VapCap Induction Heater for Desktop and in Car Use

[Pipes]

Here are the specs for the BMS:

Maximum discharge current: 10A
Overcharge detection voltage: 4.25-4.35V±0.05V
Over-discharge detection voltage: 2.3-3.0V±0.05V <--Means turns off at 2.3v and turns back on when 3v is detected on a per-cell basis.
Maximum working current: 5A-8A

A typical protection circuit.

 

[Siebter]

Thx again, @Pipes

 

[phattpiggie]

FFS @Pipes has sold his soul to Canada Post.
4 days and they are on my doorstep.

 

[Mr. Me2]

FFS @Pipes has sold his soul to Canada Post.
4 days and they are on my doorstep.

Can’t wait to see what you do with those! All going in your cubes, or do you have something else in mind?

 

[phattpiggie]

@Mr. Me2 Maple Burr cubes, Leadwood cylindrical and a special blank I've asked for.

 

[KindBuddyBud]

Hey FC. New guy to the dynaverse here, need some help from the vapcap vets. I’m on the waiting list for pipes portside mini. I’m thinking about ordering pipes bare bones diy kit as well. I found a sweet cigar box today in cigar shop that’ll be a nice desktop ih. Does the BB come with a wiring diagram? Are there tutorials or videos for assembly? I’m pretty good with a soldering iron, so I’m not too worried about that. Is it possible to put the power supply in the box itself? links to fc boards would be great. Thanks
maybe I should just get the caldron... idk

 

[Pipes]

To make a desktop is pretty straight forward. You just need the driver assembly and home harness along with the supply. No soldering needed as just two bullet type connectors that go to the 5.5x2.1mm port.
These parts come to $55. So $20 more for Caldron, you get the enclosure with the holes punched out and stuff premounted for you.

 

[KindBuddyBud]

To make a desktop is pretty straight forward. You just need the driver assembly and home harness along with the supply. No soldering needed as just two bullet type connectors that go to the 5.5x2.1mm port.
These parts come to $55. So $20 more for Caldron, you get the enclosure with the holes punched out and stuff premounted for you.

Thanks @Pipes. I’ll pm you.

 

[KindBuddyBud]

Just paid for the caldron last night and pipes had it in the mail today. What a turnaround! Thanks @Pipes

 

[endof3d]

Just paid for the caldron last night and pipes had it in the mail today. What a turnaround! Thanks @Pipes

Once you own a Caldron, the hardest, most difficult and time consuming activity is waiting for it to be delivered. After that it’s all smooth sailing.

 

[KindBuddyBud]

Once you own a Caldron, the hardest, most difficult and time consuming activity is waiting for it to be delivered. After that it’s all smooth sailing.

lol. So true, my patience was tested waiting for my dynavap m. I’m off to check tracking again.

 

[endof3d]

Cap still clicks as normal with the BEST most evenly heated AVB of any of my vapes.

That’s the beauty/magic of a Caldron and other IH that developers have sweated long hours to dial in the hardware to produce the best experience and maximum extraction. No small feat, considering some chase big clouds, while other prefer cooler multiple hits. Ordered a glass water piece and assume I’ll need to extend a second or two after the click. Perfect.

 

[phattpiggie]

Had a few problems with power supplies so moved away from the regular black boxes.
This one is 10a so it's quick to the click. Just needs a nice enclosure.

 

[KindBuddyBud]

Just got my caldron IH from pipes today. So pumped to try it out! I’ll check back in to let you guys know how this science experiment went. Thanks @Pipes

 

[warren0728]

Just got my caldron IH from pipes today. So pumped to try it out! I’ll check back in to let you guys know how this science experiment went. Thanks @Pipes

you’re gonna love it! i love mine

 

[KindBuddyBud]

you’re gonna love it! i love mine

I do, I love it! I’m extra groovy at the moment

 

[KindBuddyBud]

I’ve been running the Caldron for a few days now, with the titanium tip. I just put in the stainless 2019 m tip in. Now I have a question, do you notice a different terp profile with the different tips? or am I trippin’ ?

 

[Grams83]

Got it nailed!!! Except for the switch, which I have a good idea but have to find what I'm thinking about. Will end up being a China solution no doubt. Looking for a MosFet solution already pre mounted on small board. Seems to be lots with Arduino stuff. So will be a month or two before this prototype is done. As you can see below, there is a space reserved for this. Until then, just using a bulky external button switch I put together.
Anyway..............
........................
The end result of tonight's efforts.



Couple highlights of the production. Feel free to click on a picture to browse the album.



In this picture I had the glass tube installed. Found that it is not needed and without it adjusting the end point of insertion depth is much easier. Wanted to avoid the glass having to go through the lid. I just used a piece of a wooden stir stick which wedges nicely between the coils. This will also end up being the heat/time adjustment. Along with stretching the coil some or pushing closer together.




