Ithaka V2 Wicking Question

[gheebee]

Picture the situation, if you will:

You've got an Ithaka V2 that you've been using without issue on a GGTS since the first batch when it was launched. Both devices are clean and there is nothing wrong with any of the parts. You build the same 1.1 ohm 8 wrap micro coil (26ga Kanthal) that you wick with strips of organic cotton from Muji pads but suddenly it no longer wicks. At best you can use the device for 20 minutes before you start getting less vapor, the device doesn't sound right (it's more or less silent, no rumble like I usually get when I'm taking a drag) and you get a dry sounding hiss when you let go of the button and take it away from your lips. You rebuild and rebuild and rewick and rewick (sometimes with thicker wicks, sometimes with thinner ones) using the same spool of wire, bag of cotton pads, and brand of juice that you've been using for the past year but this is all it does now. You know there is no short because the coil glows as it should, the multimeter reading is stable and as expected, and the atomizer will even work on a ProVari V2 with no errors. Desperate you change the o-rings in the atomizer and GGTS but everything is the same.

Why does the device no longer wick like it used to? Does cotton not wick as good over time or something? It's been like this for months with the exception of last week when I rebuilt and wicked like I would normally and it worked perfectly like it used to, but today I needed to change the wick and have done this about 4 times so far because it is right back to not wicking right. Even when I build with a wick that is so thin that you'd think it would just instantly flood it does this. Adjusting the juice flow or the air control doesn't make any difference.

 

[gekka]

Do you have checked the GGTS? Especially the inside of the button and the center pin?

 

[imeothanasis]

clean these parts with mesh gh:

GGTS axis
GGTS axis spring
GGTS button pin
GGTS button case
GGTS button head
GGTS center pin

 

[gheebee]

I recently cleaned the device the way I normally would by taking the whole thing apart, giving the parts 4 cycles (16 minutes) in the ultrasonic cleaner, rinsing them all with water, polishing the button pin, center pin, button case, and axis with Nevr Dull, and re-cleaning these 4 parts with dish soap but it never seems to make any difference unless I was experiencing voltage drop before I cleaned it (in which case cleaning makes the issue worse). Should this be as good as cleaning these parts with mesh? I ask just because I haven't used mesh for anything in a long time and I'm not sure where it is.
In lieu of mesh I've replaced the spring with a brand new one since this part is often overlooked when cleaning (it goes in the ultrasonic cleaner but that's usually it) and things actually seem better, if the problem comes back then I'll replace the entire button assembly and also the connector/center pin assembly with a brand new ones and see what happens.
Thanks for the tips! I'll update later on or tomorrow after I've finished the tank, refilled, and changed the battery (every so often I get it working and then when I refill and put a fresh battery in the problem comes right back).

 

[gekka]

There is a video from Imeo how to use the mesh.


Be careful not to produce rounded pins. Check that they are flat.

 

[taxnail]

you say that you get a dry sounding hiss after releasing the button. this would mean that there is not enough liquid. Did you change your liquid? More VG for example or less water?

 

[imeothanasis]

ultrasonic cleaner is good for cleaning but not good for black marks gh. Black marks can occure on axis and button pin. Please check for black marks on those areas and clean them with mesh

 

[Aal_]

you say that you get a dry sounding hiss after releasing the button. this would mean that there is not enough liquid. Did you change your liquid? More VG for example or less water?

Power might be too low. Check the voltage under load. Very important measurement.

 

[gheebee]

Things improved with the new spring yesterday but still didn't seem right so I re-wicked this morning and now it is more or less back to where it was before. I did manage to find my old #400 mesh and tried it on the parts that were mentioned, just like in the video, but it didn't make any difference.
The parts were all still pretty clean from the last cleaning, no black marks yet. Is there a reason to clean with mesh instead of polishing after cleaning or is one just as good as the other?

you say that you get a dry sounding hiss after releasing the button. this would mean that there is not enough liquid. Did you change your liquid? More VG for example or less water?

