Smoktech Vmax Owners - tips, tricks and quirks

[fuzzione]

Well color me blind VAPNJ and DWCraig. All I had to do was put my glasses on
You are absolutely correct of course and I feel a little embarrassed here.
Indeed, the small inner o-ring on the bottom looks a little chewed. I can see now
how this all works but needed a magnifying glass to make sure. Good tip about
the carto end plastic.
Wish there was some way of making VAPNJ stickies for this thread

 

[fuzzione]

Aw man. Had my cart full of o-rings at Crystal then noticed they only ship in U.S. If anyone else knows of where to find these at a decent price shipped internationally, I'd be grateful for the info.

 

[Freddie]

Kalamazoo Vapor Shop

Aw man. Had my cart full of o-rings at Crystal then noticed they only ship in U.S. If anyone else knows of where to find these at a decent price shipped internationally, I'd be grateful for the info.

 

[fuzzione]

Also just found this place:

The O-ring Store - Where you can find a huge selection of o-rings, hydraulic seals, o-ring kits and accessories!, We make placing your o-ring order and getting o-rings as easy as possible! Get the o-ring seals you need, in your hands, at a fair price

Can order rings individually (cheap), they have $5 flat shipping and take paypal.

Now to pin down the exact sizes.

 

[motomatt]

I think you will find in most all cases of flooding carto in tank is due to a leaky upper inside o-ring, they are a metric size and can be found online at some of the vapor shops

Any Idea on how to fix a stardust clearomizer, They keep flooding my battery ?

 

[markfm]

Another hint on carto tanks.

Lube the orings with a little eliquid, and use a twisting motion when sliding a new carto in, like turning a screw. This helps the force on the oring be a compression (good), instead of a shear (bad).

Doing the above, I went through about 1200 ml, 60 cartos, before having to replace the first upper oring in my tank (bottom is still fine).

 

[VAPNJ350]

I've thought about the higher holes for the top coil myself, but I keep thinking that if my tank's less than half full and the top hole doesn't get liquid that it'll suck air and reduce how much liquid gets pulled in through the bottom hole.


I actually thought the same thing and just said screw it, Im gonna try it just to see what kind of outcome I get. But think about it, as long as your tank isn't leaking any air from the O-rings then it's a "sealed" system. All were doing with a tank is sealing the carto into a bigger carto that holds juice with no filler. Now think about that again, but slower...I had to. It doesn't matter where or how many holes you put in the "inside" carto, as long as your tank is air tight it works great. I put 12 holes in a XL boge, slid it in a tank and it did no different than the tank I had 3 holes in. Although I DO NOT recommend 12 holes in any carto as this was strictly for test purposes. Like I posted earlier, I take the extra time making sure the top hole lines up facing me when I'm holding my device so when I take a drag and the tank is at that 45 degree angle (like MOST people do) the top hole is covered with juice. This works way past the half way full mark. I usually top off just under half way anyway so I never have a issue. Anyway,...food for thought folks.

Tip: As stated before keep your white rubber carto tip in when you slide your carto in the tank making sure the rubber part is NOT pressed all the way in the carto, you want it sticking out about 1/8" inch or more. This keeps your O-rings from getting hung up on the sharp edge of your carto when it has no tip in it. You can also put a little pg or vg on the carto before spinning it up in the tank.

Tip 2 : Any holes you put at top in a Smoktech carto do NOT make it any bigger in diameter than the bottom hole. On a BOGE carto you can make it a bit bigger, due to the much denser filler material in a Boge. Smoktech cartos filler is airy and not near as dense and thick. With a top hole remember the juice has to flow all the way thru all the filler before getting to the bottom.

Take care all .................J

 

[dwcraig1]

RE: TIGHT BATTERY CAP on VMAX
I have taken some fine emory cloth to the inside area of cap on the edge where the battery starts in, some batteries would fit ok but the AW skin seems a little thicker, now all fit well. Be careful as there is not much to remove. This worked well for me.

 

[mgmrick]

I drilled a tiny hole in top of my tank and used an old plug from a buddy atty. Now I dont mess with pulling out the carto for refilling just fill thru the tiny hole on top. I am sure it saves on the tanks o rings

 

[Lonnie Lepp]

I want to get batteries

Will a 18650 work as long as I don't want high voltages. I typically use the 3 .6 setting or less on a 2.8 ohm cart

Also what type and or brand of batteries in 18350 last the longest between charges?

Thank You

I have been Googling like crazy on this and am just getting more corn fuzed.

 

[fsroq]

Cant work with a 18650. It has 4.2 Volt frsh from the charger, and the Vmax low battery protecion turns it off 6.5 ish

 

[Lonnie Lepp]

Well there ya go
No 186500

I see that the 18350's come in Protected, IMR and other such initials. They also have a range of mAh from the 700 up.

I remember reading on the forum that the largest mAh is not always the best if the battery can not sustain the output.

So now I need to narrow down which style and brand might work in the real world of the VMax.

 

[fsroq]

IMOH AW IMR 18350 are the way to go. They will last longer then any other between charges, and will give the highest output to the Vmax. Mind, this is a 5 amp unit and very hungry.

