My latest mod, inspired by all of you.

[radiokaos]

i for one really liked nico's idea of having two seperate threads and the reasons why make sense to me.

my only concern would be for the picture thread getting buried, without posts to bump it up, might be hard for us to find later.

I find it confusing going back and forth. For example, the last set of pictures don't even show the push button intact and complete. Also what about putting a toggle switch on as well to prevent accident discharge of the battery while in a pocket or purse.

Too many threads requirements and questions may put others off. These mods are nothing new and others have done something very similar in the past. Now if I need to find the pictures I need to either open another tab on firefox or go back and note the post #9 and picture. If Sun or other Moderators think it should be a stick that if fine. However asking others to post elsewhere in reference to a mod seems silly since there could be discussions on other mods in this thread. Do you see maddog asking for others not to give input or suggestions on his Mag Mod? Do you see a closed sticky for the SD mod?

 

[Elle]

sorry radio, i guess i'm just not as passionate on the subject as you are.

 

[radiokaos]

sorry radio, i guess i'm just not as passionate on the subject as you are.

Elle, I applaud the mods and think they are great. I just think that this is a community board where we can all learn including you. I have been soldering for over 20 years and have some ideas as well. If I decide to present them to the community I would ask others for input, suggestions, ideas, and hurdles they might foresee.

Please don't apologize, your input and opinion is valuable, and that's why I believe that unless it is something revolutionary that others should be allowed to add, suggest, complement, etc.

Don't get me wrong, I love the work, I just feel that others that might have input and suggestions might be turned off by the requirements of the Original Poster.

 

[Elle]

i see your points radio.

however i think my tongue in cheek response was interpreted as a legitimate apology; but i'll attribute that to the fact you don't know me very well.

i'm not in the mood for catfights this evening so i wont carry it on, mostly because my interest in mods are slim to none most times.

anyhow, very nice having met you and i hope future threads meet with your approval.

ciao

 

[nicowolf]

i for one really liked nico's idea of having two seperate threads and the reasons why make sense to me.

my only concern would be for the picture thread getting buried, without posts to bump it up, might be hard for us to find later.

I have asked SunVaporer to sticky the thread so we can always find that one and link to this one. The problem we are currently having is that there are all these great mods that have been done, but no one sees them because they are so quickly buried under the avalanche of incoming threads. There is nothing wrong with the incoming threads, just that they pile up quick. Discussion threads have a tendency to stray from topic and wander back. I am simply hoping to make it so a new person could go to the Modder's Forum and readily find information to get them started rather than have to ask the same questions we all asked a few months ago and get the same answers. We could have a lot of that information readily available at the top of the list of topics. Asking people not to post was not supposed to curttail discussion, just not muddy up the thread with conversation. Have you taken a look at Madog's Magnum thread and tried to read through it lately? There is good information there, but you have to sift through a lot to find what you need. I am sorry that some seem upset. My intention is not to slight anyone or cause trouble. I just want to try out a method of organization. If you don't like it, suggest another. The old way just isn't working so well anymore.

 

[planetofthevapes]

OK GUYS, YOU GOTTA HEAR THIS! I really wanted a #$^@ stick because of the fact the batteries will be easily/cheaply replaced and cheap atomizers can be used. I have been vapin' for a few months now and have gone through several units and I'm tired of expensive parts. I was always scared to mod....here is my experience. I went and bought all of the things for the nicostick (enough for 4, two 2x AAA and two 4x AAA so that I would have some until some specialty batteries/chargers arrive)...I quickly realized that an 801 atomizer would not fit in there (although it looked like it would before I opened it all up and tried)....I drove 30 more miles to radio shack and got AA battery holders. I used the same audio jack that everybody else has been using for the 801...I took some bubble hose (the stuff used for fish tanks) and put some heat shring wrap on that, shrunk it (as the hose wasn't big enough itself), stuck it in the center of that bad boy and then drove a flat tipped screw up through the bottom of it (use a flat head for this, you'll find it easier when soldering). I made sure the flat tip went up to where my atomizer would need the postive contact. I then used some of that epoxy clay type stuff (you have a blue layer and a white layer and you mix it like clay then put everything together and it sets in 5 minutes...) to hold my atomizer connection in. It looks very professional. I put everything else together like nico said...then I checked for shorts, none...then I put the batteries in, switched the box on.

