOldTim
- Start date
The point of the ceramic is that has all the advantages of glass but is much stronger. So yes, it is much stronger than the alternatives given what TET was aiming for. I don't see a need for it in the handle though.
TF
Soflo
Only birdshit and fools
OF
Well-Known Member
The vents are hard to find. Look at the top of the screw connector, there's a shoulder that stops the threading in? It has a little chamfer on the top and a gap between it and the core? Air enters there. There's a similar chamfer (like a tiny countersink cut) on the bore of the body you can't see well that leads to the four vent holes in the body of the threaded piece that finally lets the air in at the bottom of the heater.
Very hard to see, even when clean and the light is good. The clean part is a clue, the oil you find in the area on used cores is most likely coming out those same vents.
Goes luck.
Edit: On the topic of the ceramic construction. I too think it has drawbacks as a body (and maybe even a cap and MP in EO use?) but there's no denying it's a big plus in the LL core for which it was originally designed. It makes an interesting 'fashion statement' in the body perhaps, but I too would welcome a reduction it weight and prefer dents to cracks.
But keep that ceramic cart, it's a winner!
OF
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It might be stronger, but its also easier to crack. Never had an issue with the T1 or ultra dropping it, but ive seen other people on here that simply drop their cera onto pavement from standing or getting out of a car and the body is cracked afterwards...
I dont know if thats covered by the lifetime warranty, or is even repairable or if there is a fee replacement or something but I know everytime i take mine somewhere I hold my breath when someone else is holding it on cement/hard floor. Also I worry cause of the countless cellphones ive broken by leaving on my lap and then getting out of my car. I can easily see the same thing with the cera.
If someone that has cracked their cera body could comment on how they proceeded it might ease my mind and some others. Because right now my fear is that i crack it and i have to buy a new body. Which has me searching for alternatives
Thanks for the explanation... and I totally agree with everything else you said. If my (loose leaf) Cera body was metal, I don't think I would be able to use it the way I like to because it would burn my hands. But the ceramic cart and mouthpiece assemblys are genius design, and shouldn't go anywhere!
My ideal Cera would keep the fully ceramic airpath but otherwise move to either a heavily insulated metal body, or... idk- something stronger that insulates better. Carbon fiber would be really cool... but probably cost waaaay too much, even with that new version of it that Boeing and Lamborghini came up with. And the switch... Idk if I should be blaming the switch design or the copper "flex strip" or whatever it's called that completes the circuit, but it seems to be a weak point. My switch died after idk... maybe 6 months of use, and the body of my Cera always gets hot right next to the switch.
Oh yeah- someone mentioned "strap problems"... what does that refer to? the "flex strip"? if so that's probably part of what's wrong with my Cera.
I'm eagerly awaiting the next Cera!
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Quetzalcoatl
DEADY GUERRERO/DIRT COBAIN/GEORGE KUSH
Stick to LL IMO. It's still got a lot of plant matter, I believe bubble hash usually tops out around the mid 50%'s in terms of cannabinoid content... that's half the stuff you want and half the stuff you don't getting caught up on the ceramics... quick fouling.
darkrom
Great Scott!
Good call. Better save the EO for BHO and ISO, and the bubble I can gladly throw on top of bud in the LL or straight up in the LL (where it seems to hit FOREVER).
OF
Well-Known Member
Oh yeah- someone mentioned "strap problems"... what does that refer to? the "flex strip"? if so that's probably part of what's wrong with my Cera.
I'm eagerly awaiting the next Cera!
You're welcome.
The strap in question is the one on the inside of the tube that connects the ring for the tail cap to the screw plate. It's been changed in attachment several times. The latest being spot welded at both ends and had the installation modified to prevent scoring the copper or putting too much stress. In the past there have been connection problems on both ends and breaks at the top, that seems to have mostly stopped with the latest revisions.
A problem that doesn't exist with metal bodies of course.
And about waiting for that repackaged part? Line forms to the rear.....
