Ridiculous voltage drop from my Mech, even after thorough cleaning.

[Zalen]

Hey guys, I tried posting this on another forum and didn't have a lot of luck.

Basically I've been happily vaping away on my Nemesis + Magma combo. Until recently, I noticed it wasn't hitting as hard as it used to so I decided to whip out my inline volt meter. My freshly charged VTC4 shows as 4.2 in the charger, 4.17 in the mech. .03 is pretty standard, no big deal. However, if I pop my Magma on top with a 1 ohm coil, it starts fluctuating between 3.4 - 3.6.

Not cool. I cleaned my mod, all the contacts, used alcohol, hot water, a toothbrush, got into all the threads, took apart the switch, an all around good scrub down.
I popped my other VTC4 in, same problem. It goes from 4.17 to around 3.6. I thought it might be my coil, so I built a new one at .8, still the same result.

I have no idea what's going on, but I get about 20 minutes of vape per battery and I don't know what to do :'(

 

[Cullin Kin]

Hmm, interesting. You know... The authentic Manhattan's on Twisted420's video had an average voltage drop of 0.5V... And that's even on a 'competition' mod... lol

How old are your batteries? And how is the protective heat wrap doing?

 

[Tyrawr]

I don't specialize in either of these devices, but I have a bit of experience with both.. Quick question, is the magma a clone?

 

[Zalen]

That's weird, I mean maybe this is normal, but before I purchased the mech I heard people talking about how they would go at least a couple of hours without having to change batteries. I didn't expect to go days on one, but I figured I'd at least be firing it around 3.9 before it dropped down to 3.6-3.4.

Batteries are about 3 weeks old. I've been pretty meticulous about making sure I don't take them off the charger before 4.2. The heat wrap is looking fine, there are a some lighter and darker greens running down it, maybe 1 or 2 per battery but IIRC that's supposed to be fine. The only thing I can think of that might have had a negative effect is, the bottom contact on both batteries is kind of scratched up a bit from when it's taken off the charger, the prong kind of pushes against the battery in a way to scratch it. Nothing deep though.

If that had an effect on it though, I figured it wouldn't be at a normal level without the RDA though.

 

[Zalen]

Sorry, I probably should have added that in the post. It's the FT Magma clone. I heard nothing but great things about it, and it was reviewed really well, from what I seen even comparable to the infinite clone. It looks to be in good enough condition, one post is slightly bent and the right post hole is a little to the side, but other than that I've been happy with it so far.

 

[Cullin Kin]

That's weird, I mean maybe this is normal, but before I purchased the mech I heard people talking about how they would go at least a couple of hours without having to change batteries. I didn't expect to go days on one, but I figured I'd at least be firing it around 3.9 before it dropped down to 3.6-3.4.

Batteries are about 3 weeks old. I've been pretty meticulous about making sure I don't take them off the charger before 4.2. The heat wrap is looking fine, there are a some lighter and darker greens running down it, maybe 1 or 2 per battery but IIRC that's supposed to be fine. The only thing I can think of that might have had a negative effect is, the bottom contact on both batteries is kind of scratched up a bit from when it's taken off the charger, the prong kind of pushes against the battery in a way to scratch it. Nothing deep though.

If that had an effect on it though, I figured it wouldn't be at a normal level without the RDA though.

It wouldn't be because of the scratching on the battery contact. Did you do a voltage drop test before you noticed the decline in performance?

Mey be a silly question, but are your coil leads tightened down fully in your Magma?

 

[Zalen]

It wouldn't be because of the scratching on the battery contact. Did you do a voltage drop test before you noticed the decline in performance?

Mey be a silly question, but are your coil leads tightened down fully in your Magma?

I did do a couple of tests before. They weren't significantly higher, I would get about 3.8, not great, but it gave a bit of leeway before I hit 3.6 which is when I usually charge them. And yes, they're tightened down!

 

[Cullin Kin]

I did do a couple of tests before. They weren't significantly higher, I would get about 3.8, not great, but it gave a bit of leeway before I hit 3.6 which is when I usually charge them. And yes, they're tightened down!

I have no idea my friend, I'm sorry.

