Down the Modding Path
We accepted the challenge to make a new mod and this is the result.
Crisscross - Shine
Some of you will know that the mods we build are a team effort and could not be made without the meticulous woodworking skills of Baz. Over a lifetime of working together we recognise each other's skills and weaknesses and when those skills come together it produce some lovely mods. It's a great partnership and we both have a huge sense of achievement whenever I use one of the mods.
Baz is not a member of any vaping forums but that does not stop him taking a keen interest in the vaping group. .....In fact you will see him haunting woodworking forums where his true passion lies but none the less his contribution to our vaping arsenal is unmistakeable and unique and both of us are thrilled he is a part of this project.
Build Pictorial & Notes
Components
Proof of concept
Base mod
Surface Finishing
Panels
Almost there
Crisscross - Shine lives
TLDR:
Build notes.
Parts list
1 subox mini (styled) chip Fasttech SKU 3811500
1 510 connector Fasttech SKU 2038801
1 small battery spring Fasttech SKU1208510
Assorted wires from other things in the work box and shed
Heat shrink tubes from local auto electrician.
Copper strip (salvaged from track lighting) for battery connections
Door Magnets - EBay
Wood case by Baz
Red gum
Saw
Glue
Sandpaper
Clamps
Drills (dremel, drill press or hand held)
Panels by Krisma aka Crisscross
Embossing tools - hand or machine including files for finishing the edges.
Metal sheet - Pewter sheet - EBay
Various other panel materials
3m glue sheets
Buttons - eBay snap on buttons and spare MVP buttons
Glue - EBay E-600 jewellery glue (multi medium adhesive)
Varnish weather conditions limited our choice of finish. So 10 coats of wipe on poly varnish and a hand buff with burnishing compound.
Build - Wood case by Baz
Wood was sliced from a cured piece of red gum firewood. Drum sanded to slightly oversize and allowed to relax
A template of holes was drawn to help to get neat cutouts in chip faceplate and for the 510 connection. Drill the holes and cutout in the chip face plate. The box is a mitre corner construct. It was glued and allowed to cure including centre stabilising bar. This bar has small drilled holes for wires to feed through to battery and 510
Battery terminals are constructed using scrap copper strip from some old track lighting we have lying around bent around a small spacer block of matching wood. These spacer blocks are then glued into the case ready for the soldering of the chip.
Danish oil is used to seal the inside of the case.
Magnets were then inserted into case and door (This is the bit we always mess up, the little magnets tend to flip and stick to all the wrong places). The pewter adds a bit more weight to the door panel so longer more powerful versions of the magnets were used. This ended up being unnecessary as we went with just the single face panel. No one will accuse this mod of having a loose door. Additional crowbar may be required to,change battery.
Panel bed was cutout with dremel grinding bits and the edges of the box are hand sanded to soften the feel.
10 thin coats of wipe on poly varnish with fine wet sanding on the last couple of coats. Ideally the finish needs to fully cure and harden for at least a week or two before finish can be buffed to achieve the piano shine.
Build - Panels by Crisscross
After a lot of embossing prototyping with various metal sheets of different thicknesses and strength I decided upon bonded pewter. This is two thin layers of lead free pewter laminated either side of a piece of blank card stock. 3M glue sheets were used as the bonding medium in-between the layers. Rolled with a hard roller and left to cure. Once the bonded sheet is cured it was then cut to oversize and embossed.
Once the panel bed was cutout in the case, the embossed pewter was trimmed to size, filed carefully, then E-600 glue is used to affix the panel to wood case. This glue is excellent for using on multiple materials. For a less permanent panel double sided glue sheets can be used. The original design had panels on both the case and door but the design looked too busy and added unnecessary weight, so a single face panel was installed.
For variety the panels can be carefully removed and changed to whatever takes your fancy.
Some examples (refer pic) include: carbon fibre sheet, wraps or stickers, shimmer sheets and embossed foils or metal sheets. Each has their own style and can change the overall look and feel of the mod. These particular example materials are waterproof but any material could be used with a decoupage finish or spray coating.
Another nice idea is mother of pearl shell sheets. By themselves the sheets are fragile but you can order with a backing and even some with an adhesive backing. These would need some form of hard clear coating to have longevity on a mod. Even laminate samples collected from your local hardware shop can be used as an alternate panel. Cut to size with saw and sand edges. The choices are only limited by your imagination. Refer BB panel modification thread for source links.
