Making an Atomizer Coil 101 (Actual Working Methods Only)

[crazyhorse]

Tools that I find very useful are the "helping hands" soldering stand (articulating arms with alligator clip hands) and a variety of hemostats, loose alligator clips, small needle nose vise grips and things of the sort. I also couldn't do this kind of work without something called an Optivisor. Eyewear as used by jewelers and gem cutters.

I tape my wick to the forms with tiny strips of electrical tape and then wrap the coil. The way I figure it, the wire won't be too tight around the wick once the form(s) are pulled. I'd rather take a good a$$ whipping than try to thread a needle to use for pulling wick. I also am preferring to hook and solder the copper leads to the nichrome wire before wrapping. The leads make for nice handles and they're a lot easier for me to solder when I'm less restricted. This also makes it much easier to have very short nichrome tails.

I'm thinking I won't find Ruby Flux or anything similar unless and until I make it to Pensacola during the time a welding supply is open for business. It just isn't happening at even the most cluttered up old timey hardware stores in my area. Until I find some, I'll keep using phosphoric acid as flux. It sucks in solder like a truck stop ho and I've learned it washes out quite easily with water.

Harbor Freight sells the 96/4 solder for cheap. You get a big ol tubed coil of the ¾ mm stuff for $2.99.

Dumb question about the style of using and stuffing a bunch of wick in and around the cup and bridge: This is a question only because I'm too lazy to check it out for myself but wouldn't juice soaked wicking be slightly conductive? And if so, would that not provide a route to ground or a short?

[rbonie]

Looking good!
The cartomizer is making a nice rigid holder. The red wire looks larger than in other attys I've stripped, but as long as you can wrap it, as the original was, without distorting the coil you should be fine.
When feeding the wick thru, if the coils do compress and touch each other, you can always use something thin to space them back apart.
You may or may not need to hold the coil itself between the themb and forefinger when feeding the wick through. doing that will help hold the coils in position, at least on a free coil.

Carry on and good job!

what size wire do you use? Not getting any fire out of this.. Think the ohms to high. U check Ohms across connector or just the coil?Red wire is 24g single
PS using 5 v 18500 bat in nicostick

[Vaporer]

Crazyhorse, the eliquid isn't conductive. Even if it were slightly, electricity follows the path of least resistance, so it will go through the coil 1st.

rbonie,
The only concern I had with the red wire was its stiffness being so large in dia.
The larger the wire, the more current it can handle. Think of it as a water pipe.
The bigger the dia the more water flows through.
If you arent getting any heat the most common reason is a bad solder joint to the nichrome wire. rosin core solder just doesnt do it well. That's why I suggested Ruby Flux or any soldering paste that has Zinc Chloride. crazyhorse found phosphoric acid works well, but if you don't have it handy , standard paste is cheaper and more readily available. Nichrome wire needs abt 35watts and flux or it just doesn't take well.

To check your work, measure across the coil first so you can see what ohms to expect if all your solder joints are good. Now with one meter lead on the outside of the connector, put the other lead on the closest joint. It should read 0 until you go across the coil then you should start reading the coil too. If you are getting no heat and the problem is in the atty, at one point you wont get a reading. An "open joint/connection". It may look good, but it can have resin, oxidized metal in the joint and the solder isn't really touching the wire. A dab of flux on a joint like this and reheat will usually fix it.

If your coil measures for instance, 3.2 ohms. Then the outer connector of the atty to the center connector should be the same or very close.
make sure your battery is charged and not at the cutoff point. 2.75v for most.
The battery may read 3.1v, but when connected, the load pulls the voltage down to cutoff and a cold atty coil.

[rbonie]

Crazyhorse, the eliquid isn't conductive. Even if it were slightly, electricity follows the path of least resistance, so it will go through the coil 1st.

rbonie,
The only concern I had with the red wire was its stiffness being so large in dia.
The larger the wire, the more current it can handle. Think of it as a water pipe.
The bigger the dia the more water flows through.
If you arent getting any heat the most common reason is a bad solder joint to the nichrome wire. rosin core solder just doesnt do it well. That's why I suggested Ruby Flux or any soldering paste that has Zinc Chloride. crazyhorse found phosphoric acid works well, but if you don't have it handy , standard paste is cheaper and more readily available. Nichrome wire needs abt 35watts and flux or it just doesn't take well.

To check your work, measure across the coil first so you can see what ohms to expect if all your solder joints are good. Now with one meter lead on the outside of the connector, put the other lead on the closest joint. It should read 0 until you go across the coil then you should start reading the coil too. If you are getting no heat and the problem is in the atty, at one point you wont get a reading. An "open joint/connection". It may look good, but it can have resin, oxidized metal in the joint and the solder isn't really touching the wire. A dab of flux on a joint like this and reheat will usually fix it.

