Underdog Log Vapes

[stroh]

barca, let your dog heat up for 45 minutes to an hour or so and then try hitting it. if it still doesn't produce visible vapor, there is definitely something going on. like someone mentioned, make sure the back plug is all the way inserted, it can be easy to have it pull out a little, and then your piece will be running too cool for viable vapor hits. i have not weighed out my stems, but i would guess i use about .1-.2 per stem load, possibly even less. however, i find that the more herb you use, the denser the hits become, about 1cm of herb covering the screen sounds like plenty. report back if none of these remedies work, i find that the pieces should be warmed up for a little while longer for the first "break in" periods, then should heat up in the normal time once regular use has been established.

originally i did not touch my screen placement, however the new core is slightly shorter so i lowered the screen in my original 3/8" stem by a slight amount accordingly. the 1/4" screen i had lowered significantly, which created much hotter vapor in the maple twig, putting it slightly behind the tupelo goblet in terms of hotness, which is probably the hottest hitting log i have ever used, by the way gonzo, i am glad to hear that you have been enjoying her, such a wonderfully unique and incredibly performing vape!

i am loving this afzelia burl, the grain pattern is awesome and the different color tones of the wood are lovely to behold when vaked

 

[Gonzo]

The Goblet is still going strong Stroh. Dave and I have worked through a few problems with it but it is still a hard hitting vape. The Tupelo wood is very soft and the heat really tears it up. The upside to this is it hits extremely hard.

 

[underdog]

Hey barca - something doesn't sound quite right.. are you keeping the piece plugged in between uses? If not I'm wondering if it just needs more time to get up to temp, 1 hour should more than do it but I'd suggest leaving it on indefinitely and see if it ever gets to powerful vaping temp or not.

The new power supplies are sensitive to low line voltage and produce 12v DC at 120v AC (be gentle techies, I'm making rough statements here) and so if you happen to be in an area where the line voltage is low, say 110v AC then your power supply might only put out 11v DC which can have a big effect on your heat up time and overall temps. This is pretty common (low line voltage) and not a super big deal to work around if it turns out to be the case.

Anyways my suggestion would be to try ever one else ideas too but also just leave the piece plugged in and see if it ever gets up to speed. Even at 11v (if that were the case) it should get up to operating temp it just might take a few hours or more.

 

[Elluzion]

After months of lurking and reading this entire thread, I finally received my first dog on Thursday! I'm still in the process of experimenting to the find the best technique, and I have a couple of questions:
How far should the screen be from the end of the stem? I had my screen almost touching the heater core, and I still ended up with green/golden brown ABV. So far, I have gotten two good milky hits, and both of those were the first hit of a bowl. After that, I feel the effects, but get no visible vapor.
Also, how fast do you guys pull? I have tried pulling very hard, normally, and MFLB-slow, it doesn't really seem to make a difference.
I know the Underdog is capable of producing some thick vapor, so just trying to figure out the details...

Everything you posted seems about right, nothing too out of the ordinary besides MAYBE your ABV color. I would say your ABV from a completed bowl should be atleast brown to dark brown (a majority). Also, I have found that the best ABV comes from loading the stem just enough so when you fully insert it over the core it makes a sandwhich with the core's screen and the stems screen. You get great milky hits this way too, and I've never really had issues with the herb falling in..

I still get some green spots, I wouldn't say the ABV is always perfectly the same color tone all around, so I wouldn't be too worried about that. Also, I normally get a good 2-2.5 milky hits off the UD, then after that they are more wispy, but I can still feel the effects (like you said in your post).

I haven't found any special techniques for this vape. It honestly hits good no matter how hard you pull. My roommates hate me now because I let them take like the first rip out of the UD when they tried it for the first time and one of them coughed like I have never seen anyone cough in my life, it was crazy. I thought she was going to lose a lung! ha. The other one could barely handle it either. The vapor noobs definitely become evident when hitting the UD beware

 

[Gonzo]

I was just about to post that Dave, my Ash piece can also take between 30-60 min to heat up.

 

[underdog]

The Goblet is still going strong Stroh. Dave and I have worked through a few problems with it but it is still a hard hitting vape. The Tupelo wood is very soft and the heat really tears it up. The upside to this is it hits extremely hard.

Hey Gonzo how is the new sleeve in the Goblet holding up so far to the heat? Any movement or looseness? I have a test piece here that is doing well after 2-3 months still but it's in wood a bit (but not too much) heavier than Tupelo..

 

[barca14]

I just tried a stem with a closer screen (barely not touching the heating element), higher quality material, and a load that barely covers the screen.
I hit it about 6 times, alternating long slow pulls and hard pulls. I am feeling the effects, but still got no visible vapor. How many hits does it normally take until the herb is used up? I think I remember some users saying it took them 3-4 hits..
The power supply seems to be working fine as well, I tried blowing in the heating element and had a lot of warm air hit my lips.

 

[Gonzo]

I was gonna Email you today to tell you that I ran into a problem with it yesterday but then the problem stopped. I was getting strange temps that may be something to do with the readings you were getting during testing. I will send you an Email tomorrow.

 

[Gonzo]

Barca I would definitely cover the screen with material (I would say about 1/4 inch off the top of the screen). How long has it been heating?

 

[VaporBoxed]

Are you hitting in the dark or in a low lit room? Hit it under a desk lamp or in the sunlight or with a flashlight or something. If you feel effects you should be getting vapor.

