# Teardown of e-cig, curiosity hasn't killed this cat yet



## sideKahr (Oct 15, 2014)

Here's one for you @Denton; I know you like to vape. I picked up one of those e-cigarettes, just to take it apart and see how it works. The guts are on display here.

From left to right: mouthpiece, felt holding the e-liquid, tiny wire heating element in heatproof assembly, the 1.00 watt-hour lithium polymer battery pak, and the sensor/LED/endcap assembly.









What surprised me is the way the unit detects that you're puffing on it so it can switch on. You can see on the right and below that it's a tiny microphone, to detect the sound of drawing air through the device. Very cool.


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## Redneck (Oct 6, 2016)

Some folks have too much time on their hands.


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## sideKahr (Oct 15, 2014)

******* said:


> Some folks have too much time on their hands.


I love retirement. Never bored.


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## Denton (Sep 18, 2012)

LOL! 

Stay away from my car.:vs_laugh:


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## Annie (Dec 5, 2015)

Wanting to know how things work is a sign of intelligence.


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## 8301 (Nov 29, 2014)

Annie said:


> Wanting to know how things work is a sign of intelligence.


Or ripping open a perfectly good item may show signs of mental instability and rage. it could go either way...:vs_unimpressed:


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## 8301 (Nov 29, 2014)

An 18 yr old guy I know has one that costs about $70 and needs maintance, including replacing the coil, every few weeks. Judging by the way he always carries it in his hand for all to see makes me suspect he conceders it a status symbol.


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## MI.oldguy (Apr 18, 2013)

I was vaping for a while.I quit before my lungs became two big marshmallows.

I wonder if the mic in a E-cig could be eavesdropping on our conversations?.







SideKhar,did you find a transmitter also?.


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## A Watchman (Sep 14, 2015)

Annie said:


> Wanting to know how things work is a sign of intelligence.


Yep, and I have been trying to figure out how women work for over 50 years.


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## Annie (Dec 5, 2015)

A Watchman said:


> Yep, and I have been trying to figure out how women work for over 50 years.


We know, and we like it that way.


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## Denton (Sep 18, 2012)

A Watchman said:


> Yep, and I have been trying to figure out how women work for over 50 years.


Women work for over 50 years? When do they find the time to raise children?


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## Sasquatch (Dec 12, 2014)

sideKahr said:


> Here's one for you @Denton; I know you like to vape. I picked up one of those e-cigarettes, just to take it apart and see how it works. The guts are on display here.
> 
> From left to right: mouthpiece, felt holding the e-liquid, tiny wire heating element in heatproof assembly, the 1.00 watt-hour lithium polymer battery pak, and the sensor/LED/endcap assembly.
> 
> ...


Tiny microphone to detect the sound of drawing air huh? You better take your tinfoil hat to the repair shop. Everyone knows the government put those mics in there to SPY ON YOU!

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk


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## sideKahr (Oct 15, 2014)

MI.oldguy said:


> ...I wonder if the mic in a E-cig could be eavesdropping on our conversations?...SideKhar, did you find a transmitter also?.


There were a number of miniature components for which I could find no cigarette-related purpose. It must be...THE RUSSIANS !


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## Denton (Sep 18, 2012)

sideKahr said:


> There were a number of miniature components for which I could find no cigarette-related purpose. It must be...THE RUSSIANS !


I use something different, that requires pushing a button to heat the coils. Not saying there aren't any mics in there, but I'm not going to tear it apart to find them.

Besides, if "they" want to know what I am thinking or saying, all they have to do is listen to the podcasts.


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## Smitty901 (Nov 16, 2012)

Lot of users have been taking some of the vaping devices and super charring them to get a better jot from them. It has resulted in many injuries.


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## Old SF Guy (Dec 15, 2013)

sideKahr said:


> Here's one for you @Denton; I know you like to vape. I picked up one of those e-cigarettes, just to take it apart and see how it works. The guts are on display here.
> 
> From left to right: mouthpiece, felt holding the e-liquid, tiny wire heating element in heatproof assembly, the 1.00 watt-hour lithium polymer battery pak, and the sensor/LED/endcap assembly.
> 
> ...


sidekahr....I think the "microphone" is actually a valve which is probably kept apart by a small non conductive material and when applying suction "around the center hole" it closes the center valve and completes an electrical connection and activates the heating element. and still allows air, vaper to pass through the outer holes. A microphone has a need to have a processor. I guess it could be all inclusive...but I always thought it was a valve switch.

Your thoughts?


