looks like i'm going to need a soldering kit. - evic decapitation

[erictho]

i got my evic a few months ago, on march 26th. i love it a lot. i just wish i hadn't bought it right before the v2 control heads were released. it has fallen victim to the usual top cap separation issue. i had tried to remove the top cap one day for cleaning, and it disturbed the glue. shortly after the top cap would randomly pop off. no dropping, nothing. just setting it on a flat surface and returning to it with the top cap off. afterward, i kept a close eye on how it was sitting and making necessary adjustments. the wires were always still intact and i just popped it back on. just for the record epoxy is not readily available to me and requires an extracurricular 2.5 hr transit trip (round trip) to secure. i switched back to my mechanical apvs unless i was at home or if i was going to be holding it. the first time i broke this little rule i was taking it from a side pocket in my purse (where the top cap/control head connection sticks out of the pocket) and the top cap popped off, both wires not attached.
are there any tips/tricks anyone who has had to do this can offer? are there any favorite youtube tutorials? they all seem to be decent, but it's pretty useful to seek out other information.
thanks.

on the bright side, at least i got a chance to remove the top cap without risking damage.

 

[Dougiestyle]

There are soldering videos on youtube. Practice on something before you commit to the repair. buy a soldering iron, solder, some wire (I'd suggest upgrading the wire while you're in there) 20 or 22 gauge, solder resin and some perf board (for practice). If you've never soldered before, take your time and study up on it. It's not hard, but it's an art to do it correctly.

Rather than try to learn and do it yourself on th fly to repair an "expensive" piece of vaperware, maybe consult your network of acquaintances to see if someone can solder it for you.

It will be neccessary to separate the positive pin form the connector. You don't want to damage the insulator, either. Good news is, if the insulator does get damaged, there are donors in every disposable carto ever produced.

I hope this helps. Good luck!

 

[swtraveler]

I have had the same issue. I have resoldered the connections several times. I finally got wise and realized that the head was not going to remain seated which led to my next question; why not? The plastic barrel that houses the electronics and holds the head in by tension had cracked. I could not see any cracks but used acetone on a rag to lightly brush the plastic, this brought the cracks up to visibility. I could not see any way to repair them as they are very tiny. My next attemt at repari involved some fancy plastic cementing and a resin epoxy that is usually used to provide extra security to diamond settings, the stuff will usually hold ANYTHING. It held for 2 days.

I have resigned to recreating the tension by wrapping the join with a hose clamp, which actually works out well as it provides and extra rest for my index finger.

 

[swtraveler]

Also in addition to the advice regarding soldering, unless you miraculously become proficient overnight at silver soldering, I would strongly reccomend using old school lead solder. It is much easier to master and flows much better than the crappy tin base rosin core that they sell at most stores. You can get the Pb base at most Radioshacks.