 

[Tyrawr]

Very strange.. The only time that I have had a similar issue was with a king (v2) clone from infinite. The issue turned out to be poorly machined contacts, and I solved the issue by sanding off the little nipple that was portruding, ever so slightly. However,in your case, it sounds to me like everything is fine, up to the atty. Your batteries sound perfectly good, and the contacts/mech probably aren't creating any issues if your volt meter is consistently giving you solid/expected readings like you mentioned.

I have only had the opportunity to use a magma once, and it was the infinite clone. (I've never even seen an authentic IRL, lol) I've heard great things too, but before my friend even got to finish his build and meter it out, we discovered that the posts weren't machined correctly, and that one of them wasn't secured. At all. I know that the first 2 or 3 attempts at getting the posts right, even on the authentics, were a disaster. I would tinker with the posts/delrin spacer, and make sure everything checks out... That is about my only idea at this point.

Maybe another silly question, but do you have another atty you could use and similarly meter (on the same mech) through at least a charge cycle on your batteries?

 

[69CamaroSS]

I have a Magma clone on an AR-15 clone and run it at ~0.5 ohm. I'm getting several hours (or an entire evening) out of a similar battery....Orbtronic SX30 30Amp 2100mAh.

Wanting to check my voltage drop, I put the Magma onto the mod with a freshly charged battery and no coil, attached my DMM to the posts and hit the button. I got the exact same reading as the battery alone on the DMM thereby checking the actual conductivity of the mod and Magma without the added resistance of a coil to skew the measured comparison....assumed that my mod and Magma are conducting just fine.

One other thing you may want to try is to put a tiny bit of Noalox conducting compound on all the threaded connections (I did). About $5-10 at just about any large hardware or home improvement store will buy enough for years....it only takes a fraction of a drop to coat the threads (lightly). Lots of debates as to whether it helps or not on various metals...but most all agree that it doesn't hinder conductivity and helps smooth and lubricate threads (removes gritty feeling and squeaks). Well worth a few $ to try.

 

[Zalen]

Very strange.. The only time that I have had a similar issue was with a king (v2) clone from infinite. The issue turned out to be poorly machined contacts, and I solved the issue by sanding off the little nipple that was portruding, ever so slightly. However,in your case, it sounds to me like everything is fine, up to the atty. Your batteries sound perfectly good, and the contacts/mech probably aren't creating any issues if your volt meter is consistently giving you solid/expected readings like you mentioned.

I have only had the opportunity to use a magma once, and it was the infinite clone. (I've never even seen an authentic IRL, lol) I've heard great things too, but before my friend even got to finish his build and meter it out, we discovered that the posts weren't machined correctly, and that one of them wasn't secured. At all. I know that the first 2 or 3 attempts at getting the posts right, even on the authentics, were a disaster. I would tinker with the posts/delrin spacer, and make sure everything checks out... That is about my only idea at this point.

Maybe another silly question, but do you have another atty you could use and similarly meter (on the same mech) through at least a charge cycle on your batteries?

Don't have another RDA to test, I'm going to head to my B&M tomorrow to see if I can test on some of their stuff. I'm assuming it has to be something with the Magma, I wonder, I'm not too sure what the bottom screw does on it. What is that and what would happen if I were to unscrew it a bit to see if I could get a better contact?

 

[Zalen]

I have a Magma clone on an AR-15 clone and run it at ~0.5 ohm. I'm getting several hours (or an entire evening) out of a similar battery....Orbtronic SX30 30Amp 2100mAh.

Wanting to check my voltage drop, I put the Magma onto the mod with a freshly charged battery and no coil, attached my DMM to the posts and hit the button. I got the exact same reading as the battery alone on the DMM thereby checking the actual conductivity of the mod and Magma without the added resistance of a coil to skew the measured comparison....assumed that my mod and Magma are conducting just fine.

One other thing you may want to try is to put a tiny bit of Noalox conducting compound on all the threaded connections (I did). About $5-10 at just about any large hardware or home improvement store will buy enough for years....it only takes a fraction of a drop to coat the threads (lightly). Lots of debates as to whether it helps or not on various metals...but most all agree that it doesn't hinder conductivity and helps smooth and lubricate threads (removes gritty feeling and squeaks). Well worth a few $ to try.

