New Member Needs Help Narrowing Down Choices

[jeffazi]

Hey everyone! This is my first post. This looks like a really cool forum.

I've been smoking analogs off and on for years. I've started and stopped dozens of times. I even quit for 5 years. I'm off them right now and I tried an e-cig recently and really liked it. I want to buy my first and I've been reading and studying on this forum off and on for a couple days to try to narrow down my choices. I smoke about a half pack a day of Marlboro lights. I like the throat hit feeling as much as anything. I know vapor makes it look like you're smoking but I'm not as concerned with that as with getting close to the taste and feel of real cigarettes.

I want something with a longer battery life so I'm seriously considering an EGO but I'm having trouble understanding some of the choices. There's the eGO, eGO-T with the latter coming with different tank types (Type A and B). I've also looked at the Tornado and the Joye 510 and 510-T.

I guess the first question is what are the benefits/differences between the tank and non-tank types and what are the differences in the tank types?

Also, how do you know which supplier to order from. There are dozens of them and I'm really at a loss as to which one to order from. Does anyone have a recommendation or two about who has the best service and prices?

I guess the most important issues for me are:

1. getting as close possible to the feel and taste of real cigs
2. battery life (don't want to be changing batteries all day)
3. cost of supplies (atomizers, juice, batteries, etc.) - I don't want to get something that will cost a fortune to get supplies for).
4. ability to upgrade without having to buy an entirely new device (although I see that this is quite common for many of you)

If I go with an eGO or eGO-T, am I locked into using their batteries and atomizers or are they fairly universal like other 510s?

If I'm asking the wrong questions, feel free to tell me that too. Sorry this is a little disjointed but it's all really new. Thanks in advance for your patience. It's good to be here.

Jeff

 

[Michael Curry]

Hi Jeff, welcome!

I'll hit a couple of the questions here.

eGo A & B refers to the shape top part - the atomizer. On a Type A it's tapered a bit, on a B i'ts the same diameter as the battery all the way up.

I like tanks personally - but others have had issues with them leaking etc. Mine and my wife's have been good tho. I guess that's a YMMV thing.

Buying a kit, I would say go with eGo-T because that will give you the tank option, as well as get you the batteries that can be turned off for pocket safety. Last I knew, the eGo-T was the only one that had that.

As for interchangeability, you're right - anything 510 will fit the eGo. Right now I am using an eGo-T battery, but I have a CE2 cartomizer screwed on the top of it. Once you start swapping stuff around, it gets to be a real grey area as to what model it is. If the battery defines it, then I am using an eGo-T. Hope that doesn't muddy the water any....

Basic rule on battery life is the smaller and more cigarette like the battery, the quicker it will need recharging. It's a technical limitation of batteries. A 510 battery is a bit fatter than a cigarette, an eGo battery is about the diameter of a sharpie. There are longer and shorter ones - the longer the battery the longer the life.

Basically, if you were to go with an eGo-T you would probably get 650 mAh batteries - good for a day of vaping if you aren't making like a freight train. With that, grab a pack of cartomizers so you can try those, some prefer them over tanks, again, YMMV. Oh, and the 510 is pretty small compared to the eGo battery - they make a cone thing that is just cosmetic, but it is a nice thing to have - they're cheap, under 5 bucks I think. It screws on and kind of smooths the look of the lines going from the battery to the cartomizer.

 

[tat2d4life]

Welcome to ECF hopefully this is the last time you quit smoking..

well the ego is a good choice if you want battery life... the difference in type a and type b tanks is tanks size.. I hear type b is less troublesome.. non tanks are cartomizers, which is a tube with poly fibers that hold the e juice , and atomizers which can be used to drip or have plastic cartridges that slowly drip juice on the atty

I like mad vapes and avid vapor for my equipment .. both are fast shipping, and mad vapes has great price... as for juice places like freedom smoke usa have 3ml samples which is nice to try flavors

you will never really get the taste and feel of real cigs... even if you did, a little down the road you will probably not even care for the look feel and taste like ciggs

battery life of an ego is really good... mine last atleast 12 hr of moderate vaping

510 is pretty much the standard... 510 attys and cartos work with any 510 devicewith the exception of lower reistance on the smaller batteries..also most ego/ego clones are 510 connection

 

[5cardstud]

Let me welcome you to ECF and you got the first part licked if you like it already. I went through all the ecigs and finally ended up with a Buzz Pro with variable voltage. I get around 16 Hrs. vaping time on a set of batteries but your choice of an Ego is a good choice. Just make sure you order it from one of the ECF accepted Suppliers and you won't have any problems. There is a list if you click on the forum suppliers button at the top of the page and good luck with vaping.

