Vamo as Ohm Checker and Rebuilding Stand

[DancingHeretik]

I understand that the Vamo can check ohms without running any electricity through the coil, which most mods can't. Is this true/possible?

It sure would be handy if it's true. I could check the ohms on a new coil with cotton wick without risking burning the cotton AND have a handy stand to hold my rba while I'm working on it.

 

[Blix]

Yup, it measures resistance without firing.

 

[DancingHeretik]

Thank you! Does it matter which version of the Vamo? Would the V3 be ok for this?

 

[UncleChuck]

AFAIK all the Vamos on the market operate the same way as far as their ohm checker. For all intents and purposes they don't fire while checking resistance.

Although it's impossible to check resistance without running SOME current through the coil, the amount of current the vamo uses is tiny and won't heat the coil up, just like a multimeter.

I use my Vamo as a RBA stand and ohm checker, which is good because otherwise it would be nearly useless.

 

[DuffTime]

I thought about getting one for exactly this purpose, what with the difficulty of getting those little ohm meters from madvapes. I have one because I got lucky, but still.

 

[DancingHeretik]

AFAIK all the Vamos on the market operate the same way as far as their ohm checker. For all intents and purposes they don't fire while checking resistance.

Although it's impossible to check resistance without running SOME current through the coil, the amount of current the vamo uses is tiny and won't heat the coil up, just like a multimeter.

I use my Vamo as a RBA stand and ohm checker, which is good because otherwise it would be nearly useless.

SOME current? So, should I still only check the ohms without the cotton wick in? I had planned on wrapping ON the wick instead of adding the wick afterwards.

Really? Is the Vamo that bad? I had figured it wouldn't hurt to get one since it's so cheap and everyone is always raving about it.

 

[ElConquistador]

I check cotton wicks with mine, no problem. Just don't mix up and push the fire button!

 

[ElConquistador]

...and no, I don't think it's a bad device at all! I've had mine for a couple of months and it's been working perfectly.

 

[DuffTime]

SOME current? So, should I still only check the ohms without the cotton wick in? I had planned on wrapping ON the wick instead of adding the wick afterwards.

Really? Is the Vamo that bad? I had figured it wouldn't hurt to get one since it's so cheap and everyone is always raving about it.

The current it runs is about 3 milliamps. It's not going to produce any perceivable heat. The cotton would likely warm up more if it's just sitting in your hand.

The VAMO really isn't a bad mod. For all the features you get, it's an astounding deal.

 

[WattWick]

SOME current? So, should I still only check the ohms without the cotton wick in? I had planned on wrapping ON the wick instead of adding the wick afterwards.

Really? Is the Vamo that bad? I had figured it wouldn't hurt to get one since it's so cheap and everyone is always raving about it.

Some, as in an extremely insignificant amount. Just letting a few electrons through and taking their vitals at the other end. (Not scientifically precise, but you get the drift).

I can't speak for UncleChuck, but a Vamo is for many the gateway drug to more advanced and/or preference-based setups. It's not at all useless, but it might not be your go-to device once you've gone gear crazy past the point of no return. Not so much useless as used less.

 

[UncleChuck]

SOME current? So, should I still only check the ohms without the cotton wick in? I had planned on wrapping ON the wick instead of adding the wick afterwards.

Really? Is the Vamo that bad? I had figured it wouldn't hurt to get one since it's so cheap and everyone is always raving about it.

No no, it will be fine. It's a REALLY REALLY small amount of current. The only way to rest resistance is to run a current through something, even multimeters have to run a current through something to test the resistance. That's why they need a battery for the ohm meter portion to work, but it's a tiny battery because the amount of power is so incredibly small.

And I think the Vamo is an awesome APV. The Vamo and Zmax are my two favorite vw/vv devices, I just really prefer vaping at lower resistance than things like the vamo can handle. I just worded that badly, I meant that if it wasn't for using the Vamo as a building stand and ohm meter it would be nearly useless for MY purposes, it would probably just be collecting dust in a drawer somewhere.

Sorry if I confused you there!

 

[st0nedpenguin]

A multimeter and a proper atty stand would probably be cheaper, and a multimeter is far more useful.

 

[UncleChuck]

A multimeter and a proper atty stand would probably be cheaper, and a multimeter is far more useful.

Agreed, but if you have a Vamo sitting around anyway, it's more convenient than getting the multimeter out and having a separate stand that you have to unscrew to test the resistance with a MM. Plus you still have a complete functioning device that's one of the least expensive and best overall VW mods out there.

 

[st0nedpenguin]

The difference is I can actually check the internal resistance of a meter and know the readings I'm getting are actually accurate.

 

[UncleChuck]

True, although I've double checked my Zmax and Vamo with a DMM and their ohm meters are accurate enough for my purposes. The Vamo actually was a bit less accuratee than the Zmax and tended to show the resistance about .1 higher or lower than it was. It was consistently in one direction, but I forget whether it was over or under. I give myself plenty of headroom with my builds and my coil being off by .1 ohm (or less, I'm thinking the Vamo just rounds up since it only goes to one tenth of an ohm) just isn't going to matter to me.

I think it's best to have a DMM, it's far more useful since you can check resistance of things other than just the coil, you can check voltage under load, etc. I just usually leave my multimeter in the drawer unless I'm doing something more involved than simply checking the resistance of a coil build.