Battery arcing
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I recently switched from the pen to the brush and also got some deoxit red for my batteries. Using both of these, my sparking is eliminated. In the past I was putting fresh gold on my batt terminals every change of battery. No longer...using the brush and the mixture of these two products I'm doing maintenance once a week, no sparking in between 
loving the brushes.
loving the brushes.
I switched from pen to bottle/brush recently too, and feel that it's doing a much better job of minimizing the arcing.
Here's a "just for fun" test if anyone is interested in trying it. Just out of curiosity, I used an EMF meter, and watched it as I fired my REO, you can actually see it register the electromagnetic pulse that results from pre (and especially post) contact proximity between the contacts, it's unavoidable. Using DEOXIT gold regularly, and staying around 1.4-1.6 ohms, I can see NO arcing, even watching for it in a darkened room, but I know it still occurs.
For that reason, even though I don't "see" any arcing, I still perform "contact maintenance" on a regular schedule, and inspect the contacts visually every so often.
Here's a "just for fun" test if anyone is interested in trying it. Just out of curiosity, I used an EMF meter, and watched it as I fired my REO, you can actually see it register the electromagnetic pulse that results from pre (and especially post) contact proximity between the contacts, it's unavoidable. Using DEOXIT gold regularly, and staying around 1.4-1.6 ohms, I can see NO arcing, even watching for it in a darkened room, but I know it still occurs.
For that reason, even though I don't "see" any arcing, I still perform "contact maintenance" on a regular schedule, and inspect the contacts visually every so often.
The higher "post" (button release) reading you are seeing is due to the back EMF of the collapsing magnetic field created in our coil(s)...although it has next to no current, the voltage across the contact points at the split second the button is let go can be several hundreds of volts. Again, virtually no current and it dissipates almost instantly but that is what's causing the spark.
...and you nailed it, there's no way to avoid it and also follow the laws of physics....maintain your contacts and you'll be fine, there's nothing wrong with the mod, it's just the way it is.
That's what I meant to say
See what happens when you put sophisticated tools in the hands of a hoople?
Bill Nye strikes again he is good to have around thoughThat's what I meant to say
See what happens when you put sophisticated tools in the hands of a hoople?
I see zero arcing at 0.4 using deoxit gold on the gold plated firing pin and spring and deoxit red on batteries. About every two weeks I hit the positive contact with some red to clean it (it's a cleaner too) and it's never visibly oxidized to begin with, then wipe it off and hit it with gold.
How long do you let the red sit there, before you wipe it off, and apply the gold? (on the positive contact)
I pretty much immediately rubbed it with a qtip then the clean side of the quip then I applied the gold
I know the situation I'm going to ask about is probably due to my own ignorance but at the risk of sounding stupid here goes...
My sister bought me a REO for my birthday last year. She loves hers so much that she thought I might like to have one too. I never researched the care or maintenance that it needed, I just wicked the RM2, built 1 ohm coils and cleaned it thoroughly every week. I thought that was enough.
A few evenings ago as I was driving home from work, I reached down into my Jeep's cup holder to grab my REO and burned my hand on it. The firing button was in the locked position and I hadn't taken a hit off of it for at least 10 or 15 minutes. I pulled over immediately, grabbed a thick cloth I had in the Jeep and yanked out the battery and threw it onto the gravel. That mod was so hot it was like lava. Using the cloth like a potholder, I cooled off the mod by holding it in front of the AC vent in the Jeep. When I got home I inspected the mod and found that the positive contact was in full contact with the battery even with the firing pin in the locked position. Somehow it had drifted down farther than it was supposed to go. The safety spring was fully intact. It did not collapse. I tried to remove the screw that holds it in place but it seems like it's welded to the body. I've tried WD40, putting it in the freezer, nada. Now the screw is stripped. No big deal, I can drill it out and get another one. My question is why didn't the spring collapse? I guess what happened wasn't a short, but an overheating due to constant firing. Now I'm afraid to use it if I get it repaired. Can someone suggest what might have gone wrong? Sorry for the lengthy post.
