Steve K's Vaping World

Here are the steps (we’ll go in detail in just a minute):

1. Disassemble the CE2
2. Cut the syringe to length
3. Sand any rough or crooked edges of the tube
4. Insert CE2 guts
5. Vape

Clear tube CE2 cartomizers work the best as they are easier to dissasemble.  Don’t worry, if you only have the steel ones they work too, it just takes a little more effort.  Also, if you have one of the new CE2s with the frosted plastic and black gaskets, stop now, it’s already made with the same plastic as the syringe.

Two gaskets, lower left

Before removing the tube from the CE2, first remove the two gaskets inside the CE2 using tweezers or a bent paperclip.  Be careful removing the inner gasket as it sometimes tries to take the heating coil assembly with it, breaking the cartomizer. Set the gaskets aside.

Attach the cartomizer to your battery.  While I haven’t broken a battery before, it’s possible, so try and use a broken battery or one you hate anyway.  Hold the battery and grip the cartomizer.  Gently rock the tube side-to-side while pulling away from the battery.  With a little effort the tube should come loose. Hang on to the tube for measuring.

Pull while moving tube side to side

2. Cut the syringe to length.

Before starting this step, take a look at your syringe.  Notice that the plastic at the top of the syringe (where end with the flange where the plunger is inserted) has thicker plastic than the needle end.  This will be the bottom of your new mod.  The thicker wall of the tubing does a better job of holding the battery connector end of the CE2 engine (guts) in place.

Thicker plastic and flange

Remove the plunger from the syringe and toss it. Cut the syringe as close to the flange (the end with the plunger) as possible.  Optionally you could leave the flange intact if you don’t want to deal with it, it also makes a nice handle for firing off devices like the Copper mods from Vapor Alley.

Flange removed

Mark the syringe tube to the same length as the original CE2 tube.  You can actually make it a little bit shorter as there’s some extra gap between the gasket and the tip in the original.  Cut the needle end of the tube at the mark you made.

Cutting tips:  

Using a tube/pipe cutter

• The easiest way to cut these tubes is to use a tube cutter (I picked one up at my local hardware store for under 10 bucks).  I also used a coaxial cable stripper I had laying around, but I thought that much cutting couldn’t be good for the blade.  If you’re going with the razor blade, it’s best to first score the tube with the blade and then press the blade against the tube and rock back and forth to work it down until it completely cuts the tube.
• If you’re using a tube cutter, you may not be able to get close enough to the flange resulting in the thick part of the tube being too short.  You may want to use a blade or hacksaw to cut the tube as close to the flange as possible.
• Bonus tip:  If you don’t like the measurement markings on your tube, and they’re printed on the tube, e-liquid takes that print right off the syringe.  Just add a drop of juice and rub the markings off with a rag.

Depending on the method you used, you may notice the edges are a little rough, or even totally crooked.  Depending on how bad it is, use a grinder or a rough gauge file to even the bottom of the tube out.  Knock off any burrs or rough edges with a slightly finer grade sandpaper.

At this point, if you wish to be super sure about the cartomizer innards not coming loose, take your food-safe glue and run a bead around the exterior edge of the cartomizer bottom.  If your CE2 engine came out of a steel version, you’ll have to use the glue as there’s no interior gasket on those models.

Insert the CE2 coil assembly first into the bottom of the syringe tube (the thicker part of the tube)  Push the CE2 in until the base of the CE2 is flush with the bottom edge of the tube. Before that final push, make sure there isn’t any wick sticking out the bottom.

Insert from bottom up

Put the cartomizer back on your battery.  This will prevent you from pushing the stem of the CE2 assembly through the battery connector during the next part.

Re-insert the inner gasket (the one with the slots).  Be careful to align the little notches with the wicks coming out of the coil with the slots on the gasket.  Using the back end of your tweezers or a pencil to push it into the tube may help.  Don’t mash the down in there, as long as the bottom of the gasket is below the top edge of the cup around the coil, you should be good.  You can add that second donut looking gasket, but it’s not entirely necessary.

All together now!

5. Vape

I think you can take it from here.  If you used glue, maybe let the syringe mod sit around for a couple hours for the glue to dry.  Otherwise, fill it with a syringe and needle just like a regular CE2 (you can even use cinnamon and citrus juices now!).  Sit back and congratulate yourself on a job well done, you’re a modder now!