Panel template is 28x84. A depth of 1.5mm Was chosen to accommodate ..75mm panel plus raised embossing plus glue layer.
Notes to using Pewter. Some pewter sheets have lead in them which is fine for objects that are not handled regularly. The pewter used in this panel is a lead free .2mm thick sheet. Soft enough to emboss but making it rigid enough to provide structural support to the wood case required bonding. There is also .5mm option but it added considerable weight so was decided against.
Final Embossing design - Darice borders - pansy flourish
Pewter embossing is quite easy to do as the sheets accept the pressure embossing very well.
Buttons
I put decorative fire buttons on most of my mods and this was no different,
The original decorative fire button was constructed using the top part of a snap button with the spikes ground down. This is then superglued to a cubis coil pin. Small up and down buttons are from an old MVP.
After seeing it on the completed mod we changed to one of Baz's acrylic button caps (originally designed for the BB's). That way I can mix and match my driptips to it.
Crisscross - Blush
We haven't had a new one for a while so.........
On one of the squonk threads I casually mentioned having two doors so that folks like me who love the look of the SV squonk mods could share in the joy of the stabilised wood mods. That got us thinking and for a bit of fun we made a duo mod. A mod that is a squonker but that has a coloured tube that can replace the bottle for non squonkers. This tube/space can be used to house a spare bottle of eliquid or battery or anything. The mod works in both modes although I would plug the hole in the 510 connector if used in non squonker mode. This plug protects the inside of the mod from any eliquid leakage. A kick is used to make the mod VW.
Just some pondering on the actual mod. It is not a stealth mod. It was made specifically larger with additional height to accommodate the switch (I can't top fire) and slightly wider to accommodate the inked SS tube.
So here is Crisscross - Blush (aka my little splodger)
It was done quickly and some time will be needed to completely finish the coatings for actual use, plus I of course don't have a proper dripper for it yet.
Pictorial and build notes
1 Blush
2 case
3 tube
Build notes.
Parts list
1 510 connector Fasttech SKU 2038801 converted to a bottom feed connector.
Switch - eBay 12mm momentary switch.
1 Sigelei kick - Fasttech
Bottle and tube - parts borrowed from a Reo
1 small battery spring Fasttech SKU1208510
Assorted wires from other things in the work box and shed
Heat shrink tubes from local auto electrician.
Copper strip (salvaged from track lighting) for battery connections
Door Magnets - EBay
Varnish
Wood Case by Baz
Block - Stabilised olive - George's timber
Saw
Glue
Sandpaper
Clamps
Drills (dremel, drill press or hand held)
Tube by XX
Stainless steel tube
DIY inks made from sharpie permanent markers and isopropyl alcohol
Various pipettes and bottles (from DIY eliquid stash)
Build.....Case by Baz
The process is the same as for the other mods.
Cut to oversize, drill channels, holes and sand to correct size.
10 thin coats of wipe on poly varnish with fine wet sanding on the last couple of coats. Ideally the finish needs to fully cure and harden for at least a week or two before finish can be buffed to achieve the piano shine.
Build.....510 connector. Centre pin of the Fasttech 510 connector was replaced with a bottom feed pin. Instructions for a DIY were found on ECF using different gauge blunt needles, however in this case I borrowed the lower piece from a broken terminator.
Build.....Decorative tube by Crisscross
Inks are made by taking the inner filling of sharpie permanent markers and soaking them in isopropyl alcohol. Left for 24-48 hours. (1 sharpie 50mls of alcohol). This makes a strong ink that can be diluted again for various effects.
Alcohol inks can also be bought but they are a bit expensive (adirondack brand is easy to work with and has lots of colours)
Clean the SS tube thoroughly. Inks are then dripped on the SS tube to mix and blend. Spray iso for different effects and thickness of coating.
Finished tube can be clear coated if needed and of course different coloured tubes will change the look of the mod.
Alternative.....Any rigid decorative sheet (embossed, coloured, metals etc) can be attached to the inside of the door panel to achieve different effects,
As an aside we have another slice of the block to make a second door panel without the squonking hole.
