Mighty & Crafty+ Review: Which One is Better for You?

What is it?

It's hard to talk about the best portable vaporizers without at least mentioning the Mighty or Crafty. This review has been long awaited, especially since Vaping360 is a German-based company and these vapes are manufactured in Germany. But hey, better late than never!

Upon the release of the Volcano, Storz & Bickel began offering more portable options like the Plenty, the Mighty, and the Crafty+ which has since replaced the original Crafty. Today, I will be testing out the most current versions of the Mighty and Crafty+ to help you decide between the two.

Both the Mighty and Crafty+ are designed for flower with an included option for extracts. They feature Storz & Bickel's signature hybrid heating technology. Originally developed for the Mighty, the tech has been adopted to their entire line of weed vaporizers, including the updated Volcano. Now, let's test them out to find out the real difference, besides just the size and price.

The Mighty and Crafty+ were sent courtesy of Vapor.com for the purpose of this review.

Price: $349 Mighty, $279 Crafty+ (Save 20% with code VAPING36020)

Colors: Black

What's in the box?

Both kits come packed to the brim with goodies. The Mighty comes with a few additional pieces including the filling aid and herb mill, which is a pretty decent two-piece plastic weed grinder. It also includes the wall adapter instead of the USB cable that you get with the Crafty+.

Other than that, it’s the same old deal. You get a set of O-rings, a dosing capsule, an awesome wood cleaning brush, and an instruction manual in every language possible! The Crafty+ comes with a more abridged version of the Mighty user manual. Both devices each came with a drip pad, but I don't see that listed on their site under kit contents.

Product features

The Crafty+ is 111 mm in height, 57 mm in width and 33 mm in thickness, which is actually a little bit thicker than the Mighty. But it weighs less at 135 grams. Overall, it's a lot more compact and fits better in pants’ pockets than the Mighty. The Crafty+ doesn't have a screen, but it utilizes a simple one-button operation paired with LED lights. To further customize your settings, you'll need to use an Android device or the Storz & Bickel web app on a PC, but you’ll also need the Chrome browser installed or it won’t work properly.

The Mighty stands at 140 mm in height, 80 mm in width and is 30 mm thick. It weighs 230 grams and is one of the bigger portable vaporizers out there. It doesn't exactly fit in my pants’ pocket, but it slips into my backpack. I prefer to think of the Mighty as more of a handheld than a portable. The LCD screen has some color going on but, more importantly, it's incredibly easy to read! The Mighty has a slightly curved bottom so sadly it doesn't stand upright on its own.

The main differentiating factor is size. Other than that, they have the same chamber design and similar build quality. They are both constructed of this hard black plastic, with a stainless-steel oven that has a white ceramic ring on top. It's like the chamber on the Volcano but it only holds 0.25 grams according to the specs—although I managed to stuff 0.3 grams in it once using a fine grind.

Both devices feature a similar cooling unit and mouthpiece on top, but the one on the Mighty extends for longer. And both feature haptic feedback that vibrates when it reaches your desired temperature. You can disable it on the Crafty+ via Bluetooth, but not on the Mighty.

How to use

How to use the Crafty+

The Crafty+ default temp settings are 356 F, and the booster temps are 383 F and 410 F. I was able to successfully use the Bluetooth app via the web and it was pretty easy. The interface is similar to the one on the Crafty LCD screen, but web-based. Since the Crafty+ has three temp settings, the app lets you pick the starting temp and the booster temp value. The device also has a 120 second default shutoff timer that can be adjusted from the app. There are a few other settings like changing the LED brightness and turning the haptic vibration on or off.

I usually start my sessions off at 370 F and set the boost temp to 15 F. Then, I am able to temp step throughout my sessions to 385 F on the medium setting and 400 F on the highest setting. You won't need to use Bluetooth every time, only until you want to tweak your settings again.

Here are some tips on how to use the Crafty+:

How to use the Mighty

There is not much to learn when first using the Mighty. Most of the steps are going to be the same on the Crafty+ with a few exceptions. If you don't like messing with Bluetooth apps, that would be another reason to go with the Mighty instead. Everything can be adjusted on board.

Here are some tips on how to use the Mighty:

How do they perform?

Flower

I tested the Mighty and Crafty+ individually, and then side by side. I used a variety of strains, some THC, but mostly CBD bud. I didn't take advantage of the dosing capsules at first. Eventually, I found them to be really convenient once I got the hang of using them. Especially since I could swap them across the Mighty and the Crafty+.

The first thing I feel like I should address is the flavor. It's like I'm finally just tasting the strain itself—without the influence of the vape. All I taste is just pure terpene madness with no added aftertaste. The best way I could describe it is just natural. And that's with a plastic mouthpiece! It goes to show you that there are levels to this stuff, when it comes to low-grade plastic versus German surgical-grade PEEK.

That isn't the only thing that stands out to me. I also like how when the session is over, you know it's over. The vapor production starts to diminish drastically rather than just the flavor. There's almost no guesswork. With other vaporizers, you just keep getting empty puffs until the flavor becomes unbearable, but not with these devices. The actual vapor quality is exceptional. Both the Crafty+ and the Mighty have a very similar draw that's airy and loose. The vapor temp never gets too warm, the hits are always cool and smooth, even at the maximum 410 F setting. The flavor drops off as expected, but still maintains a really clean taste up to the final puff.

