Why are magnets better than springs?

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93gc40

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Why are magnetic switches better?????????? Do Mechs conduct power via the spring? I could understand in this case. But I thought the springs in switches were mainly intended to keep the circut OPEN, pushing the battery and conductor away from each other. Or is it that the magnets are installed opposed to each other creating a magnetic cushion.

Someone 'Splain this too me.
 

Papa_Lazarou

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Well, I only have experience with the Nemesis switch magnets (and yes, they are oriented to repel each other so that they exert force in the same way as the spring does). In the case of that mod, the magnets just take "crunchiness" out of the switch. The standard spring has a tendency to catch a bit when depressing and the magnets make it silky smooth to operate. Some also say that they also better protect against accidental firing when putting the mod down (but not locked).
 

turbocad6

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magnets increase repelling forces as the come closer together so a magnet switch could prevent accidental misfires in some cases better than a spring, also the magnet forces are more even and self leveling making the button travel more perpendicular for less binding and crunchiness, makes for a smoother switch in many cases.. in the end they both do the same thing though, apply forces to keep 2 things apart from eachother
 

sando7

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i prefer springs over magnets for sub-ohming, if you take magnets to low they loose there magnetic properties and won't repel anymore or they simply just break in half from handling........just my personal preference i'd rather use a beryleim copper spring or a home-made one out of copper wire........plus if a spring collapses it's sorta a safety feature if you go to low with your build......to each there own, enjoy the Vapor :vapor:
 

MrPlink

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The key is good magnets. Plenty of clones out there that come with magnets in them use rather weak magnets.

Let's not forget that while magnets are less likely than springs to get exposed to heat, magnets will degrade when exposed to high temperature.

For example, a buddy of mine (who was drunk at his own wedding party) didn't lock his stingray clone and just tossed it in his pocket. It auto fired for God knows how long before he discovered it (it was too hot to handle and he almost burned his hand just tossing the thing out of his pocket) and afterwards the magnets were almost completely toast.
 

vapero

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both have their pros and cons,
in some cases a magnet can take out some crunchiness out of the switch but they are more fragile than a spring and as stated above heat will make them weaker.
it is always better to have a great working spring switch than a magnetic one, better conduction and less prone to failure (I've shattered a fer magnets by dropping my mod), but on the other hand is better to have a smooth magnetic switch than a crunchy spring one.

so for me the magnets are a fix to some switches but not a feature that I prefer
 

MrPlink

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Unless of course you are NOT running sub-ohm and are using a kick. But then kicks don't really have logic based chips or function. But then most regulated devices don't have mechanical switches anyway.

And keep in mind the keep in mind a kick module is on the opposite end of the magnets
 

DaveSignal

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And keep in mind the keep in mind a kick module is on the opposite end of the magnets

A kick doesn't really have magnetic information stored in it. Its not like there is a hard drive or even a firmware memory in it. You could rub magnets on it all day and it is not going to do anything.
 

nynvolt

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Some mod switches benefit from magnets, as in the case of the nemesis mod. Others don't. I think there is sometimes a belief that they are always better or an upgrade but that hasn't been my experience. I've got a few clone mods and only the nemesis is made better with magnets. Of my three authentic, two have springs and one a magnetic switch. I like the two with springs better.

They both do the same thing. You can switch to magnets as stated to fix a crunchy switch. You can also use them to shorten the throw or increase/decrease spring rate. IMO one is not decidedly superior than the other in and of itself. Depends on the switch. Magnets are likely to lose potency faster than a good spring. They are also very brittle. Springs can come too soft/stiff and depending on quality can become soft or bind.
 

Norrin

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Some mod switches benefit from magnets, as in the case of the nemesis mod. Others don't. I think there is sometimes a belief that they are always better or an upgrade but that hasn't been my experience. I've got a few clone mods and only the nemesis is made better with magnets. Of my three authentic, two have springs and one a magnetic switch. I like the two with springs better.

They both do the same thing. You can switch to magnets as stated to fix a crunchy switch. You can also use them to shorten the throw or increase/decrease spring rate. IMO one is not decidedly superior than the other in and of itself. Depends on the switch. Magnets are likely to lose potency faster than a good spring. They are also very brittle. Springs can come too soft/stiff and depending on quality can become soft or bind.
Magnets shouldn't loose any appreciable power unless they are heated and the heat needed depends on the quality of magnets. So if you are not doing anything stupid the magnet will last much longer than any spring. A spring will also fail at high temps though. A well made magnet switch will be as good or better than a well made spring switch, but if you prefer springs that's fine as it's only really badly made spring switches that have serious issues.
 
If you grab two magnets, and move opposing poles towards each other, you'll quickly notice that they not only repel one another perpendicularly, but there is a lateral force as well. This is due to the shape magnetic fields take around an object.

This is good in mod switches, as it naturally pushes the firing button shaft laterally against the bore it rides in. This helps make the electrical contact that allows current to flow from the mod tube, to the switch housing, and up through the switch shaft to the battery.

With a spring, the resistance is totally linear and perpendicular, allowing the firing button shaft to possibly remain centered in it's bore. When this happens, current instead travels through the spring itself. In high-wattage configurations, this can cause the spring to heat up. Heating a spring weakens it, causing reduced performance over time, or in situations where the firing button may catch on a burr ("crunchy" buttons), the spring could fail to release the button, causing an auto-firing situation until the button is pulled apart.

Also, magnets are powered by witchcraft.
 
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