The Vaper's Handbook

Answer 5 (continued): You must also note that Capella's requires sweetening. Their flavors are concentrated but have no sweetener in them so you will need some of that if you use their juices. You will also need an ejuice calulator unless you are a mathematical genius. Here is a link to what I consider to be the best calculator around because it has its own recipes, you can save your own recipes, it allows you to set a default mix, and best of all, it's free! Scroll down and hit the blue "download now" link.
eJuice Me Up - Best eJuice Calculator

It's also important to discuss the base of your nicotine solution. By fooling around with your juice calculator and putting in your preferred ratio you will quickly notice that if you go with a 100% PG nic base then obviously it will be impossible to get 100% VG, and vice versa. You will also notice that if you want a ratio that is higher in one chemical than another that using the opposite chemical as a base will become impossible as well, at least in small batches. So, if your ratio is leaning one way or the other it's safe to say that whichever chemical it favors should be your base. If it's in the middle then 50/50 is for you.

Also, this flavor guide to DIY can be helpful sometimes as a reference:
http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/diy-e-liquid/74109-guide-diy-flavoring.html

Q6: What resistance do I use at what voltage?
A6: This is a very frequently asked question. It's no wonder either because understanding Ohm's Law is not as straightforward and simple as it appears. What you need is an easy button. Click the image to be redirected to imageshack. Once there click the image again to enlarge it so you can read the fine details.



I recommend starting at the highest you can (about 8 watts) and working your way down from there until you are satisfied. Your sweet spot will likely be in the 4-8 watt range, as this chart reflects, so starting high and going lower will show you what too much is versus "just right". When you hit that point, you've hit the sweet spot. The flavor properties of each juice, and each PG/VG Ratio will be different. Some juices vape better high, others - low.

A quick note: Raising or lowering the voltage while remaining in the sweet spot range or resistance to voltage (balance ratio - which is usually 4-8 watts) you will only increase or decrease the heat of your vapor. That is to say, a 3.6v (standard, not twist) EGO battery at 1.7ohms will give you the same amount of vapor as an EGO Twist at 4.8v with a 3.0ohm atomizer on there, but the heat of the vapor will be greater with the Twist setup than the standard EGO setup. If you have a twist and a Vivi Nova Mini setup you may want to just use the three heads that come with Vivi Nova Mini as a good starting place and just match your voltage to the ohms using the chart above (as closely as possible). Having a 1.7ohm, 2.4ohm and a 3.0ohm would be about the ideal numbers to strive for once you start rebuilding them. This would allow you to vape through the entire voltage spectrum that the EGO Twist has to offer. Like I said before each juice will react differently to various voltages so having the entire spectrum is something you may find very useful. If you like the flavor of a juice but hate how it vapes, try it at a different voltage. Sometimes higher voltage will bring out more vapor and flavor while lower voltage might prevent a burnt taste. Experiment! Once you learn what wattage is for you or what wattage works best with your favorite ejuices you will quickly learn what voltage to use with which resistance without having need of this chart any more. Still. it's a good reference for anyone.

Q7: Is nicotine safe to use all day every day? Is vaping safe?
A7: The answer is very complicated. The consensus is that no one knows 100% for sure. Limited tests have been done on NRT (Nicotine Replacement Therapy) and most of it revolves around Snus (smokeless tobacco), Nicotine Patches, Nicotine Gum, and Nicotine Inhalers, and very little has been done on the ecigarette itself. Scientists can't even agree on what the absorption rate is of the nicotine you vape. Some say 10%, others 40%. What I can tell you with confidence is three things:

1: It's MUCH safer than smoking which has 4000+ chemicals (43 of which are known carcinogens).

2: Nicotine levels were found to be very similar in the blood tests among smokers and vapers.

3: Nothing is better than being free of all addictions. A nonsmoker/nonvaper is the healthiest you can be.

One should eventually endeavor to wean themselves off of nicotine by decreasing their e-juice to 0mg of nicotine, and quit when the physical dependence no longer exists. At that point only the mental addiction remains, and it is not to be taken lightly, but I recommend meditation and mind-over-matter to make the final step to being free of your former life.

Q8: PG or VG?
A8: PG (propylene glycol) is for flavor and is thin almost like ink, VG (vegetable glycerine) is for vapor and it's very thick like syrup. The combination of both allows you to get the most out of your vapor. Does that mean you should get 50/50 PG/VG mix ejuice? Not really, no. The most commonly used, and most versatile mix of the two substances, is 70/30 PG/VG. Why? Because it's thin enough to wick into any material you might be vaping out of while still giving the most flavor out of the bargain. Thicker juices like 60/40 PG/VG, 50/50 PG/VG, 40/60 PG/VG, and so on, are so thick that most devices won't wick with them and you will get dry hits that you will not appreciate very much. Also the thicker your juice the longer it will have to steep in order to taste good. At 70/30 PG/VG there is no need to steep as far as I can tell.

Q9: Is PG dangerous?
A9: It can be to some people. There is a very real chance that people can be allergic to it. The fact is, it is found in MANY of the products you use daily, from mouthwash, toothpaste, shampoo, conditioner, inhalers, and even personal lubricants. It has been used in the movie and theater industries in their fog machines for many decades and is considered by the FDA as GRAS (Generally Recognized As Safe). It's also found in food products. Some people point out that its flashpoint is lower than VG and that it produces the biocide Acrolein. The safe oral consumption rate is 7.5 mg per kilogram (2.2 lbs) of body weight per day, according to the WHO (World Health Organization). That is many times more than you even vape in ml of juice a day. So is it a threat? Not really, that is, if you're not allergic to vaping it. Despite all this data it can irritate your membranes and cause sinus issues that you may or may not find troublesome. Comparing this to actual tobacco smoking it is nowhere near as troubling. The alternative is 100% VG juice which has difficulty administering flavoring and requires thinning with pure grain alcohol or distilled water. Buying it commercially is problematic because they don't thin it down for you and if you thin it yourself then you will be dealing with a lesser nicotine and flavor content. The only way I can personally recommend 100% vg juice is if you order more nicotine and flavoring than you need, or if you DIY the juice to control the levels of such things. For the record most people who thin 100% VG juice do so around ~7-10% thinning agents (distilled, or reverse osmosis water, or pure grain alcohol) from what I have seen.

Q10: What nicotine strength should I use?
A10: It depends on your smoking habit. If you smoked a pack a day or more I recommend starting out at 24mg strength, and getting the step below it, 18mg. Why? Having both will teach you the difference and you can use the 18mg to cruise control on while using the 24mg to stop the cravings for analog cigarettes.

If you smoked a half a pack to a full pack a day then I recommend 18mg with a 12mg as your cruise control all day vape.

If you smoked less than half a pack a day I recommend 12mg with a 8mg cruise control all day vape.

If you were a social smoker, who only smoked while drinking for example, then I recommend 8mg and 4mg to 0mg nicotine strength as your cruise control all day vape.

I can't really recommend levels above 24mg. Once the nicotine levels get that high they really affect the throat hit and will become un-vapeable (not to mention possibly toxic to you). Nicotine levels above 24mg are intended to be diluted with distilled water or Pure Grain Alcoholl. If you're that bad off that you'd consider going that high I'd recommend you try the detox method recommended below in Q28 before you try something as dangerous and foolish as e-juice nicotine strength above 24mg.

Q11: How do I clean and reuse my cartomizers right away?
A11: I recommend BOGE cartomizers for this because they never seem to die. With the latest advancement in the Bogegate scandal I would do your homework (which I explain Bogegate later on in this blog). Lastly this process is designed for normal sized cartos, not the huge megas or the really long ones. It may still work for you but at a diminished capacity. YMMV.

Before we begin you'll need to get yourself a flavor injector (I got mine from Walmart for $5). It looks like this:



First you boil the cartos for 15 minutes in a pan you don't care so much about. Please note that you are essentially boiling nicotine laced water so do use an exhaust fan and keep everyone far away from this while you do it. Take a carto and put it in the flavor injector syringe battery side down (pull the plunger out first!). Now take a bowl or pan of the hottest tap water you can get and run the water in and out at least 20 times. It will come out snow white again unless you use really dark juice (which I can't recommend for cartos because it tends to kill them twice as fast and they don't clean well). Blow it out through both ends and then stick it on a baking sheet with a sheet of foil to protect it. I like to bend the foil every so often and create little slots to hold my cartos. Now bake them in a preheated oven at 250 degrees fahrenheit (water boils at ~212 degrees). Let them cook for 15 mins, take them out to cool for 5, then back in for another 10-15. It's a lot of work, not going to lie, but they come out brand newish. They start to look crappy on the outside after a couple months of this but I have Boges that are going strong after 7+ months. I lost a couple, I'm pretty sure it was to bad juice or bad quality control on their end, but 80% of them are still alive and kicking.

Also as another maintenance you will need to look through the center pipe of the carto. If you can see the light 100% then, awesome, you probably don't need to mess with it. If you can't you need to take a paperclip that is bent as straight as possible and GENTLY work it through the center pipe. Spin it, work it in any way possible without forcing it.

Once you get it all the way through you are golden. Once it's through I like to kind of ream it out by holding it against the wall of the center pipe and work it in a circle. You will likely have to repeat this process many times over the life of a carto. You will notice a drastic improvement in airflow and flavor when you do this properly. For the record I have yet to ruin a carto by doing this. Just don't force it through if it gets stuck in the middle. I have yet to take a Boge apart, but I have seen the guts in a video. Unfortunately I haven't seen them taken apart step by step, so as far as how the exact details of how they operate it is a mystery to me. As such I have no idea why this happens and how to prevent it. I will take a Boge apart in the future and post pictures.