You ready to hear the rest?

Are you sure?

You better sit down....

I am holding it, trying to get the guts to be the first to try (we have it open still at this point to make sure that nothing flashes or smokes or anything....) and I heard sizzling...I grabbed it from my husband and was like...WTF...I pushed my momentary switch, the sizzling stopped. At this point, perplexed, I put the box up to my ear and release the switch...sizzling...the stupid idiots at radio shack who dug through the parts drawers to find the switch gave me the "normally closed" circuit switches (I didn't think anything of the part number since they didn't have the part I wanted/needed). I didn't know there was such a thing as a "normally closed" switch! WTF...So, for the day, I have to hold the button down, let up when I want a drag...and switch the box off when I'm done. It's hilarious really. So, don't be a dummy like me, read your labels! I can't believe what a doofus I am. But I hope I made you all smile! ROCK ON THOUGH, this mod rocks! I thought my atomizer was crapping out on me and I wasn't enjoying vaping much lately (as we are waiting for our atomizers which just cleared customs today)...and now, I realize that it was just my batteries! The atomizer is great! I bet this thing is a friggin' freight train with a new atomizer! Thank you so much nico for the step by step. You helped a little old lady like me decide to get all technical and stuff! My husband was even impressed, it looks AWESOME!

 

[planetofthevapes]

Hey nico, any chance we can get some direction on adding an LED or two into this...just for fun and dare I say "bling"? I was going to try on my own, but I was afraid of sending too much "juice" to the LED and starting a fire and/or blowing myself up! Could you guide me at all into knowing how this could be done (wiring-wise)?

I was hoping to find a clear or opaque battery box so I could put some LED's in that little section above the batteries, no luck yet...still looking. Otherwise, I'll just drill a hole and use an LED anchor or something....

 

[lec666]

nicowolf, where did you find the batteries and charger ? i just picked up all the parts from
rad shack. real excited about making this 901 mod. should have called it the 901 nico micro mod

i may wind up using a leftover micro tac switch from my diy801 passthrough.

 

[planetofthevapes]

lec, last I checked you could find these batteries and chargers from DealExtreme. I have never ordered anything from them, I hear the shipping is a bit slow, but well worth it. I can't find any battery like this anywhere locally that is rechargeable, and the non-rechargeables around here cost about $20. That's just not doable! I would try DealExtreme.

 

[nicowolf]

I misappropriated a picture of the wiring schematic for a circuit with the led from another post where it had been borrowed from yet another thread. Just to let you all know, this is not my original work and I am unsure who the original author was.

Thank you for the kind words PlanetOfTheVapes. The resistor adds yet another element, but is crucial because most leds will burn out without it - they just aren't up to this kind of voltage. You are not the only one that has done the normally closed switch thing. I have read others tell of the same mistake - including Bastage who was one of our original modders.

 

[nicowolf]

nicowolf, where did you find the batteries and charger ? i just picked up all the parts from
rad shack. real excited about making this 901 mod. should have called it the 901 nico micro mod

i may wind up using a leftover micro tac switch from my diy801 passthrough.

I got the batteries and the charger from DealExtreme. The shipping took about 2 weeks, but the batteries were only about 5 dollars for a pair with free shipping. You can find them on other battery sites like Battery Junction, but they are more expensive. You can also find them on ebay, but most of those have to come from China too. The battery from the e-cigar (the RN4062 or the Ruyan Bling) are about the same thing. You can buy those from LitecigUSA or Puresmoker. If you want to run a search for them, the size is 10440.

 

[planetofthevapes]

Thank you nicowolf for that diagram...and it's good to know that I'm not the only one that accidently grabbed the wrong switch and realized after it was too late. I will be fixing that today if radio shack has any open switches (podunkville doesn't always have much to work with). You have also inspired me on my own mod...one that hasn't been done before...purely for fun. If I succeed, i will post my results.

 

[nicowolf]

Thank you nicowolf for that diagram...and it's good to know that I'm not the only one that accidently grabbed the wrong switch and realized after it was too late. I will be fixing that today if radio shack has any open switches (podunkville doesn't always have much to work with). You have also inspired me on my own mod...one that hasn't been done before...purely for fun. If I succeed, i will post my results.

