14500 cheap mechanical mod?
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Yeah I had overtightened it whilst trying to figure out why the mod wouldn't fire at all. That little o-ring on the bottom, that surrounds the 510 connection, had gotten all smushed. Disassembled the whole AGA-S and re-positioned the o-ring. All's well!
I like the 14500 form factor, so much that I'm gonna hafta get a higher-end mod. The Sprite is okay, but that flaky button bothers me. It's got to have so much travel before it'll fire.
I like the 14500 form factor, so much that I'm gonna hafta get a higher-end mod. The Sprite is okay, but that flaky button bothers me. It's got to have so much travel before it'll fire.
I was looking at the sprite, but was just a wee bit out of my budget for this past week, ended up going for the chinabuye bagua 14500 clone... If it ever gets here I will report back my findings... Though please be advised the only other mech I have I compare it to is
And yes it only takes 1x14500 in a sleeve and the button only fires 1/5 of the time, with no lock on the firing button, and not pocket friendly!
And yes it only takes 1x14500 in a sleeve and the button only fires 1/5 of the time, with no lock on the firing button, and not pocket friendly!
I'm definitely interested in one of the Bagua clones. Only, I want one with no graphics of any kind. Brushed stainless steel or brushed brass finish would be optimum...
btw, really diggin' that DIY mod there man!
btw, really diggin' that DIY mod there man!
I have a sprite (another on the way), and the bagua that china buye carries. I ended up getting a m4 (metric) bolt from lowes, and replacing the positive pin in the sprite. I had to shorten it to 11 mm to work for my batts, and this shortened the throw on the switch. This also shortened the distance that the switch button had to be unscrewed thus less chance that the switch button would come completely out and possibly get lost.
I had to do this because I tried to adjust the positive pin with a screw driver( from the top ). I broke a"tab" off of the top of the pin. Man, that sucker was tight! This caused the positive pin of the pro tank I was using to "tilt" over to the 510 connector part( of the pro tank base) when I tried to reconnect it. It shorted and got hot like zipflint said. I ended up using a 6 mm socket, and a hex key in the air flow hole (to hold it) to free it up. I also had to use a pair of pliers to hold the black plastic piece that the bolt was screwed into so I could finish getting the brass bolt out of it. I worked the new bolt in and out for a bit until it "broke in". Now I can adjust it with my fingers, and it works good. This was tedious, so use great care if you go this route. I had no choice, or I may have thought twice about doing this. One could end up messing up the plastic piece, and render the mod useless. The bolt I replaced it with is made of zinc, but it fires good. I've been using it for two weeks now every day, all day long with no problems. I'm looking for a brass m4 bolt, but not too worried about it.
I bought my "true Bagua clone" from Vapor tech on a preorder. I like it really well too. It has adjustable top firing pin, but it has a limited amount of adjustment. It likes shorter batteries (48 mm to 50 mm). Anything longer will leave a gap in the cap to tube. I noticed that when using the pro tank on the bagua it would "choke " the air flow a little when sitting flush. Not enough to not use it, but I ended up liking it best with an ego adapter and a Davide mini. I may like my device a little "airy" YMMV. The only problem I've had with it is I dropped it and broke the one of the magnets in the switch. I replaced it with a spring, and its going strong again.
Of the two, I prefer the sprite. It is better made with a "fine " machined thread as opposed to the "course" thread on the bagua. The sprite is also less "fiddly" with adjustment to the batteries after the "modding" I done. The airflow adjustment on the sprite is a plus too that I can dial in my pro tank to exactly the way I like it. I paid more for the sprite, but imo, for me, it was well worth the extra money.
One more thing about the sprite fire button was it was a little "crunchy" at first. I noticed that the machine marks where the brass fire button meets the stainless bottom cap was a little rough. I thought to smooth this up, but it worked itself out for me. Smooth now
I had to do this because I tried to adjust the positive pin with a screw driver( from the top ). I broke a"tab" off of the top of the pin. Man, that sucker was tight! This caused the positive pin of the pro tank I was using to "tilt" over to the 510 connector part( of the pro tank base) when I tried to reconnect it. It shorted and got hot like zipflint said. I ended up using a 6 mm socket, and a hex key in the air flow hole (to hold it) to free it up. I also had to use a pair of pliers to hold the black plastic piece that the bolt was screwed into so I could finish getting the brass bolt out of it. I worked the new bolt in and out for a bit until it "broke in". Now I can adjust it with my fingers, and it works good. This was tedious, so use great care if you go this route. I had no choice, or I may have thought twice about doing this. One could end up messing up the plastic piece, and render the mod useless. The bolt I replaced it with is made of zinc, but it fires good. I've been using it for two weeks now every day, all day long with no problems. I'm looking for a brass m4 bolt, but not too worried about it.
