Mod Question

[mrb]

I have been vaping for about a month now,,and have significantly reduced my analogs down to about 3-4 cigarettes per day,, from 1.5packs a day...

I am still trying to find that "sweet spot"...almost.

I am posting here because i just found this forum and signed up, therefore cannot post anywhere else yet.

I built a 5 volt mod

... I would like to build a 3.7volt box mod that I can use a 2-3 "AA" box.

My question:

has anyone figured out how to add a usb cord to the box mod, so that the batteries can be charged through a usb port or usb wall wart, instead of having to recharge the batteries in a separate charger, and then change batteries.

it would be neat to be able to make this box mod like a sit and go passthrough,, only with better batteries.

what batteries would be best, resistors?, can this even be done. i am still researching batteries.. kind of confusing.

if anyone can point me in the right direction, thanks.

[Jolly]

fasest way, take a usb charger, hack it up drop it into the box.

you would bust it open, remove the center post and threads that the "normal" battery would go to. solder those with some wire that goes to the (+) and (-) of the battery terminal posts. then buy a female to male usb cord to it after you do the rest of the modding with the switch and all.

you could fit that into a 2-AA battery box.

[mrb]

fasest way, take a usb charger, hack it up drop it into the box.

you would bust it open, remove the center post and threads that the "normal" battery would go to. solder those with some wire that goes to the (+) and (-) of the battery terminal posts. then buy a female to male usb cord to it after you do the rest of the modding with the switch and all.

you could fit that into a 2-AA battery box.

that is a pretty slick idea! just would need to make sure the charger fits the specs for the battery being charged is all.

but, to stick with my original plan:

if i could find a really good source of information on batteries and what they need for charging..(mAh, volts etc) then i could figure out what diodes, resistors and stuff i would need to adjust the current from a usb port.

I appreciate your suggestion.

[mcquinn]

http://www.batteryjunction.com/prcimopcbfor.html if you want to be double sure.All you really need is to add 5 volts DC properly polarised as the protected batteries will stop charging when full.Most chargers are just 5 volt power supplies .

[Christopher]

I went ahead and moved you into the regular member group so you can post in the mod area (Moving post to mod area)

[WillBlack]

Well a few observations.

You got lotsa room there, why the 50¢ switch? Those things you are using are rated for 50mA, you are probably running 28 times that thru it.

If you want to buy local this RS one is decent.

http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2062508

This one also.

http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2062543

FWIW the atty is not polarized. I routinely run the negative lead to the center post.

I also advise folks to lay the epoxy on thick around the atty connector. All epoxy will eventually get soft and lose it's bond when exposed to eliquid. I noticed you were wiping it down. Keep the epoxy as clean as possible, don't let the liquid just sit on it.

As far as inbuilt charging it's fairly simple as Jolly mentioned, for 3.7V mods.

http://www.madvapemods.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=40

But charging a pair of batteries in series is not the easy. I don't agree with mcquinn, that's not the function of a protection circuit.

If you want HV and charging, track down Jolly's Tekk mod video.

[DAYVAPE]

If you want HV and charging, track down Jolly's Tekk mod video.

That is really all you need to do! Just got my VV Tekk from (bowchickabow)Jolly and it's the shizzel.

[Jolly]

itch chicka meow meow

this is much better than a box mod you can charge, as you can charge just about anything with the device and vape on it.

never leave home with out it.

[mcquinn]

"But charging a pair of batteries in series is not the easy. I don't agree with mcquinn, that's not the function of a protection circuit.If you want HV and charging, track down Jolly's Tekk mod video"

The question was " would like to build a 3.7volt box mod that I can use a 2-3 "AA" box. My question:has anyone figured out how to add a usb cord to the box mod, so that the batteries can be charged through a usb port or usb wall wart, instead of having to recharge the batteries in a separate charger, and then change batteries.It would be neat to be able to make this box mod like a sit and go passthrough"

You can make these things as complicated as you want.While you can add all kinds of things the protection circut built into the battery is designes to regulate the charging and discharging current and to stop current flow if voltage gets too high or too low to prevent a sudden release of energy.What I read into the question was how to build a passthrough like an original Joye with battery box and with detachable cord for portability.The original Joye passthrough used nonprotected batteries and a protection board built into the battery box,that is the part that malfunctions.

