Recently, there have been issues of venting safety with the, suddenly popular and abruptly claimed unsafe mod by China manufacturers called, telescope. It is claimed to be a very versatile mechanical mod that can accommodate 16340, 18500, 18650 batteries. The first versions that arrived have been deemed unsafe because, there where no vent holes; in case of battery failure on the said mod. So retailers have recalled these first batches and released the second version, which now claims to be safer.

Now, here comes the MINIZUKA, also known as the Telescope; which I got from E-PIPE Sta Lucia branch. And thank God! I was able to reserve and actually get one. Because, the MINIZUKA sells like pancakes, as said by the E-Pipe owner. Well, it really is a hot item; I may say. Because, I have tried getting one from a sale booth; last PVF Anniversary. Unfortunately, stocks ran out before I even got a chance to reserve one from their booth.

When I opened the generic white box, I was greeted by a simple looking but, attractive MINIZUKA. It is a unit only mod, no battery or any accessories, nadda… Not even a manual or any branding or text, from where the heck this little mod came from. What you see, in this case a minizuka mod, is what you get! no wonder it is sold cheap at P2,000.00. China has indeed played cheap (again) with this one.

Regardless of the simple WYSIWYG packaging, I am really pleased with the looks of the MINIZUKA. It is a fairly simple to use telescopic mod that you can retract or extend, depending on the battery that you want to use. It is composed of brass material and chrome plated. The chrome on the MINIZUKA is really good and thick enough for a longer lasting shine. speaking of shine, it is well chromed and smooth; it is a finger print magnet. It is hard to keep this little bazuka so shiny, with all the prints and smudges that sticks on to it at all times. A bit of a reminder to those with acidic hands though, chrome tarnishes easily with sweat so, keeping a piece of cloth around is quite handy.

It comes with native 510 connection with deep enough juice well, you can fit recessed 510 and ego standard connections in there; like the stardust. The MINIZUKA has three main parts. The upper tube, where the top cap and 510 connection is press fitted; the middle tube, where the thread goes all the way on both ends. and the bottom cap, where the switch and the lock is located.

Safety feature have been added with this new revision of the MINIZUKA. There are now vent holes on the sides of the upper tube and bottom cap. And having those safety lock is a plus. And the manufacturer claimed that it is now fitted with a collapsible hot spring? Why? Collapsible springs are only used on mods where the springs are used as connection bridges for the battery. In the case of the MINIZUKA, the gold plated spring only acts as a spacer that pushes the battery firmly to the top end of the tube. As an example, in case of battery failure; if the spring indeed collapses, there is a sure presumption that the white plastic (which acts as an insulator) would’ve melted already; making a hard short circuit on the battery and the bottom cap base, where the spring is located.

If you inspect the photo of the bottom cap, the switch terminal in the middle is also gold plated, for better conductivity. But, if you look further on the side, you will see a generous amount of hot glue. For what, you may ask? The glue is there to hold the so called hot spring, period. Why you may also ask? Because it is a cheaper workaround, if you are manufacturing thousands of MINIZUKA! nuff said…

This is the safety lock in locked state.

And this is the safety lock, unlocked and ready to fire. The locking ring is kinda loose and flimsy but, it is still a very important feature for any mech mods IMHO.

Things that I don’t like on the MINIZUKA…

Sure, it can accomodate almost any batteries available but, the tubes are a tad shorter for the 18650. Specifically, the AW IMR’s which have no protection circuits and a few millimeters shorter than the ICR’s. We want a mechanical mod that can accommodate protected batteries!!!

My remedy for that ugly thread peeking on the tube is unscrewing the bottom cap around three threads. It is a lot easier on the eyes, for me… Makes me think, it would have been a perfect looking mod if they made it 4mm longer.

Aside from 18650 issue and it being a smudge and finger magnet, I have no other qualms on the MINIZUKA. It is a performing mod. It fires well when you press the soft and comfortable spring bottom switch. No more awkward positions and heavy strain on your pinky finger. Just press, fire and vape and it fires really good! making it one of the most reliable China made mod to date AND IT’S DARN CHEAP! I do hope this mod will last me a long time…

So If you want a telescopic mod that looks and somewhat feels like the Empire mod but not heavy on your wallet, MINIZUKA is the one that is hard to beat. This will definitely set a new level on vaping, because of its affordability and availability, it will indeed jolt some of the modders and may be coined as a mechmod killer…

KEEP ON VAPING!!!