 

[fsroq]

It is not about capicity, 700, 800, 1200 Mah. It is about the amps the battery is able to deliver to the Vmax withouth being stressed. Here AW is outstanding. IMR doesn´t need protecion other then the Vmax is offering, because of its safer composition. Will allways be safer then any protected ICR

 

[VAPNJ350]

I want to get batteries

Will a 18650 work as long as I don't want high voltages. I typically use the 3 .6 setting or less on a 2.8 ohm cart

Also what type and or brand of batteries in 18350 last the longest between charges?

Thank You

I have been Googling like crazy on this and am just getting more corn fuzed.

No the 18650 battery lights up the display, but thats all, soon as you push the button to fire the device the "Lo" display flashes. This device is a regulated step down setup with pulse width modulation technology, it has to have 2 18350's although I have heard of a few running the 16340's with success, but the "only" reason I kinda don't recmmend doing this is because the whole device was designed around the dual 18350 size and setup.

** Anyone with questions regarding which battery is the best to use for the VMAX application :

THE AW IMR ARE THE ONLY BATTERIES TO USE WITH THIS MOD, YES OTHERS WILL WORK, BUT NONE HAVE THE CONSTANT AMPERAGE OUTPUT (or discharge rate) OF AN AW IMR BRAND BATTERY. This is backed by my own testing of many 18350 batteries at discharge rates of : 1, 2, 2.5, 3, 3.5, 4, 4.5, and 5 amp rates.

VMAX ELITE members,... remember this post # when a new vaper is wondering about batteries for this awesome device. Take care everyone. ........J

 

[fuzzione]

I just bought one of these for sliding cartos in tanks. Probably not necessary but couldn't resist the simple, apparently effective design and low cost.

Tank Tool/Filler Tip - Phiniac Rugged Pyrex Glass Tanks

I also picked up their carto punch just to see if it works ok. Good reviews and this is apparently the v2 version with harder screw.

V2 Cartomizer Punch - Phiniac Rugged Pyrex Glass Tanks

I plan on punching them both with this tool and my drill press to see which method is preferable to me. If the carto punch deforms them too much I'll stay with the drill, if not, the tool seems very convenient.

 

[IzzyD]

Hi everyone,

I've had my Vmax for about 3 weeks. I got a great deal from a uk vendor and got it delivered with vmax batteries for £49.99, approx $77 (this was a one off and the price has gone back up).

Anyway, I must admit it packs a real punch and I did fry a few cartos but you soon get use to where you need to set it and once you do the power of this device is a really bonus. It drives dual coil cartos like there's no tomorrow, lol, loads of flavour and TH, just what you need from a vv. I have a lavatube mini and buzz pro and this kicks ... but the buzz is still a very good vape and runs a 1.2 ohm carto I have. I have the version (5v reset) and this isn't an issue form me, nor is the LED not switching off. I've had no problems with the button and mine is solid and sure and the overall build quality is very good IMO.

My only issue is with some aspect of the firmware. When I put in freshly charged IMRs it reads 8.0v though my multi-meter always say they are 4.2 volts each? Also it gives me low battery at around 6.9v, though the batteries read 3.6 each (7.2v)? Battery life is ok but should be better? .... my batteries are good quality IMRs though not AWs.

I assume that the newer versions are a firmware upgrade rather than hardware? If so, would it be possible to flash an update? I'd like to improve it accuracy and assume the firmware on the newer version would give more vape time?

Could it be flashed?

Cheers,

IzzyD

 

[fuzzione]

Hi everyone,

I've had my Vmax for about 3 weeks. I got a great deal from a uk vendor and got it delivered with vmax batteries for £49.99, approx $77 (this was a one off and the price has gone back up).

Anyway, I must admit it packs a real punch and I did fry a few cartos but you soon get use to where you need to set it and once you do the power of this device is a really bonus. It drives dual coil cartos like there's no tomorrow, lol, loads of flavour and TH, just what you need from a vv. I have a lavatube mini and buzz pro and this kicks ... but the buzz is still a very good vape and runs a 1.2 ohm carto I have. I have the version (5v reset) and this isn't an issue form me, nor is the LED not switching off. I've had no problems with the button and mine is solid and sure and the overall build quality is very good IMO.

My only issue is with some aspect of the firmware. When I put in freshly charged IMRs it reads 8.0v though my multi-meter always say they are 4.2 volts each? Also it gives me low battery at around 6.9v, though the batteries read 3.6 each (7.2v)? Battery life is ok but should be better? .... my batteries are good quality IMRs though not AWs.

I assume that the newer versions are a firmware upgrade rather than hardware? If so, would it be possible to flash an update? I'd like to improve it accuracy and assume the firmware on the newer version would give more vape time?

Could it be flashed?

Cheers,

IzzyD

There is no such thing as good quality imr batteries for the vmax, that are not AW's. Plenty of info on this thread as to why this is. Buy the GENUINE AW's and you won't have this problem with the 'lo' engaging prematurely. Your vape time will also increase significantly.

 

[Fazed]

FYI, I sanded down the inside of the cap on my VMAX and 18350's now fit, albeit tightly. As an aside, I pick up some Efest IMR 800 mAh batteries in a coop held elsewhere, and they fit and function just fine, as do my AW's.

The Efest battery is a flat top IMR, and it works without a magnet spacer.

 

[IzzyD]

I can see the point ... shouldn't skimp on batteries. The cheapest AW I can find in the UK are £6.95 a piece (that's approx $10.70) and that's without postage. I'll look at the Efest have some good reports?

Thanks for the info guys. IzzyD