CNC Machinist wants to make my own Mod.

[markallmon]

So, I'm looking at all these fancy Mods and, I'm thinking, I'm a CNC machinist. I have access to machinery and materials that your average everyday person might not have access to. I'm fairly new to vaping, but have been interested in custom mods just because I have a very mechanical mind. I'm thinking I want to fore-go what I am assuming is a "mechanical mod" (squeeze the juice bottle to get a hit, no clearomizer?) and basically just make a box mod to which I can screw a protank 2 on top. Is this the way I should go? Just looking for advice really. What are the pros and cons of each?

 

[xtwosm0kesx]

Well given you have access to a mill and i assume a lathe, the sky is the limit!

I'd start digging in the modding sub-forum and see what strikes your interest.

Modding Forum

 

[LucentShadow]

Being a CNC Machinist is a great boon if you wan't to make the unit exactly to your preferred specifications. The shell needs to be designed to accommodate the electrical design, though. The electrical design is the critical part of the build.

If you have some experience with electronics, then the task should not be very difficult. If not, then you should at least study as many mod builds as possible. They can be as simple as a battery, 'firing' switch, and connector wired together. It's advisable to have a method to keep the 'firing' switch from accidentally activating in-pocket, and to have proper fuse protection. It's critical to ensure that you take steps to avoid shorting the battery in any way, and to use proper batteries for your application.

There are tons of possibilities, so I'd also advise taking a look around, and thinking about it for awhile. Once you decide what type of device you want to build, look for the electrical/electronics components that you want to use, then design the body to put them in.

BTW, a 'mechanical' mod is one that tries to use little to no traditional electronics components. A misnomer, in my opinion, because there is no denying the electrical nature, just because the switch and conductors may be made of larger electrically-conductive pieces. Those mods that use a squeeze bottle are called bottom-feeders, and typically use a regular atomizer.

 

[MikeWhy]

Hi Mark. In hopes you'll one day soon produce a wondrous line of collectables, I offer the following.

The pro tank along with just about all clearomizers have a 510 connection. It's a M7x0.5 simple thread. The thread on the clearo skirt is M12x0.5. That's the ego drop cone thread.

The most usual batteries are the 18xxx series. The 18 is the nominal diameter in mm, here 18 mm diameter. The xxx is the length in tenths of millimeters. Thus, the 18350 is 35 mm long. The other common sizes are 18500 and 18650, 15 mm longer at each step. That makes it convenient to package a simple inline controller, known by brand name as the Kick by Evolv. It offers variable wattage control without external controls or wiring a fiddly circuit board. Just drop in the 15 mm high package on top of the battery inside the next longer sized battery tube.

Electrically, the tube or body is negative ground, around the periphery of the battery. The positive side ruins through the center of the battery. The atomizers are like that. The batteries are like that. The battery case tends to follow suit. Maybe. The design challenge is to make something compact, durable, good looking, and maintainable. They tend to end up echoing the battery shape with a few notable exceptions. Take a look at the Zenesis Sidewinder for an example.

I own a Zenesis 2, in my mind currently defining the state of the art in construction, design, and surface treatment. Look also at GP Paps and similar for inspiration. Mechanical mods such as these suit a machine shop and small production runs.

The other end of the spectrum is the VV/VW mods. The Vamos, eVics, SVDs, MVPs, and such. They have micro controller based boost regulation for variable voltage/variable wattage firing. The fiddly circuits, wiring, and parts sourcing suits larger, more ambitious production runs. Mass production limits the quality of materials and construction. They can never be in the same league as handcrafted mechanicals. They're not my cup of tea, and maybe not yours either if you're thinking to make something for your own use.

I hope this gets you started. I'm looking forward to see what comes out of your shop.

 

[nj1001]

Make a DNA20 tube mod thats not bulky and light but not as expensive as the Wizard Evolved which also takes a variety of battery sizes and.... and... and.... Just my dream mod.

