what do you do when your top cap and atomizer are overtightened?

[erictho]

hey guys.
so for whatever reason my atomizer is way too tight on my top cap. i'm using a lemo drop so the bottom cap is fused to the top cap currently.
i notice this happens sometimes despite not tightening more than usual and seems kinda up to chance. nothing is cross threaded, threads are clean.
so far the only remedy i have found is to use pliers. there's gotta be a better way!

 

[snork]

hey guys.
so for whatever reason my atomizer is way too tight on my top cap. i'm using a lemo drop so the bottom cap is fused to the top cap currently.
i notice this happens sometimes despite not tightening more than usual and seems kinda up to chance. nothing is cross threaded, threads are clean.
so far the only remedy i have found is to use pliers. there's gotta be a better way!

Yeah, happens to me too. Two nice perfectly flat surfaces tend to mate for life.
If you're using your WorkHorse or ELA, back out the cap's center pin a little from the atomizer first. A lot of times that helps for me. Many times I have to get out the pliers though, thankfully that doesn't bother me. Other people use rubber bands or gloves, various things.

 

[snork]

You know, I wonder if a tiny tiny dab of Vaseline on the cap between it and the atomizer would be worth a shot? I think I'll try that soon.

 

[bryonlr]

Get out the pliers.

 

[forcedfuel50]

There is nothing we can't get off and won't ruin it, we have aluminum jawed vice and if you put some cloth on it, it doesn't mark anything. You can try wrapping it with some rubber that is thick enough that your pliers won't gouge through it but who wants to ruin their atomizer or cap?

 

[erictho]

snork- the lemo had such a different length than my regular cartos that when i got it i had to really play with my ela to get it set to the right length. i couldn't actually adjust the post if the lemo was screwed in. it was really weird. if it happens with the work horse it would be useful because i have had success with adjusting while there was an atomizer attached. i don't have vaseline often off hand but it couldn't hurt to pick up a small tub for that if it works out.

david- that is really great to know. if i have something that i don't feel confident in dealing with i will not hesitate to send it your way.

at least the design of the lemo really makes this situation easier. i used a set of pliers wrapped in electrical tape and it took no effort whatsoever. so much easier to get them apart with the large bottom cap they have.

 

[Steam_Bern]

I have a trick for this as this occasionally happens to me: take 2 regular wide rubber bands, wrap one around the atomizer and the other around the top cap of your mod. I have large hands, so I completely wrap the rubber bands to the end, so there is a disk of rubber that I can grab on to. The rubber bands have great traction to both the metal and to human hands, so much torque can be generated without scratching your gear. This basically works like the round sheets of rubber used to help open stubborn jars. The juice control on my Kayfun 4 sometimes getting stuck open/closed and this trick has prevented it from becoming an expensive paperweight.

I don't have a Lemo, but I know the body is mostly glass and I'm not sure how much metal there is on the base to wrap a rubber band. This will work on glass but, of course, caution must be used to not shatter it.

I find plain rubber bands work the best. I had high hopes for vape bands as they are the perfect size, but they probably contain silicone and provide no traction.

Also, you should be able to find scratch free pliers online; I believe someone in the Kayfun 4 thread was using them to get their juice control unstuck. Unfortunately, that thread is monstrous and it was December or January when this was posted, so it will be quite difficult to find.

Edit: Here you go: Tamiya Model Craft Tools Non Scratch Pliers 74061. These are for removing the flywheel on model nitro engines without scratching them and should work perfectly for removing stuck threads on our gear. I didn't provide a link because out of respect for Dave, but these are easy to find online.

Good luck!

Another edit: With my ELAs, I find if I have the hybrid center post really snug to the atomizer's positive post, I must loosen said hybrid post BEFORE removing the atomizer. I believe the hybrid center post can put pressure on the treads and make them mate extremely tightly and causing a ton of friction between them, so this pressure must be relieved before unthreading the atomizer.

Hope this helps.

 

[Nach]

I typically try the Freezer trick before taking tools to my mods.

Toss your seized parts into the freezer for 20-30 minutes, take it out, run it under tap water for a few seconds and TWIST!!

If that doesn't work, then I'll move to a more aggressive approach, like pliers.

 

[erictho]

hey. thanks for keeping the good tips rolling. i totally had one of those moments with the freezing tip, totally a simple solution. i have also found that with time it will come loose. i appreciate the lemo in its design there, as i can access everything i need to even though the 510 connection wouldn't budge. after about 5 days that sucker gave up its grippy game.