X-Max Ace Vaporizer by TopGreen

[fifty_shades_of_green]

@PPN: Thx for getting back to us on this and the link to
https://www.cancer.org/cancer/cancer-causes/general-info/cancer-warning-labels-based-on-californias-proposition-65.html

@PPN: from my knowledges about the heating element, it's entirely made of glazed Nano ceramic on a peripheral heater circuit

The chipping on the surface caused by the wear and tear that LesPlenty posted earlier makes me think that the ceramic layer is very thin and some of these particles could be inhaled which is worrying.

I came across an interesting an in depth article about the safety of vaporizers and it mentions many points about ceramic ovens, aluminum and micro particles. It's a bit long but very informative.

Here's the link: https://www.herbonaut.com/are-vaporizers-safe/

I found the following section about ceramic ovens from the above link very interesting and it would be great if PPN could comment on this and the Ace.

Besides a lot of ceramic heating elements are made of Alumina (Aluminum oxide). Although having a much higher boiling point, Alumina has the same potential to leech off unwanted substances as regular Aluminum…when of a low enough quality.

 

[PPN]

@PPN: Thx for getting back to us on this and the link to
https://www.cancer.org/cancer/cancer-causes/general-info/cancer-warning-labels-based-on-californias-proposition-65.html


The chipping on the surface caused by the wear and tear that LesPlenty posted earlier makes me think that the ceramic layer is very thin and some of these particles could be inhaled which is worrying.

I came across an interesting an in depth article about the safety of vaporizers and it mentions many points about ceramic ovens, aluminum and micro particles. It's a bit long but very informative.

Here's the link: https://www.herbonaut.com/are-vaporizers-safe/

I found the following section about ceramic ovens from the above link very interesting and it would be great if PPN could comment on this and the Ace.

Hi, here I got the confirmation from our engineers, the ACE's whole heating chamber is made of ceramic, and then a layer of black glaze is fired at high temperature on the inner wall of the heating chamber. This kind of glaze is common on ceramic products in our daily life, so there is no need to worry about the harm of this glaze to our body.

Now about the @LesPlenty specific issue, it may be the black glaze to be too thin or not well fired (not hot enough). In another hand they suggested the metal like marks could comes from the stainless steel sliding bottom bowl, especially if the layer of black glaze is affected cause the reasons I mentionned above. All in all it's an issue our support team can solve with you, please send them an email here: support@topgreencig.com on my side I contact them in order to inform them you won the unit and don't have any proof of purchase.
Let me know if things are going smooth... or not. Regards.

 

[LesPlenty]

They still have not gotten back to me about the lost mouthpiece, I will try them again, they were very nice to deal with and lost postage can no way be blamed on them.
I will get in touch with them and let you all know how it goes...thanks @PPN.

 

[fifty_shades_of_green]

@PPN: the ACE's whole heating chamber is made of ceramic, and then a layer of black glaze is fired at high temperature on the inner wall of the heating chamber.

Thanks for your quick reply. It's comforting that everything is made of ceramic and not some inferior Alumina mix.

Are there any plans for an Ace 2? If so, what kind of new features or improvements could we look forward to?

@LesPlenty: they were very nice to deal with and lost postage can no way be blamed on them.

Glad to hear that their customer service was helpful and good luck on getting your replacement mouthpiece.

 

[LesPlenty]

Topgreen got back to me and said a new one is underway...I don't know if they mean the mouthpiece or the whole unit but I attached the bowl picture and talked about talking to @PPN about my concerns so hopefully a new unit.
Meanwhile at the zoo,

 

[fifty_shades_of_green]

Topgreen got back to me and said a new one is underway

That's great news! Hope they send you a new unit. It would be interesting to see if they've made any revisions or added new features to the Ace in the meantime. BTW, great photo of the Ace at the zoo! The wood grain version of the Ace really looks great against that background.

Has anyone used the Ace with a WPA? I'd like to put some old bongs to use again and wonder if I'd get better clouds and flavor with a WPA. I sort of remember reading that the WPA for the Xmax Starry is compatible with the Ace but that was awhile ago. The unit and the mouthpiece get pretty hot even if I'm vaping around 200 C. I get pretty nice flavor from the initial first few hits between 170-185C and enjoy the terpenes but then don't taste much afterwards and I really can't see any clouds later on. Lately, I've been adding more material and packing it down more but I still have to stir and unclog the ceramic filter a lot...

