Just For LM2596 Users

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Badical9

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rebar

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Just a short note to say I love these cheap LM2596. As PTs with a 12v 5 amp supply they can't be beat and if you do pop one you are out a couple of bucks. IMO Provaris and DNAs are great but PITA for breaking in a ss wick/coil. Many of my wick/coils won't even heat up when I put them new on a Provari or DNA, so I screw it to a cheapo LM2596 and instantly see the short and adjust. Life in the genny world is much easier with a LM2596.

I see the power supply your using now.. Iv got this huge 750W power supply but Im afraid of it.
Have you made any LM2596 vid's?

I also have one of these.. Can I get by with this 2.5 amp transformer?



Thanks!
 
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Quigsworth

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I see the power supply your using now.. Iv got this huge 750W power supply but Im afraid of it.
Have you made any LM2596 vid's?

I also have one of these.. Can I get by with this 2.5 amp transformer?



Thanks!

As an electrician I know it can be a scary thing to some...I would be much more comfortable using your big 750 watt PSU than the 2.5 amp PSU any day and here's why...this'll depend on your vaping preferences but if you are a high wattage vaper you may be at or very near the max output of the 2.5 A PSU...it's working...hard...it's getting hot and depending on it's rated duty cycle, may be pushed to a premature death.

With the 750w unit, pfft...it's not even breathing hard, it'll run nice an cool with good stable voltage...just check and double check your connections, put a 3-5A automotive fuse in-line between your PSU and the LM2596 if you want (either on the pos or neg, doesn't matter) and you'll be fine...
 

rebar

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As an electrician I know it can be a scary thing to some...I would be much more comfortable using your big 750 watt PSU than the 2.5 amp PSU any day and here's why...this'll depend on your vaping preferences but if you are a high wattage vaper you may be at or very near the max output of the 2.5 A PSU...it's working...hard...it's getting hot and depending on it's rated duty cycle, may be pushed to a premature death.

With the 750w unit, pfft...it's not even breathing hard, it'll run nice an cool with good stable voltage...just check and double check your connections, put a 3-5A automotive fuse in-line between your PSU and the LM2596 if you want (either on the pos or neg, doesn't matter) and you'll be fine...

I guess Im not as afraid of it as just annoyed. Yea it works great for every task I throw at it which started out a hobby charger PS.. But the fan on the back is so loud I couldn't stand that for long periods. Heavy as hell.

What I really want is a suitable 3A wall transformer which already has a LM2596 or equal built in.. Even better would be that same wall transformer supplying a preset wattage like the Darwin and Kick.
 
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Quigsworth

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Ok this is probably my lack if understaning of the lm2596 i have built a few now and can not seem to get it ti above the out put volts of what ever battery i use

Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk 2

You never will...the LM2596 is a buck module...meaning it has the ability to output a lower voltage than what is input. They are typically powered with 2x 3.7v batts in series (or 7.4v), you can then use the trimmer to adjust the output v from effectively 3v to about 5.5V. You are probably thinking of a boost module (like what's in a Provari).
 

Badical9

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Lets get this thread going strong again!! I just got 10 boxes and a few lm2577's in from china, i already have about 8 2596's and unfortunately the boxes are slightly too small. I want to squeeze as much as i can into these things so i was wondering if a lm2596 and a lm2577 could be slimmed down to as small as possible. Im pretty handy but I have no idea where to start with this. I have already taken one entirely apart but i have no clue of how to wire it back together. I think both could be reduced to about half their size.
 

Badical9

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I have a few of those small 2 wire volt meters left too but one of them reads 23.something when i put it on a freshly charged 18650 battery, all of my other ones read 4.2, whats up with that?? I think I'd rather use the 3 wire meters anyways but the lead time is so long that i would order a bunch at once. Does anyone have any experience with the 3 wire meters? how do they compare to the 2 wire ones?
 

BJ43

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I have a few of those small 2 wire volt meters left too but one of them reads 23.something when i put it on a freshly charged 18650 battery, all of my other ones read 4.2, whats up with that?? I think I'd rather use the 3 wire meters anyways but the lead time is so long that i would order a bunch at once. Does anyone have any experience with the 3 wire meters? how do they compare to the 2 wire ones?

The one that reads 23 is kaput... I have used both the two wire and the three wire, prefer the 2 wire for ease of use. With the three wire I need two switches, one to turn it off, and one to select in and out readings, with the two wire I use one on/off/on switch.
Battery Voltage Power Monitor Digital Voltmeter 3 3 17V Blue LED Panel Meter | eBay
 

rebar

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I just wired up my passthru. 5.5v on a 1.7 cisco LR with vaporcast southern freeze .6%. I went through 2ml in a flash.. wow..

Thanks for the LM2596 info everyone! woohoo

reopassthru.jpg
 

Sovran

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Up to post 350, boy what a long thread full of useful info. A couple questions. The LM sounds like just the ticket for what I want to build but need a little basic info to determine if it is feasable. I am thinking a multi-station hooka type device. A PT box with several LM modules wired to use low amp switches(the pin5 thing) What is the smallest wire guage for a long run, say 4 ft, could be used for the atty connector? same question for the tac switch? Lastly does anyone know where to source very flexible wire in the needed gauges for this? I understand the more smaller strands the more flexible, but I have no idea where I could find this wire.
 

Badical9

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I think you can use really small wire like high 20 gauge. I have some 18 and 20 and it is a pain in the .... to work with in small places. If you have ever taken apart any type of device from a manufacturer you'll see they use tiny wires, i have never figured out the actual gauge but its super small, like 1 or 2 stranded wires where 20 has about 10. On another note i just got 10 plastic boxes (http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItemVersion&item=150663638093&view=all&tid=867761107005) in the other day and an 18650 fits lengthwise and an 18350 fits widthwise but there's is literally 1 mm extra to put in the contacts. i shaved down the inside of the box for some extra space but its still way too tight. I only have flattop batteries. Any tips on making super thin contacts? I tried using copper strips and putting a dab of solder but that doesnt work too well. Maybe I should have gotten bigger boxes...
 

Quigsworth

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Up to post 350, boy what a long thread full of useful info. A couple questions. The LM sounds like just the ticket for what I want to build but need a little basic info to determine if it is feasable. I am thinking a multi-station hooka type device. A PT box with several LM modules wired to use low amp switches(the pin5 thing) What is the smallest wire guage for a long run, say 4 ft, could be used for the atty connector? same question for the tac switch? Lastly does anyone know where to source very flexible wire in the needed gauges for this? I understand the more smaller strands the more flexible, but I have no idea where I could find this wire.

The tact switch cct can be wired with the wire you can pull out of a telephone or data patch cord, there is no significant current to concern yourself with. The atty con however is a different story...the wire can be carrying up to 3A of current (and it's a DC voltage)...there is a good possibility of what's known as voltage drop between the source and load...the biggest wire you can use the better...what really works good is that Monster speaker wire you can get from Ratshack or a decent stereo shop, it can be a little pricey but...I've seen gauges up to 10 awg (way overkill) but honestly, if you want full punch at your atty, gun for 14 awg, no lower than 16...and that speaker wire is pretty flexible...hope that helps...
 
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