We accepted the challenge to make a new mod and this is the result.
Crisscross - Shine
Some of you will know that the mods we build are a team effort and could not be made without the meticulous woodworking skills of Baz. Over a lifetime of working together we recognise each other's skills and weaknesses and when those skills come together it produce some lovely mods. It's a great partnership and we both have a huge sense of achievement whenever I use one of the mods.
Baz is not a member of any vaping forums but that does not stop him taking a keen interest in the vaping group. .....In fact you will see him haunting woodworking forums where his true passion lies but none the less his contribution to our vaping arsenal is unmistakeable and unique and both of us are thrilled he is a part of this project.
Build Pictorial & Notes
Components
Proof of concept
Base mod
Surface Finishing
Panels
Almost there
Crisscross - Shine lives
TLDR:
Build notes.
Parts list
1 subox mini (styled) chip Fasttech SKU 3811500
1 510 connector Fasttech SKU 2038801
1 small battery spring Fasttech SKU1208510
Assorted wires from other things in the work box and shed
Heat shrink tubes from local auto electrician.
Copper strip (salvaged from track lighting) for battery connections
Door Magnets - EBay
Wood case by Baz
Red gum
Saw
Glue
Sandpaper
Clamps
Drills (dremel, drill press or hand held)
Panels by Krisma aka Crisscross
Embossing tools - hand or machine including files for finishing the edges.
Metal sheet - Pewter sheet - EBay
Various other panel materials
3m glue sheets
Buttons - eBay snap on buttons and spare MVP buttons
Glue - EBay E-600 jewellery glue (multi medium adhesive)
Varnish weather conditions limited our choice of finish. So 10 coats of wipe on poly varnish and a hand buff with burnishing compound.
Build - Wood case by Baz
Wood was sliced from a cured piece of red gum firewood. Drum sanded to slightly oversize and allowed to relax
A template of holes was drawn to help to get neat cutouts in chip faceplate and for the 510 connection. Drill the holes and cutout in the chip face plate. The box is a mitre corner construct. It was glued and allowed to cure including centre stabilising bar. This bar has small drilled holes for wires to feed through to battery and 510
Battery terminals are constructed using scrap copper strip from some old track lighting we have lying around bent around a small spacer block of matching wood. These spacer blocks are then glued into the case ready for the soldering of the chip.
Danish oil is used to seal the inside of the case.
Magnets were then inserted into case and door (This is the bit we always mess up, the little magnets tend to flip and stick to all the wrong places). The pewter adds a bit more weight to the door panel so longer more powerful versions of the magnets were used. This ended up being unnecessary as we went with just the single face panel. No one will accuse this mod of having a loose door. Additional crowbar may be required to,change battery.
Panel bed was cutout with dremel grinding bits and the edges of the box are hand sanded to soften the feel.
10 thin coats of wipe on poly varnish with fine wet sanding on the last couple of coats. Ideally the finish needs to fully cure and harden for at least a week or two before finish can be buffed to achieve the piano shine.
Build - Panels by Crisscross
After a lot of embossing prototyping with various metal sheets of different thicknesses and strength I decided upon bonded pewter. This is two thin layers of lead free pewter laminated either side of a piece of blank card stock. 3M glue sheets were used as the bonding medium in-between the layers. Rolled with a hard roller and left to cure. Once the bonded sheet is cured it was then cut to oversize and embossed.
Once the panel bed was cutout in the case, the embossed pewter was trimmed to size, filed carefully, then E-600 glue is used to affix the panel to wood case. This glue is excellent for using on multiple materials. For a less permanent panel double sided glue sheets can be used. The original design had panels on both the case and door but the design looked too busy and added unnecessary weight, so a single face panel was installed.
For variety the panels can be carefully removed and changed to whatever takes your fancy.
Some examples (refer pic) include: carbon fibre sheet, wraps or stickers, shimmer sheets and embossed foils or metal sheets. Each has their own style and can change the overall look and feel of the mod. These particular example materials are waterproof but any material could be used with a decoupage finish or spray coating.
Another nice idea is mother of pearl shell sheets. By themselves the sheets are fragile but you can order with a backing and even some with an adhesive backing. These would need some form of hard clear coating to have longevity on a mod. Even laminate samples collected from your local hardware shop can be used as an alternate panel. Cut to size with saw and sand edges. The choices are only limited by your imagination. Refer BB panel modification thread for source links.
