vamo 510 stripped threads possible fix

[White Rabbit]

Hammerfly, I just repaired mine today. The top like you said is VERY hard to remove. I wrapped the Vamo main body with an old leather shammey and put it in my shop vice. Then put a pair of Vice Grips onto the top, held the lower portion with my left hand and just kept wiggling and wiggling (not too violently) until finally it came loose. Then you need to unsolder the old wires and re-solder them onto the new top. Somewhat tedious, but very doable. The new top diameter was not as large as the old cap, so I secured it with one drop of Loctite Super Glue and it seems to be holding up fine. You could also use one wrap of plastic electrical tape, or maybe some plumbers tape to make the diameter of the new cap fit tighter.

Best of Luck

The Old Wabbit

 

[hammerfly]

Thanks Rabbit. That was pretty much what I thought about doing. I need to go to a buddy's house and put it in his vice. Darn, I can remember when I used to have a vice attached to my right arm. Getting old sucks y'all, but I suppose it beats the alternative.

 

[White Rabbit]

Thanks Rabbit. That was pretty much what I thought about doing. I need to go to a buddy's house and put it in his vice. Darn, I can remember when I used to have a vice attached to my right arm. Getting old sucks y'all, but I suppose it beats the alternative.

Yea, I know what you mean. I just turned 69, but thankfully I am in great shape. I still have a nice shop with all kinds of tools etc, so I putter a lot out there. I have had the top for a couple of weeks, but did not want to screw up my Vamo. Finally the threads just became too much of an issue and I decided to give it the old college try. Lucky everything turned out OK. Just remember to wrap the Vamo tube carefully and don't tighten it too tight in the vice. Also the wires are only give you about 1 inch of play, so don't pop it off too vigorously.

You may have the same problem with the new top, which was a smaller diameter. If it is, you will need to wrap something about the connection, or do like I did and use one or maybe two drops of super glue to secure it in place.

Wabbit

 

[hammerfly]

Rabbit, I'm ten years younger than you, but, I've been ridden hard and put away wet way too many times. Well, that and a pulmonary embolism, two strokes and many TIA's have taken their toll as well.

I used to have tons of tools at home, but most of those are sold off now to pay medical bills so I have to go to a buddy's house to use his bench vice. Thanks for the update on how yours went.

 

[White Rabbit]

I buy a lot of cheap mods from China. The first thing I do is put a 510 to 510 adaptor on them. That solves the threads wearing out problem, especially since most of those threads are aluminum and strip out easily.

I started doing this after my Segelei Zmax threads wore out. One of the large 510 to 510 adaptors worked okay, but even better is this one 510 to eGo Adapter with Well. I have used these on really stripped out Spinners and they work pretty well.

But as I said in the first place, the easiest fix to avoid worn out threads is to put a 510 to 510 connector of any type on it when you first buy it. Then the threads can't wear out.

This is a great recommendation

I ordered one of these for my reconditioned Vamo V2. After replacing the top cap, a new thread protector was in order, and I received it today. Sent Sandy a PM thanking her for the recommendation. This fits great, looks great and vapes great. It does not exactly match the SS Vamo V2, but still looks great. It also fits the Ego threaded devices.

Edit: The threads are MUCH better than the original Vamo threads. Tanks screw down "tight" unlike the original Vamo threads. No tank wiggle, smooth vape due to vents.
I'm a Happy Vaping Wabbit

Second Edit: This particular 510 to 510/Ego adapter also has a spring loaded positive center pin, which provides added protection to the Vamo O Ring preventing over tightening. The silver finish does not quite match the SS or Chrome Vamo but it still looks good. I have not tried polishing it because it appears to be "painted" dull silver.

 

[onjre]

Just thought I'd send an update too.

I did order the replacement top cap. I put the old top cap in a bench vise (i.e. with the vamo upside-down). This way there is no need for protective tape or anything because the teeth of the vise are on the top cap that you'll be replacing.

Then I just grabbed the body with my hand and wiggled it back and forth while pulling up on it a little. It came off pretty hard and, I agree, be careful not to jerk it off too fast when it finally comes free because there's only maybe 1 inch of wire under there.