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## sideKahr (Oct 15, 2014)

Old SF Guy said:


> sidekahr....I think the "microphone" is actually a valve which is probably kept apart by a small non conductive material and when applying suction "around the center hole" it closes the center valve and completes an electrical connection and activates the heating element. and still allows air, vaper to pass through the outer holes. A microphone has a need to have a processor. I guess it could be all inclusive...but I always thought it was a valve switch.
> 
> Your thoughts?


It looks like a microphone, but I think you are right. It would be a simpler solution than a mike: a conductive diaphram that bends upon suction and completes the circuit. The problem is the thing is so small that I don't have the tools to disassemble it, but I'll give it a try tomorrow.

Excellent.


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## Old SF Guy (Dec 15, 2013)

A Watchman said:


> Yep, and I have been trying to figure out how women work for over 50 years.





Annie said:


> We know, and we like it that way.


The problem is you can't disassemble them!!!


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## Steve40th (Aug 17, 2016)

I took my daughters apart for it wasnt charging. WIre was loose. Re-soldered it. These arent very high tech, or well regulated in my humble opinion.


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## sideKahr (Oct 15, 2014)

@Old SF Guy I got it apart. You were right, it's not a microphone, it's a pressure switch. Air passes through a hole in the circuit board and moves a flexible conductive membrane to enable contact with a perforated cup charged to the opposite polarity, closing the switch. Good call.


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## Smitty901 (Nov 16, 2012)

Just a one example of vapping, down side.

Man Burned When E-Cigarette Battery Explodes in His Pocket - NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth


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## SGG (Nov 25, 2015)

Like Denton, I used to use a more advanced vaporizer, not an e-cig. Where a lot of maintenance and every single one I tried had issues. I gave up on vaporizers, I feel lucky my POS units never exploded. I call them POS units, but I spent several hundred dollars over the course of three years. I gave them up and I'm smoking cigarettes again. Not happy about it but I am still trying to quit. Only had four yesterday


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## sideKahr (Oct 15, 2014)

Smitty901 said:


> Just a one example of vapping, down side.
> 
> Man Burned When E-Cigarette Battery Explodes in His Pocket - NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth


He was carrying an uncased battery in his pocket beside his keys, and it caused a dead short, igniting the battery. 9-volt batteries will do the same thing, maybe not ignite but get hot enough to burn you.

You can't blame the vaping device for his carelessness. Many devices have shutoffs to prevent inadvertent operation in pockets. Don't get me wrong here, I don't vape. I just don't like inaccurate news reporting. It's a fact that Big Tobacco has been trying to torpedo vaping for years. Big money talks.


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## sideKahr (Oct 15, 2014)

SGG said:


> Like Denton, I used to use a more advanced vaporizer, not an e-cig. Where a lot of maintenance and every single one I tried had issues. I gave up on vaporizers, I feel lucky my POS units never exploded. I call them POS units, but I spent several hundred dollars over the course of three years. I gave them up and I'm smoking cigarettes again. Not happy about it but I am still trying to quit. Only had four yesterday


Don't give up. My Dad was a two pack a day guy, and he quit.


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## SGG (Nov 25, 2015)

sideKahr said:


> Don't give up. My Dad was a two pack a day guy, and he quit.


Thank you, I really hate smoking. It's high time I quit


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## RUSH25 (Nov 20, 2015)

I smoked over 20 years and quit finally... been 3 months now :vs_closedeyes:


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## MI.oldguy (Apr 18, 2013)

Smoked for 30 years,vaped for a few,quit cold turkey.told myself I can spend the money on guns and ammo.


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## sideKahr (Oct 15, 2014)

Smitty901 said:


> Lot of users have been taking some of the vaping devices and super charring them to get a better jot from them. It has resulted in many injuries.


Is that what they call "modding"?


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## Smitty901 (Nov 16, 2012)

sideKahr said:


> Is that what they call "modding"?


 yes , however many have failed even with no mods causing serious injuries. See the link I posted above.

I understand if people want to smoke it non of my business . But if you want to quit here is a motivator for you. Taxes, look at how much you pay in taxes for those darn things. 
Deny them their slush fund that is a dam good reason.


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## Annie (Dec 5, 2015)

My granny was a pack a day smoker and when she found out they cause cancer she quit cold turkey.


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## Denton (Sep 18, 2012)

Smitty901 said:


> yes , however many have failed even with no mods causing serious injuries. See the link I posted above.
> 
> I understand if people want to smoke it non of my business . But if you want to quit here is a motivator for you. Taxes, look at how much you pay in taxes for those darn things.
> Deny them their slush fund that is a dam good reason.


Been vaping for a few years, now. I've never had a problem. Here's why.

I keep the batteries in good shape, to include the coating on the battery. Damaged batteries are discarded.
I don't tinker. I use the correct coils for my unit. I don't drop it in a pocket with other items.

