Need Advice from a Builder

[Teresa P]

Who among you folks actually builds box mods? I have a Tugboat that a friend asked me to coil and re-wick, but on further inspection I'm thinking it could be damaged. If that's the case I don't really wanna give it back to him, he's a young kid (to me, anyway) and I really don't wanna give it back if it needs work.
I'm no expert on mods period, but I know a lot more about regulated than mech.
Thanks!

 

[youcantsee]

I'm not a box mod builder, but imo of the kid doesn't know how to build, which means he doesn't understand the safety aspect of vaping then he shouldn't be vaping. Unless he's using one of the ones with a DNA or such. Just my $.2

Sent from my FRD-L04 using Tapatalk

 

[Teresa P]

I'm not a box mod builder, but imo of the kid doesn't know how to build, which means he doesn't understand the safety aspect of vaping then he shouldn't be vaping. Unless he's using one of the ones with a DNA or such. Just my $.2

Sent from my FRD-L04 using Tapatalk

I feel the same way to a degree. If he's determined to vape though, he needs to be taught about a few things and safety is at the top of my list, not "clouds, bruh"....he wants to stop smoking, a "friend" gave him the mod. From what I can see, his "friend" is a pig who knows little to nothing. The deck was nasty - I soaked the entire deck in Everclear after removing the kinked up coils he wanted me to re-wick, and had to fish for the screws in the sludge it left behind. You couldn't have paid me to use it "as is" for fear of what would end up in my lungs. But what really scared me was what I saw when I looked at the batteries - Imrens - and one had a wrap that was melted on the negative end, and a melted insulator on the positive end. First thing I thought was "Oh lookie, a bomb... ".... I took the batteries out before I even put it in my purse to bring home.
Batteries can be replaced, but what I really need to know is if anyone can just look at pics and tell if there's any damage to the mod itself.

 

[Huckleberried]

@f1r3b1rd , @minimalsaint @Sonar505 ?? I know there are others here, but names are escaping me. Good luck honey. And good on you for taking care of this guy!

 

[Mattp169]

@bobthebuilder

 

[minimalsaint]

I'd be happy to look at some pics and offer an opinion, though I don't claim to be a professional.

 

[f1r3b1rd]

I feel the same way to a degree. If he's determined to vape though, he needs to be taught about a few things and safety is at the top of my list, not "clouds, bruh"....he wants to stop smoking, a "friend" gave him the mod. From what I can see, his "friend" is a pig who knows little to nothing. The deck was nasty - I soaked the entire deck in Everclear after removing the kinked up coils he wanted me to re-wick, and had to fish for the screws in the sludge it left behind. You couldn't have paid me to use it "as is" for fear of what would end up in my lungs. But what really scared me was what I saw when I looked at the batteries - Imrens - and one had a wrap that was melted on the negative end, and a melted insulator on the positive end. First thing I thought was "Oh lookie, a bomb... ".... I took the batteries out before I even put it in my purse to bring home.
Batteries can be replaced, but what I really need to know is if anyone can just look at pics and tell if there's any damage to the mod itself.

can you post some pics?
I know some of the tuglyfe boxes had a fuse of sorts between the batteries.
in any event some pics would surely help us tell if anything else appears to need repair.

 

[Teresa P]

I'd be happy to look at some pics and offer an opinion, though I don't claim to be a professional.

Thank you! Some of these may be virtually worthless, but it's the best I could do with my phone camera, especially at some of the angles I was trying to get.

This is where the insulator melted. It did come off the contact, and didn't leave marks in the metal.

I cleaned all the contacts with 91% alcohol, but this is a before shot.

The following are the best pics I could get of the inside. Nothing looks amiss to me, but I'm not 100% sure if there isn't something there that shouldn't be. Nothing looks "melted," but another set of eyes couldn't hurt....

And this is the culprit, I'm afraid. I think the exposed metal casing has come in contact with the metal battery door and come very close to going "boom."

I did take the wrap off the battery. It charged on my Nitecore Digi-4 with no issues. But the top of the battery after cleaning has a couple tiny pock marks in it. Not good....

