Sorry for goofy title, but this is for those who may search for this in the future... (of course the tags section I see below may be the purpose for this, but I digress...).
I love the USB Pass-Through devices. I'm a "heavy vapist" I guess, so batteries don't last for me. I've not tried any of the mods though. The reason being is that I'm typically around power all day... at home (computer, 120V adapter), at work (same), and car (12V cig lighter to USB adapter).
I'm a cheap-..., so I've found the cheapie ~$12 USB pass through units appealing.
However, in my experience, at least with the units I'm buying, they have a flaw. And based on reading a few other posts/threads in the newbie area, others are having this issue too, so I'm throwing this info out there in hopes it may help others out in the future...
After a week or two of using a new pass-through, I find it gets flaky. I've narrowed this down to an issue with the cable/wire where it enters the pass-through. i.e., on the lit "tip" end... where the LED is behind that plastic piece. I'm constantly picking up the e-cig and putting it down and getting it wrapped all over, so yeah, it kinda goes through hell.
The issue appears to be the cable/wire having the outside being rubbed off by the plastic piece.
So what I do is remove that plastic piece and either cut it (wire cutters) or just break it and remove it.
Then I fix the power wire... i.e., just wrap a small piece of electric tape around it... problem solved!
Of course, after doing so, the guts "hang out". But for me this is something of a plus, as I like the see the LED when I'm using it. Why? Because I want to know when it goes out so I know when to take another hit
.
So I put that little microchip/circuit board piece at the end of the metal cylinder, then use some black electric tape and tape it all in place with a fair amount of electric tape. I typically wrap the power cable back around the pass-through metal cylinder, then tape it up good so if I manage to pull on the power cable for whatever reason, it's getting support and I don't end up ripping the wires out of the thing.
Another issue I've found is that some times one of the ground wires comes loose from the small circuit board. While this isn't for the non-techie DIY type, it can be easily fixed with a small solder iron.
The last issue I've come across is probably self-inflicted as well. Too much dripping. More than once I've "flooded" the atomizer and the liquid seeped down into the pass-through. If there is too much liquid on the top of the pass-through, it may cause the thing to "short circuit" a bit, and either not get enough juice to the atomizer, or provide to juice at all. On other occasions I've dripped so much that liquid actually comes OUT OF THE SWITCH on the pass-through. This is kind of a 50-50 deal as to whether it will work again or not. Take it off, clean it out, and put it aside. The button will probably not "click" anymore, but it may still work. And it may still work for a long time.
So, my advice is this... if you're a heavy vaper and like the idea of the pass-through, then find some cheap ones, and buy A FEW or more. I've found them available on-line for pretty cheap... ~$12.
If you can't live without smoking, then it's a small price to pay. Just like anything else, have a backup!
This probably goes for atomizers too... but I've had far less problems with these. I've had just two for around 3 months, and just had my first one die the other day.
So, FYI! USB forever
I love the USB Pass-Through devices. I'm a "heavy vapist" I guess, so batteries don't last for me. I've not tried any of the mods though. The reason being is that I'm typically around power all day... at home (computer, 120V adapter), at work (same), and car (12V cig lighter to USB adapter).
I'm a cheap-..., so I've found the cheapie ~$12 USB pass through units appealing.
However, in my experience, at least with the units I'm buying, they have a flaw. And based on reading a few other posts/threads in the newbie area, others are having this issue too, so I'm throwing this info out there in hopes it may help others out in the future...
After a week or two of using a new pass-through, I find it gets flaky. I've narrowed this down to an issue with the cable/wire where it enters the pass-through. i.e., on the lit "tip" end... where the LED is behind that plastic piece. I'm constantly picking up the e-cig and putting it down and getting it wrapped all over, so yeah, it kinda goes through hell.
The issue appears to be the cable/wire having the outside being rubbed off by the plastic piece.
So what I do is remove that plastic piece and either cut it (wire cutters) or just break it and remove it.
Then I fix the power wire... i.e., just wrap a small piece of electric tape around it... problem solved!
Of course, after doing so, the guts "hang out". But for me this is something of a plus, as I like the see the LED when I'm using it. Why? Because I want to know when it goes out so I know when to take another hit
.So I put that little microchip/circuit board piece at the end of the metal cylinder, then use some black electric tape and tape it all in place with a fair amount of electric tape. I typically wrap the power cable back around the pass-through metal cylinder, then tape it up good so if I manage to pull on the power cable for whatever reason, it's getting support and I don't end up ripping the wires out of the thing.
Another issue I've found is that some times one of the ground wires comes loose from the small circuit board. While this isn't for the non-techie DIY type, it can be easily fixed with a small solder iron.
The last issue I've come across is probably self-inflicted as well. Too much dripping. More than once I've "flooded" the atomizer and the liquid seeped down into the pass-through. If there is too much liquid on the top of the pass-through, it may cause the thing to "short circuit" a bit, and either not get enough juice to the atomizer, or provide to juice at all. On other occasions I've dripped so much that liquid actually comes OUT OF THE SWITCH on the pass-through. This is kind of a 50-50 deal as to whether it will work again or not. Take it off, clean it out, and put it aside. The button will probably not "click" anymore, but it may still work. And it may still work for a long time.
So, my advice is this... if you're a heavy vaper and like the idea of the pass-through, then find some cheap ones, and buy A FEW or more. I've found them available on-line for pretty cheap... ~$12.
If you can't live without smoking, then it's a small price to pay. Just like anything else, have a backup!
This probably goes for atomizers too... but I've had far less problems with these. I've had just two for around 3 months, and just had my first one die the other day.
So, FYI! USB forever