 

[zerominusone]

There ain't nothing that's gonna taste like a cigarette except a cigarette. I gave up on tobacco flavors after the first three I tried all tasted like different variations of .... Pipe tobacco flavors, in my opinion, tastes pretty close; alot of people like Boba's Bounty or Gorilla Juice but I've never tried 'em.
As far as the eGo thing goes, if your wanting the cigarette look, you ain't getting it with an eGo. Go with the KR808D-1. That's what I use. I used to smoke about 2 packs of Winston every day and my 808 battery last me all day. If you want the eGo tank, just know that "TANKS LEAK PERIOD".

 

[speedemon]

I have been thew much stuff bought sold and on and on like 5card stud if you can aford it get a nice VV mod my choice is provari, buzz pro is another good one then you only need to change out batteries you will have the option to make most all cartos and or attys work with the vv mods.Don't feel like a cig in your hand but the most important feature is you will be able to get the intake your wanting per volt adjustmant.

 

[sln88]

I am a newb, so don't take my advice..... but, after alot of reading I decided on the Volt

including shipping I paid $43 for a starter kit

but, as far as saving money, where ever you decide to order from, do a google search for coupon codes. I found one for almost every place I considered ordering from. The coupon list on ecf does not seem very up to date

also- check the classified section here. right after I ordered mine, I saw a Volt set up with more batteries and accessories and juice for about $7 more than I paid. anyhow, you might find a deal on there

good luck deciding. it was hard- I read and read. looked at 50 websites. it is supposed to be here Wed, so I am excited


if you think you might like the Volt, check out steeljan reviews of it on you tube. she seemed pretty knowledgeable about them

Smokeless Image Volt Review - The Chainsaw Test? - YouTube

 

[Xaiver]

I'll take a stab at this one. First of all, welcome to the forums, you've found a great group of people that are very helpful, and very passionate about this for the most part. A side effect of that is that there tends to be that...since there is a lot of gray area with the e-cigs, there are a lot of people on both sides of the aisles here. You'll find people praising this product, and downing that one, and then people doing the opposite. Although they seem to get along most of the time.

Onward, to the meat of my text! (I wonder if I could say Bacon instead of meat...because we all know that bacon is the best)

The eGo(-T) is going to probably be the best 'bang for your buck' as far as starter kits go. Be aware that they are a bit more pricey than -generic kit-, but, at the end of the day, you get what you pay for. The batteries have excellent life, standard kit comes with two of them. I went ahead and bought an extra about a week after I got my first kit, a slightly larger one. Typically, when I leave my apartment, I have 1 device in my pocket/hand, and a battery, atomizer, and extra liquids/tanks in a passport harddrive case that I bought to keep in my car when out and about.

Connection numbers! 510. Don't argue, just do it. The 510 seems to be the most popular, female battery, male cartomizer/atomizer. You'll find them all over the place, if you happen to find a 901 atty/carto/battery that you want to use with your gear once you get it, don't sweat it. There's quite a few vendors that carry adapters, they don't improve the look of the device, with a little silver thing in the middle, but they're really for functionality. Adapters are cheap as well, 2-3 usd apiece, which beats buying a whole new kit.