- I know I wouldn't use the battery again, but am concerned if the mod itself would be safe to use. If I need more pics, I can give it a try. And thank you...

 

[Teresa P]

can you post some pics?
I know some of the tuglyfe boxes had a fuse of sorts between the batteries.
in any event some pics would surely help us tell if anything else appears to need repair.

I got your comment while I was posting - please, have a look!

 

[Teresa P]

Battery sled

 

[f1r3b1rd]

where did this one come from? the ones I'm seeing online looks totally different on the inside.
it looks like someone took out the mosfet on your friend's
It will still work, he would just need to be much more careful.
The solder work does look less than perfect

 

[Teresa P]

He has no clue where it originally came from and that could be part of the problem. Dude "gave" it to him, which made me leery off the bat. Who "gives" away something like that? Not around here anyway....has somebody been tinkering with it and gave it away when they screwed it up? Too many questions to suit me.

 

[f1r3b1rd]

He has no clue where it originally came from and that could be part of the problem. Dude "gave" it to him, which made me leery off the bat. Who "gives" away something like that? Not around here anyway....has somebody been tinkering with it and gave it away when they screwed it up? Too many questions to suit me.

ehh, if it were me, I would put some new heat shrink on the wiring, touch up the hot glue and/or clean up the contact points.
I would also try to secure the neutral at the 510 a little better.
all the exposed wire makes me nervous, but I don't build unregulated mods. ive built a few dnas and some drones, so I am still learning the ways of the dark side
assuming the switch is rated for the current draw it should be fine after that.

that's one man's opinion, by all means take it with a grain of salt. I'm just as curious as you are to see what some of the others have to say.

 

[Teresa P]

I'm just glad I looked past the RDA...he's about the same age as my daughter, 25, and it would break my heart to see him hurt himself.

 

[Iliketurtles]

That looks like a fuck up. The mosfet usually takes all the current so it does not go through the switch. Take the fet out and you need a high amp rated switch, which generally they aren't. Most switches are rated less than 3A for DC. Someone should put the mosfet back in...suitable mosfet would only be $2.

 

[f1r3b1rd]

I'm just glad I looked past the RDA...he's about the same age as my daughter, 25, and it would break my heart to see him hurt himself.

I hear ya, I had a younin' at my old job that was learning how to vape. He saw all the cool toys on my desk and went out and picked up a nemesis with a clone tugboat. the guy was building around a 0.1 ohm with a 15a button top. The inside of the rda looked like giant pile of burnt sugar.

we had a crash course in how NOT to vape like a jackass.

 

[Teresa P]

ehh, if it were me, I would put some new heat shrink on the wiring, touch up the hot glue and/or clean up the contact points.
I would also try to secure the neutral at the 510 a little better.
all the exposed wire makes me nervous, but I don't build unregulated mods. ive built a few dnas and some drones, so I am still learning the ways of the dark side
assuming the switch is rated for the current draw it should be fine after that.

that's one man's opinion, by all means take it with a grain of salt. I'm just as curious as you are to see what some of the others have to say.

Unfortunately, these are all things I'm clueless on how to do. I'm a regulated mod girl for that reason. I would like to learn one day, but know virtually nothing right now.

 

[f1r3b1rd]

That looks like a fuck up. The mosfet usually takes all the current so it does not go through the switch. Take the fet out and you need a high amp rated switch, which generally they aren't. Most switches are rated less than 3A for DC. Someone should put the mosfet back in...suitable mosfet would only be $2.

^^^^^ thank you
I ws curious about that one myself

 

[Teresa P]

I should return the RDA ( which is nice and clean and has a gorgeous set of claptons and fluffy white cotton bacon in it right now...lol!) and tell him to chuck the rest.

 

[Iliketurtles]

The highest rated switch on Mouser is 10A and costs waaaaaay more than a mosfet and a 15k resistor.

 

[f1r3b1rd]

I should return the RDA ( which is nice and clean and has a gorgeous set of claptons and fluffy white cotton bacon in it right now...lol!) and tell him to chuck the rest.

