Mod review:
Clutch by HummingBird Mod Company (Michael Cowan modder)
Designed by Tek Division (Slovakia), produced (mostly, some components from overseas) and assembled in the USA
*Disclaimer - I am friends with the modder, so I can't say this review is bias free. I will try and be as objective as possible though.
Specifications:
Cell - 18650
Board - DNA60 with USB
Material - PA11 and PA12
Colors - black, white, red, purple, pink, orange (can also do green, yellow, and blue but not recommended)
Height - 88.5mm
Base dimensions - 48.5mm x 24mm
Weight (no cell or atty) - 58g
Maximum atty diameter - 24mm
Atty drop (from top of mod to 510 deck) - 49mm
510 - spring loaded, brass pin
Contacts - brass
Rrp - $150 + $10 (optional battery cover) + $8 (conus shipping)
*International customers can go through the Tek Division website*
Availability/attainability:
The Clutch is available through the HummingBird Mod Company Facebook group through lists, as well as on the Tek Division website if you are not in the USA (on that site the mod is called "Minion V3D/Clutch" and is 140 euro plus shipping; the battery cover is only available through HummingBird). Michael has done 3 batches so far for a total of 25 mods. I'm not sure how many Tek Division has sold. If you are in the states you can join the HummingBird group and get on a list and if you are not in the states you can pre-order through Tek Division. If you want one, they aren't terribly hard to get. You just may have to wait. 9/10 here.
Packaging/presentation:
The Clutch comes in a hard case with snap closures. Usually they are black but I got an orange one. Not complaining, I have plenty of them in black. These cases are great because they offer a lot of protection while being a pretty decent presentation. The modder shipped in a USPS small flat rate priority box, but it wasn't taped. Now, those boxes are meant to stay closed but tape is never a bad idea, it at least keeps the postal workers honest. I told him about the issue and he will use tape from now on. There isn't a serial number on the outside of the mod but they are serialized and come with a COA and personalized thank you note. All in all I give the mod an 8/10 in this category.
Machining/finish:
The Clutch is a 3d printed mod made of PA11 and PA12 nylon. The mod body is PA12 and printed with an HP 5210 MultiJetFusion printer. The other printed parts are PA11 and made on an EOS P400 SLS printer. All printed parts are made in the USA. The print quality is good. There are no print lines or sharp edges/burrs. The battery door fits well with just a hair of play. The battery cover on my mod was a little loose so Michael is sending me some replacements. The Clutch has a tumbled finish that feels good in the hand and has some grip to it. Both HummingBird and Tek Division logos are printed on the bottom of the mod. Overall I give the mod a 9/10 here due to the loose battery cover.
Design/engineering:
The Clutch is a side-by-side mod with a deep 510 deck (49mm), so you either need a tall tank like a Corona or FeV or a shorter tank with a heatsink. Users can pick tanks up to 24mm in diameter for this mod. Instead of a battery tube like most modders have transitioned to, the Clutch employs an integrated battery sled and brass keystone contacts. This saves some cost, maybe some space. The battery door and cover are held to the cell with magnets. This mod takes an 18650 cell and has the Evolv DNA60 board with the USB charging/data board. Due to design, the on-board buttons can't be used, and the modder actually removed them to save space. The up/down switches are small tactile switches and the fire button is a large, very trigger-like tactile switch unlike anything I've used before. You can actually feel the strength of the spring in it. Anyway, no complaints about the design. The modder went with design components to keep costs down, like using battery contacts instead of a tube. More about this below. But the only negative I may find here is the 510, which is generic but has a brass positive pin and is spring loaded. I'm going to give the Clutch a 9/10 in this category.
User experience/vape:
I've owned a good number of sbs mods now, so I think I have a little experience, and while the Clutch might not be my #1 it does do some things very well. For one, it is extremely light (58g). Before I got the mod I was afraid it would be top heavy with a battery and tank installed, but it really isn't. The mod also looked pretty tall, but now that I have it in hand I realize it is only a few mm taller than the Xvostick DNA60 (see pics for comparison). The mod is comfortable in hand, with my middle finger falling on the fire button. Now, that fire button... Definitely not like anything I've had before. There's a strong spring in it and you can feel when it activates. Not bad, just different. It feels like a trigger actually. The up/down switches are easy to use, and the screen is on the side of the mod as opposed to the bottom, which I prefer because I'm always worried about setting down a mod with a bottom screen. The board is the DNA60 with USB on which the modder has preloaded profiles (wattage, wattage boost 5, wattage boost 11, SS316L, Dicodes resitherm nifethal, SSVTI 0.4 0.5 0.6). Battery is easy to change because there's a door but also a cover on the other side. So you can take off the door and cover and push the battery out with your finger. One feature of the mod that may be a negative for some is the deep atty drop (distance from top of the mod to 510) of 49mm. There are a good number of tall tanks out now, most from Europe. You can also use a heatsink to take up around 10mm, but I'm not a fan of them. The modder has been supplying heatsinks when requested but I'm not sure if he will continue that. Solid 9/10 here. The mod does exactly what it is supposed to.
Room for improvements:
Fix the tolerance and fitment issues with battery door and cover.
Use a brand name 510 (would increase cost).
Final thoughts/rating:
I've never been a big fan of 3d printed mods. I don't drop mods often, but I've seen the reports. I also prefer a bit of weight to my devices. But I'm starting to come around. The Clutch is ridiculously light at 58g. My tank weighs more than the mod. The prints are done here in the states and the quality is good. Not quite as good as my BMM Nicely Nicely but that mod has a different finish. The price point is fair in my opinion for a mod with DNA60 and USB. Not including shipping, it's the same price as the Xvostick (I have no idea how mini ecig makes any money on those, they could charge twice that and still sell, but I digress). The Clutch is made for tall tanks, so take that into consideration. After a week the fire button has broken in some and doesn't feel crunchy like it did at first. The modder is a swell guy who kept list members updated at every step of the process. He is easy to approach and knowledgeable. I'll link the Facebook group for HummingBird as well as the Tek Division site in the comments. Overall, I rate the mod an 8.5/10.
As always, thank you for reading my review! If you have any questions or comments please feel free to drop a comment below. Be well and vape safe!
Сообщение от Way to Vape
и экземпляр был идеальный, личный челсовский. Для "двигаться с ним" конечно тяжеловат, но для дома ахриненный вариант, расположение фаер бомба, из руки хоть не выпускай. Я знаю у кого есть, но выпрашивать бесполезно
)
, но обработка пластика (углеволокна, g2, или чё там) не радуют.
Ваши права