Ok, so why should I use a flavor injector? They're awkward - I don't get it. Answer: Because I have found nothing else that generates that kind of pressure. I originally got this idea from a guy who used a turkey baster so I bought one and it was total fail. The same concept could be used if you can get yourself a setup where you have some kind of flavor injector or oral syringe that runs out with aquarium tubing to fit the carto, which you attach to the end and then another tube that runs off the other end of the carto, into a bowl of hot water. This too would generate decent pressure. They sell kits like this for like 20 bucks but I think with a little DIY ingenuity you can make your own for less than a few bucks (aquarium tubing is cheap at the pet store - usually far less than a dollar a foot and you don't need much).
You can do this method with an oral syringe (2 bucks from walmart) but the plungers are weaker and they tend to snap off, and the small amount of water you are using will require twice as long since each time you do it you'll be pushing less water through than a flavor injector. You may also find other uses for it considering mine holds 30ml of juice and has a particularly nasty needle that you can find all sorts of uses for from filling to cleaning, to even flavor injecting as it was intended, just wash it twice before you use it for food related purposes since nicotine is very toxic.

Q12: I don't want to DIY yet. Where do I get some cheap juice that's actually decent?
A12: One place I can recommend is Dark City Vapor. They have some of the most inexpensive juice I have seen on the market at $2.50/5ml bottle and the flavors I got were very good. All of their juice is hand-made in America. I even reviewed them on the DCV site. I can vouch for Bill's skill as a DIY guru. He knows his stuff even better than I do - he's a master.

Using the coupon code "ECFDCV" will get you 5% off the cost of your order. All of the juice at DCV is made to order so when you get it, it will be quite fresh. I don't think you need to steep it unless you get above the ideal ratio of 70/30 PG/VG blend (which above that the wicking of the juice will be unsuitable for most cartomizers, and CE clearomizers like the Stardust or Vivi Nova without thinning it, and I don't recommend that one thin commercial juice because it will ruin your flavor and nicotine strength). If you want something a little out of the ordinary I can pretty much guarantee you that if you get on the site's Instant Chat and talk to the owner, Bill (ECF username: BCordell70), he'll do whatever you want (such as even thinning 100% VG for you without screwing it up). If you can't get a hold of him there is a box in the order menu that allows you to add notes, and you can say what you want there.

As a side note: if you buy a 5 pack of cartomizers they come with a free 5ml bottle of juice, any kind you like.

Vapor4Life also has some tasty juice. It doesn't say on the site but the ratio of PG to VG is 75/25 (ish) according to the owner. I like their DJ Black and I reviewed it later on at the bottom of this page.

Many people also enjoy Backwoods Brew, so that's worth checking out as well.

Now if your aim is pure frugality then here is a chart from PBusardo (below) that lists a lot of manufacturers and their price for a 30ml bottle of juice as well as the shipping costs. It's not the most intuitive chart ever made but you may find it helpful. According to it, ECBlend E-Liquids - Something Better has the cheapest juice available @ $8.99 for 30ml. PBusardo liked most of their juices but advises against "Peanut Butter Cookie" and "Fruit Punch" because they have a "chemical overtone" that he found most unappetizing. Other reviewers on youtube all came to a similar conclusion that they like the juice although a common theme was that the vapor production was very high, while the throat hit was unsatisfying to some. It's a good place to start in your search for what flavor ejuice you like. I have yet to try it, since DIY is my thing, but if I did have an urge to buy commercial E-Juice I'd take my own advice and go with ECBlend. The bottles look somewhat empty when you get them but they have been tested and do in fact hold 5ml. They use 8ml bottles, supposedly to leave room for shaking the juice up. Also I should point out that they have a juice wizard that allows you full customization of their juice which is pretty unique in this market.

PBusardo's Chart-O-Juice Prices

Q13: Ok, I got a (full size) Vision Vivi Nova but I hate how it looks on my eGo battery, what do I do to make it look better; more streamlined?
A13: Well they came out with a Vivi Nova Mini for starters that is a little bit easier to lug around. You can get some of these for around $6-10 ($6 is for 1 atomizer head, $10 is for 3).

To streamline the look of a clearomizer, that doesn't use the ego cone threads, what you need is an adapter called the EGO Tank Collar adapter or sometimes also a Ego Thread Sleeve (standardization in the industry would be nice at this point don't you think?). Because the Vivi Nova doesn't use the outermost threads (the Cone Threads) they just stick out and look crappy and the whole line of your PV is concave in the middle. You can get an adapter here for just a couple/few bucks: DCT 3.5ml eGo Battery Collar [DCT Collar 3.5ml] - $3.50 | Best Electric Cigarette | Electronic Cigarette
OR you can just google "EGO TANK COLLAR" and pick your poison. They do come in stainless steel and matte black so far as I have seen, but you may get lucky and find different colors. Here's some more options:
eGo Thread Sleeve Type D Small Tank - Fits All Std eGos CHROME [gv-egoTYPED-SmallTankeGoThreadSl] - $2.95 : GotVapes.com, E-cigarette Supplies - Atomizers Cartomizers Mods Juice and more

eGo Thread Sleeve Type B - Fits All Std eGos CHROME [gv-egoTypeBTHREADSLEEVE-CHROME] - $2.45 : GotVapes.com, E-cigarette Supplies - Atomizers Cartomizers Mods Juice and more

Q14: What is a drip shield?
A14: I could explain but in the interest of time, I will let GrimmGreen do the work, since seeing is believing:

Q15: How do I drip?
A15: First you will need a 510 atomizer for the EGO type batteries (or whatever connection you may have on your PV). Please refer to the link above to the chart on resistance vs voltage (above, in the answer #6: A6) before you go vaping so you get the right voltage/resistance ratio required. You REALLY don't want to overheat an atomizer that goes straight into your lungs. You will need a drip tip for the atomizer, and don't go cheap here. Metal, especially steel ones, absorb the heat and allow you to vape them more consistently without heating up the drip tip as much, like plastic/silicone ones tend to do. Poorly fitting drip tips will cause leakage and you don't want that either, it's messy. You may also want a drip shield, depending on which atomizer you choose. Once you have the goods you just take any juice that you have and put a few drips in THROUGH the drip tip (that's why they call them that) and vape as normal. Every few hits, add a couple more drips. Do NOT let it dry out or you will get a hit straight from the underworld that you will not appreciate. You don't want to flood your atomizer either - go easy on it. Don't clean your atomizers to change flavor, just blow them out every night. Washing them is unnecessary. Blowing them out every night will increase their life dramatically. If you drip it is pretty much required that you always keep a vaper towel (paper towel ) on you at all times, or some kind of cloth to clean it (i.e. a handkerchief). I should also mention that the 306 LR (low resistance) atomizers do fit the 510 connection. I don't know why they chose a number for their name, but they did and it may lead to confusion. Also some people choose to do what is called "debridge" their atomizers. If you look at one you'll see a metal bracket that shields the coil itself and is usually covered in a steel wool like material. It's possible to remove this so that all the drips go straight down onto the coil and many drippers prefer their atomizers this way. There's tons of videos on YouTube on how to do this so I will just give you a shortcut and you can pick your own videos.

how to debridge an atomizer - YouTube

Q16: Is vaping okay to do in public?
A16: The common consensus is that the only thing you release is water vapor (steam) when you exhale. Because no one knows the absorption rate of nicotine (they believe it's between 10-40%) the rest of it has to go somewhere. Some believe it is burnt up by the atomization process. I can't tell you. I wouldn't vape around children though for two reasons: what if they're wrong about the safety of the second hand vapor, and secondly, it's not even slightly cool to influence children into one day getting a bad habit like you. I do NOT recommend you vape around known asthmatics. The smell alone can trigger an attack. Yes, I do realize that their inhalers use propylene glycol, it's just the smell will get them sooner or later. So is it ok to do in public? It's up to you. If you need to stealth vape I like to go into the bathroom and vape it up in a stall. The way I figure it, it can only improve the smell. I frequently stealth vape while watching movies in the theater as well. All you do is get a couple of napkins or a wad of toilet paper and breathe your vaper out through that. It absorbs the vapor and no one is bothered. Just watch your battery button's light. You don't want to give away your position. No good ninja ever does that. In all other cases, such as bars or restaurants, ask someone who works there if it's ok. What about the mall? They usually have vaping kiosks there and if yours does too I say what's good for the goose is good for the gander, just watch out for Paul Blart: Mall Cop. Keep it out of stores though. I have vaped in a few stores anyway lol, in secret. If you're at work ask your boss. If he/she says NO, and you can't find a foolproof hidey spot, just do the bathroom trick and use toilet paper to blow it out. Always ask any friends or relatives if it's okay to vape in their house or car. Tell them it's water vapor but it will release an odor (unless you vape flavorless).

Q17: How do I get a cool quit banner in my signature?
A17: Quit banners are cool because they frequently remind you why you are here and what you have accomplished. The easiest way to get one is to just look at what everyone else has and, when you find one you like, click on it. It will take you to another webpage where you can input your information such as how many cigs a day you smoked, when you quit, how much a pack cost you, etc. Once you input the relevant information you can grab an embed the BB code and copy/paste it into your signature section of your profile settings. Note that you won't be able to post a signature with each reply until you have attained a post count of 15. Once you have the posts you will have to wait for the system refresh, which could take up to an hour. In the settings you can also put an avatar picture in as well. If you don't have one handy you can google for one or you can be silly and make a mangatar (Japanese manga looking avatar) for free at mangatar - the social manga. You have to sign up to save it though. Have fun!

