I used a modified version of Sui Sugi Ban on the body, I think it came out amazing, much richer color! I might try going darker but I want to see how I feel about this in a month. I also sanded it down to 320, it's now smooth as a baby's bottom, I sanded AFTER the Sui Sugi Ban treatment. It now feels like a smooth pebble in the hand. I also took the opportunity to soak the body in white vinegar 5% concentration, the mildly fishy taste of the oak was bothering me. It is now greatly reduced.
I removed the PCB, and inspected the remaining components, I decided that nothing in there would be opposed to a soak in a mildly acidic solution, it would actually help remove any (if any) minute corrosion on the stainless steel coils, in effect cleaning it.
The unit still works, but I could see how people might ruin their device, so please don't do this, I made calculated risks, knowing full well that the device might be irrevocably damaged.
I would say that making aftermarket body's should be
trivial, as of now I haven't seen a non-destructive way to liberate the heater, so any such adventure would be a one-way trip, carbs, ultra-efficient heat recirculation, powerbase attachment? (easy way to connect to a suitable PSU for passthrough?)
Honestly, guys, modeling custom body's for this should be a joke, Ceramic body anyone?
I'm seeing a lot of potentials, I need to take some time to organize the ideas
. I freaking love this thing, big HUG for the creator!
ps, there was some mild shrink in the wood, if feels more dense, everything still fit's, I expected it, but yea FYI