Panel template is 28x84. A depth of 1.5mm Was chosen to accommodate ..75mm panel plus raised embossing plus glue layer.
Notes to using Pewter. Some pewter sheets have lead in them which is fine for objects that are not handled regularly. The pewter used in this panel is a lead free .2mm thick sheet. Soft enough to emboss but making it rigid enough to provide structural support to the wood case required bonding. There is also .5mm option but it added considerable weight so was decided against.
Final Embossing design - Darice borders - pansy flourish
Pewter embossing is quite easy to do as the sheets accept the pressure embossing very well.
Buttons
I put decorative fire buttons on most of my mods and this was no different,
The original decorative fire button was constructed using the top part of a snap button with the spikes ground down. This is then superglued to a cubis coil pin. Small up and down buttons are from an old MVP.
After seeing it on the completed mod we changed to one of Baz's acrylic button caps (originally designed for the BB's). That way I can mix and match my driptips to it.
Crisscross - Blush
We haven't had a new one for a while so.........
On one of the squonk threads I casually mentioned having two doors so that folks like me who love the look of the SV squonk mods could share in the joy of the stabilised wood mods. That got us thinking and for a bit of fun we made a duo mod. A mod that is a squonker but that has a coloured tube that can replace the bottle for non squonkers. This tube/space can be used to house a spare bottle of eliquid or battery or anything. The mod works in both modes although I would plug the hole in the 510 connector if used in non squonker mode. This plug protects the inside of the mod from any eliquid leakage. A kick is used to make the mod VW.
Just some pondering on the actual mod. It is not a stealth mod. It was made specifically larger with additional height to accommodate the switch (I can't top fire) and slightly wider to accommodate the inked SS tube.
So here is Crisscross - Blush (aka my little splodger)
It was done quickly and some time will be needed to completely finish the coatings for actual use, plus I of course don't have a proper dripper for it yet.
Pictorial and build notes
1 Blush
2 case
3 tube
Build notes.
Parts list
1 510 connector Fasttech SKU 2038801 converted to a bottom feed connector.
Switch - eBay 12mm momentary switch.
1 Sigelei kick - Fasttech
Bottle and tube - parts borrowed from a Reo
1 small battery spring Fasttech SKU1208510
Assorted wires from other things in the work box and shed
Heat shrink tubes from local auto electrician.
Copper strip (salvaged from track lighting) for battery connections
Door Magnets - EBay
Varnish
Wood Case by Baz
Block - Stabilised olive - George's timber
Saw
Glue
Sandpaper
Clamps
Drills (dremel, drill press or hand held)
Tube by XX
Stainless steel tube
DIY inks made from sharpie permanent markers and isopropyl alcohol
Various pipettes and bottles (from DIY eliquid stash)
Build.....Case by Baz
The process is the same as for the other mods.
Cut to oversize, drill channels, holes and sand to correct size.
10 thin coats of wipe on poly varnish with fine wet sanding on the last couple of coats. Ideally the finish needs to fully cure and harden for at least a week or two before finish can be buffed to achieve the piano shine.
Build.....510 connector. Centre pin of the Fasttech 510 connector was replaced with a bottom feed pin. Instructions for a DIY were found on ECF using different gauge blunt needles, however in this case I borrowed the lower piece from a broken terminator.
Build.....Decorative tube by Crisscross
Inks are made by taking the inner filling of sharpie permanent markers and soaking them in isopropyl alcohol. Left for 24-48 hours. (1 sharpie 50mls of alcohol). This makes a strong ink that can be diluted again for various effects.
Alcohol inks can also be bought but they are a bit expensive (adirondack brand is easy to work with and has lots of colours)
Clean the SS tube thoroughly. Inks are then dripped on the SS tube to mix and blend. Spray iso for different effects and thickness of coating.
Finished tube can be clear coated if needed and of course different coloured tubes will change the look of the mod.
Alternative.....Any rigid decorative sheet (embossed, coloured, metals etc) can be attached to the inside of the door panel to achieve different effects,
As an aside we have another slice of the block to make a second door panel without the squonking hole.