Q18: Why can't I quit smoking? I'm vaping part of the time but I can't seem to get rid of analogs completely.
A18: In most cases I believe the reason for this is one of two things: your PV/atomizer setup or your juice strength. I have heard of many cases of people who WANTED to smoke desperately who also vaped and they all failed to keep smoking. For example, one guy had 10 cartons left in the fridge and was determined to smoke them. He failed. IIRC after a year he still had a couple packs left. It is for this reason that I believe that wanting to smoke doesn't seem to have an impact on the eventual success.

As for nicotine strength please refer to my previous answer for question 10 above. If you haven't tried my previous recommendations for what is the best setup at this time then I would start there as well. The other bit of advice I can give you is that you want to start a little higher than you'd think with nicotine concentration of your juice because you want to know that you're getting enough of what you need, enough to quit smoking altogether. I don't ever recommend that you get above 24mg nicotine (2.4%) even in extreme cases.

Those juices above 24mg are meant to be cut with other things like distilled water or Pure Grain Alcohol. Above that level the juice is so powerful in the throat hit that it will likely be unvapeable to most people anyway, if not toxic and a threat to your health.

Remember that 24mg when you need 32mg just means you'll have to vape more often to get to the level your body requires, it doesn't mean that 24mg will be useless.

I also recommend that when you first start vaping, and you get your setup in the mail, to charge it up as per the instructions that come with it and then begin vaping the next day. No smoking, only vaping. I think that the people who often have the most trouble quitting also started vaping after they had already smoked for the day. Not only can this add to your chances of failure, it can lead to nicotine poisoning (usually a headache, dizziness, or nausea that passes in a short time) if you overdo it. Should that ever happen to you (for whatever reason) the best treatment for mild overdose is to lay down and drink a glass of water. About 15-20 minutes later you should be good to go. It's not easy to overdose on vaping and it takes more effort than you are likely to put forth.

The way that nicotine is absorbed with smoking vs. vaping is different. Smoking causes the nicotine to pass the blood-brain barrier almost instantly, while nicotine that is vaped is medical grade and it takes several minutes to have effect. Know this when you start vaping. It's all about keeping your nicotine levels at the right concentration in your blood, it's not an instant fix like a cigarette. Lastly, if the above advice doesn't work for you PLEASE reach out to the community. They are your last line of defense between you and the cigarettes. Use them to your advantage. They are here to support YOU in your quest to quit.

Q19: Can you explain the difference between all the different atomizers/cartomizers/clearomizers, etc...?
A19: There are only a few different ways to vape. They all consist of an atomizer and some sort of delivery system to get the juice to the atomizer.

Atomizer/tank cartridge/cartridge: This combo of an atomizer that fits tank cartridges (just juice in a tank) or old-school regular cartridges (that use a filler material medium to hold the juice) is kind of outdated. It's just an atomizer on top of a reservoir of juice that feeds into the atomizer and you vape it. You can also pull off all the cartridges or tanks and use it as a dripping atomizer with a drip tip. The problem with tank systems is that they have a tendency to leak. You can buy replacements for these systems but, to my knowledge, they are only made by original equipment manufacturers of EGO PV's. You can get drip atomizers (designed for dripping) if you look around. Common examples are the 306 LR atomizer, and the Magma series (by volcano ecigs). Overall not a bad vape if you use a tank system, cartridges are terrible, and dripping is awesome if you do it right.

Cartomizer: This is a portmanteau of the words cartridge and atomizer. It's an atomizer that is wrapped with polyfill. You add liquid to it and it keeps the atomizer coil wet with juice when you vape it. Good brands are Boge, Smoketech, and Kanger. Sometimes they are paired with a tank system that uses punched holes in the side of the cartomizer to allow juice to feed into the polyfill and keep it wet. These are kind of like "poor man's tanks" and are not to be confused with Clearomizers. A common example of one of these is the MAP tank system (Most Angry Pirate industries). Cartomizers are what killed the original cartridge system. The nice part about them is they are cheap so it makes flavor swapping easy. They don't last long unless you learn how to clean them properly (I have boges that are almost 6 months old working great still) but their biggest drawback is that the polyfill alters the flavor of the juice. It's an OK vape.

Clearomizer: Usually the CE series of tanks that has either a ceramic or silica based wick wrapped in a coil of either nichrome or kanthal wire. The juice is contained in the tank and wicks up to the coil via (you guessed it) the wick which is non-flammable. These are probably your second best vape on the market. The Vision Vivi Nova and the EGO Vision Clearomizer (The Stardust is it's nickname) are both very good systems. The Clearomizer, in my eyes,
reigns supreme because of its low cost, and the fact that you can learn to rebuild them which not only makes you independent of the market (like if there's an ecig ban you can continue to vape as long as you know how to DIY your own juice as they can't/won't ever ban the chemicals to make ejuice).
When you rebuild them you can swap the wick material out for a (cheaper) cotton wick which improves flavor and wicking properties, but you have to be careful not to ever let the wick get dry since it is flammable.

Genesis: The genesis is a mod tank. Either you make one yourself (usually requires extreme ingenuity and a steel lathe (really expensive shop equipment) or both. I have seen some tanks made out of washers on ECF without a lathe) or you spend a LOT of money (well over $100) to buy one made for you. It's a tank that uses a wick made of stainless steel mesh which wicks the juice up into a coil of kanthal or nichrome wrapped around the stainless steel wick. You will see these referred to as SS. Stainless Steel. This is the most difficult level of vaping and it is often considered the ultimate in flavor. Advanced knowledge of how PVs (personal vaporizers), atomizers, and rebuilding them is required to use one of these systems effectively. Examples of this are either called the Genesis, Scubagen, Scubabat, or Zenesis (a series of genesis atomizer tanks made by Zen, a famous craftsman). Zenesis is considered to be the top of the market as they use a crushed quartz tank, surgical stainless steel parts, and superior stainless steel wicks. They sell for $150+ and have a waiting list of 6 months or more.

Q20: How do I rebuild/rewick my Stardusts and/or Vivi Novas?
A20: The best way to explain this particular task is just to show you. I can't take credit for this, but I can introduce you to a good friend of mine named RockinRobbieSF here on ECF. He is the master of rebuilding commercial clearomizers. Here is the video on how to rebuild/rewick a Stardust (Ego Vision Clearomizer (any version)): Gotvapes Stardust: Changing the Wick & Coil - YouTube

Here is how to rebuild a Vision Vivi Nova (any version):
or another video here: http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/rebuildable-atomizer-systems/324271-ralikars-easy-noob-proof-vivi-cotton-re-wicking-method-monkey-easy.html

Note that you will need wick (I recommend cotton) - he links the wick supplier in the video details. There has been some bit of controversy over the use of silica in wicks and how it can transfer microfragments that can mess up your airways. To be clear I will link a thread about this problem and also hook you up with way too much information about wicks so that you can delve as deep as you want to go. Just remember that the best and easiest answer is cotton or bamboo yarn for your wick.
http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/modding-forum/284030-wick-materials-safe-vs-dangerous.html

http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/modding-forum/322633-wick-materials-summary.html

Also you will need AWG Kanthal or Nichrome wire. Kanthal 32 AWG A-1 is the most common type used. AWG just stands for American Wire Gauge and is the standard used in America (as opposed to mm abroad). I will now quote Tomcatt (ECF Veteran) about the differences between Kanthal and Nichrome:

"At the temperatures we vape at, there should be no metallic vapors given off by these wires due to heat. It has been stated by a number of ECF members that Kanthal (A-1) gives a cleaner tasting vape than Nichrome and that Kanthal (A-1) is a stronger more robust wire than Nichrome. With either material, a thicker wire (smaller awg #) will, most likely, have a longer lifespan than a thinner wire."

(edit: I added a section about the different gauges of wire (both in AWG and in mm for our metric using friends) and their effects on resistance in Question 29 below)

Q21: My flavor dropped off on my Stardust (Vision Clearomizer) or Vivi Nova (or other) clearomizer. What can I do about it?
A21: Every few days or tankfuls of juice (whichever comes first depending on your habit) you will need to clean your clearomizers. As my friend Estarra puts it, "I think flavor drop has to do with the wicks filtering the juice so the flavor portion of the juice is vaped up first and you are left with flavorless (and sometimes very dark) liquid. If the wicks are gunky, the more flavor drop you experience". What this means is that you'll need to clean or rewick your atomizer (if you have the materials and knowledge to do so) or you're just going to bake your juice until it's garbage. If you have a non-flammable wick then cleaning it will allow you to get many uses out of your atomizer before it needs to be replaced. If you use cotton wicks (that you can only get by re-wicking your own atomizers) then the only cleaning option will be to wash it and dry the wicks since you can't dry burn them. I will describe this process of cleaning for all the clearomizer types available in these models.