I bought my "true Bagua clone" from Vapor tech on a preorder. I like it really well too. It has adjustable top firing pin, but it has a limited amount of adjustment. It likes shorter batteries (48 mm to 50 mm). Anything longer will leave a gap in the cap to tube. I noticed that when using the pro tank on the bagua it would "choke " the air flow a little when sitting flush. Not enough to not use it, but I ended up liking it best with an ego adapter and a Davide mini. I may like my device a little "airy" YMMV. The only problem I've had with it is I dropped it and broke the one of the magnets in the switch. I replaced it with a spring, and its going strong again.
Of the two, I prefer the sprite. It is better made with a "fine " machined thread as opposed to the "course" thread on the bagua. The sprite is also less "fiddly" with adjustment to the batteries after the "modding" I done. The airflow adjustment on the sprite is a plus too that I can dial in my pro tank to exactly the way I like it. I paid more for the sprite, but imo, for me, it was well worth the extra money.
One more thing about the sprite fire button was it was a little "crunchy" at first. I noticed that the machine marks where the brass fire button meets the stainless bottom cap was a little rough. I thought to smooth this up, but it worked itself out for me. Smooth now
Great tip on the bolt, I busted mine up the same way... still works OK but I'd like to get a better solution in place.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747 using Tapatalk 4
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747 using Tapatalk 4
Just got my bagua clone from chinabuye and thought I would post my first impressions. I can't comment on how it works since I ordered it drunk and forgot to get batteries. I have also never seen another mech. mod or any 14500 or 18000 series mod at all. From other posts I'm guessing it won't have any problems firing and in that case it's worth the $22 shipped.
The bagua clone is much smaller than I thought it would be, only slightly larger than my 650 vision spinner and it is about 17mm diameter. The threads are much more coarse than I thought they would be but after a little cleaning and grease they work just fine. The bottom button is pretty sloppy, if you don't press in the middle it tilts. This could be common for mech mods, I don't know. The locking ring isn't textured which I think would make it much easier to use. Took apart the button and it does have magnets in it, the pressure to fire is about right for me but I have larger / stronger hands than some.
I've kinda decided not to mess with mech mods right now so I think im going to take some time to change the way it looks. I'm thinking about brushing or paining it, and adding texture to the lock ring. I guess the good thing is it's so cheap you can do what you want without worry.
The bagua clone is much smaller than I thought it would be, only slightly larger than my 650 vision spinner and it is about 17mm diameter. The threads are much more coarse than I thought they would be but after a little cleaning and grease they work just fine. The bottom button is pretty sloppy, if you don't press in the middle it tilts. This could be common for mech mods, I don't know. The locking ring isn't textured which I think would make it much easier to use. Took apart the button and it does have magnets in it, the pressure to fire is about right for me but I have larger / stronger hands than some.
I've kinda decided not to mess with mech mods right now so I think im going to take some time to change the way it looks. I'm thinking about brushing or paining it, and adding texture to the lock ring. I guess the good thing is it's so cheap you can do what you want without worry.
Rangermsr, GREAT breakdown/how-to!!! I'd REALLY like to shorten the throw on mine too but your methods require more skill and tooling than I've got, heh!
I appreciate your writeup on the "true" Bagua clone from vaportek too. I was thinking really hard about getting one, but I think I'll save the cash and maybe eventually (with some help from.....someone with more skill and tools than I've got) modding my Sprite to be what I want it to be.
On the whole, though, I'm pleased with it. I like the form-factor a lot. In fact, the biggest reason I even got it was because I randomly ordered an AGA-S, forgetting how small that thing is. When it showed up I thought to myself "well, now that I've got THIS (the AGA-S) AND an AGT, I MUST have a 14500 mod."