I mate have to give that a try, I'll head down tomorrow after I go to my B&M and see if I can test my mech with one of their RDA's. Also, I asked another poster this, but I'm uncertain what the bottom screw on the magma is. What exactly is it, and would I be able to unscrew it a bit to try and get a better connection?

 

[dice57]

Don't have another RDA to test, I'm going to head to my B&M tomorrow to see if I can test on some of their stuff. I'm assuming it has to be something with the Magma, I wonder, I'm not too sure what the bottom screw does on it. What is that and what would happen if I were to unscrew it a bit to see if I could get a better contact?

Umm, yeah, don't think you want to mess with that, except to ensure it's tight, unless you want the positive post to come loose and lose more voltage and short out the build, get burns, toast your batt, maybe vent it too. Hey, but that's just dice thinking.

Most common sources for voltage drop is the 510 pin having slop, loose connections in the rba, dirty switch and contacts, and the switch housing getting dirty, metal filings, or lose firing pin.

If you have broken down the magma, cleaned it up and made sure all connections are clean and tight, then the next source to look is the nemesis. Make sure the center pin is clean on both ends, and is screwed firmly against the magmas center pin when mounted. Also highly recommend tear down the Nemi switch housing and cleaning all parts, reassemble and make sure the firing pin is tight. It is not and adjustable firing pin, it must be tight and likely is the main source of you problems, if in fact, the Magma is in good working order.

Sorry about that, all this magma talk made me want to vape mine, and damn that's on fine vape, have mine at 0.16 ohms, vertical mounted coils, and vaping quite nice.

Fluctuating ohm readings would be an indicator of loose coil mounts, fluctuating voltage drop, that's a connection issue, and there is only 3 places to look, switch, 510, and posts in the rba.

Hope you get it worked out, most likely just needs some good honest maintenance.


Vape long and Prosper.!!!!

 

[Zalen]

Umm, yeah, don't think you want to mess with that, except to ensure it's tight, unless you want the positive post to come loose and lose more voltage and short out the build, get burns, toast your batt, maybe vent it too. Hey, but that's just dice thinking.

Most common sources for voltage drop is the 510 pin having slop, loose connections in the rba, dirty switch and contacts, and the switch housing getting dirty, metal filings, or lose firing pin.

If you have broken down the magma, cleaned it up and made sure all connections are clean and tight, then the next source to look is the nemesis. Make sure the center pin is clean on both ends, and is screwed firmly against the magmas center pin when mounted. Also highly recommend tear down the Nemi switch housing and cleaning all parts, reassemble and make sure the firing pin is tight. It is not and adjustable firing pin, it must be tight and likely is the main source of you problems, if in fact, the Magma is in good working order.

Sorry about that, all this magma talk made me want to vape mine, and damn that's on fine vape, have mine at 0.16 ohms, vertical mounted coils, and vaping quite nice.

Fluctuating ohm readings would be an indicator of loose coil mounts, fluctuating voltage drop, that's a connection issue, and there is only 3 places to look, switch, 510, and posts in the rba.

Hope you get it worked out, most likely just needs some good honest maintenance.


Vape long and Prosper.!!!!

Thanks for that, your post was quite informative! I'm still relatively new to mechs, I know my basic battery safety, but aside from that I haven't really gotten too much experience. Is it possible to break down the magma more then just removing the top cap, airflow ring, and giving it a good scrub?


Also, when you say the firing pin is tight, are you referring to the bottom contact? I'm relatively certain I put the switch back together properly, but it's completely obvious you know way more than me, so if you could give me a little more information I'd be eternally greatful!

 

[slappy3139]

First, when you attach your in line voltmeter without an atty attached, your circuit is still open (no load, no current flow) so what you're seeing when you press the button to fire is the battery voltage available at the 510 connection. Second, when you fire your mod with the atty attached to the voltmeter, what you see is the voltage being applied to your atty from the same 510 connection. In other words any drop in voltage from your reading before and after attaching the atty to your in line voltmeter is lost before it ever gets to your voltmeters 510 connection, it has been lost to the resistance in your mods circuitry. This is normal as your mods resistance (contacts, switches, tube body, etc.) is in a series circuit with your atty. The lower the resistance of your atty, the larger the voltage drop.