OF
Be careful with your hash/herb ratios when using hash in the LL! I let one of my friends use my Cera unsupervised, and he did like a 70/30 split... It hit forever, and was super strong... but afterwards my LL cart was seriously gunked up and required MANY boils and iso dunks to get clean. I'm not saying don't do it, it works GREAT, but I reccomend sticking to ~50/50 ratios (unless your have strait up solventless or full ment... then you probably have a bit more leeway as those seem to leave less residue. still, if it were me I would start at 50/50 and slowly creep up).
I actually have two LL carts so I don't have to be as inconvenienced if one accidentaly gets gunked up (Which is probably a bit over the top- I jut had the oportunity to get an extra one new for $50 and went for it).
Happy hash vaping
darkrom
Great Scott!
How did you get one for $50?!
The few times I used hash straight up in the LL was bubble and it worked just fine. For cleaning the residue I just heated it up hot and scraped it all back into a little ball while it was hot. Worked great for me, but I'll be very careful. Worst case I'll clean it, but so far cleaning has been a total nonissue with the cera. I can usually clean it in about 3 minutes to near perfect. So far so good
The few times I used hash straight up in the LL was bubble and it worked just fine. For cleaning the residue I just heated it up hot and scraped it all back into a little ball while it was hot. Worked great for me, but I'll be very careful. Worst case I'll clean it, but so far cleaning has been a total nonissue with the cera. I can usually clean it in about 3 minutes to near perfect. So far so good
I agree that the ceramic mouthpiece is a genius design, i just wish the mouthpiece stayed the same but switched to a different material. It just gets soo hot towards the middle to end of a single pack with the LL that it makes it unusable. I cant even touch my lips to it halfway through a pack and then have to wait a good 20-30 mins before i can even touch it to get it off. The top cap while it gets hot is not really the issue cause i can hold it elsewhere, i just need a better mouthpiece for LL but something that is just as sleek. I saw other members with those silicone ear plugs and regular mouthpiece but i dont feel save putting something designed for an ear in my cera which gets really hot. And i also dont know how i couldo keep the leaf from getting everywhere
As far as the body, im liking it the more and more i use it. Have gotten used to the button and the weight isnt really an issue for me. I can keep it in my pocket all day no problem. The only thing that worries me is the banging against my leg when im wearing loose shorts or pants.
Im still eagerly anticipating the cera 2.0/mini/lite but as long as i dont have any more issues with mine (besides having to get it switched from soldered to welded) i dont know if i can justify spending the money on another body..
VapoRoor
DAB-a-DAB I'll dooooo
Did you end up getting a shipping notification?
OF
Well-Known Member
Lots of good thoughts there. Like you I kind of like the 'heft' of the Cera, and having other options, don't feel many of the traditional complaints hinder my vaping, I can always change to another vape if the mood strikes me. I understand not everyone has the luxury of back up vapes (although I think a guy should always have backup for mission critical equipment). I also can see how the Cera package does not appeal, not everyone is going to appreciate what a neat material it is.
Which brings me to the above quote.....I agree, it can get hot if your session is more than a few minutes long. From the early days of Beta Testing I've kept an inch or so of high temperature silicone tube in the kit. I'm on my third, lost one, the second got ugly, the 3rd's in service and doing fine.
Anyway, back to heat. This is serious wizz bang ceramics, it should do well with thermal shock, why not just dip the end in cold water? Thermal conduction to liquids is generally pretty good, I bet it would cool it off (at least a ways in). Thinking out loud here, but that could let you get hold of it faster?
OF
Tom Funk
Well-Known Member
Thats a good idea. I usually just use a towl to get the top off when im done so dumping it in cold water after will certainly help with cool down time. But that still doesnt solve the problem of it getting too hot halfway or towards the end of a pack. I guess the silcone is a solution, but id rather have some sort of actual mouthpiece that doesnt burn my lips. Like maybe just the same Ceramic mouthpiece just made with delrin or something else
OF
Well-Known Member
Understood. I never said pretty or elegant, just effective. At one point I suggested they make the hole in the end bigger, the right size to take a drip tip. I don't recall the answer exactly, but obviously it wasn't 'we'll give that a try'. I think it should be ceramic, through the UFO section at least.
IIRC the stuff is machined 'green' (not final fired), so boring it out should be pretty simple (machine programing, no new molds needed?