And down the rabbit hole I went.
I appreciate your writeup on the "true" Bagua clone from vaportek too. I was thinking really hard about getting one, but I think I'll save the cash and maybe eventually (with some help from.....someone with more skill and tools than I've got) modding my Sprite to be what I want it to be.
On the whole, though, I'm pleased with it. I like the form-factor a lot. In fact, the biggest reason I even got it was because I randomly ordered an AGA-S, forgetting how small that thing is. When it showed up I thought to myself "well, now that I've got THIS (the AGA-S) AND an AGT, I MUST have a 14500 mod."
And down the rabbit hole I went.
It really doesn't take a great deal of skill. The biggest thing was to figure out how long the bolt needed to be, a grinding wheel, and a file to smooth the tip when it was done. I just took a little off and checked it till I got where I wanted it. I'm sure there is somebody that could do this for you. I had posted that the threaded part of the bolt was 11 mm long, but i forgot that I had taken a little off the top of the nut too. The bolts I got from Lowes came four to a pack for less than $3.00 bucks. They are the exact same size thread as what came with it. I think they were 17 mm long, the shortest they had. I was looking for the other three, but I can't seem to find them right now (my life story
). I still would like to find a brass one.Thanks for the compliment, and your welcome
. I see you are a neighbor too! I live near Hickory NC. If I find them, and get a little time(doesn't take long), I could probably send you a "modified" bolt in a letter with a regular stamp on it. You would still need to install it though, but it shouldn't be too much trouble.Oh, and I have an AGA-s too. It really looks awesome on this doesn't it!
That would be great, but only if it's no hassle for you! I REALLY appreciate the offer. I've got some health problems that make things like this difficult. I was only able to get my Rainbow Hybrid Elite working well because another board member helped me with a set of modified Chicago screws. I looked all over this town (Spartanburg, SC) for those things and no one even knew ... they were!
I have virtually no tools that can cut metal. I've got a weak-sauce dremmel tool that will allow me to enlarge (but not make) air holes and that's about it. Heck, with my bad hands (had carpal tunnel repair surgery on both last year) I'm lucky to manage that without shredding my hands!
I have virtually no tools that can cut metal. I've got a weak-sauce dremmel tool that will allow me to enlarge (but not make) air holes and that's about it. Heck, with my bad hands (had carpal tunnel repair surgery on both last year) I'm lucky to manage that without shredding my hands!
Thanks for the compliment, and your welcome
Oh, and I have an AGA-s too. It really looks awesome on this doesn't it!
Man, sounds like you've had quite the challenge there. I don't mind. I like to help where I can. PM me your address, and I'll get to finding those bolts!
. I guess I've been quite lucky in my 52 years. Wish you well
New 14500 mech listed on Fasttech. The KDS Novice. Comes with a RDA. Not clear about the length as yet but diam is 18mm. I just received the true Bagua clone (which I am really enjoying) so I probably won't pull the trigger on this. At least until I see some reviews, etc.
Hope this helps.
Hope this helps.
There's also the IAHABO mod at kidneypuncher.com.
Looks good.
IAHABO Mechanical Mod - Kidney Puncher
Looks good.
IAHABO Mechanical Mod - Kidney Puncher
I think I"ve owned at least 1/2 of every 14500 that has come out.
to be honest, I would save my money and get a reo 14500. Hits like a beast, not bein' a fan girl but I'm being honest.
to be honest, I would save my money and get a reo 14500. Hits like a beast, not bein' a fan girl but I'm being honest.
Have thought hard about the reo... But other than the milled aluminum/wood case I can't justify 100$ for a push button and battery holder.
Yep. Thought I would try a reo eventually, but I'm really liking my sprite right now. I checked that site out that zipflint mentioned. Looks like the "true bagua clone" I have without the engraving. Nice!!! I noticed one of the pics looked like it had a Davide mini strapped on it. Thats the way I have mine too. Works really good for me with a 1.8 ohm coil. One will need an ego adapter though
Well, I DID punch the button on this one. Curiosity killed this cat. Maybe I'll get it soon, and give a report. It may take a while because of shipping , and China holidays.
Ill be getting mine Wednesday, I like the 14500 size... Now to find a kick 14500 edition!
so what are your initial thoughts on the kds novice, bob?
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