I can make him a deal on a dna250 triade
kidding, sounds like a perfect candidate for any number of 200w mods that came out this week though

 

[Iliketurtles]

I should return the RDA ( which is nice and clean and has a gorgeous set of claptons and fluffy white cotton bacon in it right now...lol!) and tell him to chuck the rest.

If someone can wire the mod back to having a fet and maybe replace the battery sled it is less than $10 worth of parts to fix it and if it is shorted you just blow the mosfet up rather than you face.

 

[minimalsaint]

Lots of great advice here, I have little to add aside from getting a mosfet back into the box or at least some cleaner / less exposed wiring.
You know the batteries are shit, so that's no news.
I hope the story ends happily for your friend, thank goodness you came along when you did!

 

[Sonar505]

I should return the RDA ( which is nice and clean and has a gorgeous set of claptons and fluffy white cotton bacon in it right now...lol!) and tell him to chuck the rest.

Please do not chuck perfectly good equipment. After reading the responses I agree with the rest in that someone removed the mosfet and replaced the 510 And while I have run some unregulated with a horn switch and no mosfet. It was while running fairly high ohm coils. Even so I have had some last months and some years you just never know. The rest of the box looks in pretty good shape.

So if you are willing to pay shipping to and from me. Then I will replace the mosfet. Insulate the connections. and Check for any other problems that it might have. If that would be acceptable to you.

If you are worried about my knowledge on unregulated and or character. Then I am pretty sure you could get some references on me from some of the VU members.

 

[f1r3b1rd]

Yay!!!
I can handidly vouch for sonar

BAM crew

 

[Teresa P]

Please do not chuck perfectly good equipment. After reading the responses I agree with the rest in that someone removed the mosfet and replaced the 510 And while I have run some unregulated with a horn switch and no mosfet. It was while running fairly high ohm coils. Even so I have had some last months and some years you just never know. The rest of the box looks in pretty good shape.

So if you are willing to pay shipping to and from me. Then I will replace the mosfet. Insulate the connections. and Check for any other problems that it might have. If that would be acceptable to you.

If you are worried about my knowledge on unregulated and or character. Then I am pretty sure you could get some references on me from some of the VU members.

That has to be the noblest thing I've heard in a very long time. You, kind sir, are a tribute to this forum. That's why I enjoy it here so much. Every crowd has its questionable characters, but 99% of everyone here is real.
Yes, I would love to take you up on that offer. This kid doesn't have a whole lot, but he works hard and appreciates any leg up anyone gives him. I'll pay for this one myself as heaven knows I've had plenty of help from folks here along my journey. If you'll PM me an address, I'll get it boxed up.
Thank you so much....

 

[Sonar505]

You are very welcome.
While I tend to agree with you on how good the people on VU are I don't think I would put the percentage quite that high. There are a few individuals on here whom I would never do favor one for . You on the other hand have always conducted yourself well and always seem to try and help others So I am very happy to help you in turn. I have PM'ed you my address and will try and get it done as quickly as possible after arrival.

 

[Teresa P]

You are very welcome.
While I tend to agree with you on how good the people on VU are I don't think I would put the percentage quite that high. There are a few individuals on here whom I would never do favor one for . You on the other hand have always conducted yourself well and always seem to try and help others So I am very happy to help you in turn. I have PM'ed you my address and will try and get it done as quickly as possible after arrival.

Thank you for that, I really appreciate it. And you take your time, this is an awesome thing you're doing. My friend will be thrilled!

 

[Markw4mms]

I love it when a plan comes together. Kudos to you all for being so helpful, and making sure that guy vapes safely. VU folks are the best!

 

[LetTheLuckRoll]

Teresa @Sonar505 does awesome work so the mod will be in good hands.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[whiteowl84]

How can a mech be broken?
I can understand if it was poorly made but most mechs are pretty much unbreakable.

Sent from my E5306 using Tapatalk

 

[Sonar505]

How can a mech be broken?
I can understand if it was poorly made but most mechs are pretty much unbreakable.