Thanks for letting me know this sparked an idea. I hope that we will all continue to inspire one another, and perhaps, some manufacturers. Maybe they will see how many of us end up modding and get the idea that improvements could and should be made.

Please post your results, even if it is not successful. I can't speak for others, but I know that I, at least, learn just as much from mistakes as I do from successes. I learned to be careful about making sure the switch was normally open because some modding guru was willing to admit his mistakes and caution us about the possibility of that happening. That was a huge headache avoided for me and all it costed was someone being willing to admit being human and imperfect. I admitted to having a short in my second NicoStick. When I take it apart and find it, I will be sure to update on where it was and how I think it happened to spare someone else the misery of undoing their work.

 

[kender]

Good job nico! I finally posted a mod I did and I know that I would never of done one if I didnt read everyones ideas here. Thanks to all and to nico for posting this.

 

[KoS]

Ya I think I am going to try this with the AA holder so I can use 14500 protected. The AAA size is very appealing though.

BTW What happened to yor pics Nico? They were there before.

 

[ApOsTle51]

you'de be suprised how long these little 10440 batteries last on a 901 atomizer . 2 last me all day ( well 1 1/2 would really ) and I use it heavily. The nicostiK has been my main vaper since i put it together...great stuff...

 

[nicowolf]

Good job nico! I finally posted a mod I did and I know that I would never of done one if I didnt read everyones ideas here. Thanks to all and to nico for posting this.

The free sharing of ideas, advice, and knowledge encouraged me and I felt responsible for continuing it. I never would have stuck with vaping if it weren't for the hope given to me by the modders, and now the mods that I have made with their collective knowledge. I feel like it is time for me to start contributing back to that - kind of a pay it forward thing.

Ya I think I am going to try this with the AA holder so I can use 14500 protected. The AAA size is very appealing though.

BTW What happened to yor pics Nico? They were there before.

The AA holder looks like it will fit a penstyle atomizer, though I haven't tried it, yet. It is still a comfortable size, even for small hand like mine. If you do it, show us and tell us all about it, including the hard knocks lessons.

In order to post them, I had to attach them, but I didn't like thumbnails, so I copied and pasted the links to the attachments. I thought I would conserve forum space, and perhaps a little bandwidth by deleting the attachments once I had them full size in my posts. Deleting the attachments also deleted the target for the link, so broken links. I think I have it fixed now. Let me know. (See, there is a hard knocks lesson that might be learned the easy way just because I posted my embarrassing moment.)

you'de be suprised how long these little 10440 batteries last on a 901 atomizer . 2 last me all day ( well 1 1/2 would really ) and I use it heavily. The nicostiK has been my main vaper since i put it together...great stuff...

Thanks Apo. I haven't spent more than 5 minutes total with all my other e-cig stuff since I made mine. I am slowly selling off the other stuff to forum members that are soldering challenged as I once was. I know what that feels like and it is rather painful to watch everyone else have all the vaping fun with these things while you suck fervently on a failing OEM battery. Thanks also for your post about the solder bridge on the DC Jack. It is helpful information to me, and I am sure, others.

 

[lec666]

i finished my nicostick today. all epoxied up and ready to go. just waiting for batteries
that should be in tomorrow or friday. gave it a quick test with a chopped usb cable and
all is good to go.

many thanks nicowolf for the step by step,parts list and battery info.
now if we can only get maddog to do his version of the magnum

 

[nicowolf]

i finished my nicostick today. all epoxied up and ready to go. just waiting for batteries
that should be in tomorrow or friday. gave it a quick test with a chopped usb cable and
all is good to go.

many thanks nicowolf for the step by step,parts list and battery info.
now if we can only get maddog to do his version of the magnum

He did one better, he gave us a video step by step.

 

[emsmom]

Thank you Nicowolf, you have inspired me to give this a try. I am hoping you will come out with your step by step instructions soon? I have read your posts for some time now -from the start when you were thinking about trying to mod to the now wonderful finished product! Makes me think that maybe I can actually do this? Will be watching for your step by step instructions. Thanks again!