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Robbot ZNA "316" Stainless Steel, you decide...

The.Drifter

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Discovered something disturbing about the Robbot ZNA I bought from FocalCig.

Being the perfectionist that I am I wanted to smooth out the edges of the "316" main unit where it meets the tube section. It was rather sharp so it was a minor detail that I wanted to attend to.

Upon filing down the edges some I notice that the "316" steel started to Bubble then flake off, this is what I found underneath:

6r9ak9lpla0q19o6g.jpg


051ic4mhdkhwnsd6g.jpg


Decided to buff the sides to see what I'm actually working with here.
I worked with metals for over 20 years and there is no way 316 steel is suppose to look like this:
Notice the copper color undertones.....

s35wixm633gc6ed6g.jpg


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Tried the magnet test on the mod too, 316 Stainless Steel is supose to be non-magnetic, as you can see a magnet sticks to it just fine:

e24caal7zoc7nb46g.jpg


So this is rather disheartening, for a mod that touts itself as a 1:1 Clone with 316L Stainless Steel body, it certainly doesnt show the characteristics of 316 Steel :(

So what do you think? Have you ever seen 316 Stainless Steel like this??
 

The.Drifter

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Update: Still working the metal down.

I have apparently have worked thru some sort of coating on the Steel.

Here is were it is at the moment:
w2u2fdbascok7e36g.jpg

Still got a few spots to work on, then I plan on Sandblasting it.

Wonder why they coated the SS? SS is suppose to be corrosion resistant, anybody have any thoughts?
 
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The.Drifter

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Update2: Its still magnetic :(

At first I thought the coating might have cause it to be magnetic, but after working it down to bare metal the magnet is still sticking. I have heard of SS magnetizing if it was heavily machined so maybe that is the answer. I feel better now that I have worked thu this mystery coating. I would have been bummed if they tried to pass plated copper off as 316 steel. Not sure if its exactly 316 now due to the magnetism, but at least its some sort of steel.

Sandblasted it to finish it off, I think it came out pretty good now:

ubk6qto508ntn6q6g.jpg


7t78uj3mte30i876g.jpg
 

The.Drifter

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Well did a little research and found that while 316 in normally non-magnetic it can become magnetized from certain machining processes. So the magnet test may not be the best method for checking whether machined SS is 316 or not.

In conclusion it probably is 316 steel that was coated and that was the discoloration I found while buffing it. It probably became magnetized from its machining or buffing at the manufacturer.

It seems my initial fears were unwarranted and this thread was a waste :(
 

Ellipsis

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not a waste at all...i learned something, as did you !!

nice job on the finish, by the way..
 

The.Drifter

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Since I had the ZNA completely apart I figured why not share what it looked like with all it's pieces.

ek745ho8u7ikvt56g.jpg


when reassembling it (due to the short wires) I found that it was easier to put the board in sideways to allow the max length of the negative wire to protrude through the opening to solder it.

w4ldsvp17lq2mn36g.jpg


Here is a shot of the board reinstalled:

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Back to working again:

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Shot of the contrast between Tube and Main body:

ls8pr9po3ln50ge6g.jpg


Final shot assembled:

sfwrthss2fvza0s6g.jpg


I recommend that if you do take your Robbot ZNA apart that you take photos during the disassembly process.

On a scale of 1-10 with 1 being easiest and 10 being hardest, I rate swapping out the board a solid 9 in difficulty due to the limited space to work in and the sequence of steps to disassemble and reassemble.

Not for the faint of heart if your worried about frying your circuit board.
 

DevAuto

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This is quite an impressive feat! I think I actually liked the look where the coating was showing through, at least in the pictures anyway. In person I might have had a different opinion on it. I really like the breakdown of all the parts!
 

ZaTHRaS

Member For 4 Years
Thanks for this post, maybe you can answer this for me. My positive wire broke and I am going to attempt to fix it as it broke from the board. Can you clarify if I have this correct, based on your picture? Thanks
2niab2a.jpg
 

The.Drifter

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Member For 4 Years
When I disassembled my ZNA I disconnected the 510 contact ends from the wires to slide it thru the frame since I didn't want to re-solder the board itself, so that pic is a factory connection on the board end. The black Delrin should insulate it from the frame when you reattach it.
 