If your coil measures for instance, 3.2 ohms. Then the outer connector of the atty to the center connector should be the same or very close.
make sure your battery is charged and not at the cutoff point. 2.75v for most.
The battery may read 3.1v, but when connected, the load pulls the voltage down to cutoff and a cold atty coil.

TANX will check all that tomorrow. Thought thick upright wire might have kyboshed it.. did see a bad solder joint tho.. Well s'a good first try.. Will keep going till I get it right

PS using paste flux from rat shack w/zinc chloride int it/ and silver solder so should be ok

[Vaporer]

Picture time!
After reading crazyhorses's post, I decided to try soldering the nichrome to the new leads 1st. That's a winner when you need new leads.

Here is what the "loop & hook" look like. Almost squeezed closed. I finished closing after the pic.


Flux paste added to the joint.


Soldered! Notice how the solder is "flowed" to the nichrome wire. Many times it will curl to it and thats will be a bad joint. Usually not enough heat or flux.


Here is the coil wrapped on a 1mm carbon fiber rod. It was handy. Sewing needles work just as well.


Thread is ready to pull the wick in. The thread doesn't need to be doubled. I forgot to pull the loose end on through before I shot the pic. 1 loop is fine.


Wicks in and trimmed on one side. Close fit on a 510 so I trimmed the loop pulled thru off.
Now is a good time to even up your coils if they distorted some. Gently.


Its in and ready to slide the tube back on. I left the one end untrimmed(right). It was very tight going through and some space is needed for the capilarry action. If it runs to dry or feeds slow, I can pop the tube off and slide it out of the coil. If you look to the left on the wick, thats the long strand tucked under the mesh. Keeps the wick wet when ever the cup resupplies itself.


Here are some useful tools. Good flat faced tweezers, a 3rd hand (very handy) and the other one is a pin vice. It has a drill type "chuck end", a collet that can hold abt anything
from 1/16" down to a drill thats the size of a hair. I have a cheap head band magnifier that helps a bunch too.


Hope these pics help explain the begining.

[Sun Vaporer]

Vaporer--A ture masterpiece that will make its way to the Library!! Many have tried and a few have said they have done it, but nobody has actually showed a step by step. And you are correct, now we need specific model type directions.


This thread is one for the ages and a work in progress.

Our hats should go off to Vaporer for all of his contributions here.


Thanks,


Sun

[rbonie]

Picture time!
After reading crazyhorses's post, I decided to try soldering the nichrome to the new leads 1st. That's a winner when you need new leads.

Here is what the "loop & hook" look like. Almost squeezed closed. I finished closing after the pic.


Flux paste added to the joint.


Soldered! Notice how the solder is "flowed" to the nichrome wire. Many times it will curl to it and thats will be a bad joint. Usually not enough heat or flux.

Here is the coil wrapped on a 1mm carbon fiber rod. It was handy. Sewing needles work just as well.


Thread is ready to pull the wick in. The thread doesn't need to be doubled. I forgot to pull the loose end on through before I shot the pic. 1 loop is fine.


Wicks in and trimmed on one side. Close fit on a 510 so I trimmed the loop pulled thru off.
Now is a good time to even up your coils if they distorted some. Gently.


Its in and ready to slide the tube back on. I left the one end untrimmed(right). It was very tight going through and some space is needed for the capilarry action. If it runs to dry or feeds slow, I can pop the tube off and slide it out of the coil. If you look to the left on the wick, thats the long strand tucked under the mesh. Keeps the wick wet when ever the cup resupplies itself.


Here are some useful tools. Good flat faced tweezers, a 3rd hand (very handy) and the other one is a pin vice. It has a drill type "chuck end", a collet that can hold abt anything
from 1/16" down to a drill thats the size of a hair. I have a cheap head band magnifier that helps a bunch too.


Hope these pics help explain the begining.

GREAT PICS!!!! Thanks what did you use , a microscope????

[TWalker]

Sticky thread for sure. Hands down the best atomizer tutorial yet.

[Vaporer]

Thanks everyone, I'm really trying to show how it is done in a way people at all skill levels understand. If you have a question, please ask and I'll address it. When you have worked building and designing micro rc models and modding its circuitry for 25+ yrs, it's easy to miss things that I "just do".
I needed a camera long before PV's that would get a closeup of an electronic part on a circuit board to show people and the part might be the size of 1 grain of coarse pepper.
I found a Fuji that had a super macro feature. Woot. It does pretty well. When shooting that close the "depth of field" is shallow so one place is in focus and something 1/4" closer or farther away is blurry. So, you take 10-30 pics to get the one you really want in focus. Just glad its digital!

I'll post the "needle" method this evening. It is easier for some and works well. You can easily make 2 coils at the same time too!

[HawgPhixer]

Excellent instructions Might be trying this soon, thanks.