 

[kaddigart]

I wish I had access to a machine shop...

Envy aside, LucentShadow nailed it with the misnomer comment. Seeing as technically any switch that has moving parts is considered electromechanical and all. You have the potential to design one from the ground up though, and if you have the skill, it would be silly not to. More durability, aesthetics, and overall wow-factor would be some of the benefits.

Check out Vapeporn for some inspiration, you'll find the elite of the modding world there with many examples of the so-called mechanical mods.

 

[asdaq]

My 2 cents: There are a bazillion tube mods out there, and you have a CNC at your disposal. I would suggest a dual tube design where the body consists of a body similar to mods that I do in brass or wood, but to get the desired length of the mod, the body is a series of 2mm plates precut and stacked instead of a wood or brass tube body. Alternating materials for the body would be great, but probably aluminium would be most effective for strength and length, and could be anodized in a variety of colors. This would be much to hard for me to pull off.

 

[WarHawk-AVG]

I wish I had access to a machine shop...

Envy aside, LucentShadow nailed it with the misnomer comment. Seeing as technically any switch that has moving parts is considered electromechanical and all. You have the potential to design one from the ground up though, and if you have the skill, it would be silly not to. More durability, aesthetics, and overall wow-factor would be some of the benefits.

Check out Vapeporn for some inspiration, you'll find the elite of the modding world there with many examples of the so-called mechanical mods.

Yeah..if I had access to a machine shop...I would have been churing out replacement 510 heads for the elcrapico 510 connectors that kept flowing in on the vamo!

or figure out a way to make a drill out the old replace with a new thread sleeve/bushing to fix all these threads that end up getting stripped or wore down

But making your OWN mod...now that would be whoah!

 

[markallmon]

Wow, thanks for all the info guys! I work in a small machine shop that specializes in automation and fabrication. I, myself, run a conversational CNC hybrid lathe. Basically, this means I can "draw" a part on the screen and the machine spits out a program and makes the part ( It's a bit more technical than that, but hey.). So, any round parts, or hex or square I need to be partially round, I can make with little effort. My buddies on the CNC mills can do all the "flat work" lol. I have ample access to 1045, 1018, A2, and 4140 ferrious steels; 303, 304, and 440C stainless steels; Titanium, UHMW and Acetal plastics, and aluminum galore (and my boss has all the connections for all sorts of surface treatments, including anodizing.). Needless to say, I have the power. Lol. I have been researching and gathering information and I plan to eventually make something, but I will have to study on it for sure. Hmmmm.....

 

[kaddigart]

Yeah..if I had access to a machine shop...I would have been churing out replacement 510 heads for the elcrapico 510 connectors that kept flowing in on the vamo!

or figure out a way to make a drill out the old replace with a new thread sleeve/bushing to fix all these threads that end up getting stripped or wore down

But making your OWN mod...now that would be whoah!

Amen to that, this almost feels like a "what I would do with a million dollars" conversation. And speaking of the Million Dollar Man:

So, any round parts, or hex or square I need to be partially round, I can make with little effort....Needless to say, I have the power. Lol. I have been researching and gathering information and I plan to eventually make something, but I will have to study on it for sure. Hmmmm.....

Is it a little weird that your rundown of materials and applications thereof made me feel a little fuzzy?

Seriously though, here's a few things that may help you kick-start your research:

Cad files for 510 Connectors

Odysseus Exploded (510 Mode) - this is a great example of the innards in a commercially produced tube mod.

If you're interested, plug this string into a Google Image search (be sure to copy the whole string and not just click the link):

cad files site:www.e-cigarette-forum.com

The site search function with Google is awesome by the way, it can make finding obscure and very specific things a breeze...
Replace "cad files" with whatever you want info on and get the grid of thumbs in lieu of a list of threads that may or may not contain what you need.

Happy hunting, and please keep us updated on your progress...