The Echo Thread

[sierrabravo]

I don't know if anyone remembers my pics of my carto disconnecting at the bottom from a few weeks back, but it happened to me again. As I was low on juice, I decided to re-wrap it and put it back together.
Vapor production was fine, and if they all disassemble in this mannor, it may prove easier and quicker that using the gogo method.

But, I learned a valuable lesson, make sure your hands are clean! Vapor production was good, but the flavor of sunblock did not compliment my juice! At least my carto is now rated SPF 60 and blocks UVA/UVB rays...

 

[EtherMagic]

I'm on my 6th day of heavy vaping on the same Carto, not sure how some are having problems after only a few days?


I only filled it once with the syringe with 3ml (my very first fill), when I feel it is half empty I top it off with about 24-30 drops and it's good to go again for many hours. Not once have I've had a burnt taste of any kind. I am using the aluminum whistle tips from IkenVapor, maybe this has something to do with it, as I read the rubber tips that come with it may be the cause of burnt flavor.


I am constantly unscrewing the Batt and Carto cleaning them, making sure no juice leakage.


With the way everything is going, I see no reason for a Carto change for a good while, but time will tell.


Gotta say, the Echo has been a Vape changer for me, I really love this thing.


P.S. I forgot to mention, everytime I change the battery I make sure I top it off until a few drops come out the bottom of the Carto, as I noticed if I don't do this the hit is way to harsh on the first couple hits! I personally feel that those who are not topping off each battery change, this may be a major cause of burning up the material that is soaking up the liquid, is case, destroying the Carto.


Ether

 

[GMalarkey]

You can get the aluminum 801 drip tips at Ikenvape. http://www.ikenvape.com/store/atomizer_accessories/drip_tips

I will have to get some just to try them out.

 

[Religion]

I just did an R/O (I didn't have distilled) water flush and then dried 'em with canned air. I burnt one to a crisp and it still tastes pretty bad, but is producing great vapor now that it is clean and refilled. The others seem to be working like champs with 100% VG niquid (thinned with water, though).
I think my original problem was laziness. I assumed that drip filling would work (to my credit, I did wait 12 hours and then refilled). I think meticulous syringe filling is what really needs to be done with these, at least for the first fill.

 

[Religion]

Anyone notice how these are weighted? SO COOL! It doesn't roll off my desk without some coersion.

 

[SonnyCrack]

I'm on day 5 of my first carto.. Vapor still great.. Flavor is lllllllllacking.. (I'm used to dripping on a debridged LR atty, so that has something to do with it).. But it seems as if the flavor is muting the more I refill it. Anyone else have that experience (no burnt taste either)..

 

[DarthVper]

OK, I washed a few cartos and refilled with a fresh syringe. Now I understand why I bought an ECHO
Must have been user error or something.

Yes I've found that they tend to work better (read: as they are intended to work) after a good cleaning. Perhaps the filler doesn't expand inside the large end of the tube as they should initially, or there's some kind of chemical residue left in them from the 'factory', or maybe just the moisture of a complete cleaning primes the filler better. :shrug:

Also, there really doesn't seem to be a very big difference between drip or whistle, except the way it feels on one's lips.

Much like there's not much difference between colored pencils and crayons.

Mn-puffer:

My cleaning advice:

I. disassembly
The way to clean them is first get they carto wet - pour some water over it just to get the filler moist. Then take some tweezers and gently pull the filler out. The filler being wet is important because dry it will pull apart some.
II. cleaning
Soak the empty cartridge in warm water, or for advanced cleaning use some pga or an ultrasonic cleaner (although I don't do these things). Then unwrap the filler, notice there's a tinier, thinner cloth at the center (don't lose this ). Wash the fillers thoroughly with some hot water and soap (I suppose there's good kinds and not-so-good kinds to use, but hey, ymmv). Rinse thoroughly being careful not to stretch the bigger filler very much, because it will warp if you're monkey pawing it. It's an excellent idea to give it a distilled water rinse down after this, otherwise you will taste icky faucet minerals for a good while. Dry by pressing between two paper towels, or placing on hard surface and pressing with paper towels, or using a blow drier (be cautious of flying fillers!). Rinse out the cartridge, give it a distilled water rinse, and blow it out from both ends. Then use a blow drier or let sit upside down overnight.
III. re-assembly
Insert a drinking straw over the cartridge straw. A McDonald's red straw is easy to find and only requires a slight enlargening on the end with a pen/tweezers/whatever to fit. Other straws that would fit all the way down are preferable, but I don't have any. Wrap the filler around the straw semi-tightly being certain to keep the mini rectangular cloth-like filler as it was originally (long-wise vertically against the cartridge's straw) and gently twist down into the cartridge until the top is flush. Use tweezers/whatever to push the rest of the way down into the cartridge until it stops. Hold the filler down with the tweezers/whatever and gently twist the drinking straw out of the cartridge. Gently pack down filler a little more, and you are done

I'm thinking of doing an illustrated version of this sometime, if anyone thinks it would be helpful.