Good sense goes a long way.

Here's the real down side to vaping. While I love the taste of the lemon tart fluid I vape, none of it is cheap. Sure, it is cheaper than smoking, but I wasn't smoking when I started vaping. I started vaping because of the flavors. This is why I am considering tossing it aside.


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## Smitty901 (Nov 16, 2012)

Denton said:


> Been vaping for a few years, now. I've never had a problem. Here's why.
> 
> I keep the batteries in good shape, to include the coating on the battery. Damaged batteries are discarded.
> I don't tinker. I use the correct coils for my unit. I don't drop it in a pocket with other items.
> ...


 The guy with batteries in his pocket is not very smart. There were other case mentioned also of the things just blowing up. Another issue brought up is a lot of the vapors come from places no one knows what is in them. Some of the China stuff has been found to have some nasty stuff in it.


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## Denton (Sep 18, 2012)

Smitty901 said:


> The guy with batteries in his pocket is not very smart. There were other case mentioned also of the things just blowing up. Another issue brought up is a lot of the vapors come from places no one knows what is in them. Some of the China stuff has been found to have some nasty stuff in it.


There was a reason for each and every malfunction.
Here's an example. A fellow came into my favorite vape shop to ask for help. His rig was sparking and and his battery was depleting in just a few minutes. The reason? He'd taken the wrap off the battery because he thought the silver metal looked better than the green coating. The guy was lucky that there was sufficient resistance so as to not create a dead short. That would have resulted in a catastrophic malfunction.

The fluid. That is a very good point. I would never buy anything from China. I don't buy any fluid that is made with Chinese components. I'm not above making phone calls for clarification.

The three major components are VG, PG and flavoring. The flavoring is important, as some flavorings can cause problems such as allergic reaction, and in some cases, a slim chance of popcorn lung. Some can elevate blood pressure, too. There are sites on the internet that breaks all this down so that vapers can decide which fluids are best for them.

OK, would I suggest that others do as I did, and start vaping for no good reason other than letting taste buds rule the day? Nope. Why not? Well, first off, why spend the money on it? Secondly, we are really test rats, and the potential, long term problems won't be known for many years. Why volunteer to be a lab rat? Having said that, there are a lot of horror stories that have come out that are not accurate with regard to the actual incident. My advice? Do not tinker with the rig, maintain the rig and the battery, and replace any battery that is damaged in any way. If you do that, you'll have no problem.


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## paulmaster (May 31, 2020)

You won't believe how much I was addicted to this shit. I completely ruined my health and after 15 years of smoking I came to the conclusion that I needed to stop because I could just start to suffocate. I tried to quit smoking myself more than 50 times and all my attempts were unsuccessful. I even thought about contacting a psychologist, but my cousin said that I should try vaping first. I did not believe that this could help me, but he said that it facilitated the addiction of many of his friends. In the end, I decided to give it a try. I found a cool vape shop with a large assortment and bought a vape from www.aquavape.co.uk and all the necessary accessories. I used liquids with a low nicotine content and over time my dependence became weaker and in the end I completely abandoned nicotine. So it really works. Thank you for listening to my story.


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## Maine-Marine (Mar 7, 2014)

Old SF Guy said:


> sidekahr....I think the "microphone" is actually a valve which is probably kept apart by a small non conductive material and when applying suction "around the center hole" it closes the center valve and completes an electrical connection and activates the heating element. and still allows air, vaper to pass through the outer holes. A microphone has a need to have a processor. I guess it could be all inclusive...but I always thought it was a valve switch.
> 
> Your thoughts?


my thoughts also.. most likely a pressure switch type of device...


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## Gabridussel11 (Jun 17, 2020)

paulmaster said:


> You won't believe how much I was addicted to this shit. I completely ruined my health and after 15 years of smoking I came to the conclusion that I needed to stop because I could just start to suffocate. I tried to quit smoking myself more than 50 times and all my attempts were unsuccessful. I even thought about contacting a psychologist, but my cousin said that I should try vaping first. I did not believe that this could help me, but he said that it facilitated the addiction of many of his friends. In the end, I decided to give it a try. I found a cool vape shop with a large assortment and bought a vape from cannabis seeds and all the necessary accessories. I used liquids with a low nicotine content and over time my dependence became weaker and in the end I completely abandoned nicotine. So it really works. Thank you for listening to my story.


The guy with batteries in his pocket is not very smart. There were other case mentioned also of the things just blowing up. Another issue brought up is a lot of the vapors come from places no one knows what is in them. Some of the China stuff has been found to have some nasty stuff in it.