Had some perf board sitting around which I used as a base to mount the stuff onto. I used a small amount of epoxy to glue it to the lid. Can be pried back off if a new cup is found that the lid doesn't fit.


Fun stuff!!!

That’s awesome

 

[TheThriftDrifter]

Hey.

I've got a spare 14.4v nicad cordless drill battery pack laying around.
I was wondering, is 14.4v is too much for my 5-12v induction module?

If it was too high a voltage, I was thinking about removing two cells to lower it to 12v, but then would I still be able to use the supplied 14.4v charger on the converted 12v battery pack?

Cheers.

 

[TommyDee]

I have seen one advertiser list this same unit as a 150W IH and he changed the input upper end to 15V.
It would impart a little more heat for the given mass and draw a correlated additional amount of power.

This is the listing... NOT MY AUCTION!
https://www.ebay.com/itm/150W-ZVS-I...703944?hash=item4446fc1dc8:g:RboAAOSw7e5bOxWY

If you doubt they are identical, which may be true, you could always source this one instead.

 

[TheThriftDrifter]

I have seen one advertiser list this same unit as a 150W IH and he changed the input upper end to 15V.
It would impart a little more heat for the given mass and draw a correlated additional amount of power.

This is the listing... NOT MY AUCTION!
https://www.ebay.com/itm/150W-ZVS-I...703944?hash=item4446fc1dc8:g:RboAAOSw7e5bOxWY

If you doubt they are identical, which may be true, you could always source this one instead.

Yeh I've seen something similar, a 5-15v module on aliexpress, but when you look at the photos and specs it says 5-12v, so I'm a bit sceptical.

Cheers.

 

[TommyDee]

Kind of like all the cell rating wars where an 18650 came up with the miraculous capacity of 8,000mah!
It is all about making the extra buck over the other guy trying to screw you claiming 7,800mah.

But from an IH perspective, that may not matter quite as much. This circuit is as much dependent on sinking the heat from the devices as it is about imparting energy to excited electrons in the metal. As you increase voltage, you will also increase the steady state power draw from all the relevant losses and extra energy within the system. When you warm up your vape, extra power is required. Question is, how much of the initial capability of 120W are we consuming? If we were at the limit already, then yes, you need additional cooling on the unit. But if we were drawing say 90W just due to geometry and material type and you are now drawing 110W with the extra 2.4V, then you are still within spec allotting the remaining available 10 watts to greater inefficiencies in the system.

What really kills systems like this, barring open circuit errors, is the FET not getting cooled. Similarly for the ferrite coils since that wire is pushing all the current. If you heatsink the FETs and/or provide moving air at a pretty good clip, you can certainly go past the specs. You can up the wire gauge for the two ferrited coils (chokes) but maintain the original turn count (28 turns?). You can even double the FET's without penalty AFAIK.

Until mine gets here I can't do any real experiments. I have every reason to try to get the most out of this unit for other fabrication projects but that will tell me for sure how hard we are driving these.

BTW; how long is the runtime to get two clicks from the vapecap?

 

[TheThriftDrifter]

@TommyDee

BTW; how long is the runtime to get two clicks from the vapecap?less

Using a 12v car battery as my power source, so far the click has always come in 6 seconds or less, I might run a second over if I want some extra heat up in there. Any idea on using a 14.4v nicad charger on a 12v nicad pack?

 

[Pipes]

Yeah, a play with numbers. They could have changed out the FETs for ones with a higher source to drain voltage rating as the ones are generally rated around 40 volts which we are already pushing with the 12 volts as it gets kicked up with the induction oscillating circuit to that limit and over. However, I have my doubts if they went that far.
The main point is as @TommyDee said about having good heat sinks. It is possible to drive at a higher voltage but for a much shorter amount of time. Continuos use would be impossible as it already is with our current 12 volts. It needs some cooldown time but it is fine for our application.
Actually, if you look for IH heaters rated 200 - 500 watts your find ones that circuit is almost identical but have much bigger heat sinks. Go higher than that and you need to have a fan and a cooling system for the work coil as well.
I would not get excited over the extra 3 volts rating they throw in the specs.

 

[Pipes]

@TommyDee

Using a 12v car battery as my power source, so far the click has always come in 6 seconds or less, I might run a second over if I want some extra heat up in there. Any idea on using a 14.4v nicad charger on a 12v nicad pack?

Your getting good fast time as a car battery will have virtually zero voltage sage. "If" you want to slow it down, you could always go a little thinner wire gauge or lengthen the wire some. This will introduce more voltage drop across the input wire.
If going with a 14.4-volt battery, start with a 4' lead wire and compare click speeds. If too fast, use a thinner gauge wire. Cut down until you get that 8 second goal.