I'd love to hear from others whether the WPA is a game changer and how you find the flavor and cloud quality of the Ace compared to other vapes. I don't have much to compare the Ace to except for the Verdamper which really isn't a fair comparison and the Arizer Extreme Q (I didn't have great results with the Arizer). I've seen videos and read reviews about the Sticky Brick and MFLB which are impressive. Is there a way to achieve something like that with the Ace or is that just a pipe dream?

 

[PPN]

Has anyone used the Ace with a WPA?

Like you said it's compatible with the Starry wpa since it's only some tubing with a glass ground connector on a side. Although there is no more direct WPA for the Ace at the moment.

About your questions, the Ace need a fine/medium grounded load packed down since it's conduction, if you want to get clouds I would suggest you to increase your temp, 170-185 is pretty low especially with a portable vaporizer (desktop have more massive heating elements which work better at low t°) so please consider more a 190-205°C as a starting temp and you can go as high as 215-220°C. Taste remains to be vaporized first so after a few tasty hits the taste will progressively fade down. That's a common issue with vaporizers which is still not fixed but we have some ideas...

And I can personnaly achieve very big hits with that Ace, big enough to fog my livingroom!

 

[LesPlenty]

I get great results at 185c but I pack the bowl tight...as tight as I can push in my pinky so the top of the load does not touch the ceramic filter so it stays clean. I do 10 mins at 185c, 10 at 190 or 195c to finish, no stir in between. the second 10 min sesh has that roasted flavour that some don't like...I likey it just fine!!

 

[fifty_shades_of_green]

Thx everyone for your advice from getting better results from my Ace. I'll have to play around with different settings/grinds and see if I can still get a wpa for it.

@PPN: if you want to get clouds I would suggest you to increase your temp, 170-185 is pretty low especially with a portable vaporizer

I usually start with lower temps because I want to get the most from terpenes and really enjoy their flavor.

@PPN: And I can personnaly achieve very big hits with that Ace, big enough to fog my livingroom!

Respect!

@LesPlenty: I get great results at 185c but I pack the bowl tight...as tight as I can push in my pinky so the top of the load does not touch the ceramic filter so it stays clean. I do 10 mins at 185c, 10 at 190 or 195c to finish, no stir in between.

That's really impressive! I've added more material and can go longer without stiring but find the chamber a bit too large for my usual sessions. Can anyone recommend a good reducer or some kind of pod for flower from another vape that works with the Ace? It'd be great to do less maintanence afterwards, hence the idea of a pod but that might affect temp settings.

BTW, are there any updates from Top Green about an Ace 2? I'm interested in what changes/improvements they have in the pipeline...

 

[LesPlenty]

Pods do not work well with conduction based vapes. The Ace works fine with half a bowl...just pack it tight (S&B brush use #101)so the walls of the oven can soak heat through the load...keeps the ceramic filter even cleaner.

Edit. Una at CS just asked if my replacement should be black or wooden so it looks like I will get a completely new unit.

 

[PPN]

Pods do not work well with conduction based vapes. The Ace works fine with half a bowl...just pack it tight (S&B brush use #101)so the walls of the oven can soak heat through the load...keeps the ceramic filter even cleaner.

Edit. Una at CS just asked if my replacement should be black or wooden so it looks like I will get a completely new unit.

It depends although I agree I didn't got good results using pods/caps with the Ace, you need to crank the temp very high to get some vapor production. In maintime I use the Fury dosing caps for very small load (don't pack them too tight, it's counterproductive), set the Ace at 210, wait an extra 15-20s after it heat up and got 5-6 hits, vapor production isn't impressive but decent, taste sucks although, it's something I'm doing more when in need of medical relief in special social occasions... didn't happened so much since a year though....

I'm Glad Una is taking care of you, which finish is your choice? I tested both and I'm leaning in favor of the fake wooden panels personnaly.

 

[LesPlenty]

I went the fake wood...it is more like leather than wood, which is good as it is easy to grip and insulates your hands from the heat.

 

[fifty_shades_of_green]

@LesPlenty: Pods do not work well with conduction based vapes...

@PPN: In maintime I use the Fury dosing caps for very small load (don't pack them too tight, it's counterproductive), set the Ace at 210...

Thx everyone for your input on pods. I guess they work better in terms of flavor and output with convection vapes. I have to get my hands on a convection vape one of these days and give it a go.

