After a week of waiting, my red
Acrylimax from Madvapes arrived yesterday. Thats longer than shipping takes on most of my Madvapes orders, but it is across the continent, so thats OK. With a 10% off coupon and free shipping, I paid $71.99.
As everyone reading this thread knows, the Acrylimax is a retail FrankenMod using the guts of a SmokTech Zmax in an acrylic tube. No eGo connector (I dont care), no metal tube (I dont care), bigger in length and diameter (not my choice, but it is what it is), and considerably cheaper, both in build quality and price (I care). Unlike the Zmax, which can use either one 18650 or two stacked 18350 batteries, the Acrylimax can use
only an 18650. We already know from tests that the Zmax puts out absurd power levels with stacked 18350s and considerably less with an 18650. This is exactly what I wanted, since my Vmax V2 is so egregiously mis-calibrated that I cannot use it to vape at lower voltages (3.7-4.0 volts). The combination of 3-15 watt power regulation and the 18650 battery meant that I could compensate for the miscalibration and actually turn down the voltage to levels at which I often vape.
I need not discuss vape quality, display, or menu, since all those are identical to a Zmax. What I will share are my reactions to appearance, size, and build quality.
Appearance: As you can see in the accompanying pictures, the red Acrylimax tube is attractive. At least it is to me. The swirl pattern (unique for each unit) varies from light pink to dark burgundy and appears overall as a deep wine red. Nice. The acrylic tube is substantial, not flimsy, and feels good in the hand. Its smooth and shiny, but not slippery in my hand.
Dimensions: Because the wall of the tube is 1/8 thick, the diameter of the Acrylimax is about 1.0, or 1/4 more than the V/Zmaxs .75 width. Its also longer---5.25 versus the V/Zmaxs 4.6. This is a big mod, no question about that. Finally, the device is a bit lighter than my Vmax V2. Weight with batteries installed is 3.60 oz. for the Acrylimax versus 4.15 oz. for the Vmax.
Safety: The tube has four venting holes spaced around the circumference just below the firing button and another in the bottom end cap, which is metal. This is good, especially given the disturbing reports weve been reading recently of Zmaxes auto-firing and melting down.
Fit and finish: Only fair. The Acrylimax is hand-made, but not like an APV built by an artisan modder, such as my Penguin tin VV, which is superbly built by Caged. No, the Acrylimax is, well, fair-to-middlin in build quality. I wouldnt use the word shoddy---that would be unfair---but its clearly designed for ease of manufacture, speed of assembly, and minimal expense. By contrast, my ProVari is a blem, purchased at a reduced price from ProVape, yet Ill be darned if I can find a flaw anywhere. The Acrylimax lacks that level of attention to detail and quality control.
For instance, although the threading of the metal bottom cap is smooth, the interior female threads are just a ring of metal that is press-fit into the bottom of the acrylic tube, with a shielded wire extending down a groove in the tube from the regulator board to make the ground (negative) connection. Within two hours of my putting the Acrylimax into service, the inner thread ring started to slip out from the tube, pulled out by the pressure of the spring on the battery when the bottom cap was screwed on. I pulled out the inner thread ring, applied a thin film of super-glue, and pressed it back in.
Did that work? Yes, perfectly. Still, its not a particularly good sign that I had to make my first user-repair after only two hours of use.
Also, the tube, which has a wider diameter than the metal end cap, is cut off flush at the bottom, so theres a sharp edge of overhang where the bottom cap meets the tube. I didnt like how that looked or felt, so I used sandpaper to make a rounded bevel at the bottom, then polished it up with a dremel buffer (see pics).
Much better.
Like my Young-June Vtubes, the firing button (really just a cover for the switch on the regulator board) rattles when I shake the Acrilymax. Unlike my Vtubes, however, the Acrylimax firing button is
much looser (it shakes visibly in its hole) and rattles more loudly. The button
works fine, and Im not particularly worried that it will fail, but the fit is somewhat less than a tight, high-quality tolerance. Ah well, you get what you pay for.
Power: Im running the Acrylimax at a setting of 6.0 watts, and the vape intensity is equivalent to my Kicked mods running at 10.0 watts. That mis-calibration is OK with me because I can turn it down if I want. I'm not likely to ever need the max 15-18 watts that this device can crank out with an 18650.
Vape time between battery swaps: Im using a flat-top 2250mAh Panasonic CGR18650, and battery voltage is already down to 3.8 volts after about three hours of vaping, so I dont expect to get great battery life. According to Madvapes specs, the Acrylimax can use protected Li-Ions, so perhaps the 3100mAh Panasonic NCR18650 would fit and give more impressive vape times. I dont have any of those, though, so its a moot point.
Besides the safety concerns (auto-firing and melting down), the big question is
durability.
How will the Acrilymax hold up over time? I dont know the answer to that question. Time will tell.
So far, I like it. I knew the limitations going in of what I was buying, and---having shelled out only $72 for the Acrylimax---Im happy.