Sent from my E5306 using Tapatalk

There is a difference between a mechanical mod and an unregulated mod. Typical mech's contain no wiring and no soldering. Whereas unregulated usually has wires soldered to various parts to carry the current from battery to the 510. They also usually have a mosfet installed to protect the switch from fusing closed as only the larger ones are rated for more than 3 Amps. Also unregulated mods you have to be careful to isolate the connections from shorting out to the body of the mod. While True mechanicals typically use the body of the mod as the negative path of the DC current. You only have to isolate the positve side and inside the atomizer.

 

[Iliketurtles]

How this works....
With the switch open the voltage at the mosfet gate is pulled down by the 15k resistor so is 0v. At 0v the channel in the mosfet between source and drain does not conduct and is circuit wise an ultra high resistance.

When you close the switch the voltage at the mosfet gate is then high (4v) across the 15k resistor which turns the channel between mosfet source and drain ON - it is now operating as an ultra low resistor (basically a short circuit).
The current flowing through the switch is limited by the 15k resistor so is going to be very small (micro amps) but the current flowing through the coil-mosfet part of the circuit will be virtually the same as if the mosfet was just a piece of wire.

Releasing the switch makes the 15k resistor once again pull down the voltage at the gate and turn the mosfet channel OFF.

So the mosfet takes all the current in the coil firing circuit and the switch never takes more than a tiny current.
Incidentally there are many different types of mosfet and you have to pick the right one - this circuit is using an N-Channel enhancement type mosfet.

 

[whiteowl84]

There is a difference between a mechanical mod and an unregulated mod. Typical mech's contain no wiring and no soldering. Whereas unregulated usually has wires soldered to various parts to carry the current from battery to the 510. They also usually have a mosfet installed to protect the switch from fusing closed as only the larger ones are rated for more than 3 Amps. Also unregulated mods you have to be careful to isolate the connections from shorting out to the body of the mod. While True mechanicals typically use the body of the mod as the negative path of the DC current. You only have to isolate the positve side and inside the atomizer.

Op said mech...I didn't finish the first page.

Sent from my E5306 using Tapatalk

 

[Sonar505]

Well received the mod safe and sound. Proceeded to disassemble. Aside from the missing mosfet and the sloppy soldering only found 1 other problem. The Switch. As I was loosing the Nut that holds it the entire back end of the switch fell off. I have a feeling it was weakened when the thick wires were soldered on and would not have lasted much longer. I just happened to have the exact horn switch from when I use to put them in my earlier mods. So it was very simple to replace. Checked out the rest and it was in a surprisingly good shape. So wired and installed mosfet. Replaced with appropriate sized wires and Soldered in switch and 510. Insulated some of the solder points with Liquid electrical tape and reassembled. Then Proceeded to test with various RDA's and RTA's . All is working fine.
(Must add that while it is a very nice mod and the rubber type coating feels pretty good. I still love the look and feel of my wood mods so much more.)

So unless I run into any problems while testing it this morning (Which I do not foresee). I will be sending it back to @Teresa P this afternoon. I think your friend will be very happy with their new vape. I hope they appreciate what you are doing for them.

Here are some pics to go along with the ones you provided.
After taking it apart, what I did to it and putting it all back together and then in hand.

 

[Teresa P]

Amazing! I'd love to learn how to do this! Thank you so much!!

 

[Huckleberried]

You da man, Sonar!

 

[Teresa P]

You da man, Sonar!

He needs a special badge. I couldn't find one for a mod builder, so this will have to do.

 

[Huckleberried]

He needs a special badge. I couldn't find one for a mod builder, so this will have to do.

Man, I WISH I could hand out custom badges!

 

[f1r3b1rd]

You rock Sonar!

BAM crew

 

[Teresa P]

He does! You should see this thing - it's MINT....
I'll be taking it to my friend at work today.

 

[Iliketurtles]

It's better than the original, using the drain to the mod body assists the cooling on the Mosfet which makes it more reliable as well as having a great connection to the 510 -ve and maintaining the 'body is -ve' general rule. The 510 looks like it's one of the cheap fasttech ones - I have a bunch of them and they are decent for the price. Looks like it will be way better than it was before the fix