First... thanks to all of the posters here!!! This is
by far the best forum for vape info. I think part of the reason is because it's hard to end up here on accident. This is a thriving and exciting community.
I've had a VB vape for about five years, but I figured I'd wait for the technology to advance before getting another one. Wow! There are so many options now; it's great to have all of these choices! I chose (thanks in large part to this forum) the VG to be my next one.
Anyways, here's my take so far. My first use was today, and I must say that it is
perfect for me. I like to conserve, so efficiency is key. I wanted my first try to be with as little as possible. I loaded just enough dry grind to cover about 5/8th of the screen. Originally, I had the whole screen covered, but I decided to really test it.
Success! This thing works quite well. I'm sure I could have used less. The technique was pretty much as has been described in this thread, but here are some things I noticed:
1. I did barely touch the wood closest to the bowl, and now there's a little mark there. It doesn't look burnt, though; it looks like it has been lightly stained. Any more of that, and it would more burnt. I blame myself for this since I moved the jet flame around a bit too much.
Notice that this was the VG and
not the dry grind! The grind was nowhere near burnt at the end of the session.
2. If you use a jet flame, then you really don't need to move it around all that much. I moved it around a bit too much, which led to the mark on the wood. Really, some minimal movement (if any at all) of the flame is necessary for even coverage.
3. For those who do want to use a jet flame, keeping the flame above the bowl is perfect. There is no need at all for the flame to even enter the bowl. I think this is where some people erroneously burn their loads. Just a series of two or three seconds on/ one second off of the torch (with a nice, slowly paced draw), and there will be no worry at all about burning. Even after reading and watching videos, I am pleasantly surprised with the results.
EDIT: just noticed FEAR420's post. Yes, absolutely use the
lowest setting on a jet flame lighter. There's no need to turn it up at all. Good call, FEAR420.
I was able to get about four nice hits. It is very efficient. Form start to finish, it took about three minutes tops. I checked the grind two or three times during the session, and the top part was more warm than hot. Burning yourself from that shouldn't be an issue unless the sessions are quite long. If there are several people, I'd suggest waiting awhile in between people.
For my next vape, I would like to get the PD, but the wait list
is so long. Honestly, the brass thing for the MZ scares me. Perhaps the DBV or the SSV. Are my current (standard VB-type) whips compatible to either one of them?
The VG is definitely a winner in my opinion. It is portable enough for me. I wouldn't be able to vape with it on the bus, but I wouldn't want to with any other vape, either.
If anyone has any questions, I'll be glad to answer them. I will probably give updates every now and then. It is solidly built and looks like it'll last a very long time.