eGo vs eGo-T. I honestly recommend the eGo-T to starters every chance I get. They're very simple to use, they are easy to refill and one tank can last quite a while...as well as being able to tip the device over and think "Oh...It's almost empty, I should refill it." The eGo(no T) has an atomizer and cartridge. The atomizer goes on the battery, and has a heating coil on top. Then you put the cartridge onto that, which is filled with a filler material that holds the liquid and wicks it down to the coil as it burns off. I don't have any experience with the standard eGo, so I'm sorry if I make any mistakes here, trying to hit the key points. The Tank system has an atomizer that's recessed down into the center, inside of a wide guage needle, about the size of a ball-point pen. The tank gets pushed down onto the needle and it punctures the bottom and wicks it in that way. The tanks I bought were clear, so you can see how much liquid is inside of them, they hold about 1ml, which, I believe is quite a bit more than the standard eGo. Their batteries are essentially the same, the eGo-T battery has a 5-press lock feature that the older model does not.
The type A and B tanks have 2 major differences. The type A has a tapered top end, the B does not. The type A holds about 1ml of liquid, and the B holds a decent amount more, 1.5-2ml I believe.

Flavor: That's such a hard topic to discuss. Even the scents that come from them. I can be vaping root beer and my girlfriend will look over and say "That smells like fruit." (Root Beer and Spearmint are my current favorites) As far as 'close to tobacco' goes, there's a magical number that a lot of people seem to really like, that has a bit of tobacco-flavor in it. RY4. See, the problem is that the flavor from an analog is from combustion, and since we're not burning anything, they tend to have a watery, or tea-like taste. Tobacco tea isn't that great... But when you mix in some vanilla or caramel, well now you've got something.

Hopefully my wall of text helped, best of luck!
-X

 

[Xaiver]

Aw, I missed a part.

There's a handy-dandy little section in the forums, on the main forum page, way down toward the bottom (Actually, it's the bottom half) that has forums for each of the vendors. There's also a "Forum Suppliers" button on the top of this page that you can click and it lists all the vendors that are supported here.

My advice to you is to go to the vendor list here, flip through them and see which ones have what you want. A few key things to look for: Starter Kit prices, where they are located (In the same country as you, which I see is the good ole US of A), if they have a decent selection of liquids, and generally if the page feels professional. I wouldn't order something from a website that my 9 year old nephew could whip up on notepad, so I don't recommend you do either.

Once you've found a few that look good, go to their forum here on the ECF and take a glance through it. I don't imagine that many of our vendors have a ton of complaints, or they probably wouldn't be here, but it's always good to check it out.

I got my eGo-T starter kit from AltSmoke, one of my atomizers was DOA and I sent in a ticket, they had another one in the mail for me the next day. Happened again when I ordered a kit for my father in-law, he got a bad atty, sent a ticket, and right in the mail.

Most of my liquids that I've found that I really like are from Madvapes, though. They also have a pretty good selection of just about everything.

Okay, I'm done now, for real.

-X

 

[Vagablonde]

Hello Jeff welcome

I guess the most important issues for me are:

1. getting as close possible to the feel and taste of real cigs
2. battery life (don't want to be changing batteries all day)
3. cost of supplies (atomizers, juice, batteries, etc.) - I don't want to get something that will cost a fortune to get supplies for).
4. ability to upgrade without having to buy an entirely new device (although I see that this is quite common for many of you)

If I go with an eGO or eGO-T, am I locked into using their batteries and atomizers or are they fairly universal like other 510s?

First thing I would mention..if you are wanting the taste of real cigs...its not in ejuice
second...if its really important to have an analog sized ecig...you will be forever attached to a charger or have 600 batteries
and will be constantly filling them dripping them.
joye 510 Atomizers can be used with an ego
which i would suggest you start with and save yourself the hassles of the smaller 510 type models if you dont want to be forever charging batteries.
I think supplier is preference ..my freedom smokes has good prices..I cannot say about thier mixed ejuice as i never purchased them but they
have a good line of unflavored DIY products.
hope that helps

 

[wizard10000]

Welcome, Jeff -

Everybody's answered your questions but since I love the sound of my own voice I thought I'd chime in too

I own an eGO-T system and while there's nothing wrong with it I've had a hard time developing any affection at all for tanks - but that's just me. IM frequently less than HO the kit below hits harder and is easier to maintain -

MadVapes 510 Ego Mega Dual Coil Cartomizer Kit

One down side is that thick juices apparently don't make it happy but this is one of those kits where one fill and one battery will last you at least most of the day. Replacement cartos cost $2.49 and I've used the same one for better than two weeks now and it's still going strong, but then I don't vape thick, sugary juices.