I unsoldered the positive contact and unscrewed the negative (just used a pair of needle nosed pliers). I reused the negative screw so I now have a spare (I actually ordered two top caps to begin with so I have another spare as well).

To press the new top cap into place after connecting the wires I put some paper towel over the jaws of the vise and put the vamo in lengthwise. Then I gently pressed the cap down into the body with the vise.

Took all of maybe 10 minutes and half that time was spent trying to juggle everything while soldering the wires where they belong.

Easy peasy.

 

[Chuck2]

I managed to strip out the threads on my 3 month old Vamo V3. I ordered the airflow control piece by Smoktech and that worked once. My threads were too far gone. I now have to use a piece of copper wire every time I take my atty off or when it bumps in to something. Someone on ECF mentioned trying this and it worked. Now I'm looking for that thread so I can thank them for making my Vamo workable until my V5 gets here. I'll probably glue an airflow controller onto it.

I think I'll make a video for this.

 

[Chuck2]

Okay, made a video for the copper thread trick.

I wish I could find the thread where I saw this idea posted.

http://youtu.be/e4qoghiARjI

 

[K_Tech]

I managed to strip out the threads on my 3 month old Vamo V3. I ordered the airflow control piece by Smoktech and that worked once. My threads were too far gone. I now have to use a piece of copper wire every time I take my atty off or when it bumps in to something. Someone on ECF mentioned trying this and it worked. Now I'm looking for that thread so I can thank them for making my Vamo workable until my V5 gets here. I'll probably glue an airflow controller onto it.

I think I'll make a video for this.

The threads on mine finally gave up the ghost the other day; fortunately I'd already ordered an air flow controller in anticipation of this event. I just used some blue Loctite and it's good to go.

But it still bugs me, because it kind of ruins the look of the Vamo. I'll probably still use it around the house, at least until someone makes a stainless steel top cap for it like they have for the V2.

Got a link to that video? I'm interested in seeing an alternative...

 

[Chuck2]

I'll send you a message. I put it on youtube and tried to post it here but I guess that was a bad idea.

 

[Trayce]

The threads on mine finally gave up the ghost the other day; fortunately I'd already ordered an air flow controller in anticipation of this event. I just used some blue Loctite and it's good to go.

But it still bugs me, because it kind of ruins the look of the Vamo. I'll probably still use it around the house, at least until someone makes a stainless steel top cap for it like they have for the V2.

Just FTR and in case you are interested, Vicflo (member here) took his ruined top off his V5 (same top style as a V3) and replaced it with a V2 top. So if you wanted you could replace your top with a SS V2 top until V3/V5 tops become available. http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/vamo/484751-vamo-v5-v2-head-replacement.html

 

[K_Tech]

Just FTR and in case you are interested, Vicflo (member here) took his ruined top off his V5 (same top style as a V3) and replaced it with a V2 top. So if you wanted you could replace your top with a SS V2 top until V3/V5 tops become available. http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/vamo/484751-vamo-v5-v2-head-replacement.html

Ah, excellent! Thanks!

 

[DiscoDes]

Hi Guys,

If the Ego threads are still OK on your Vamo's then this is a good solution if you don't want to replace the whole top cap.

Should work OK for other Ego threaded Mods as well.


Some of us have been looking into this problem in the UK and we've found EGO to EGO 510 Atomizer Adapter [2104] : L Js E-Smokes, Electronic Cigarettes from a USA based vendor, so shipping is a bit high for us but should be good for you.

 

[3mg Meniere]

Thanks. I bookmarked that link in case I ever need it. I wonder how to go about getting the link stickied.

 

[onjre]

Hi Guys,

If the Ego threads are still OK on your Vamo's then this is a good solution if you don't want to replace the whole top cap.

Should work OK for other Ego threaded Mods as well.


Some of us have been looking into this problem in the UK and we've found EGO to EGO 510 Atomizer Adapter [2104] : L Js E-Smokes, Electronic Cigarettes from a USA based vendor, so shipping is a bit high for us but should be good for you.

AWESOME! This is EXACTLY what I was looking for. Great find. I have changed several vamo heads out in the interim so it's not a big deal to do it again but but for someone who doesn’t feel comfortable breaking their mod open, this fixes the 510 threading issues.