 

[GMalarkey]

I just did an R/O (I didn't have distilled) water flush and then dried 'em with canned air. I burnt one to a crisp and it still tastes pretty bad, but is producing great vapor now that it is clean and refilled. The others seem to be working like champs with 100% VG niquid (thinned with water, though).
I think my original problem was laziness. I assumed that drip filling would work (to my credit, I did wait 12 hours and then refilled). I think meticulous syringe filling is what really needs to be done with these, at least for the first fill.

So did you just rinse them out with hot water and blow the battery end out with the air?

 

[SonnyCrack]

Another thing.. Is there anyway to tighten up the draw a bit? It's pretty airy.. Theres four vents in the bottom, any cheap ways to make it one or 2? I dont like having to hold my hand around it to get it just right. But I'm probably wishing..

 

[OMG!]

It will work better if you dry burn the coil before you put it back together.

 

[OMG!]

I apologize if this is repetitive but I've been using these since April and, through trial and error, think I've perfected the cleaning method that's working best for me.

Cleaning and Rebuilding an ECHO/iGo carto:

-pull out the stuffing with tweezers
-rinse both layers of filler material off in really hot water
-rinse the carto out and place it in the ultrasonic with vodka for cleaning solution for 10 minutes (or just soak in vodka)
-shake the vodka out and put the carto on a manual battery - hold the button down for about 10 seconds several times until there is white stinky smoke coming off it and you can see the coil glowing red. (this is called dry burning)
-rinse the carto again and toss it back in the ultrasonic for 10 more minutes
-dipped the filler in vodka and rinse again in really hot water - spread it out on paper towels and press more paper towels down to soak up all the water
-pull the carto out of the ultrasonic (vodka), rinse well then let it and the filler material dry for an hour or more
-drip 4-6 drops of juice in the bottom of the carto to get the coil and wick wet
-wrap the filler around a straw making sure the small inner filler hangs out the bottom a bit
-use the straw to ease it into the carto
-tamp down pretty hard
-fill and vape

I keep the filler material and cartos in a baggie and don't put them together until I'm ready to fill and use them... that way I can prime the coil with juice. Filling with a syringe the first time does work better.

I'm not sure if using just plain vodka to soak it would work as well a the ultrasonic but I think it would do pretty much the same thing. I got the little ultrasonic from my local jeweler for $19.99.

 

[mohawkx]

Well there it is then. I can retire with a good conscience now, as it looks like you got everything under control. Good luck and happy vaping.

Yes I've found that they tend to work better (read: as they are intended to work) after a good cleaning. Perhaps the filler doesn't expand inside the large end of the tube as they should initially, or there's some kind of chemical residue left in them from the 'factory', or maybe just the moisture of a complete cleaning primes the filler better. :shrug:



Much like there's not much difference between colored pencils and crayons.

Mn-puffer:

My cleaning advice:

I. disassembly
The way to clean them is first get they carto wet - pour some water over it just to get the filler moist. Then take some tweezers and gently pull the filler out. The filler being wet is important because dry it will pull apart some.
II. cleaning
Soak the empty cartridge in warm water, or for advanced cleaning use some pga or an ultrasonic cleaner (although I don't do these things). Then unwrap the filler, notice there's a tinier, thinner cloth at the center (don't lose this ). Wash the fillers thoroughly with some hot water and soap (I suppose there's good kinds and not-so-good kinds to use, but hey, ymmv). Rinse thoroughly being careful not to stretch the bigger filler very much, because it will warp if you're monkey pawing it. It's an excellent idea to give it a distilled water rinse down after this, otherwise you will taste icky faucet minerals for a good while. Dry by pressing between two paper towels, or placing on hard surface and pressing with paper towels, or using a blow drier (be cautious of flying fillers!). Rinse out the cartridge, give it a distilled water rinse, and blow it out from both ends. Then use a blow drier or let sit upside down overnight.
III. re-assembly
Insert a drinking straw over the cartridge straw. A McDonald's red straw is easy to find and only requires a slight enlargening on the end with a pen/tweezers/whatever to fit. Other straws that would fit all the way down are preferable, but I don't have any. Wrap the filler around the straw semi-tightly being certain to keep the mini rectangular cloth-like filler as it was originally (long-wise vertically against the cartridge's straw) and gently twist down into the cartridge until the top is flush. Use tweezers/whatever to push the rest of the way down into the cartridge until it stops. Hold the filler down with the tweezers/whatever and gently twist the drinking straw out of the cartridge. Gently pack down filler a little more, and you are done

I'm thinking of doing an illustrated version of this sometime, if anyone thinks it would be helpful.

 

[mohawkx]

I apologize if this is repetitive but I've been using these since April and, through trial and error, think I've perfected the cleaning method that's working best for me.