 

[barca14]

Ok, I'll try adding a little more herb after letting it heat up for another 45 minutes.
edit: vaporboxed, I'll try that too. The lighting might actually be the problem now that I think about it. My room has really bright lights, and all of my hits "feel" like big hits that I would get from a MFLB, I just coulldn't see anything.
On another note, does anyone else find that new posts by other members are sometimes delayed a little? I reload the page before I reply, but every time I post something, I reload again to find a new post before mine that I didn't read.

 

[Gonzo]

I would leave the piece plugged in for a while as Dave suggested and try a little more material.

 

[barca14]

Let it heat up for an hour, then packed a stem with some additional herb. I tried the 'sandwich' thing and put in enough herb to snugly fit between the stem screen and the heating element's screen.
I got a crazy good hit on the first hit, but it died out after that.
Packed another stem with the same amount but higher quality, and got one good hit from that too, but it also died out after the first hit.
The lighting made some difference: on the second big hit, I was amazed at how much vapor was actually coming out of my mouth.
My ABV was a darker color, but still not as dark as I make it in my MFLB.
Now that I know what kinds of hits this dog can produce, I guess I just have to keep working out the details for more of those hits!

 

[darkrom]

Barca is this by chance a lower quality herb? I have heard from some others that lower "mids" or lower quality bud doesn't seem to work well in log vapes. I've never had to find out yet.

 

[OhTheAgony]

@ Barca,

Have you tried dumping the herb out of the stem after a hit and then put it back in and try again? You could try repeating this several times if successful.

 

[Gonzo]

I would also recommend stirring after each hit.

 

[MarcellusWiley]

Man I would have to order my UD on the holiday weekend!

the wait is already killing me! I got his leash ready and everything!

 

[SD_haze]

I'm getting fantastic hits but having a lot of difficulty *finishing* the stem.
It seems to always stop producing good vapor once the ABV is a yellow/golden/super light brown.

I tried moving the screen as close as i could possibly, but still wasn't able to achieve brown/dark brown ABV.

I haven't tried stirring at all like Gonzo just mentioned, maybe that will help, but is there any other tips on getting that last 10-15% out of the stem?
With the rockzap I'd just leave the stem heating up in the heatport and it'd always get one or two last clouds

What tool works well for stirring the stem without getting too much particulates in the screen? (I dont have that sexy ssv poker )

 

[Gonzo]

I use an LSV poker but also have used a metal paperclip when in need. With the new power supply Dave is providing I am having the opposite results as you guys. My ABV is coming out a little darker than I would like it. It's coming out about the color of ABV from my WISPR.

 

[OhTheAgony]

Funny, it is a twig you're talking about, right? Have you tried moving the screen closer to the heater?

About those 7thfloor picks, go order a few, they are awesome. I sold my SSV but kept the poker, haha.

I think vapornation offers them for the lowest price, but I don't really keep track of all shops on your side of the pond.

It's basically just a stainless steel nail though, about 1mm think I believe. You may have something in yourshed that works just as well.


edit: also check out post 1803 above ^^

 

[barca14]

Darkrom, I would say the stuff I'm using is at least high mids. All of it vaped fairly well in the MFLB. Maybe packing some more will do the trick. And I might go get some different herb today, so I'll try that too.
I'm stirring every 2 hits by dumping into an altoids container and crushing with my fingers.

 

[underdog]

Darkrom, I would say the stuff I'm using is at least high mids. All of it vaped fairly well in the MFLB. Maybe packing some more will do the trick. And I might go get some different herb today, so I'll try that too.
I'm stirring every 2 hits by dumping into an altoids container and crushing with my fingers.

Hey barca - as an experiment you might also try a different 12v (AC or DC) power supply (at least 1000ma, or 1A, or 10W) if you have access to one that fits to see if it makes a difference, or you might try using the piece at a different location like a friends house or something to see if maybe you do have low voltage.

Then again it does sound like you're getting decent vapor now though at least on the first 1-2 hits so maybe it is medication related..

I'm sure it'll all get sorted out and at least it's a potentially fun troubleshooting processes

 

[MaquinaVapor]

do you reckon I can use this AC/DC adapter to run an Underdog?

http://www.belkin.com/au/IWCatProductPage.process?Product_Id=519252#

 

[underdog]

do you reckon I can use this AC/DC adapter to run an Underdog?

http://www.belkin.com/au/IWCatProductPage.process?Product_Id=519252#

Hi Maquina - it seems to have a voltage range that would work and has plenty of power. I don't know how you select the voltage you want but assuming you can keep it from feeding your UD more than 12-13v then I think it would probably be fine.

Also I don't know what the price is but sometimes I see the Belkin stuff priced really high so if it's in the same price range as this: http://www.amazon.com/MASTECH-HY1803D-VARIABLE-POWER-SUPPLY/dp/B000CSQK5E/ref=pd_cp_e_0 I would recommend the variable type power supply if possible.

 

[jurgenk]

Thank you very much for your time and help Dave in attempting to repair my PD. Customer service is often spoken about by people and often underdelivered; I am always so impressed when someone provides it above and beyond, as I do not even own an Underdog and you were so very helpful. That should be a big part of deciding who you deal with when purchasing a product and Dave definitely delivers it.

Brad