@LesPlenty : I went the fake wood...it is more like leather than wood, which is good as it is easy to grip and insulates your hands from the heat.

Congrats on getting a new unit! That's great to hear that Top Green took care of you.

If TG ever comes out with an Ace 2, I think I'd go for the fake wood one too as the black carbon unit gets pretty hot! In the meantime, I'm looking for some thin oven mitts since it literally gets too hot to handle sometimes. Now, has anyone figured out what to do with the mouthpiece as that gets really hot too...

 

[hans solo]

Anyone try hash in the concentrate cup that comes with the ace ?

 

[LesPlenty]

I received my photo contest prize yesterday, flattened 5x18650 batteries during its first day of use (255C boost mode on rosin chews the batteries). I am quite surprised at how well it performs, I think it works so well due to the 360 heating.
I will cane it for a bit longer before I say too much...honeymoon period!

Anyone try hash in the concentrate cup that comes with the ace ?

As stated before it works quite well with rosin...I use hemp fiber to wipe my dabber after each use and then put that in the concentrate cup when it is soaked. 255c boost helps nicely with concentrates but the unit gets quite hot after a few back to back sessions.

My unit has arrived and it is great! No problems so far but it still does not completely shut off airflow when I cover the bottom air inlet.
The new unit does not have the black ceramic oven coating so it may have been more than mine that had problems with that.
The new unit also came with a black silicon spider web type cover to help with the unit getting quite hot. The carbon fiber job would be even worse than the leather/wood looking units that I have,
View attachment 5899
I also swapped out the silicon in the mouthpiece assy on my old unit and realized it retains quite a bit of that ABV smell, much nicer flavour again once swapped out.

 

[PPN]

My unit has arrived and it is great! No problems so far but it still does not completely shut off airflow when I cover the bottom air inlet.
The new unit does not have the black ceramic oven coating so it may have been more than mine that had problems with that.
The new unit also came with a black silicon spider web type cover to help with the unit getting quite hot. The carbon fiber job would be even worse than the leather/wood looking units that I have,

Great to know you got your replacement unit, and great to know they changed the bowl's material! TBH I wasn't aware myself of that modifications, thank you for sharing!

 

[hans solo]

I swapped out the silicon block in my ace unfortunately it did not improve the air leak issue.I was thinking if the air leak is coming from around the bit that holds the ceramic screen a appropriately sized high temp o ring might buildup and provide a better seal. Or it the leak originating from the mouthpiece assembly itself?

 

[LesPlenty]

I tied a few o-rings...with little success, the silicon plug part you speak of @hans solo should be a bit wider to make a better plug in the top of the oven for a better seal.

 

[hans solo]

I tied a few o-rings...with little success, the silicon plug part you speak of @hans solo should be a bit wider to make a better plug in the top of the oven for a better seal.

Thanks for confirming the issue my thought was to stretch an o ring over the lip just above ceramic screen but finding the perfect size and thickness would be more work than it’s worth.

 

[PPN]

I swapped out the silicon block in my ace unfortunately it did not improve the air leak issue.I was thinking if the air leak is coming from around the bit that holds the ceramic screen a appropriately sized high temp o ring might buildup and provide a better seal. Or it the leak originating from the mouthpiece assembly itself?

I tied a few o-rings...with little success, the silicon plug part you speak of @hans solo should be a bit wider to make a better plug in the top of the oven for a better seal.

Thanks for confirming the issue my thought was to stretch an o ring over the lip just above ceramic screen but finding the perfect size and thickness would be more work than it’s worth.

I'll transmit your concerns to the team, thank you for sharing!

 

[LesPlenty]

Got a replacement mouthpiece assembly in the mail yesterday...the long-lost one from last year?

 

[lookhigh]

Is Australia really that far away.
Often had things go to Iceland not Ireland.

 

[PPN]

Got a replacement mouthpiece assembly in the mail yesterday...the long-lost one from last year?

All the paths are going to .... Australia. Too nice, you have an extra one now, enjoy!

 

[serialtoker]

The Ecapple has been the portable o choice since 2016 but has had it's time in the sun, so av got an Ace on the way as it's replacement, 18650 is a must in a portable fir me for ease of use, thank you all, it's been an interestin read
I'll let yi know how a get on with it

 

[lookhigh]

This is a good upgrade for the Ecapple and similar but better in every way.