Method 1 (for if you can take your clearomizer apart): If you have a clearomizer, such as the one's mentioned above, then there is a good chance you can take your clearomizer apart. Empty the remainder of the juice (I don't recommend you put it back in the bottle it came from either) and then take the take off the battery and take it apart. Wash everything with as hot of a water as your tap will deliver (don't burn yourself, use a temperature you can stand if your water heater's running hot). Now dry everything off (don't mess with the coil area) and put it back together but leave the top/tip off. Now put it back on your battery (make sure the battery connection is dry before you put it back on for optimum connectivity). Proceed to "dry burn" your clearomizer in 10 second bursts until the coil glows red inside. Let it glow for a few seconds (3-4) and then rest it. Some people like to blow on it to cool it off between bursts - that's your call (some are also superstitious and say not to do it WHILE your coil is glowing because the cooler air could cause it to break - again, your call). Once it has glowed for the first time go ahead and burn it red in few second bursts with a few seconds of rest in between about 5-6 times total. Note that your coil is NOT going to burn that non-flammable wicking material that comes standard on all commercial clearomizers. Silica or Ceramic wicks do not burn. Now, take the clearomizer off your battery (it helps it cool faster and heat is bad for your battery) and let it cool to room temperature. Then either replace the juice you took out and add some fresh or you can set that juice aside for a rainy day if it looks funky and just add some fresh juice altogether. Wait a few minutes after you fill it and then you are safe to vape again.

Method 2 (for if you CAN'T take your clearomizer apart): If you have a clearomizer that DOESN'T come apart then you will have to take hot tap water and fill it up with some water (leave a little air at the top) and then shake it with your finger over the hole like a thermometer. Repeat this process a few times or longer if you feel like it. Usually you can tell when to stop when the wicks are more or less white again. Next you will have to shake out the water as hard as you can. I find putting it on the battery helps because it extends your reach and allows you to get more water out. Keep a firm grip, no one likes a flying ecig. You can break your battery's solder points and ruin it, you could break something in your house worth way more than a cheap clearomizer, or you could crack the tank if you let it fly. Don't do that. Next you will dry burn it as described in Method 1 for the same period of time. Note that your coil is NOT going to burn that non-flammable wicking material that comes standard on all commercial clearomizers. Silica or Ceramic wicks do not burn. After that is done take the clearomizer off your battery and take a hairdryer and cover half the top hole and let it cook on high and dry the water out. Spin it every 5-10 seconds and keep looking at it and drying it until it's bone dry both in the tank and the wicks themselves. Don't worry about any silicone caps inside. Silicone is used in baking sheets that go up to 500 degrees no problem and your hairdryer can't do that. Now that it's dry let it cool off before you put juice in it, and then let it sit for a few minutes before you vape it so the juice wicks.

Method 3 (for if you have re-wicked your device with a cotton wick):
Note: DO NOT DRY BURN YOUR CLEAROMIZER IF YOU HAVE REPLACED THE WICK YOURSELF WITH A COTTON WICK. You will burn the wick and ruin it. The only thing you can do is to rewick it if you have cotton, there is no dry burning for you. You could wash it and dry it with a hairdryer if you want but that's as best as you are going to do. This will only solve the wick being dirty. If the coil's dirty, there is no help for you other than to replace it. This is the drawback of not using a non-flammable wick made of silica or ceramic.

Q22: Batteries 101: (Tell me about the batteries again, George!) Is my PV's battery going to explode like that guy in Florida's and blow off half my face?
A23: Ahh batteries. You can read up on the intricacy of the battery on Basic to Advanced Battery Information from Battery University but to save you a gigantic read I will just touch on some points here that matter most.

Your PV's battery is almost certainly a lithium ion battery. The best way to take care of a lithium ion battery of course is to follow the instructions that come with your PV. If your PV didn't come with instructions for some reason then the first thing you need to know is that you will need charge your batteries before you use them. If you do not do so (even though they come with a charge already) you could affect your battery's capacity in a negative way, at least temporarily. This isn't fully understood by science but just do it to be safe. Now, your manual may tell you to leave it on the charger for some time after it is indicating that the battery is fully charged. You can do it if you want but battery university says that you probably don't need to and that it may just be a holdover from old school nickel based rechargeable batteries. What's for sure is that this area of battery technology is not fully understood, period. The next thing you should know is that your lithium ion battery (L-Ion) has a safety circuit in it that does not allow it to be overcharged (above 4.2volts in most cases). This circuit can become damaged and that's when batteries can vent and either explode or have a runaway thermal reaction (see also: mount st. helens). This is VERY rare, like 1 in a million, but it can happen. So what do we do? Well the smart thing to do (even if it may be superstitious) is to get a battery charging bag. Here is a cheap one that'll do the trick: HobbyKing R/C Hobby Store : Lithium Polymer Charge Pack 18x22cm Sack and at least after you do your first charge if you decided to let it sit on the charger for the prescribed period of time NEVER let it sit on the battery charger unattended, or all night while you sleep. Most batteries take 2-4 hours to charge. Charge it in a common area of your home in the bag. If you want to go doubly safe on it, you can put the battery and the bag in a metal index card box, this way if it explodes it's not going to fly around like a bottle rocket burning everything in sight (it's happened right here on ECF before; trust me). Regardless of which safety method you use, if any, please remember to never let your batteries charge unattended and never leave them on the charger any longer than is humanly possible past the point in which they become fully charged. The recommend number of charged a battery can withstand is set to 300 times. After that the voltage will decrease as a natural part of battery aging and the battery should be replaced. Because of damage that can occur over time to the circuit within that is protecting you from a battery failing they don't recommend you go too far past that point just to err on the side of caution.

Now, remember that safety circuit I was talking about? It drains your battery's life over time. If you leave your battery uncharged for months it can get to a point (about 2.2 volts) where it will not allow the battery to recharge at all. Some people say you can surge them back to life. I say for the price don't even think about it. If you let a battery go for a REALLY REALLY long time it will eventually die and the circuit won't be there to protect you if you try to charge it again and then you could have a real hazard on your hand. Don't do it. The battery is best kept around 70% charge. A fully charged L-Ion battery is actually not at all good for it. The reason why we do it with E-cigs is because we have to. It dramatically shortens its life though and that is the trade off for convenience of having a fully charged, long lasting, battery life on our E-cigs.

Never beat up your batteries with physical force (it's not a hammer or standoff weapon - that was a joke!) or pull on anything that's attached to the connection (like to take apart old stardusts v1) because you can pull the connector right off your battery and it's game over for it. It'll never work again unless you have tiny tiny hands and are a master of soldering irons. The other enemy of your battery is heat. Do NOT leave your battery in the sunlight, like in a car. If you do any of these things and decide you want to risk using that battery again please charge it outside and far away from anything you care about.

(Answer continues below in the next post)

Awesome man! great info here..

Thanks Subtle_Banter.^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Don't forget to come back every now and again because this blog is a work in progress and more is being added all the time. Don't forget to rate this blog in the upper right hand corner. Don't be shy with liking my posts either. Your support is free to give and it helps keep me going so please be kind.

(Answer 22 continued):

There has been slightly more information released regarding the man that blew half his face off in Florida. It appears he was using a mod, not a PV that 99% of people incorrectly call mods, an actual homemade ecig. It is most likely that he did the big no-no that you never do; stack lithium batteries. So is it going to happen to you? Not very likely at all. If you get into making your own mods PLEASE DO THE RESEARCH necessary and know your stuff inside out. Otherwise, leave the tough stuff to the big boys. Your life is not worth the money you'd save. Are lithium ion batteries dangerous? They can be, rarely. If you don't put them in a situation where they can turn on you then you'll be more than fine. Take care of your batteries and they will take care of you. If they were extremely dangerous you'd be hearing more people exploding their faces off or burning their houses down though because there's a L-Ion battery in almost every portable device in the world. It's rare. REALLY REALLY rare. Follow my advice and you'll sooner win the lottery, be hit by lightning or a meteorite, or heck, even SKYLAB LOLOL. The reason that story was so huge is because the media is paid by big corporations to scare the crap out of you so you'll smoke your whole life and die from it. It's a common psychological phenomenon that people fear the things that almost never kill them (terrorists, lightning, crashing in a airplane) while going ahead and not fearing the thing's that will most likely kill them (McDonald's, driving, smoking).

There is one danger that is not often addressed, however. Passthroughs. I don't recommend that you plug them into a computer because a short could cost you a great deal of money, especially in a laptop. Use a wall adapter instead. Never leave them plugged in an unattended.

http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/vapor4life/144668-careful-passthroughs.html

As we learned battery passthroughs are pretty stupid devices. While they are plugged in they are charging to 100% and holding it there (bad for the battery) and that tests the protection circuit constantly (potentially dangerous). I don't think I am going to recommend a passthrough that has a battery on it. There are plenty of them out there that are variable voltage that do not have a battery and I think I'd recommend them to people over the ones with batteries.

Lastly, concerning the bigger batteries of APVs it's important to note that one should never use "unprotected" batteries and that you should always allow them to rest before using them. Do not "hot swap" your batteries. For more details on this please refer to the following link:

http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/ecf-library/129569-rechargeable-batteries.html

There is one thing that bothers me about this post and that is the fact that Li-Ion batteries were found to, regardless of brand, be uniform for at least 300 charges, not 150-200 as is stated there. This is full discharge to full recharge. Charging a partially depleted battery has resulted in literally thousands of recharges before the voltage and capacity dropped. All of this is according to Battery University. I don't know if the post was old or what, but what I am telling you is the truth. You can confirm if you like on BatteryUniversity.com if you like here:

How to Prolong Lithium-based Batteries - Battery University

Q23: Sucralose sweetener, is it okay to use?
A23: Sources say not even kinda. Don't use sucralose (Splenda) that crap is toxic. On top of being chlorinated sugar (a chlorocarbon) it is only 98% pure with the other 2% containing such things as arsenic, heavy metals, and methanol. Proof here: The Potential Dangers of Sucralose (Splenda)

The Lethal Science Of Splenda - A Poisonous Chlorocarbon

My best advice is don't eat Splenda (sucralose) and and DEFINITELY don't vape it. Chemically similar to DDT? Vaping lead, arsenic, etc...? No thanks.