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## Krackentoa (Jun 27, 2020)

> The guy with batteries in his pocket is not very smart. There were other case mentioned also of the things just blowing up. Another issue brought up is a lot of the vapors come from places no one knows what is in them. Some of the China stuff has been found to have some nasty stuff in it.


So first. I've been vaping for a long time. I had a friend who was heavy into it. At work ..no joke...the idiot had the lithium batteries unprotected in his pocket. He was on a phone call when all we heard was a scream..it ignited in his pocket and burned him down to the nerves in his thigh. He flung them, on fire mind you, and they flew under the copier...caught it on fire. The fire was put out bit it was the craziest thing at work I have ever seen.


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## Krackentoa (Jun 27, 2020)

If you do vape my I suggest "the one" in strawberry. I'm not lying it tasted like a strawberry filled donut dipped in milk. Delish!


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## Lavarda (Jun 10, 2020)

I tried vaping for stress and realized that one of the best remedies for stress is CBD oil. Now it is not so easy to buy CBD oil UK with a good composition. Many manufacturers save on components, and naturally the quality drops. The effect of its action depends on the quality of the oil. If you want to buy good oil, contact the guys and Blessed CBD.


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## Smitty901 (Nov 16, 2012)

Krackentoa said:


> So first. I've been vaping for a long time. I had a friend who was heavy into it. At work ..no joke...the idiot had the lithium batteries unprotected in his pocket. He was on a phone call when all we heard was a scream..it ignited in his pocket and burned him down to the nerves in his thigh. He flung them, on fire mind you, and they flew under the copier...caught it on fire. The fire was put out bit it was the craziest thing at work I have ever seen.


Karma.


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## Demitri.14 (Nov 21, 2018)

Can you put hash oil in those contraptions ?


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## esmok (Mar 20, 2020)

I've been vaping for almost 10 years. Was a heavy smoker before that for about 20 years, 2-3 packs a day.

I don't have any of the problems I used to have as a smoker.

I vape all kids of devices from cigalikes (ecigs) to box mods with rebuildable tanks. 

I have never had a problem because I'm not an idiot. 

Smartphones have been known to also explode. When you have a high powered Li-ion or Lipo or similar battery, anything can happen. With vaping, you can reduce risks by using your brain. But if you don't have one, then...

All the scary stories in the media around vape, some of which have been parroted in this thread, are just a bunch of BS spread by those who want to regulate it so only they can profit from it. Like Bloomberg and the "gang". 

I highly recommend vaping to smokers but only if you realize it's not a carefree thing like smoking is. It's involved. I always tell smokers who are thinking about vaping, if the thought of rolling your own cigarettes is not at all appealing to you, then vaping won't fit your life. And the more carefree you try to make vaping the more it'll cost you. Disposables can cost more than smoking, so I hear, I've never used one. But someone on a vaping forum recently said they started with disposables and were spending $15 a day. Also, if someone asks me about vaping but they don't seem to be smart enough to be safe, I just try to turn them off to the idea. Some people were just made to get their nicotine from smoke, sorry to say...or just quit. 

I mostly use rebuildables and I make my own juice. Vaping costs me about 50 cents a day last I calculated years ago. That's for juice. But if you were to take hardware wear and tear, wire costs and cotton costs, maybe a whole 75 cents a day, max. I did recently make some big purchases for nicotine to make my juice and for hardware, but that's all over now. that was for my vapocalypse stash. I'll never have to buy any of that again assuming my nicotine stash can be kept from going bad (no one really truly knows how long it lasts in a home freezer). Only thing I'll have to buy is PG, VG, cotton and wire and that stuff is never going to be banned or taxed as tobacco. 

I'm vapocalypse ready. I have no intention of quitting.

And yes, that is a pressure sensor, not a microphone. lol Those cigalikes that work just by drawing, I use them still. They have been known to go off in dance clubs playing loud bassy music. They can also go off in the wind. It's a very sensitive switch...it has to be.


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## stevekozak (Oct 4, 2015)

esmok said:


> I've been vaping for almost 10 years. Was a heavy smoker before that for about 20 years, 2-3 packs a day.
> 
> I don't have any of the problems I used to have as a smoker.
> 
> ...


That was a really long post about your addiction. In my opinion, one of the last things you are going to want to do in a true SHTF situation is be physically dependent on a substance, especially one that involves drawing solutions into your lungs when you might need them for sustained running. YMMV


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## esmok (Mar 20, 2020)

You're right, of course, but I've given up on prepping. Only here to see what others are talking about in terms of current events.

Smok, er um, vape 'em if ya got 'em. 

Of course, I'm sure at least 50% of the folks in the preppersphere have some sort of addiction of which would be a bad idea to have in SHTF - being accustomed to eating like a fat pig being one of them.


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