My sister bought me a REO for my birthday last year. She loves hers so much that she thought I might like to have one too. I never researched the care or maintenance that it needed, I just wicked the RM2, built 1 ohm coils and cleaned it thoroughly every week. I thought that was enough.
A few evenings ago as I was driving home from work, I reached down into my Jeep's cup holder to grab my REO and burned my hand on it. The firing button was in the locked position and I hadn't taken a hit off of it for at least 10 or 15 minutes. I pulled over immediately, grabbed a thick cloth I had in the Jeep and yanked out the battery and threw it onto the gravel. That mod was so hot it was like lava. Using the cloth like a potholder, I cooled off the mod by holding it in front of the AC vent in the Jeep. When I got home I inspected the mod and found that the positive contact was in full contact with the battery even with the firing pin in the locked position. Somehow it had drifted down farther than it was supposed to go. The safety spring was fully intact. It did not collapse. I tried to remove the screw that holds it in place but it seems like it's welded to the body. I've tried WD40, putting it in the freezer, nada. Now the screw is stripped. No big deal, I can drill it out and get another one. My question is why didn't the spring collapse? I guess what happened wasn't a short, but an overheating due to constant firing. Now I'm afraid to use it if I get it repaired. Can someone suggest what might have gone wrong? Sorry for the lengthy post.
This happened to me once, years ago, and ever since I never leave my Reo unattended if it's got a battery inside.
I'm not worried about the Reo itself (plastic bits can be replaced) or the battery (I'm always well within its maximum continuous discharge rating), I'm worried about what would happen to the coil/wick.
Soon after it happened I sent it to Rob for a once over and I've never experienced it again.
Very importantly: I had been fiddling with the innards before it happened, and I am hooply. Don't know why/how yours would have auto-fired.
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I think this is a question for @redeyedancer !
The problem needs to be solved so your REO is safe again.
Hope he responds soon!
The problem needs to be solved so your REO is safe again.
Hope he responds soon!
I emailed Rob and he said that the positive contact may have broken and slipped down to make contact with the battery. Gave me a suggestion as to how to remove the spring screw and offered to repair it. I'll need to be more careful in the future. Like you said, never leave a battery in it when it's not in use. I should have done my homework.
He did respond via email. Offered to repair it. I'm happy that he's so responsive.
If the contact is broken that leads me to believe you might have been mashing the button.
Please when you get it repaired do this before vaping: Put your atty on and battery in. Hold the REO up by your ear and slowly and easily push down on the button. As soon as you hear the atty fire stop firing! Try it a couple times till you learn just how easy it is to get it to fire.
Button mashers will find it stresses the contact over time.
If you ever switch battery styles, (like from button top batteries, to flat-tops) you will need to do the firing test again since the throw of the contact will be different.
Please when you get it repaired do this before vaping: Put your atty on and battery in. Hold the REO up by your ear and slowly and easily push down on the button. As soon as you hear the atty fire stop firing! Try it a couple times till you learn just how easy it is to get it to fire.
Button mashers will find it stresses the contact over time.
If you ever switch battery styles, (like from button top batteries, to flat-tops) you will need to do the firing test again since the throw of the contact will be different.
I may be a "masher" since I'm usually stressed out when driving in horrible traffic every day. I'm going to get some orings as someone suggested, to put between the button cover and the base.
That doesn't sound good at all. I would definitely have Rob to check it out before you even think about using it again.
So I received my first LP Grand on 6/27/2015, in that time I have ruined 4 contacts and pitted the buttons on 4 lg he2 button tops..I have been using 99% alcohol to clean contacts and batteries and using deoxit gold on contact as well. My builds have been in the .35 to .45 range...using both kanthal and nichrome80....atty is either a CAM bf vector or haze mini....Rob has responded to all my emails and has offered to let me send it back for inspection.....before I do that I thought I'd try picking the brains of some of the reo veterans .....Is there something about the he2s? Nichrome80? Vectors? ..With a new batteryand contact I get about 3 battery swaps before the arcing and misfires start..then the device is pretty much unusable until i replace the contact
Are you hovering on your button after a vape? A soft, slow button release will amp the arcing issue.
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