I bought an itaste 134 from a coop. The thing arrived and lit up, everything seemed fine, til I tried to vape it. The dial did not seem to respond. I was told that if you buy it from a non-retail source, they do not honor the warranty, so I had nothing to lose trying to take it apart.
I finally got it apart (the screws are epoxied or locktite'd down, 3 stripped Kobalt screwdrivers and semi stripped screws later, I got the top off, but never got the bottom screws out).
I thought the problem was a floating piece of yellow insulating cellophane/tape, that had fallen behind the wheel. I removed it, reassembled and it worked. So I vaped a bit, and then it would not shut off.
Turns out that my tank was leaking, and somehow leaked ONTO the circuit board. I discovered that you can blow on the top and it passes through... meaning if you have a leak, it can drip right onto the electrical board. I also found that the button is solid metal... which can also leak directly onto the electronic board.
Here are pix...
Top Removed:
Stuck back on cello:
Board coming out:
Front face of board (with the button):
Back of the board... and I think I may have found the problem, or part of the problem - apparently, while I was test firing it, I used a leaking carto... and the juice got ONTO the board itself... see the thickened booger-looking areas on the pins?:
I cleaned it as well as I could with QD Electronic Cleaner (I bought electronic cleaner, dielectric grease, anti-oxidant compound for electronics from Amazon. Not because I have a clue what to do with them, but because the reviews made them sound useful), plastic brushes, qtips, Eye tees.
Button hole (cannot get focus inside the tube - but the entire button is metal, front and solid back):
After cleaning:
I haven't screwed it back together yet... thought I'd post these pix and let you guys tell me what you think, does the board look OK now? Can you see anything else I should check before I reassemble and try to fire? I will let the electronic cleaner dry fully before test firing.
I couldn't figure out how the juice got ONTO the board in the first place... so I blew into the top of the connector to see if it actually went into the body of the unit... and YES IT DOES. Very little, but enough to leak.
Is this built in obsolescence or inferior design? Who doesn't eventually have a leaking carto or tank? The area behind the button is also open to the circuit board behind it, so if juice got into the button, it would end up leaking onto the board too.
This was an over $100 itaste 134. Actually, $169 retail, and the flagship Chinese designed Itaste mod. What a piece of CRAP. It looks good, materials are decent, but how very ignorant to design a system that is supposed to hold liquid, that allows leaks directly onto an electronic circuit board!!!
Can anyone see anything else wrong with the board? I don't know anything about electrical boards, other than what an open and closed circuit are. But if anyone can look at it and give me any suggestions, I'd appreciate it. Also... where should the piece of insulating tape go??
I finally got it apart (the screws are epoxied or locktite'd down, 3 stripped Kobalt screwdrivers and semi stripped screws later, I got the top off, but never got the bottom screws out).
I thought the problem was a floating piece of yellow insulating cellophane/tape, that had fallen behind the wheel. I removed it, reassembled and it worked. So I vaped a bit, and then it would not shut off.
Turns out that my tank was leaking, and somehow leaked ONTO the circuit board. I discovered that you can blow on the top and it passes through... meaning if you have a leak, it can drip right onto the electrical board. I also found that the button is solid metal... which can also leak directly onto the electronic board.
Here are pix...
Top Removed:
Stuck back on cello:
Board coming out:
Front face of board (with the button):
Back of the board... and I think I may have found the problem, or part of the problem - apparently, while I was test firing it, I used a leaking carto... and the juice got ONTO the board itself... see the thickened booger-looking areas on the pins?:
I cleaned it as well as I could with QD Electronic Cleaner (I bought electronic cleaner, dielectric grease, anti-oxidant compound for electronics from Amazon. Not because I have a clue what to do with them, but because the reviews made them sound useful), plastic brushes, qtips, Eye tees.
Button hole (cannot get focus inside the tube - but the entire button is metal, front and solid back):
After cleaning:
I haven't screwed it back together yet... thought I'd post these pix and let you guys tell me what you think, does the board look OK now? Can you see anything else I should check before I reassemble and try to fire? I will let the electronic cleaner dry fully before test firing.
I couldn't figure out how the juice got ONTO the board in the first place... so I blew into the top of the connector to see if it actually went into the body of the unit... and YES IT DOES. Very little, but enough to leak.
Is this built in obsolescence or inferior design? Who doesn't eventually have a leaking carto or tank? The area behind the button is also open to the circuit board behind it, so if juice got into the button, it would end up leaking onto the board too.
This was an over $100 itaste 134. Actually, $169 retail, and the flagship Chinese designed Itaste mod. What a piece of CRAP. It looks good, materials are decent, but how very ignorant to design a system that is supposed to hold liquid, that allows leaks directly onto an electronic circuit board!!!
Can anyone see anything else wrong with the board? I don't know anything about electrical boards, other than what an open and closed circuit are. But if anyone can look at it and give me any suggestions, I'd appreciate it. Also... where should the piece of insulating tape go??