Q24: Can you explain the ranks that are next to people's names; their titles and how one gets promoted on ECF?
A24: It's mainly based on how many posts you have. Here is a table that will explain it in more detail:
0-9 posts - Member
10-149 - Full Member
150-299 - Senior Member
300-999 - Super Member
1000-2999 - Ultra Member
3000-9999 - PV Master
10,000 and up - ECF Guru

ECF Veteran - Account age of 1 year

Obviously you have to be a CASAA Activist to get that title. A Supporting Member is someone who donates money to ECF. A Registered Supplier is someone who sells ecig supplies and accessories. A Verified Member is someone who has gone through the process of getting verified and is allowed to use the Classifieds section of the ECF. Moderators and Founders etc will also have their own titles relating to their position on ECF. Any other name is likely an honorary title bestowed upon or by the Moderators/Founders of ECF or their best friends.

A caveat however is that you shouldn't always trust someone's word because they have a higher rank than you. There are some, and not to talk bad about the community, who just post for recreation or with the intent of getting their rank up and are actually not experts at all things vape (I like to refer to them as the "Greeters" who often just welcome people to the ECF instead of addressing their questions (sorry, I just tell it like it is)) . Others just enjoy mingling and have a high post count but might have been using the same equipment for years and really haven't branched out, so perhaps they aren't as versatile. Use your own best judgement and always trust but verify what is being told to you. Everyone has an opinion but never be afraid to get a second opinion. Start a thread and say "hey I heard this, is it true?" and then find out like that if you have to.

Product Update: Vivi Nova safety concerns with the Silver Bullet PV

According to GrimmGreen of YouTube and other sites' fame he claims that the Vivi Nova clearomizers melted the safety spring that connects the battery of the Silver Bullet PV twice and completely fried the 18650 battery both times. The spring is designed to melt and pull away from the battery post so that it doesn't start a runaway thermal reaction and catch fire and vent the battery. Here's a video of his story. Note that he also uses an Evolv Kick in his Silver Bullet which is a variable wattage device to be used on big battery PVs that lack the electronics for variable voltage or variable wattage such as the Silver Bullet or various "woody" mods etc. :



The Vivi Nova is still an awesome clearomizer but if you have a Silver Bullet you might want to use one of these tanks with caution and realize that it could cost you over 20 dollars if things go bad, and put you out of commission for a while, which is also bad.

Q25: What is a Kick by Evolv?
A25: It is an add-on that fits on top of your battery that allows you to set a variable wattage for it and it does what it says, it gives your vaping a kick. They are not for everyone but if you have a non-variable voltage "big battery mod" like the Silver Bullet or Woody mods (PV cases made out of wood that use big batteries like the 18000 series) it can make your PV something very special indeed. It will basically find the sweet spot to anything you put on there but Dual Coil Cartomizers, which is hates. It's kind of technical and a little hard to explain so I'll just let you see in it action in a video by my buddy GrimmGreen:

DO YOU WANNA GET KICKED? - YouTube

They are $45 at altsmoke.com

It's like being able to take a good looking mod like the Silver Bullet (altsmoke sells these as well) and have it work kind of like an ugly duckling Darwin, which is about the ugliest device ever sold. The Darwin is function over form at its finest. Like I said, it's not for everyone but for those who can use them they are a godsend so I thought I'd give a brief overview. Even if you can't use one, knowledge is power, and knowing is half the battle and all that good stuff! At least when they come up in conversation you'll know what the heck they're talking about

The one main drawback of the Kick is that I have heard complaints that it has an amp limit that restricts what it can do. I do not have the exact numbers (I forget what the limit was) and I was unable to find them, so if anyone does know please PM me and tell me the answer. The other drawback, however minor (because it would be totally your own fault), is if you manage to put your batteries in upside down it will kill the Kick instantly.

Q26: Where can I find a good ecigarette that looks like a regular cigarette that has a long battery life and good vapor production? Why don't you recommend the small, cigarette looking devices like the Blu, Volt, or Bloog ecigarettes?
A26: There is no such thing as a small battery e-cig that looks like a cigarette and lasts all day long. First I'd like to point out that Blu was bought out by Lorrilard who is the company that produces Newport and Kent cigarettes among a few other brands. There is a great debate over what additives they put in their ejuice now or in the future due to the fact that tobacco companies are known for doing that with their tobacco. Don't support big tobacco, you've given them enough of your money and emptied your pocketbook paying them to die young while they denied they were killing you. So, Blu's out, what about Bloog or Volt? Honestly, there's nothing WRONG with these ecigs for what they are, either will serve you well. The reason why I don't recommend them is because by the time you pay for the starter kit, the cartomizers (or cartridges as they sometimes incorrectly call them), the personal charging case (aka the PCC), extra batteries, etc. You are well over the cost of what it would take to get a superior PV like the EGO Twist. The other problem is the battery will die on you up to 3 times a day, and that's why you'll need a PCC to keep them going. Often these batteries are in the 300mah range (Volt uses 320mah so I hear). As I pointed out earlier the recommended life span of a lithium ion battery is 300 charges. That means within as few as 100 days of vaping like that you'll lose voltage and capacity on your battery and are recommended to replace it. That's not a very long time for something so expensive! The other reason I don't recommend them is because they are not a variable voltage device their voltage is limited to 3.6v (less under load - probably 3.4v) and with the cartomizers that come with it they are often not set to the right sweet spot ratio of heat, vapor production, flavor that we all require (if they even reveal that information, which they often do not). Also, their flavors are often limited to their own products which is another handicap. So less battery life, possibly a bad vape, and all for more money... Sounds like a bad deal now doesn't it? You'll still find people who swear their lives on them, but due to the fact that they are basically have merely a cult following I can't recommend them to anyone unless they are a social smoker (like 1 or 2 analogs a day), and even then the versatility and price point is lacking over the EGO C Twist. So the price point, the vapor, the limited capability, short lifespan, and lack of versatility are some serious flaws. By taking a chance with them, and for that price, you could be setting yourself up for failure. That is exactly why I don't recommend them. They don't work for everybody, and if they do, it's often not for long (the remainder being the cult following). Lastly, as a side note perhaps, they look like the very things you are trying to be rid of in your life, and they often come in tobacco flavors, which is another "no no" of mine. Because they look like a cigarette you are subjecting yourself to the same persecution that smokers get, both in dirty looks, and people telling you that you can't do that in public, when there's no law that says you can't. This is just my opinion, but I'm sure if any of the little battery "cig-a-like" cult members see this they will flip their lid.

Q27: What about disposable Ecigs? Are they worth it?
A27: Not even slightly worth it. When I wanted to see if vaping was a viable option for me I went to the local beverage center and picked up a disposable ecig called the Pure Smoke One. It cost me 7 dollars which was nearly double the cost of a pack of my favorite brand of smokes. I took it home and gave it a shot. I continued to smoke just as much as I was before but I was burning this thing up sucking on it like a McDonald's milkshake through a regular sized straw instead of the mammoth ones they give you for them . The thing blew up in a couple hours and refused to vape any more. I hadn't even gotten through a single cartridge, and it came with 2 that were supposed to last as long as pack of cigarettes a piece. These things are garbage. The only positive thing that came out of it is that I wanted to try more and decided I would do the research this time. My mistake cost me $7 but the lesson was invaluable. HOWEVER, they do have two good uses. One is to give them away as cheap gifts to people who you want to consider trying ecigs as a proof of concept, and the other is to use in situations such as concerts where smoking is prohibited and you fear that you may have it confiscated or possibly even lose it. That is the only times I would ever recommend them. They definitely aren't suitable for an ecig habit.

Q28: How can I get clean for a nicotine test?
A28: It's really foolish, in my opinion, that some companies now test their employees for nicotine. It's a legal substance and it should be illegal for them to discriminate based on your legal right to use it. I am not saying this is 100% science, and I am not in any way responsible if it doesn't work, but you can go ahead and give this a try if you have no other option. This post was originally made by Al1ce, an ECF user. Thanks Al1ce, it sounds interesting.

"Cream of tartar, a.k.a. potassium hydrogen tartrate, pulls nicotine out of your body. Half a teaspoon of cream of tartar in an z glass of o.j. before bedtime will send the nicotine packing via your sweat glands and elimination tracts. You take it before bed so your body has all night to do its work peacefully and thoroughly.

Cream of tartar also replaces necessary potassium lost in the habit. Some say the chemical change resulting in the pH of your body causes it to fight off bacteria better. Some say it causes you begin to dislike the taste of cigarettes, too. The o.j. makes detox easier because the vitamin C scavenges the free radicals you put there by inhaling something on fire with chemicals a lot.