OF
Fair enough.... I apparently have a high tolerance for heat, plenty of patience, and glass for bigger Cera sessions- so the mouthpiece heating up hasn't really bothered me (and if I started to have problems, I would go for silicone like OF mentioned). I agree that having to go there is annoying, but I guess biased...
I love the mouthpiece design because I have kinda sensitive allergies, and thus mys sinuses can give me grief over almost nothing, so the filtering done by the mouthpiece (alongside the ceramic airpath) is kind of a godsend for me.
We shall see what comes next
VapoRoor
DAB-a-DAB I'll dooooo
OF
Well-Known Member
Yeah, but..... (doncha just love it when it starts that way?) that's for routine practice, because it's not needed.
But it's allowed, if needed/wanted.
It's also not recommended to put normal hash overloads in this herb cart. While bubble is OK, I think the OP made it clear his cart had been seriously abused?
Out of curiosity, why do you think boiling damaged your cart? TIA
OF
Rocco
Well-Known Member
Soo thought Id make an update.
Cera is showing the same characteristics it has shown each time ive sent it in before...So yeah its heating up only when pressure is applied to the cart. When it DOES actually light up the core glows but the heat is felt more in the body around the plate that holds the cart in place.
Cera is showing the same characteristics it has shown each time ive sent it in before...So yeah its heating up only when pressure is applied to the cart. When it DOES actually light up the core glows but the heat is felt more in the body around the plate that holds the cart in place.
OF
Well-Known Member
Although I don't understand how it can hurt, I don't doubt that advice was given. My source on the 'it's allowed but should not be needed' is Noah, the guy who designed the thing to start with. He told me I could (it was a popular design feature carried over from former products) So I passed that along to the good folks here....and still believe it.
Thanks for the link, truth be known I was asked to review and comment on the draft. If you look close you might spot a few of my strange expressions? Note also please the 'don't use ultrasonics' and 'don't mess with the screws'? Also once common (but IMO inappropriate) bits of free advice. They too were in conflict with the designers intent I think, now corrected.
Notice boiling is recommended for the EO carts (where it's more necessary). The LL cart is made in the same basic way from exactly the same materials. I see no logical reason why it would be a problem in one case but not the other.
If I knew of a guy with the OP's problem, I'd recommend a good boil first in fact.
Thanks for answering. Wish I had some insight on what caused your original problem, but I strongly doubt it had anything to do with boiling. I must have boiled my Beta test LL cart over a dozen times in the first month alone, every time I switched strains or technique, until I finally understood it did nothing of use in routine cases, although I still recommend a short boil after ISO soaks to drive out the alcohol. If you keep after it, and don't put anything but herb or bubble in as that manual advises, wiping is faster, easier and I think totally effective. No need for ISO soaks or boiling.
At the risk of repeating myself, this has the classic hallmarks of a strap connection issue at the screw plate. Putting side pressure on the cart for any reason is not right. Did they replace the strap assembly (screw plate, strap and ring as a welded unit)? Since it's intermittent, it can be missed on their end?
Please let me repeat my offer to intercede for you there if you think that will help.
OF
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Well crap... I boiled my core like 5 times. It usually really shouldn't be necessary, but in the case of my Cera, some bubble hash really did a number on it- there is still a faint brown ring at the bottom of the core after the aforementioned boils and a cumulative few days of 99% iso soaking. It's not as bad as it was, but still... But the main reason I boiled the core was that like half of the core's airholes (the ones in the bottom of the bowl) were almost completely clogged with the black residue hash can leave. It was all probably only a problem because all this didn't get cleaned for days, but... yea.
I just hope my core isn't damaged because it is one of the old hand-wound ones, and it seems to heat a bit faster than my current one- though that could be my imagination as my cera is not firing on all cylinders atm.
OF
Well-Known Member
OK, two bits of advice. First off, while it's all soggy and all (either water or ISO, I've done both) use a wooden toothpick to gently poke the junk down, into the heater. Yeah, I know, but hang on.
Then do a serious 20/20/20 burn on it, boil it one more time and see what you get? I've been there, I was given some really fine, free flowing bubble to try once....wish I'd put a little herb in first that time.
Good luck.
OF