The kit above doesn't come with a wall charger but I have one and don't use it - I just charge the things off my netbook. Figure $50 for the kit and $11 for enough juice to last you a couple weeks - if you use one cartomizer and half a bottle of juice a week your vaping costs should be somewhere around $10 a week once you get started.

On the juice itself as mentioned earlier you're not gonna find one that tastes like an analog - and your eventual go-to vape will be different from mine, but these two definitely don't suck and will keep you going long enough to find the one that works for you -

I like this one -

3&5, 24mg, 50ml

and the spousal unit prefers this one - I like it well enough that I just buy a bunch of this -

Dekang Tobacco (DK-TAB) 24mg

and like I said, your choice of juice will be different from mine. You might save yourself a bit of work filling cartomizers and get a 10ml bottle, a 3ml syringe and a 1.5" 18 gauge needle from madvapes while you're in there but they're really not necessary - but for $2.50 give or take they're nice to have. Linkage here -

Empty 10ml Bottle with Childproof cap

3 ML LUER LOCK SYRINGE

Luer Lock Needle 18 gauge 1.5"

I keep my juice in the 10ml bottle and use the syringe to fill the carto. Easy.

Again, welcome

 

[wizard10000]

deleted - double post

 

[juxt4p0z]

Welcome, Jeff -

Everybody's answered your questions but since I love the sound of my own voice I thought I'd chime in too

You love it so much you say it twice eh

For more cig like taste try some of the darker flavors like RY4, B O B's OMG, Boba's bounty, etc. They're not exactly like cigs (better) but easier to get into that fruity/sweet. That being said, I love me some fruity and you prolly will too after vaping a while.

 

[wizard10000]

You love it so much you say it twice eh

Wonder how the hell that happened? Must be a vBulletin feature

 

[jeffazi]

Thanks so much to everyone for the warm welcome and the great advice and knowledge. Some of you suggested models that I hadn't considered so I have a bit more work to do before deciding. Whatever I decide to do, I'll let you all know. Thanks again!

Jeff

 

[jimbalny]

Pretty much any supplier in the suppliers section of this forum are trustworthy. The ones I use are for eGo pv's the cheapest is liberty-flights, for selection and modding madvapes, for eliquid backwoods brew or freedom smoke usa.

 

[BlueMoods]

1. Close to a real cig is not the way to get long battery life or top performance. Beyond that I would recommend a 510 model - anything with 510 connections as those parts are widely available and will work on many different models and mods.

As for taste, you won't get the taste of smoking an analog, you will get close to something that tastes like an fresh pack of analogs smells. With e-cigs you are not burning anything so, you loose the smoke flavor. As fro which juice, that is a matter of personal taste, trial and error is the best way to find what suits you and, you may find that non tobacco flavors, though nothing like an analog, are good, satisfying and, enjoyable.

 

[jeffazi]

Thanks sln88. I have one question about the Volt. Can the cartomizers be refilled or are they disposable?

 

[Mezzum]

My suggestion: 1. Battery - Ego-T USB Passthrough Battery, 1000 mAh, price about 26 bucks
2. Any Cartomizers - I say this for 2 reasons, simple to use, easy to find.
3. Stay with 510 connections at first, easy to find other items
4. Pick a liquid flavor you really might like, my hook was DFW Vapors, Atomic Fireball, I use it still today, takes
just like the candy, so easy to use.

Keep in mind... decide your going to quit, or don't even start VAPING. If your not ready, nothing you do will help you quit. When your ready, the first 15 days are the hardest, after that... you will start to see light at the end of the tunnel.

That was my experience. Some Shops I use: Cignot your Midwest Electronic Cigarette store. DFWvapor.com, The Best US E-Liquid Made! Elixir Liquid

Hope this helps...

 

[wv2win]

Too bad no one suggested the one that is a cousin (in size and performance) to the eGo/Riva but also takes into consideration your idea about being cost effective. It works as well or better than the eGo but instead of paying $20 for batteries, the batteries only cost $4. Plus the batteries are non-proprietary, meaning you can buy them many places and they last 5 times longer than the eGo batteries.

The E-Power:

e-Power

Electronic Cigarette - Starter Kits - E-Power