So, I'm pretty obsessed with the VG at this point. Absolutely impressed with the device and how well it performs, and totally addicted to the user experience. Though very analog, the technique is easy to pick up for basic operation. From there it's just a little minigame of dancing the flame closer to get the biggest cloud possible. Plus, it has fire! (which pleases some primal part of my brain.)
In the scope of vaporizers that emulate traditional combustion methods, I think VG's interaction between flame and bowl gets the closest.
I picked up the Glass Mini Sherlock over a month ago, and have greatly enjoyed it since. It's been used most days in some format or another, and is a definite step up from my Handcarved. Like other VG products I've used, it slaps hard and provides full spectrum "combustion like" effects. It requires a bit more of a heat source to get the most out of, but has the capacity to deliver hits that give other direct butane vapes a run for their money.
For instance, the Handcarved likes a 3/4 to 1 inch soft flame, but the Mini Sherlock works best with a 1.25 to 2 inch flame. Just hold the lighter further back and don't let the flame touch the heat exchanger.
I did however do a little mod to the Mini Sherlock to unlock it's full potential. It's designed with the screen sitting loose at the bottom of the "herb cavern". This area can hold a lot of herb, and I imagine you could put a gram in here and it would work wonderfully (with lots of stirring). But normally you just fill that little space with some herb and it does generate lots of clouds as designed.
It also lets ground ABV in around the screen when you stir, because the screen is smaller than the diameter of the chamber. It just shifts around and eventually you suck bits into your mouth when you use it. Plus it gets dirty fast.
After cleaning the device well, I removed the smaller screen at the bottom, and fitted a 3/4 inch screen into the groove right below the frosted joint. This is a "perfect" fit, meaning it fits right and flush in that groove, and doesn't move. Even vigorous stirring doesn't budge it, and no abv gets past except a little powder that makes it's way through the screen.
You can still load about .3 in with the heater top still fitting nicely, and having the herb closer to the heat exchanger matches how it is on the Handcarved.
The "oven" chamber below now becomes an abv dust catch and heat tamer, before vapor passes into the uhook section of the piece. Look at my first picture, and see how clean the reclaim is that is building up after bunch of use with this mod. Vapor temps went from steamy warm to nuetral, and I can get larger clouds easier.
Given how much I enjoy DIY and playing with modularity or reconfiguration, I
love that the heater top follows glass joint connector standards. It's cut short, so a 3/4 inch screen jammed into any 18mm Female connector gives you a whole new VG device!
Every piece comes with it's own vibe, which is delightful. A piece with a carb lets you pause for cool air without letting the heat exchanger cool down or moving the lighter. Fun.
I love VG Mini Sherlock and Grav Sherlock pieces, but I just modified this gandalf yesterday to fit this injector and it's awesome and my new favorite thing:
Almost a foot long of heavy hand blown cobalt glass means you don't think you are getting vapor until you exhale a room filling cloud. I'm enamored. It's huge and the VG top is at perfect comfortable eyeline for flame monitoring.
So yeah, I'm really into these Vaporgenies and am 99% sure I'll buy a Stainless Steel Bat soon.