Edited November 25, 2010 by mcquinn

[Jolly]

back to the usb computer-charger thing.

its cheap and works.

all (regular) 3.7v battery chargers are going to put out the same voltage, the only thing that changes is the amps. amps = quickness of charge.

so while a usb-stick-battery charger maybe slower than my trusfire tr-001, it still does the trick.

[mcquinn]

I agree with that to point ,no matter how many amps the charger is capable of the battery protection circut will regulate it to what ever its setpoint is.

I am a firm beleiver in keep it simple ,so I would just build a couple of AA box mods and spend my money on extra batteries and a good charger.14500 batterie will provide hours of vaping pleasure and you can put two or three in paralell to keep the voltage up for longer or you can series two and add a regulator if you like for 5 volts.The switch is the key ,I have found that http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2049718 is my favorite,I remove the paddle and it can be recessed to prevent accidentally turning it on and it is a very reliable switch.The ones most people use seem to be temperamental you have to kind of jiggle them.

[Jolly]

i use the horn switches that madvapes carries.

they feel great but theres no way to recess those into a AA box.

you could even get a 3-aa box and leave a slot open with an unused battery. not really logical since you could do parallel but its an option, lol

i need to get cracking on my uber small 5v mod..

[mcquinn]

"uber small "? thats just not right,bigger is more better.Keep us posted you come up with some neat ideas I can rob.

[Jolly]

i have to check the parts i have and make sure i still have a chip for myself.. also have to get some 10440s

[mrb]

I went ahead and moved you into the regular member group so you can post in the mod area (Moving post to mod area)

thanks for the boost Chris!

[mrb]

"But charging a pair of batteries in series is not the easy. I don't agree with mcquinn, that's not the function of a protection circuit.If you want HV and charging, track down Jolly's Tekk mod video"

The question was " would like to build a 3.7volt box mod that I can use a 2-3 "AA" box. My question:has anyone figured out how to add a usb cord to the box mod, so that the batteries can be charged through a usb port or usb wall wart, instead of having to recharge the batteries in a separate charger, and then change batteries.It would be neat to be able to make this box mod like a sit and go passthrough"

You can make these things as complicated as you want.While you can add all kinds of things the protection circut built into the battery is designes to regulate the charging and discharging current and to stop current flow if voltage gets too high or too low to prevent a sudden release of energy.What I read into the question was how to build a passthrough like an original Joye with battery box and with detachable cord for portability.The original Joye passthrough used nonprotected batteries and a protection board built into the battery box,that is the part that malfunctions.

precisely what i am after,,, 3.7 volt with detatchable cord for portability... so, with protected batteries, theoreticly , the circuit inside the battery will automatically regulate whatever charge i give it... be it plugged into my computer, or plugged into my 2amp wall charger?

also, excactly where would i attatch the usb cord wires to...the opposite pos and neg posts? I don't want it to bypass the battery while i am using it..right?

i agree that adding a bunch of different components just improves the odds of failure.... the more you add, the more can go wrong.

someone else here asked why i used such a small switch... well..., this was my first build. I ordered the parts from an ecig store thinking that they will sell me what is best for the application. I now understand that i need to make sure the switch is rated for around 3 amps or so.

also, i didn't add a "bunch of epoxy" because if i applied it to both sides it would be difficult to open up the case to repair. I also try to keep it as clean as possible.. they can get messy can't they.

there have been a lot of great comments here,, thank you everone!

[WillBlack]

precisely what i am after,,, 3.7 volt with detatchable cord for portability... so, with protected batteries, theoreticly , the circuit inside the battery will automatically regulate whatever charge i give it... be it plugged into my computer, or plugged into my 2amp wall charger?