According to ehow, cream of tartar also fixes urinary tract infections and heartburn. Also, it’s made from wine crust and is a vital ingredient in Play-Doh. It stabilizes and creamy-fies eggs and sugar in the world of culinary tricks. It cleans brass and copper cookware and metal coins, and can be combined with vinegar to super-clean stovetops and crusty pans. Cream of tartar is what you add to baking soda to make baking powder. FOOD SCIENCE!
I suppose you could even do the remedy and keep smoking, and clean as you go, as it were. But nobody in the litigious “real” world will tell you that part. If you drink cream of tartar and orange juice as part of your quitting-smoking regimen, and you’re mindful and contemplative about the nature of your cigarette habit and how it promises to provide you false comfort and spiritual transformation in some way but never comes through … then you smoke fewer cigarettes, because there’s less of a nicotine reservoir in your body that needs to be refilled, and you detox your body chemistry down to where you can quit all the way, cold turkey if you like, without getting totally stabby. " -Al1ce

GOOD JOB. I like that you name "names", it helps newbes to know what to look for.

JUDGMENT AFFIRMED;bt5943 said:

GOOD JOB. I like that you name "names", it helps newbes to know what to look for.

Click to expand...

Thanks for all the likes. I put a lot of work into the research that goes into this blog and your support makes it all worthwhile. Don't forget to subscribe because I am adding new content just about daily.

I don't just name names, I name prices too. If you need a supplier for anything mentioned on my blog I will be more than happy to direct you to the cheapest place to get a quality product. I am frugal but I am not willing to sacrifice quality for the cheapest price. Also if you have any questions that aren't answered here please PM me and tell me what they are so I can answer them in the handbook.

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Product Reviews:
Showdown between the New Mini Tanks for the EGO C Twist:


The new E1-V mini tank seems to be coming ahead of the Vivi Nova Mini in looks and flavor. They sell for $5.99 on DiscountVapors as of the time of this post. E1 / E2 / E3 (Apollo and Revive)
The Vivi Nova Mini is also $5.99 at discountvapors. It only comes with one atomizer head. Please note: The E1-V is not nearly as easily rebuilt as the Vivi Nova Mini. It has a soldered connection which makes it problematic in that department. If re-wicking is what you want to do, go with the Vivi Nova Mini. If you want to buy replacement heads, go with the E1-V, it is the superior tank in all other regards than re-wickability.

Q29: How do I choose the right kind of wire for my rebuildable atomizer coils?
A29: Contrary to common sense, the thickness of a wire actually decreases the resistance, and the thinner the wire the more in increases. Adding to the confusion the higher the AWG number the thinner the wire and the more the resistance it has per inch. To make the choice easier for you I will just link you to previously released information right here on ECF. Please note that A-1 Kanthal is the kind most commonly used by veteran vapers. The resistances listed are by the inch. Depending on what atomizer you are rebuilding the length of wire required will differ, but for reference sake the most common length in mini clearomizers such as the Vivi Nova (regular or Mini is the same length) is around 1.5 inches (sorry metric people, google's your friend though. Do a search for "inches to mm"). The commonly accepted number of turns on your coil is 4-5. You may start with more wire but remember that you will be trimming the excess at the end. Note that when Estarra did his Vivi Nova rebuild that he ended up around 1.8ohms with 32AWG Kanthal A-1. People who desire low resistance usually choose AWG 32 A-1 Kanthal. If you want a higher resistance you will need thinner wire. Here's the link to the thread:

http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/atomizer-mods/320042-resistance-wire-kanthal-nichrome.html

AWG to mm Conversion Table (for our metric using friends)
http://www.landersinc.com/With_fl/Html/AWG%20TO%20MM2%20CONVERSION%20TABLE.pdf

I'll add more to this later when I try making different resistances as to which exact gauge works for multiple resistances.

Q30: Should I get a Genesis style atomizer?
A30: The quick answer is maybe. They have some real drawbacks so let's start with those first. For one, they are truly and utterly expensive. $150 is a common price. You're going to have to sit on a waiting list for 6 months or more too because the supply does not meet the demand. It is possible to get them in the ECF classifieds used, so that is an option. The Zenesis variety (made by Zen, a variation of the Genesis atomizer = Zenesis) is made of superior materials such as surgical stainless steel with a crushed quartz tank. He claims he is not making money off of them, I leave that judgement up to you. On top of that they are extremely hard to rebuild and the learning curve is vast. Once you get it down to a science it's not bad at all, but the difficulty in doing so may frustrate you back to relying on other atomizers and questioning your investment. They also do not come assembled by any means so if you want something that works out of the box you've got another thing coming.

So what's so good about them that would make people want to wade through a sea of discouragement? Flavor. They are commonly accepted as having the best flavor ever IF you get it right. The stainless steel wick doesn't interfere as much with the flavoring like polyfill or the wicks you find on CE style clearomizers (which often clog, could potentially be harmful to you, and filter out the flavor and ruin your juice as they clog up over time). Many people do report an iron/steel taste that goes along with vaping from a metal wick. The other positive is they are cheap to rebuild so you can eventually pay it off in savings (which you could also do with CE clearos and for a cheaper startup). Also note that if you get one and you hate it and you sell it for more than you paid for it that Zenesis will cut you off completely and never allow you to purchase any more of his products.

So for the price and with all the negatives versus only two positives my personal opinion is that they aren't worth it. I am not alone in this belief, but to clarify my position I will bring in a video from my buddy Estarra who owns the Zenesis Z Atty Pro:


So, before you go jumping on the list, if you are dead set on getting one let me suggest that you try building an inexpensive one on your own to try it out first before you take the plunge, and spend a lot of money doing it, on something you may hate. For this I will call upon PV guru Steeljan:
DIY Ego Genesis Tank Ecig Mod - YouTube
And also JunkyRock13 with the Vivi Tank by smoktech Genesis conversion:
***CONTEST GIVEAWAY*** & Making the Smoktech Vivi Tank into a Genesis Tank Tutorial - YouTube

Note: A lot of people like the DiD rebuildable atomizer, and there ARE some cheaper alternatives, but many of them are made with substandard materials or require modifying once you get them. I've seen it go so far as re-drilling airholes to bigger sizes and sanding the bottom of the tank down so it fits better... blah! Who wants to do all that? I'm all about saving a buck or 50, but geez, get it at least CLOSE to right the first time. In short, in this department you get what you pay for and what you pay is probably too much for what you get. At least in my opinion. Try before you buy, and definitely look up whatever atomizer you may want to get on YouTube (more than once) before you take the plunge. We're all pioneers, but you don't have to be the first one in line. That's a great way to lose your money. Remember: a fool and his money are soon parted. When you get desperate you're going to make a mistake. Don't be that guy/girl.

Q31: What are some good suppliers to order my gear from?
A31: The first thing you should notice is that on the top of every ECF page is a FORUM SUPPLIERS button. You can click on that. If the place you are thinking about buying stuff from (i.e. from a Google search or recommendation) is not on that list you should seriously ask around before committing to such a purchase. The ones on that list are there for a reason; because they are proven. Before you purchase anything please look around ECF or do a google search for coupon codes to maximize your savings. Now, that said, I will list a few of my favorite suppliers and why I like them personally. Some of them are not on the ECF Supplier list but they should be.

VaporBeast
VaporBeast.com The owner, Tim (stratus here on ECF), is an inspiring guy. He was the guy who created the Switchback and is active in the charity world. Vaporbeast has a good selection, and some of the cheapest prices on the net as well. What makes it stand out from that is the rest of the suppliers is that all of their products are quality for the price and they are absolutely free shipping on any size order. That is what sets them apart from the sea of competition out there. Also they have a Deal of the Day button which can save you a good extra 10-20% depending on the deal and the product. Lastly, in almost all orders you will receive a free bonus item such as a cartomizer, shorty cone, etc. to sweeten the deal. You can't beat free unless they pay you to take it!

Altsmoke
AltSmoke.com - They have a great selection, their shipping prices aren't bad at all, and if you have a problem with your order they will fix it, eventually (mine took over a week before they even dealt with it, but they dealt with it and made it right).

Discount Vapers
DiscountVapers.com - They have a good selection and some low prices, especially on clearomizers and EGO Twists. They also ship for really cheap as well. About $2.50 for a small order. Better than the $5-10 most people charge.

MadVapes
MadVapes.com - Although their prices aren't always the lowest on the net they probably have the widest variety of selection on the net. They literally have any part you may ever need if you want to make your own mod, get an adapter, what have you. If you can't find it, look for it at madvapes.

Wizard Labs
WizardLabs.us - Wizardlabs is the best place for DIY chemicals and materials. Not only do they have enough selection to set you up as a mad scientist, they have the cheapest price on liquid nicotine as of the time of this posting. They also supposedly make their chemicals to order so they are the freshest you're likely to get your hands on. Liquid nicotine only has a shelf life of a year so there no sense in wasting that time sitting on a shelf. Their prices on PG and VG could be better though.

Walmart
I hate to say it, but they have quality USP grade VG for the lowest price I have ever seen thus far (~$3.12 for 177ml bottle of "Glycerin"). Also, they have oral syringes that can help you get your DIY on for cheap at least to start with until you decide to upgrade to real mad scientist stuff.

Health Cabin
Healthcabin.com - This is a middleman straight into the heart of China where most of these products are made, and where the modern ecig revolution began (yes, they were invented by an American in the 1960's but China brought them into fruition with the advent of modern batteries several years ago). They are cheap, but the shipping time will be god awful since it will probably come by boat. Not a great source for your everyday needs, but a cheap one, and thus, one to be mentioned. They sometimes host great deals on bulk cartomizers, for example.

