blindowl
goin to some place where I've never been before
I think that even if the heat shield emited some smell, it's isolated from the airpath.
More wristbands may not help like on the old metal cloud. I have over a dozen of wristbands on the top of my EVO and i think it can gen even hotter beacuse it's can't loose heat as fast. Without so much wristbands, it can't ever get warm below the top, but with them, the middle gets warm slowly and it remains cold only at the very base of the unit. I can't wait for my first vapexhale heat shield.
When I plug the intake on my unit I don't get any combustion. I just can't pull at all until i release it. If you're getting combustion this way, you should check your bamboo for cracks.
The only way I can combust with the EVO is to pull really slowly for a long time on a high-end temperature setting.
Sorry i should of explained better. Its not that it gets into my hit, but when i'm using a smaller bubbler with it and the EVO/shield is somewhat close to my face while hitting it, i can smell the slight odor that comes from it while i'm inhaling and its not pleasant at times. Thanks for the tips on the wristbands. I'll stick it out with the heat shield, hopefully the smell goes away or i will just stop noticing it. With the shield i can grab it almost anywhere, except the very top, and it doesnt feel too hot on my hand.
I was resting the EVO on my knee while holding it so i think I probably blocked the airway, while still allowing some air to get through. That was the only way I have combusted so far. I just keep it on the table now and I'm getting beautiful hits at 3 o clock, with varying color of abv with different material. From light brown to dark brown.
Welcome to the FC forum and the EVO thread!
Re the nail, the key there is that less is more, both less material and less heat. The extraction efficiency is phenomenal. You might search on posts in this thread about the VXN by @Enchantre. She is very experienced and has done a lot of great experimenting with the VXN and various concentrates. Once you get the routine down, it actually is quite simple. And, you'll be getting a higher output ratio too, making for greater economy. (I find the same is true with flowers.)
Capping the bottom air intake is called "throttling." It's a technique some of us used with the earlier generation Clouds to change the air ratio. With the EVO's new firmware, not only unnecessary but a bad idea, as you discovered. If the EVO combusts, something is amiss with machine and/or technique.
About the ABV . . . The EVO is strictly speaking a combination conduction/convection machine but with the convection doing by far most of the work. (Note that proper loading of the ELB and keeping it clean is very important.) Depending on your herb, it is not uncommon for the herb to be fully extracted and yet not that very dark, almost burnt, color that other vapes produce. In other words, with the EVO more is at work than just raw heat. Many of us have tested this by taking ABV from the EVO and vaping it through another machine, only to find no more vapor being produced.
Hope some of that helps. Keep us apprised of your progress. And again, welcome.
--OBG
Thanks OBG for all the info and the warm welcome. Was a fun weekend playing with the EVO. Reading back some posts and seeing some more recent ones from Enchantre and macbill was very informative. You are quite right, it really is just getting used to your EVO and VXN. It all becomes routine quick. As soon as i see a little bit of vapor coming out of the top of the nail, i put the HT on, count to 8, turn off the EVO finish off the 10 count, draw slow and get a nice milk hit. Getting very nice hits now in the 10-12 range with the VXN and very small amounts of residue left over, which i just burn off after. That part still makes an unpleasant smell but i've got 2 VXN's so I can wait and do the burnoff every other time. As someone else mentioned i think the quartz nails have a curved bottom rather than a flat one, i think that may provide a more even extraction and leave less residue.
As for the ELB's, i have noticed that i am getting buildup on the top cap pretty quick. Maybe I am using too fine of a grind. I tend to over grind. I have to keep cleaning those daily, probably should order some spares. You are right about the ABV, it can be deceptive. Some material i can hit at the 3 o clock mark, get 3-4 nice draws and its still light brown. Its a fun learning process.