What you say is what I picture when I hear the sound, a bone dry wick with small amounts of juice slowly moving through it and touching a hot coil. The liquid is the same and, as far as I'm aware, hasn't had its formula changed by the manufacturer (juices from the Mountain Oak Vapors Classics Series line). I've rewicked with wicks that are so thin that you would think it would instantly flood but it never does, even trying to burn a hole in the wick by hitting the button for too long doesn't make it flood.

 

[gheebee]

Power might be too low. Check the voltage under load. Very important measurement.

Unfortunately I don't have a way to do this, I never bought a volt meter, but I did try the same atomizer on another GGTS that I cleaned to more or less brand new condition and put away a few months ago and the result was the same. Wouldn't less power decrease the chance of the wick drying out though?

edit: Just went to the local shop but they didn't have any volt meters. :/

 

[imeothanasis]

Things improved with the new spring yesterday but still didn't seem right so I re-wicked this morning and now it is more or less back to where it was before. I did manage to find my old #400 mesh and tried it on the parts that were mentioned, just like in the video, but it didn't make any difference.
The parts were all still pretty clean from the last cleaning, no black marks yet. Is there a reason to clean with mesh instead of polishing after cleaning or is one just as good as the other?



What you say is what I picture when I hear the sound, a bone dry wick with small amounts of juice slowly moving through it and touching a hot coil. The liquid is the same and, as far as I'm aware, hasn't had its formula changed by the manufacturer (juices from the Mountain Oak Vapors Classics Series line). I've rewicked with wicks that are so thin that you would think it would instantly flood but it never does, even trying to burn a hole in the wick by hitting the button for too long doesn't make it flood.

mesh has to be used on black marks because polish doesnt remove them gh. As for the problem that occured, I dont have an explanation. By the way, did you clean all threads of GGTS and threads where the button is screwed on engraved tube?

 

[gheebee]

Yeah, all the threads are clean. I got it to work a little better today by adding an extra wrap to the coil but it still isn't what it was.
I'm kind of convinced that it is just the wick but it doesn't make much sense to me because I figure that I would have had this issue from the beginning if that were the case. I'll probably pick up a volt meter as per Aal_'s suggestion because now I'm curious what it will read, but I kind of don't think that it is a conductivity issue.

 

[imeothanasis]

if GGTS is clean then its not a conductivity issue. Also,did you say that you changed the type of your wick recently?

Is Ithaka cleaned too? The threads of the AD pin and the center post extension?

 

[gheebee]

Hi Imeo,

Sorry I didn't see your post until recently, I've been mainly using my Ithaka dripper lately since I've had a lot more luck with it but I still do try and get the Ithaka V2 that I have in tank mode to work since that is what I prefer to use. My wicking material is still the same, Muji organic cotton pads cut into strips that are ~3mm in width and then thinned out a little. The parts you mention do get cleaned and I think they should be OK but I just had a look and I've got a few brand new brass center post extensions and 1 brand new AD pin, so I will try it with brand new parts the next time I rebuild the Ithaka tank. I'll be giving the parts I have in there now a good cleaning as well so I can use them in the future but I just figure for troubleshooting purposes brand new is the way to go since I have the parts on hand.
Thanks again.

 

[imeothanasis]

Hi Imeo,

Sorry I didn't see your post until recently, I've been mainly using my Ithaka dripper lately since I've had a lot more luck with it but I still do try and get the Ithaka V2 that I have in tank mode to work since that is what I prefer to use. My wicking material is still the same, Muji organic cotton pads cut into strips that are ~3mm in width and then thinned out a little. The parts you mention do get cleaned and I think they should be OK but I just had a look and I've got a few brand new brass center post extensions and 1 brand new AD pin, so I will try it with brand new parts the next time I rebuild the Ithaka tank. I'll be giving the parts I have in there now a good cleaning as well so I can use them in the future but I just figure for troubleshooting purposes brand new is the way to go since I have the parts on hand.
Thanks again.

be well gh. Please post the new results