I feel like stuffing the dosing capsules restrict the draw a tiny bit which helped add a bit more of a punch to my hits. I think they also help the device conduct heat efficiently. The cooling unit, which is basically a glorified top cap, lives up to its name by keeping the vapor nice and cool.

Concentrates

I placed a 0.1 g dab of live resin on the oil pad, popped it in the Crafty+ oven and cranked it out to the highest temp. Both devices only go up to 410 F, which is more than enough for me when it comes to flower, but cannabis concentrates tend to require higher temps to deliver the same punch. So, it hits you more like a flower vape than a dab rig. The effects are there, but there’s a big difference between vaping dabs and "doing a dab" which provides an onslaught of vapor.

However, the hits I'm getting are pure and savory. I don't personally know anyone who actually dabs this way. I'm sure there are cannabis users in medicinal states who got into vaporizing in the first place for a cleaner and healthier experience. So, it makes sense. If you're still new to dabbing, it's a much smoother transition into extracts than dropping that same glob on a hot nail and blasting it into your lungs at full throttle. This is more of a smooth and gentle ride.

Battery life and charging

The Mighty has a clear advantage over the Crafty+ with almost double the battery life. But the Crafty+ compensates for its smaller battery with a more convenient Micro USB charging option. And both devices take approximately 90 minutes to reach a full charge. On a fully charged battery, I'm able to get around four to five sessions on the Crafty+ and around seven to eight on the Mighty. When you charge the Crafty+, you need to remove the pack tool, unlike on the Mighty.

The Mighty charges up relatively quicker considering its larger battery life. It also does pass thru charging while the Crafty+ does not. The Crafty+ charges via a standard Micro USB cable whereas the Mighty requires an AC wall adapter. You can still vape on the Crafty+ when it's plugged in, but it won't charge while in use. I think they should have just gone USB-C on both.

Last but not least, the Mighty has a more intuitive battery indication system with its graphic LCD display versus the blinking blue light LED indication on the Crafty+, which requires some time to get in tune with.

Here is a rundown of the battery life indication on the Crafty+ when in use:

The Crafty+ also indicates battery life when turned off. Here is a breakdown of that:

How to clean

Cleaning on the Mighty and Crafty+ is not what I would call simple. But it's not super difficult either. Especially when you take advantage of those dosing capsules. With extended use, discoloration in and around the chamber is inevitable. This is especially true if you're going to be using it with concentrates. I only used the Crafty+ with concentrates a few times and I'm already seeing the immediate impact. For comparison, I have not yet used the Mighty with extracts and it’s staying cleaner. Over time, the white ceramic part will turn yellow or brown.

Both vapes come with the signature S&B wood cleaning brush. It's perfect for brushing out the vape between sessions. I like the wooden handle and it's flat so you can use it for packing flower. The cooling unit on these devices will naturally accumulate reclaim after a few sessions. The best time to clean it is right after a session. You can easily wipe off with a clean Q tip and you don't even need to use any alcohol. But that's just general maintenance, a deeper clean is a bit more involved.

To fully clean them, you'll need to fully disassemble the cooling unit and remove both the upper and lower screens. The mouthpiece pops right out and the rest can be taken apart after sliding the lock open. Both screens can be removed using a pair of tweezers, or you can use the orange packing tool instead. But the lower screen is a lot trickier that way. See the video below.

Once you have done that, soak everything (except for the cap lock) in a bowl filled with alcohol, for up to an hour with occasional shaking or stirring. Next, rinse thoroughly with water and make sure everything is completely dry and free of any trace of alcohol before reattaching.

For the rest of the device, clean the heating chamber with an alcohol-soaked Q-tip once you have removed the screen. After that, you can insert a new screen. The device comes with a few spares, and they can be purchased separately for around $4 for a set of six. The coarser screens are designed for the cooling unit, but some people swap them out with the finer ones. I haven't tried that yet, but I've heard it it's a gamechanger for collecting honey from the cooling unit.

Here are some tips for cleaning the Mighty and Crafty+:

Pros / Cons

Mighty

Crafty+

Gallery

Verdict

The Mighty is a rugged hand-held vaporizer that has withstood the test of time. And the Crafty+ is basically just a more portable version of it. Both deliver some of the freshest-tasting vapor you can possibly get out of a vaporizer. Sure, I listed a few cons for each, but I feel like they are heavily offset by their overall performance and build quality—which is second to none.

So, what actually sets them apart? In summary, the Mighty features a more intuitive LED interface while the Crafty+ utilizes a more basic one-button operation paired with Bluetooth. The Mighty has nearly two times the battery life and charges faster—but requires a proprietary wall adapter. On the other hand, the Crafty+ charges using a micro-USB cable and doesn't do pass-thru charging, while the Mighty does. To make your decision easier, just get both already!

What was your experience like with the Mighty or Crafty+ vaporizers? Leave a comment below.