Just recieved my Gripper......

[ppeeble]

Hi all,
I've been lurking here for 3 months ever since i took up vaping.
Have gone from 20 Marlboro Reds and a dozen roll ups a day for 30 years to nothing in the space of 2 weeks and have been smoke free for 72 days and counting.
vaping has saved my life (literally).
Anyhow...
I have just bought a smok Gripper vv. (I have a Lavatube but am fed up with people asking me why i'm sucking on a bicycle pump when i'm out and about). I decided to give it a go and stuck on a Boge xxl 2 ohm at 3.2v (i always start low and build up cos i'm paranoid about blowing carts). Well, it burnt it right out. Tried another at 3v and it chugged the same as my Lavatube at 4.2v.....
I put a cheap voltmeter to the terminals and fired it up at what should have been 3v. The meter was fluctuating between 3.9 and 4.4v.
Have i got a dud or is this normal for a Gripper ?

P.S. the battery i used was an 18650, 1800 mAh AW branded one, charged a couple of days ago (it came with my Lavatube). The instructions for the Gripper recommend an 18650 protected 2200mAh battery.
Should i get some protected batteries and could that be the problem ?

 

[michliu]

Unfortunately, this is normal for the VV Gripper. They hit much higher than what you set it at. I haven't found different batteries to help with this. Whatever 18650's you use, go with shorter flat tops. I have some protected 18650's that don't fit well because of the extra length. The battery door is a real weak point, and the less stress on it the better.

 

[Baditude]

I have just bought a Smok Gripper vv...Have i got a dud or is this normal for a Gripper?...P.S. the battery i used was an 18650, 1800 mAh AW branded one, charged a couple of days ago (it came with my Lavatube). The instructions for the Gripper recommend an 18650 protected 2200mAh battery.
Should i get some protected batteries and could that be the problem ?

The cheaper Chinese-made variable voltage devices are notorious for imprecise voltage regulation, in particular putting out higher voltage than the user's setting. I have the same V.V. Gripper and I compensate the voltage regulation by setting it 0.5v -1v lower than I want. It appears your unit is even more inaccurate than mine.

The above can be confirmed by the review done by PBusardo on the Smoktech V.V. Gripper: A PBusardo Review - Smoktech 18650 VV Gripper - YouTube

You actually do not want to use a protected battery in a variable voltage device, but a safer-chemistry, high-drain IMR 18650. You want the following AW imr 18650 battery with the nipple top (not flat top). It is exactly what I use in mine. AW IMR 18650 2000 mAh



IMR batteries are better suited for the boost circuit processors that are in variable voltage devices. They are specifically designed for short, high energy demands (thus the high drain categorization).

They are not protected in the sense that they do not use short circuit protection, but use a safer chemistry that is not as likely to go into thermal runaway like the chemistry in the other batteries that require short circuit protection. Besides, nearly all variable voltate processors have built-in safety short circuit protection which will shut the unit down in an unsafe situation.

Having said that, I'm surprised that your 2 ohm atty's were blowing at 4.4v. I use 2.5 - 3.0 ohm cartomizers in my cartotanks and have never blown a coil even going as high as 5.8v with a cinnamon flavor.

I would contact the vendor where you purchased the device for either a refund or replacement. A 1.5v voltage regulation difference could be considered excessive and unacceptable if you weren't aware that this device performs this way.

You should otherwise use a higher ohm coil in the 3.0 ohm resistance range. The following Safe Vaping Power Chart is a useful guideline to assist picking the atomizer resistance for the voltage range that you wish to use. Stay in the green boxes for best performance. Also compensate the voltage about 1.5v higher on the chart due to the Gripper's inaccurate voltage output.

http://imgur.com/r/electronic_cigarette/Ohn8o

 

[ppeeble]

Unfortunately, this is normal for the VV Gripper. They hit much higher than what you set it at. I haven't found different batteries to help with this. Whatever 18650's you use, go with shorter flat tops. I have some protected 18650's that don't fit well because of the extra length. The battery door is a real weak point, and the less stress on it the better.

Many thanks, at least i know it's not a dud and can adjust the voltage accordingly. It's a bit of a bummer that i've just ordered 2 protected batteries though ! (and yes, i did notice the build quality was a bit less than i'd expect from a £40 pv).

 

[ppeeble]

The cheaper Chinese-made variable voltage devices are notorious for imprecise voltage regulation, in particular putting out higher voltage than the user's setting. I have the same V.V. Gripper and I compensate the voltage regulation by setting it 0.5v -1v lower than I want. It appears your unit is even more inaccurate than mine.

The above can be confirmed by the review done by PBusardo on the Smoktech V.V. Gripper: A PBusardo Review - Smoktech 18650 VV Gripper - YouTube

You actually do not want to use a protected battery in a variable voltage device, but a safer-chemistry, high-drain IMR 18650. You want the following AW imr 18650 battery with the nipple top (not flat top). AW IMR 18650 2000 mAh It is exactly what I use in mine.

View attachment 168314

IMR batteries are better suited for the boost circuit processors that are in variable voltage devices. They are not protected in the sense that they use short circuit protection, but use a safer chemistry that is not as likely to go into thermal runaway like the chemistry in the other batteries during a short circuit situation. Besides, nearly all variable voltate processors have built-in safety short circuit protection which will shut the unit down in an unsafe situation.

Having said that, I'm surprised that your 2 ohm atty's were blowing at 4.4v. I use 2.5 - 3.0 ohm cartomizers in my cartotanks and have never blown a coil even going as high as 5.8v with a cinnamon flavor.

I would contact the vendor where you purchased the device for either a refund or replacement. A 1.5v voltage regulation difference would be considered excessive and unacceptable in my opinion.

Double oops... Now looks like i'm gonna have 2 redundant batteies too.. Also i have to confess that the 1st carto wasn't new so may have been ready to go anyway. I think i'll contact the vendor and see what they have to say. Thanks for the heads up on the battery situation. The pidgeon English instructions def state to use protected batteries as well as "THIS BOTTON HAS A 3.5 CLICK ON / OFF FUNCTION". I'm still trying to figure out how you push a button three and a half times !

 

[Baditude]

Just a heads up, I went back and did some further editing to my above post. I added a link to a Safe Power Vaping Chart that you might find useful. I made recommendations for a higher ohm atomizer and to compensate for the 1.5v higher output in the chart that the Gripper makes.

 

[ppeeble]

Bookmarked. I LOVE this site !