Dark City Vapor
DarkCityVapor.com The owner - BCordell70 here on ECF, is a friend of mine and a heck of a nice guy. They don't have the best selection in the world but they have a good selection and a good price on handmade, made in America, juice. DCV is also one of the rare suppliers that sells juice strength above 24mg strength (used for cutting down, not vaping!). Also he's a heck of a guy to chat with and you can go to his site and click the Chat box and go to town. I've literally talked to him for hours.

EC Blend Flavors
ECBlend E-Liquids - Something Better
ECBlend has the cheapest juice prices I have ever seen. Plus you can make your own custom flavors. What's not to like? Many people enjoy their juice. Everyone enjoys the price point.

Vapor Joe's
http://.........blogspot.com/
Although this isn't a vendor per se, it is a great source for finding good deals on the internet. It's updated 3-4 times a day so this is an awesome blog to stay up-to-date on the latest and greatest deals available on the equipment you need to stay smoke free! VaporBeast gets a lot of face time on the blog.

For Canadians Vapers -
CanVape:
www.CANVAPE.com
This company comes highly recommended by my friends of the north. If you are having trouble getting stuff from American Vendors in Canada then go ahead and give these guys a try.

Q32: I'd like to buy locally. How can I find out where vendors are in my area?
A32: Well, whether you'd like to visit a brick and mortar store, you think you might get a faster shipping time (the opposite has proven true for me), or you just like paying state tax and doing your part, the best way to find local vendors in your area is to use the following site:

VaporSearchUSA
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Wow, what a lot of information! Great job and I'm honored you used some of my videos!

RockinRobbieSF;bt5987 said:

Wow, what a lot of information! Great job and I'm honored you used some of my videos!

Click to expand...

Thanks, bud. I am equally honored that you used my music as your theme song.

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Q33:How do you know so much about vaping?
A33: I do countless hours of research followed by thousands of hours of fact-checking. I will not be so foolish as to say that everything posted here is 1000% correct, but if anyone finds anything that is untrue PLEASE tell me and I will fix it right away. Remember this is a work in progress and it is constantly being updated (and re-read...by me ) I am not here to spread disinformation. When the answer to the subject at hand is cloudy I try to phrase my blog in such a way that doesn't use definitive answers or concrete wording. I don't know everything. I am still learning (just like you) something new practically every day. The road of vape is long and fraught with questions, but every day we stay on this road together is another day we don't smoke. Eventually I plan to be off this road and I hope you make that choice too. There is nothing better than being a non-smoker, non-vaper and that's where I want to be in the end. While we're here though, let's do this as safely, inexpensively, effectively, and pleasurably as possible.

I get a lot of information from talking to my ECF buddies, some of who own their own ecig shops, and I of course get a lot of information from the vaping community at large and right here at ECF. Another good place (that may not be the first to come to people's minds) that I get a lot of my information, as you can see by my blog being peppered with them, is the videos on YouTube. I guess my power to write this blog stems from my sponge-like brain soaking up all the information and recalling it at will, and also with my ability to put words into simple, down to earth, straight talk that everyone can understand. When I read something vague and I have to re-read it multiple times to understand it because it could mean more than one thing it really bothers me, so I try to never write like that. If anything that may make my writing a bit lengthy, and for that I do apologize, but I think it makes things a bit more clear for everyone. Although I like to think I have an exceptional vocabulary I try not to use uncommon words that force people to look them up in order to understand me. That's just another roadblock to understanding. I also put a great deal of thought into punctuation and maybe even more time proofreading and editing . Long story made short; it's a gift, and I'm giving it to you.

Q34: Variable Wattage or Variable Voltage? I am confused!
A34: Since this debate has been had on the ECF 1000 times I will just quote someone who already did a good job explaining which is easier (thanks BiffRocko).

http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/blogs/biffrocko/2871-variable-voltage-vs-variable-wattage-better-why.html

Short answer: Variable Wattage is an easy button to get where you prefer to vape, Variable Voltage is a lot more math to get to the same place. The point is that they can both go to the same place, but it's how they get there that is different. Just remember that with great convenience comes great cost.

At the time of this posting I know of only a few variable wattage (VW) devices. The Evolv Darwin which is $245, and hard to get your hands on with limited supply (and it looks like an ugly duckling), and the Evolv Kick. Both allow for variable wattage but the Kick (as I explained above) is a battery add-on device and the Darwin is an APV of a different color. There's also the Nhaler Opus, which is a wooden VW box mod that is also hard to acquire due to supply issues and costs $260. That said, if you want VW the cheapest way to get it is through a Kick.

Do you really need it? Probably not. How many different setups (juice/atomizer/voltage/resistance) are you going to run that you can't keep track of them all to make the corrections necessary on a variable voltage device? I guess the choice is yours, but at least now you know what you're dealing with.

Adding to this is GrimmGreen who pits what many consider the best of both worlds against each other:

PROVARI OR DARWIN? - YouTube

Q35: Is there any way to win free stuff? I don't have a lot of money. Are there any giveaway contests?
A35: Yes, as a matter of fact, there are contests every day going on right here at ECF. Here's a link to a thread that will keep you up to date on all kinds of contests. If you like free stuff then please, by all means, join us.
http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/pay-forward-pif/105214-contests-192.html

Also Apollo is giving away 1,000,000 (that's a million!) free disposables at this link. All you have to do is have a facebook or twitter account and do a referral which will literally take you 5 seconds and it's easy as pie. Disposables are cool for 1 of 2 things. Using at a concert or somewhere you fear you will either lose your ecig or have it taken away, or for giving to someone to help convince them that ecigs can work for them. Follow this link to get a free disposable.

http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/new-members-forum/330557-1-000-000-free-electronic-cigarettes-being-given-away-apollo-ecigs.html


Q36: Is juice from China dangerous or bad? You know there was that melamine baby formula, and that whole lead paint baby toys scare.
A36: I can't speak for all of their facilities because China is such a vast place (being just shy of the same amount of land area as America). Their business practices might scare you because they do not have the same kind of regulations or laws that we have, especially where worker safety is concerned. They are also pressured to manufacture things as cheaply as possible and that is most commonly the cause of the horror stories that have arisen through the years. However, I have also heard unconfirmed rumors of people who made the decision to use products that harmed others were executed for their crimes, so I'd say that's a big incentive not to manufacture in that way. When it comes to an American company pulling the strings though I would say you're probably alright. You know where I stand on ejuice which is DIY, and know for sure, but when I watched a tour of their facility I was a little surprised at how modern and clean it looked. See for yourself:



Q37: Is my charger compatible with the EGO Twist?
A37: If you had an EGO style battery before and the charger fits a 510 I can say with 100% certainty that if the output of the charger (which can be read on a label found on the flat part where you screw in the battery) is 4.2v and 420mA that you are safe to use that charger on any EGO battery (including the Twist) as well as many clones including the KGO, the Riva 510, etc. As long as your device looks like an EGO and is 3.6v to 4.2v it's safe to use.

What you don't want to do, and what I have seen end terribly, is use a charger with a higher output than that. It will almost certainly end in the battery venting. The overcharge protection circuit is designed to protect it from the proper voltage charger. It cannot handle the extra load of too much voltage.

Note that if you had an EGO clone (or knockoff) style battery before that the charger will blink green a lot slower with a real EGO versus a clone. The voltage regulation circuit is different in each brand. Don't worry about that. It will still go solid green when it's fully charged and don't let it sit like that. Every minute you let it sit overcharging it is another check on that circuit. Don't flirt with trouble.

Don't forget to get a li-po charging bag that I linked earlier (control+F and type in "Hobby" for a quick search) for peace of mind while recharging and never charge your batteries unattended and especially not overnight while you are sleeping. Charge them until they are full and take it off the charger, do not let it sit at maximum and charge for long periods of time. If the safety overcharge circuit is compromised this will also end in a runaway thermal reaction/venting. This happens very rarely and is something you should be aware of, but not living in fear of. Replace your battery after the manufacturer recommended number of charges (usually 300).

Thank-you for posting this. I have enjoyed reading your Vaper's Handbook and it has inspired me to do some further research myself. I liked the video your buddy uploaded to uTube about rebuilding the clearomizer. I subscribed to his channel and plan to watch more of his videos as time permits. Also, I found the chart "safe vaping power" to be extremely helpful; in fact, I bookmarked it and refer to it now when I am ordering atomizers and not sure what I should get. Thanks so much for all the work you have gone to making this information available!!!

ShogaNinja Edit: Thanks for saying that. I appreciate your support and I was most glad to have helped you in your journey. I hope you will subscribe to the Vaper's Handbook because I am adding something new almost every day. I can't take all the responsibility so I am going to make a shout out to all the people who helped make this possible. THANKS!

Thank you for all you do for us vaping

Liked shared and appreciated!

Q38: What's going on with Boge cartomizers right now? What's up with Bogegate?
A38: The short answer is that nobody knows for sure. If you want to make sure that your Boge is going to be a good one I would recommend, at least at the time of this posting, ask your vendor if their Boges have a short and long condom on them. The best move for right now though, to be honest, is to seek out another brand in the interim while Boge gets their act together. I have heard good things about Kanger but have not yet had a chance to try their cartos.