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ZaTHRaS

Member For 4 Years
After tearing mine down, I think this has to be it as there is only 2 wires, 510+ and Battery + so, there has to be a ground, right?
xpu3ad.jpg
 

The.Drifter

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I thought the black wire led to the ground in the 510 asembly. I could be wrong tho.
 
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The.Drifter

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While I'm not a board expert my best educated guess is that the red and black wires are tied to the switch and the mod itself is the ground when your atty is attached. From what I seen, the red wire contacts the 510 positive pin, the black wire to the battery positive and the board becomes the switch when you depress the button. More of a electronic vs mechanical switch hence the 2 wires going to the topcap assembly.

Maybe that red wire solder loop on the board was just sloppy soldering at the factory. I don't think it serves as a ground. When I reassembled mine it didn't make contact with the mod shell directly since the black Delrin insulates the board when you put it back together.

I may be wrong since this is my best educated guess. Perhaps someone more knowledgable with the electronics side of mods can chime in to help clarify.
 
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Anus Braun

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Whether a type of steel, or alloy thereof is magnetic or not is based upon the absolute iron content; compared to carbon, chromium, vanadium, ect. The more iron content,( by percentage) the greater likelihood of a magnet, of a given strength( measured in gauss, iff'in I recall right) 'sticking' to it, or being attracted to it.
 

Anus Braun

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Kinda wish I had the nerve to strip, and 'blast' my Cloupor 'ZNA', nice flat, grippy finish'd be nice...and I'd clean up a couple of areas, whilst at it. 'Likely find brass, under the surface finish.
 

The.Drifter

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That "peeling" looked like a chrome dip.

When I originally got it, it had a media blasted finish on it. I wonder why they decided to dip it, for conductivity? It certainly wasn't needed to achieve the media blasted finish it originally had.
 

freemind

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When I originally got it, it had a media blasted finish on it. I wonder why they decided to dip it, for conductivity? It certainly wasn't needed to achieve the media blasted finish it originally had.

My guess would be, because you didn't get the grade of steel they claimed it was. So it was dipped to prevent rust.
 

Nikkita6

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My guess would be, because you didn't get the grade of steel they claimed it was. So it was dipped to prevent rust.

Your guess would be incorrect. The Robbot Tech ZNA's have long since been verified as real 316L stainless steel by a Moly drop test. Also the clone was coated because the AUTHENTIC is coated and it is a 1:1 replica. Coated metals are Zen's style and almost of his products have some sort of coated finish on them.
 

Nikkita6

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It's nice to know they replicated the mod almost exactly. I know mine is still going

Mine is too although I haven't used it in about a month. I just wished that it had the upgraded spring loaded 510 that the later batches have. :(
 

Zamazam

Evil Vulcan's do it with Logic
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I'm using an adjustable Zenesis 510 connector, not spring loaded, but I can get every atty I own to fit flush. I'm a bit ocd in that way, hate gaps if I can avoid them.
 

DevAuto

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Mine is too although I haven't used it in about a month. I just wished that it had the upgraded spring loaded 510 that the later batches have. :(
I still use all of mine daily ... I think I'm a ZNADDICT!
 

DevAuto

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@The.Drifter I know this is an old thread, so I wanted to see how long term performance has been with your ZNA? I have read several reports of folks dis-assembling and re-assembling their ZNAs and ending up with better battery life and performance from them, can you confirm this or add any thoughts on it?
 

The.Drifter

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@The.Drifter I know this is an old thread, so I wanted to see how long term performance has been with your ZNA? I have read several reports of folks dis-assembling and re-assembling their ZNAs and ending up with better battery life and performance from them, can you confirm this or add any thoughts on it?


I didnt have it long enough before I disassembled mine to tell if battery life was improved or not by reassembling it.
Havent had any issues with mine and its still going strong when in rotation :)
 

DevAuto

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Fair enough, thanks for the reply! I've had mine about 6 months now, so I will have a good feel on whether or not it helps ... LOL
 

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