Hot Button / Switch

[Stepinrazor]

All, I would like to discuss Hot Button issues on a Mech and how best to resolve them.

Why do they occur, do all mods suffer them. Is it due to low amp builds and high amp draws, what is oxidisation exactly.

Thank you in advance

 

[Zamazam]

They occur due to "Joule Heating". Simply put your switch is providing a lot of electrical resistance. The mod might have other issues such as a dirty 510 connector, or the atty you are using might not be setup correctly. What mod and atty are you using? On steel, rust is oxidized steel. On copper, it is copper oxide and so on. Oxidation is not a good electrical conductor and will impede the flow of electrons, causing Joule heating to occur. Take your switch apart and clean and polish the metal till it gleams. Same with the threads both inside and outside on the top and bottom of your mod. Clean and polish the 510 connector and the positive center pin. That will help quite a bit.

 

[Stepinrazor]

Thank you for detailing, am using a Vicious Ants Phenom mod with either an authentic Royal Hunter, Derringer or a clone Tugboat v2. I typically build dual coils 7 wraps with 26 gauge, nothing adventurous.

Upon firing the mod the button gets extremely hot.

Have taken the mod apart and soaked in isopropyl as well as using a toothbrush to clean all the threading and switch/button. Upon close inspection the mod looks very clean, but the hot button issue persists.

All of the RDA's work well on my Sig box, am using the Derringer which reads at 0.3 dual coil build and fires well at 3.8v. When I attach the mech to a voltmeter it shows 4.2v using a LG HE4, however when attaching the atty the performance is subpar and the button gets extremely hot.

The switch on the Phenom uses magnets, can these magnets fail? And if so would it cause a hot button issue.

 

[Arizona]

I don't think it's a magnet issue. Your builds sound safe enough, but what battery are you running?

 

[Stepinrazor]

I don't think it's a magnet issue. Your builds sound safe enough, but what battery are you running?

I have been using LG 18650HE4 35A 2500mAh Battery

 

[fq06]

While it may look clean, an alcohol bath and scub won't do it.
Like zamazam said, tear down the button and polish everything up. There may be tarnish/oxidation inside where the button makes the connection and is not visible without disassembly.

There could also be a small piece of wire clipping that got pulled into the button by the magnets and is arcing.

99% of the time people have a hot button, it just needs to be polished. The other 1% have a wire clipping in there

 

[Stepinrazor]

While it may look clean, an alcohol bath and scub won't do it. Like zamazam said, tear down the button and polish everything up. There may be tarnish/oxidation inside where the button makes the connection and is not visible without disassembly. There could also be a small piece of wire clipping that got pulled into the button by the magnets and is arcing. 99% of the time people have a hot button, it just needs to be polished. The other 1% have a wire clipping in there

Thank you for your input, what polish would you recommend.

 

[fq06]

Any metal polish you have, if you have a polish for that specific metal (copper, stainless, whatever metal you're polishing) then even better.

Just some polish, a rag and some elbow grease is all that's needed. Got a dremel with a polishing bit... even better

 

[scarecrowjenkins]

For me it's always been a weird/bad/weak connection somewhere. Most of the time its something silly like the switch screw (the part that actually makes contact with the battery) is a little loose. Or just dirty threading. It can also be attributed to the mod not being adjusted properly to the battery itself. Sometimes the contacts come close enough to fire the mod but the connection is not all that solid and will heat up the button. Make sure that the mod is adjusted so that battery is squeezed in there tight so it makes a perfect connection when you throw the switch

 

[Zamazam]

Any metal polish you have, if you have a polish for that specific metal (copper, stainless, whatever metal you're polishing) then even better.

Just some polish, a rag and some elbow grease is all that's needed. Got a dremel with a polishing bit... even better

As long as the polish does not leave a film behind to protect the metal.

 

[Stepinrazor]

Thank you for all of your input, very much appreciated.

To summarise, I need to ensure that I use a polish that doesn't leave residue, use a sponge style emery board to remove arc marks ensuring all threading is clean and most importantly fitting the battery by adjusting the mod to get the best connection.

 

[fq06]

Belt sander gets the job done in much less time than an emery board (JK)

 

[andyl]

Definitely sounds like a short to me. It sounds from what you are saying that you aren't getting power to the atty but it's going somewhere to heat that puppy up. All the advise above is good apart from the obvious. Don't use it with any vengeance until you have found the problem. Is it only the switch that gets hot? Drop the battery out straight after you used it, if it's hot then you know that energy is going somewhere even if it's not the right place and that is bad and potential dangerous.

 

[Stepinrazor]

Thank you for the advice brother, have taken your points in board

 

[Stepinrazor]

Ecig store UK have replaced the VA Phenom Mod, due to the arcing issue