Cleaning and Rebuilding an ECHO/iGo carto:

-pull out the stuffing with tweezers
-rinse both layers of filler material off in really hot water
-rinse the carto out and place it in the ultrasonic with vodka for cleaning solution for 10 minutes (or just soak in vodka)
-shake the vodka out and put the carto on a manual battery - hold the button down for about 10 seconds several times until there is white stinky smoke coming off it and you can see the coil glowing red. (this is called dry burning)
-rinse the carto again and toss it back in the ultrasonic for 10 more minutes
-dipped the filler in vodka and rinse again in really hot water - spread it out on paper towels and press more paper towels down to soak up all the water
-pull the carto out of the ultrasonic (vodka), rinse well then let it and the filler material dry for an hour or more
-drip 4-6 drops of juice in the bottom of the carto to get the coil and wick wet
-wrap the filler around a straw making sure the small inner filler hangs out the bottom a bit
-use the straw to ease it into the carto
-tamp down pretty hard
-fill and vape

I keep the filler material and cartos in a baggie and don't put them together until I'm ready to fill and use them... that way I can prime the coil with juice. Filling with a syringe the first time does work better.

I'm not sure if using just plain vodka to soak it would work as well a the ultrasonic but I think it would do pretty much the same thing. I got the little ultrasonic from my local jeweler for $19.99.

That's pretty much it in a nutshell. I can retire with a good conscience.

 

[Religion]

Wow! Very thorough. Thank you for typing that out.

 

[JohnReagan]

I'm late to the Echo party ... but I'm seriously going to buy one this week. What appealed to me was that it was an auto and, most importantly, that it did not need a syringe to fill it up - but - I'm seeing quite a few posts from people using syringes on the first top up. I'd really rather not use a syringe. Can I get away with just soaking up the polyfill material like a normal carto or do the cons outweight the pros to that?

Also, I'm a dripper at heart. I've heard of the Echo-e ... does that mean it's got a 510 connection and thus can use my 510 attys to drip with it? That would be the best of both worlds as I've heard the Echo has an auto batt done right, the way it should be.

Sorry for the newb-like questions folks, I really should do more research but I'm pretty excited about getting this PV! Thanks =)

 

[OMG!]

I'm late to the Echo party ... but I'm seriously going to buy one this week. What appealed to me was that it was an auto and, most importantly, that it did not need a syringe to fill it up - but - I'm seeing quite a few posts from people using syringes on the first top up. I'd really rather not use a syringe. Can I get away with just soaking up the polyfill material like a normal carto or do the cons outweight the pros to that?

Also, I'm a dripper at heart. I've heard of the Echo-e ... does that mean it's got a 510 connection and thus can use my 510 attys to drip with it? That would be the best of both worlds as I've heard the Echo has an auto batt done right, the way it should be.

Sorry for the newb-like questions folks, I really should do more research but I'm pretty excited about getting this PV! Thanks =)

I have an ECHO-e and it does have a 510 connection. I don't have any other 510 cartos so I'm not sure what else fits on the battery. The battery is a manual switch.

 

[JimmyJet]

Indeed the Echo-E carto has a 510 connection. Some of us use syringes, some do not. I've never used a syringe nor had any problems with Echo-Es. All of my batteries are eGo style. Personally, I use Boge 2.0's at home and Echo's on the road.

 

[peacewillow]

Indeed the Echo-E carto has a 510 connection. Some of us use syringes, some do not. I've never used a syringe nor had any problems with Echo-Es. All of my batteries are eGo style. Personally, I use Boge 2.0's at home and Echo's on the road.

Do you notice flavor reduction in your Boge 2.0s then the Echo carto? I just got my Boges in and am using them on my Reo mini. Only have tried one but seems like the flavor is a lot less then a fresh Echo. I got these because everyone loves them.

 

[Smokin'TheClouds]

I'm late to the Echo party ... but I'm seriously going to buy one this week. What appealed to me was that it was an auto and, most importantly, that it did not need a syringe to fill it up - but - I'm seeing quite a few posts from people using syringes on the first top up. I'd really rather not use a syringe. Can I get away with just soaking up the polyfill material like a normal carto or do the cons outweight the pros to that?

Also, I'm a dripper at heart. I've heard of the Echo-e ... does that mean it's got a 510 connection and thus can use my 510 attys to drip with it? That would be the best of both worlds as I've heard the Echo has an auto batt done right, the way it should be.

Sorry for the newb-like questions folks, I really should do more research but I'm pretty excited about getting this PV! Thanks =)

The Echo-E has a 510 connection but it is also a manual; not an automatic like the Echo without the "e". I have some Cisco 306 LR attys and some Ikenvape 306 LR's that, for some reason, don't work on my Echo-e 1300mah batteries.

 

[unmatter]

The Echo-E has a 510 connection but it is also a manual; not an automatic like the Echo without the "e". I have some Cisco 306 LR attys and some Ikenvape 306 LR's that, for some reason, don't work on my Echo-e 1300mah batteries.

I think the circuitry cuts off the battery if there is too high of a current draw. The LR attys must meet that criteria. I discovered that the echo-e bats only charge at 150ma (same as the regular echo) whereas a normal ego charges at 420 ma. So there must be a current flow cutoff in both directions (flowing into and out of the bat). This is why I decided to get the regular echo instead of the echo-e.