PBusardo reported a funny "savory, almost turkey bacon flavor" in the latest batch of Boges which he identified as having "two short condoms instead of one short, one long". Also it appears the box has changed at well. Some of them are now reading "Boge 510D LR Black (or Stainless)". To get to the bottom of this PBusardo took each of the Boges apart, old and new. He even went so far as to taste the wrapping material and he found absolutely no difference between them physically. It remains a mystery as to why these new Boges taste bad. The old batches may very well still be in the system a month later because of the fact that most shipments from China come by boat which takes a minimum of 2 weeks to deliver. Sagging sales could also mean that vendors still have these Boges in stock. Newer batches have the long and short condom again, and also a printout on the plastic wrapper of the cartos themselves that say "510D LR (Color)". You can watch the video on Bogegate yourself here:

A PBusardo Video - BOGEGATE - YouTube

For the record I don't really use cartos that much any more, usually just for testing juice before I commit a clearomizer to it, but I did appreciate the diehard nature of the original Boge cartomizer. I got 10 Boges when I first started vaping (over 6 months ago at the time of this posting) and they say with a small sticker on top of the box 510 LR Black, and also the same sticker is found on each of the plastic wrappers for the cartomizer itself. These Boges are still in use after dozens of cleanings and vaping strong. Of the 10 I've lost 2 to a "burnt" taste and that was probably due to user error, or bad juice put in them. 1 is still in the package, no need to open it as yet. I wouldn't give up on the Boge brand just yet. Give it time is my best recommendation. Boge will fix this problem when it starts to affect their bottom line. At the end of the day, nothing beats a Boge cartomizer and I hope that very soon that statement becomes true again.

The latest batch of Boges, after the sea of complaints that Boge got over Bogegate, are now having resistance consistency issues. You can keep apprised of the latest developments of Bogegate in PBusardo's Blog, Tasteyourjuice.com here:

Taste Your Juice | BOGEGATE

Q39: How can I find my "all-day-vape"?
A39: Unfortunately I can't really answer that question with 100% accuracy as taste is a very subjective thing. The best advice I can give you is to try sample packs of juice sold by many vendors. Try using cartomizers or a drip atomizer until you're ready to commit something more expensive to it like a E1-V or Vivi Nova Mini (or full size).

Finding your all-day-vape can be difficult so don't stress it. Start with a "vape you can live with all day" first and work from there. That said, there are many juice reviews on ECF and YouTube (Estarra has some reviews as well as GrimmGreen), as well as PBusardo's blog Taste Your Juice | SOME OF MY FAVORITE JUICES. Start there and work your way around. Asking around the forums is an option too, so you can try that too, but just be wary of my first caveat: taste is a very subjective thing. Also remember that Vaper's Law is that most tobacco flavored juices are terrible. If that is your aim, you've got a long road ahead of you. I said it before and I'll say it again, fruits (by far the easiest way to find an all-day-vape) and desserts are the best place to start. You're trying to get away from tobacco anyway, remember?

If price is a concern do click on the Chart-O-Juice (link is on the left of all the pages) on PBusardo's blog and aim for the cheaper juices.

My main go-to solution, if you want to be hardcore like me, is to go DIY and survive only off of what you can make. Through this method I was able to find several all-day-vapes right away. Maybe I was lucky, but don't discount the fact that necessity is the mother of all invention. If you want to try it, the fastest way to find a good flavor, without wasting a lot of expensive chemicals, is to mix up a 30ml batch of blank juice (flavorless) and then remember to only mix it with room to spare for your flavor ratio. If you go 10% flavor ratio then you'll need to pour 4.5ml in a 5ml batch and the 10% left over is the room for your juice. If you were to pull a whole 5ml out and then add the flavor you're going to have increased nicotine in that batch (not cool, but not the end of the world either) so be careful and do your maths. Rely on your calculator. If you go 20% (the usual maximum flavor ratio) then it's 4ml flavorless to 1ml of flavor. You can scale that down too. I make 1ml batches and using .8ml of blank juice add .2ml of flavor to try in a drip atomizer. You'd be surprised how long 1ml will last while dripping (especially when the flavor's awful, but you don't want to waste it)! It'll give you more than a good idea whether you love or hate the juice.

An excellent read! Clear, packed solid with good info. Must go sub now.

Thanks for the support guys! ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

My First Juice/Vendor Review of the utterly impartial and fair variety.

By sheer luck, and the kindness and generosity of Vapor4Life, I was able to win a contest giveaway that was being held by them. I won 30ml of juice. The selections of juice weren't huge (V4L has MANY choices, but the contest was for maybe 8-10 of their probably less popular flavors) and the few I was able to choose from weren't ideal for me. I never look a gift horse in the mouth though so I decided that, because I used to smoke clove cigarettes sometimes back in the day, DJ Black was my best choice (I believe this is a play on Djarum Black). I asked the vendor (Vapor4Life) what the ratio of PG/VG was because that information is NOT on their site (and it should be considering the allergy implications involved), and he informed me that it was 75/25 or somewhere thereabouts. If you've been reading up til this point you will know that I do 70/30 so that ratio works for me - close enough. I went with 24mg nicotine strength. It came in the mail just a few days later (let's say 4-5 but it's not like I paid for it).

First, obviously, I smelled it. To be honest it didn't smell that great at the time, but there might have been a little shipping envelope wang to it. Smelling it now it smells like cloves with a tobacco base. Almost maybe a little fruity.

The next move that I made (and I don't recommend you ever do this with nicotine already added - I'm a professional ninja and I did it under medical supervision) as a DIY guy (I always taste my flavors before I commit to using them) was to taste a drop of the juice off my fingertip. Not gonna lie, it was also kinda gross. Clovey, minty, and a hint of tobacco base. The aftertaste is like cloves from hell. Nicotine always stings too and can cause a little numbness. I'm not sure how much of that had to do with overwhelming clove flavors. It's been a long time since I chewed on an actual clove and that doesn't taste so great either (though it was considered a medieval breath freshener), so I'd say it's pretty accurate, but I won't be doing that again with this flavor.

I busted out a cartomizer (which is what I use to try juices instead of wasting a clearomizer and hating it) and I filled it up. I will describe the method I use for that in another post, but I consider it superior to the condom method in my experience. I screwed it on and vaped it and WOW (just like the bottle says). To my utter surprise, having failed all the tests up til the actual vaping part, it tastes exactly like a Djarum (Black or Splash, can't quite tell) and I am totally loving it. It's definitely not sweet, or overwhelmingly clove flavored. It's pretty balanced actually. Clove is a spice so I have to go with spicy as my adjective. Not HOT spicy, but spice drawer/candle shop spicy. The vapor that comes off of it smells like some of the other tobacco flavors I have tried in the past (I like 555 the most - personally out of all the tobaccos I've tried, but I can't imagine tobacco flavors will ever be an all-day-vape for me) and a little reminiscent of actual tobacco being smoked. If that's your thing, cool. For me, not so much, but I'm rolling with it.

Flavor accuracy: 8/10 It's not perfect but it's very good and surprisingly accurate. VERY Balanced flavor.

Vapor production: very very good I give that a 9/10 easy.

Throat Hit: Medium

Juice opacity: Medium to dark (darker juices tend to ruin atomizers). It starts out medium but with any heat (which happens considering coils put off heat) the juice to a dark shade of brown, the same color as dirty automotive oil. It's a bit of a coil killer.

Freshness: I can't fault them because they gave it to me for free but the juice was over 7 months old by the time I got it. I really do like the fact that they print when it was produced, but the expiration date is a bit shady at 2 years. I've bought flavorless nicotine solution from two different vendors and both of them said 1 year is the expiration date on nicotine solution. You definitely don't need to steep after 7 months lol.

All Day Vape?: It could be if you were a big clove smoker before. I've been vaping it for several days straight now and I'm cool with that.

Worth Trying: Definitely - IF you liked Djarum brand clove analogs in your former life.

Website: It's a little primitive. It's flashy and looks good and all, but as I mentioned before, it's lacking in very important information. It's average as far as navigation goes - there's room for improvement. I do not like that they refer to their ejuice category as "flavors" which can be confusing to DIY guys like me who equate flavors to DIY flavors, and not ejuice. I can't speak for their other products, but I noticed that they do have a very fair warranty policy that comes in place with most purchases. That's nice. Despite these flaws, overall I am very satisfied with their service. I was at not point assaulted with more than 1 age verification, so that's awesome too (not always the case with all websites). I am also a big fan of instant chat windows (which I strongly believe that all but the most descriptive websites should have) and I'm afraid there's no chatting here. The contact number is posted on top of the site though so no digging around for that.

Vendor Rating: I gotta go with a 6.5/10. This is a little low because the ratio should be posted on the site, and that's pretty inexcusable. You've GOT to have product transparency. Shipping Time was par for the course (nowhere near as bad as some), and I also appreciate their activity within the community. The labeling is nice, and the bottle is average orange cap 30ml bottle with a childproof top (very cool!). The other problem I have is that they only sell 30ml bottles which is really terrible for try-before-you-buy attitudes. They do sell individual, pre-filled cartomizers or tanks for sampling purposes though, so at least there's that. It's not ideal, however. I'd go higher on the score but they are missing some of the best items out there, and I have no idea what their shipping cost is. If all of these things were fixed, and if they had a competitive shipping price, I'd give them an 8.5/10.

Would I buy some of their juice now having tried some? Definitely. It worked for me, but knowing the ratio may make it inaccessible to some.


Please note that the next page will repeat the first entry of this blog. Please skip past that and continue on after that part. There are already over 50 questions answered in this blog.