No that is totally incorrect, it will regulate nothing. What it will do is hopefully prevent the battery from overheating/burning/blowing up from being overcharged, and anytime a battery's protection circuit's overcharge circuit kicks in the charger should be replaced, the battery has in fact been overcharged. You need a charging circuit not just protected batteries or a protection circuit. Also the amount of current that can be used will depend on a Li-ion's capacity.

plugged into my 2amp wall charger?

If you are referring to devices like this?

These are NOT chargers they are simply dumb power supplies.

The same can be said of the so-called cell phone chargers like this.

Again this is simply a dumb power supply that feeds the actual charging circuit that's in the phone itself.

All you really need is to add 5 volts DC properly polarised as the protected batteries will stop charging when full.Most chargers are just 5 volt power supplies .

Totally incorrect. No charger for 3.7V Li-ions outputs 5V... period. And a charger is far more than a power supply. Running 5V into a 3.7V Li-ion and hoping that a protection circuit kicks is simply bad and dangerous advice.

The basic algorithm is to charge at constant current (0.2 C to 0.7 C depending on manufacturer) until the battery reaches 4.2 Vpc (volts per cell), and hold the voltage at 4.2 volts until the charge current has dropped to 10% of the initial charge rate. The termination condition is the drop in charge current to 10%. The top charging voltage and the termination current varies slightly with the manufacturer.

The preferred charge algorithm for Li-ion battery chemistries is a constant current-constant voltage (CC-CV) algorithm. The charge cycle can be broken up into four stages: trickle charge, constant current charge, constant voltage charge and charge termination.

I now understand that i need to make sure the switch is rated for around 3 amps or so.

The 1.5A switch I linked to works well and can easily handle your current needs. Your penstyle at 5V is pulling about 1.4A, at 3.7 a measly 1A. As far as needing 3A, some of the best and most recommended mods by AltSmoke use 2A switches.

Also note that is not a MadVapes horn switch.

Well I'm outa here.

Good luck.

[mcquinn]

As you can see we all have different interpetations as to what we read in the spec. sheets on batteries and chargers.If you feel uncomfortable after all this advice I would recomend just purchasing one of these http://www.vaportalkstore.com/products/Joye-eGo-USB-Passthrough.html as it fits the description you gave or a Joye 510 passthrough with battery box,or one of the many mods that are avaiable and time tested.Building this stuff is a hobby and requires research ,which is why you are asking questions and some trial and error.Good luck.

[WillBlack]

As you can see we all have different interpetations as to what we read in the spec. sheets on batteries and chargers.If you feel uncomfortable after all this advice I would recomend just purchasing one of these http://www.vaportalkstore.com/products/Joye-eGo-USB-Passthrough.html as it fits the description you gave or a Joye 510 passthrough with battery box,

How a charger works is not open to interpretation. Show me some charger specs that say it's just a 5V power supply.

And the link you provided calls the eGo USB battery a passthrough, it is not a passthrough nor does Janty ever refer to it as such.

The Janty eGo USB battery (shown above with the eGo XL atomizer, not included) allows the user to vape while charging their battery

Here's a few Li-ion battery charger schematics.

Notice that that they are being powered by various 5V USB sources. Sure is a lot of stuff between the dumb power supply that you purport is all that is needed and the actual battery.

[mcquinn]

I didn't call it a passthrough someone else did.But it will allow someone to vape plugged in to a usb port or unplug and roam around.It is considered a 3.7 volt device and it would be way less expensive and trouble than trying to build something that does the same thing as would the Joye 510 passthrough (again not my title).

[mrb]

itch chicka meow meow

this is much better than a box mod you can charge, as you can charge just about anything with the device and vape on it.

never leave home with out it.

that's pretty cool...

[Jolly]

yeah, currently the tekk mod is my fav mod.

i have tried others but for me the life is what matters. also the case is crazy good looking.

fits in your hand really nice. looks big and it kinda is, but not having to worry about batteries dieing is a + for me.

i tend to stay over at friends on the weekends, so having one device that can last me friday night till monday morning or longer (even with them vaping it) and not having to bring a bag of crap to charge batteries with is awesome!