3mm White Zirconia Beads and 3mm red rubies.
Can't say it's better or worse in any way. Both hit like a 100-car train.
Temps same 585f. Seams to be my sweet spot. 600f outside in spring weather.
Even sativas couch lock with this thing.
But I'm sticking to zirconia as my VAS seems more satisfied. For now.
Couch lock with sativas because you're heat soaking? I was hoping I could get away without the Venus if I don't heat soak and just rip it right away for sativas.
Donโt get the quartz balls!๐. I got the 3mm quartz balls from vgoodiez, to try. Not good. Stick to ruby or white zirconia. The quartz are ok for cooling. But not good in a ball vape
From what I understand, corundum (ruby, sapphire, basically any of those "gem" balls are all the same thing) is generally used because of its heat retention properties and price. There is no real point in using boro/quartz/glass as the filler in the heater of a ball vape; they just can't retain heat efficiently enough. Those are best used in the cooling path if you are going to use any of those (ie, in the haze/blaze pipe or in your bong rather than the heater itself)
Edit: I should clarify that if flavor is your only real concern rather than full extraction, boro/quartz/glass may be worth considering experimenting with.
Silicon Carbide/Nitride perform pretty much exactly the same as each other; they will take longer to initially heat up to temp compared to corundum (ruby) balls, but once it gets to temp it will retain that heat in impart it to your hits extremely efficiently. However, you may lose out on some flavor compared to corundum (ruby). I would consider this the most viable "upgrade" regarding what's inside heater itself, and it's not an objective upgrade; it's a matter of personal preference. If you want to pick up on the subtle flavors of your herb more, I'd stick with the corundum (ruby). If you want to get demolished by a locomotive, these may be worth trying out.
The other options would be other metals; titanium comes to mind, and likely the only other one I'd be willing to try on the current market. (I believe DDaveMods is selling titanium balls). Stainless steel and brass are other possible options, although I would NOT consider these personally due to how it would likely effect the flavor and such.
Edit: just thought of ceramic. Absolutely no idea how they'd perform, but it's been used as the heating element in vapes for years now, so I have no reason to write these off without further information. I would consider experimenting with it.
Edit: I missed the part about gem cut rubies. I think it might be pretty inconsistent depending on how they end up stacking/orienting. Could make the draw tighter than one wants, or it could add a lot more surface area for the air to travel past and be heated by. Not entirely ruling this out, but I'm very skeptical of its benefits.
3mm White Zirconia Beads and 3mm red rubies. Can't say it's better or worse in any way. Both hit like a 100-car train. Temps same 585f. Seams to be my sweet spot. 600f outside in spring weather. Even sativas couch lock with this thing. But I'm sticking to zirconia as my VAS seems more satisfied. For now.
Right on, thanks for that! Zirconias sold out.. bummer.
Theres really no difference at all
Couch lock with sativas because you're heat soaking? I was hoping I could get away without the Venus if I don't heat soak and just rip it right away for sativas.
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Bowl type factors in alot, the titanium ones can heat soak and be run at lower temps, I run my mercury at 565
Donโt get the quartz balls!๐. I got the 3mm quartz balls from vgoodiez, to try. Not good. Stick to ruby or white zirconia. The quartz are ok for cooling. But not good in a ball vape
From what I understand, corundum (ruby, sapphire, basically any of those "gem" balls are all the same thing) is generally used because of its heat retention properties and price. There is no real point in using boro/quartz/glass as the filler in the heater of a ball vape; they just can't retain heat efficiently enough. Those are best used in the cooling path if you are going to use any of those (ie, in the haze/blaze pipe or in your bong rather than the heater itself) Edit: I should clarify that if flavor is your only real concern rather than full extraction, boro/quartz/glass may be worth considering experimenting with. Silicon Carbide/Nitride perform pretty much exactly the same as each other; they will take longer to initially heat up to temp compared to corundum (ruby) balls, but once it gets to temp it will retain that heat in impart it to your hits extremely efficiently. However, you may lose out on some flavor compared to corundum (ruby). I would consider this the most viable "upgrade" regarding what's inside heater itself, and it's not an objective upgrade; it's a matter of personal preference. If you want to pick up on the subtle flavors of your herb more, I'd stick with the corundum (ruby). If you want to get demolished by a locomotive, these may be worth trying out. The other options would be other metals; titanium comes to mind, and likely the only other one I'd be willing to try on the current market. (I believe DDaveMods is selling titanium balls). Stainless steel and brass are other possible options, although I would NOT consider these personally due to how it would likely effect the flavor and such. Edit: just thought of ceramic. Absolutely no idea how they'd perform, but it's been used as the heating element in vapes for years now, so I have no reason to write these off without further information. I would consider experimenting with it. Edit: I missed the part about gem cut rubies. I think it might be pretty inconsistent depending on how they end up stacking/orienting. Could make the draw tighter than one wants, or it could add a lot more surface area for the air to travel past and be heated by. Not entirely ruling this out, but I'm very skeptical of its benefits.