Burn of the Day

[zahir]

I agree. I will venture a guess just for the heck of it. Maybe with a larger element, you are smelling a whole lot of heated surface area of mica, whereas what the person in question really wants to be smelling is just the scent of the heated wood?

I will have to agree on this point that I do pick up a faint smell which I am going to attribute to mica sheet when using the subitism heater. Not sure if others have perceived it as well or not. It's a slightly plastic-y aroma but nothing overbearing and nothing that I've found to overpower the scent of even the cheapest agarwood I have.

 

[zahir]

Actually with the right subitism you can do better than that! 🙂


I have two homemade subitisms that can be passed around. Not literary cups, but that doesn’t cause a problem for me at least. They are heavy stone blocks on long flexible leads. My homemade subitisms are very crude, not elegant, and no doubt some of the skilled artisans here could come up with an aesthetically improved equivalent, but it is very utilitarian and on that level has no issues. If you have the interest I suggest maybe making your own heater - get a lab power supply and make your own heating elements because you can make them of any size and it just takes a few moments to make one.

Another option which I got long ago is the battery powered shoyeido kodotu (sp.?) heater but it is more of a novelty for portability than a go-to burner. has a nice small heating area but the plastic is annoying. It has been most useful for introducing friends to the agarwood addiction, as on a few occasions I have lent it out with fresh batteries and a small envelope of chip samples. 🙂

I was going to say the same. I had made my own subitism heater some time ago (whose mica wire broke and now needs repairing lol) and the amount of control in the temperature was crazy. Literally went all the way up to the point of searing and sometimes burning the wood chips too lol. And the latter caused the mica wire to give out too unfortunately :s

 

[Mr.P]

Nice to have the range and fine control for sure.


Another issue with the kodotu: there is a timer which means the element turns off automatically after a couple of minutes. You then have to work the power slider back and forth to restore power, but the mechanism is so jerky that it scatters the wood chips. It is possible to hold it pretty still most of the time, no big deal, but it is a nuisance to me anyway and needs a table top or something to anchor it.

 

[The Scent Guru]

I agree. I will venture a guess just for the heck of it. Maybe with a larger element, you are smelling a whole lot of heated surface area of mica, whereas what the person in question really wants to be smelling is just the scent of the heated wood?

i relate it to trying to roast marshmellows on a bon fire....it's a lot easier to control your roast on a nice little campfire 😉

 

[language scent]

I will have to agree on this point that I do pick up a faint smell which I am going to attribute to mica sheet when using the subitism heater. Not sure if others have perceived it as well or not. It's a slightly plastic-y aroma but nothing overbearing and nothing that I've found to overpower the scent of even the cheapest agarwood I have.

I don’t believe any subitism can do the job that this specific heater can do. Subitism is great tool it’s just all about the design and heating surface. View the aroma as sound and then remember wild kinam is not cultivated kinam where you can throw a chunk on the sub and let it go. Two different structures and different heat surface. I guess it has to do with how much wood you are using. If you are going to use a .05-.1 g piece then I guess it doesn’t matter much what I use and even then I prefer the smaller cup shaped heaters for the wild kinam

 

[Mr.P]

I don’t believe any subitism can do the job that this specific heater can do. Subitism is great tool it’s just all about the design and heating surface. View the aroma as sound and then remember wild kinam is not cultivated kinam where you can throw a chunk on the sub and let it go. Two different structures and different heat surface. I guess it has to do with how much wood you are using. If you are going to use a .05-.1 g piece then I guess it doesn’t matter much what I use and even then I prefer the smaller cup shaped heaters for the wild kinam

you must be referring to a specific model / make of “subitism” because you should be able to make a subitism with any size element you want and with whatever degree of fine heating control you need.

 

[language scent]

you must be referring to a specific model / make of “subitism” because you should be able to make a subitism with any size element you want and with whatever degree of fine heating control you need.

Well yea. If one can make a very tiny coil and put it deep within a cupped surface and then have great control it will do just fine. The wafts will slowly fill the space and then your nose can slowly inhale is perfect

 

[language scent]

If I’m not mistaken even that shoyeido one is the same idea as the sub also... tiny coil + dial. the 160$ one for the tiny bits

 

[zahir]

My dream heater is a subitism one, that fits in a palm comfortably, made of some high quality wood and has a lid on top to close it when not in use. If anyone knows someone who can make it for me, that'd be appreciated 😅

 

[Mr.P]

I have three different element sizes but have never installed one in a cup. Should be simple to do. The little coils need very little power to heat up so they take a little getting used to. The largest of my elements requires a lot of power and only the bench top power supply can get it glowing (the others i can power with one of those switchable “wall wart” power supplies).

Back to “burn of the day” for a moment:
Right now on my medium element I have the cultivated kinam shavings. They kick out a slightly different profile at higher temperatures which I guess is no surprise. I get a spiciness when the temp is a little higher, and more sweet kyara-vinyl scent when the temp is lower.

I keep coming back to this because they smell better than anything else that I can afford to burn right now pretty much.

I’ve read enough fables and cautionary tales to know there is a “catch” when something is too good to be true, yet I’ll be danged if I can find a flaw in the wood other than it does not like high heat.

Perhaps the catch is that it’s so good and affordable that I will end up over using it and no longer appreciate it as i did when it was rare and fully caught my attention.

 

[Oudamberlove]

Yamadamatsu Sandalwood
and Gyokushodo Indonesian Kizami.

I’m going for full room fumigation💨

 

[Oudamberlove]

Some Borneo slivers to start my day.

 

[The Scent Guru]

Some nice old Kalimantan I got from a connection on fb, full of black oil smelling like a fragrant tea at low heat.

 

[Oudamberlove]

Al Hashimi Mindanao Malaki

Little nuggets of joy.
Powerful and heady similar to
Tawi Tawi agarwood.

 

[The Scent Guru]

my Morning burn

 

[iori]

Vietnamese laos border
lovely piece today on charcoal mid/high temp strong bitter fruits and few floral scent!
on low watermelon, berries and flower notes :O

 

[Mr.P]

Yamada Matsu sandalwood from some thin 6-7” heartwood sections I bought about 20 years ago been stored in a sealed mason jar ever since, whatever their highest grade was - SA or is it SX. They are veneer-thin and my top shelf reference sandalwood. Hard to bring myself to use it up.

 

[DubOudh]

Burning some slivers of Sinking Jayapura bead scrap....low heat 10v......busy day and need some of this....🙂

 

[DubOudh]

Yamada Matsu sandalwood from some thin 6-7” heartwood sections I bought about 20 years ago been stored in a sealed mason jar ever since, whatever their highest grade was - SA or is it SX. They are veneer-thin and my top shelf reference sandalwood. Hard to bring myself to use it up.

I think I should begin to store stuff for the future....20 years holding wood? Good for you...

 

[Mr.P]

Maybe I have the opposite problem - hoarding stuff but not enjoying it enough… No point in having something if you don’t enjoy it. That’s overly simplistic but you understand what I mean I’m sure.