First RDA - did I screw the pooch on this one?

[jdg]

So, I'm pumped, and I got my first rda, an IGO-L, in the mail today! Woo hoo! I've seen a lot of reviews and building tutorials, so I was feeling pretty confident going into it. First wick was 1.1 ohm, which probably would have been great on my eGo, but my Vamo won't take it, so I go with #2, a 1.5. Cool, it'll work! And work it does, but the taste.. is like the old polyfil carts with a little Kiwi USA Mix thrown in. Not great at all. Now I'm left wondering what I did wrong, and I have a list of suspects.
1. The vendor that I ordered the IGO from was out of wick specifically labeled as silica, so I got what I hoped would get me by, wick labeled only as fiberglass. Am I tasting the fiberglass when I'm used to silica wicks in 306s?
2. It looks like I got a hot spot in the middle of my coil, and the wick quickly turned dark. It was soaked, but it still looks burnt. Am I tasting that?
Any assistance you fine folks can offer is much appreciated. I really want this thing to work, but I can't do it if it's going to taste like plastic.

 

[FogHawg]

That RDA will do the job & then some w/a decent set-up. But I've never used fiberglass wick so I'm no help there. Do you have any cotton there? Cotton balls, Q-tips?

 

[jdg]

That RDA will do the job & then some w/a decent set-up. But I've never used fiberglass wick so I'm no help there. Do you have any cotton there? Cotton balls, Q-tips?

I do, but I skipped that section of the YouTube school.

 

[Thrasher]

very first thing is : is your vamo in rms or No2 mode? in avg or No1 mode the voltage will fire too hot.

silica IS fiberglass so not really a problem unless its just gross and dirty and needs a cleaning before use.

burned spot is usually voltage too high or letting the wick dry out it needs to stay wet. i dry burn my wicks constantly and they turn brown but dont hold any taste.

again if i was to guess you have a hotspot or uneven coils firing at the same time as way too hot and/or drying out.

after building a coil with silica you should be able to dry fire lightly to see if the coils glow evenly or not, dont hold it down and glow the crap out of them just a few quick presses to see the orange glow. if only one or two coils glow then they need to be respaced evenly until the glow is pretty even.

you did not say what gauge wire and how many wraps.

 

[FogHawg]

I don't know anything about fiberglass, so maybe somebody will chime in there. But if it was me I'd toss the current set up, wrap a new coil around a drill bit (or similar) & mount it THEN remove the bit, twist up a pc of cotton & thread it thru the new coil, juice it up good, & VAPE AWAY. The Igo-L will cross your eyeballs if it's set-up halfway decent. Promise.

 

[Thrasher]

also with rda's it is important to make sure the airhole is properly blowing on the coil a badly adjusted/angled coil or misaligned airhole can change the flavor substantially.


wrapping a coil is simple its the other little things that get in the way lol



i prefer the loop myself

 

[Bawn]

did you was the igo when you got it? they need to be washed thoroughly. lots of chemicals in the process of making those things. also building a coil takes some time to master.

 

[FogHawg]

+1 on airhole alignment. It looks like Thrasher has you headed straight w/the fiberglass stuff. But if you try cotton make sure it's wet before you fire the coil. FWIW & IMO stuffing a prewrapped coil w/a twisted cotton rope is the easiest set-up ever.

 

[jdg]

You guys are awesome! The air hole was a big part of it, got rid of a lot of the bad taste. Maybe what I'm tasting now is residual. I had thought that the air hold should be aligned with the posts to blow over the coil, but it seems to be that the air hole should be perpendicular to the posts, so that it blows across the coil. Does that make sense?

 

[jdg]

Also, Thrasher, I think you might be right that I have a hot spot. I also wound
the wick pretty tight, could that do it? And it's 30 guage wire with 7 to 8 wraps.
FogHawg, the cotton is intriguing. It doesn't get more frugal than cotton balls.

 

[theonlyace]

Also Kanthal or any material like it will have a break in period as well. Flavors and Throat hit will evolve a little bit as you vape.

 

[Thrasher]

Also, Thrasher, I think you might be right that I have a hot spot. I also wound
the wick pretty tight, could that do it? And it's 30 guage wire with 7 to 8 wraps.
FogHawg, the cotton is intriguing. It doesn't get more frugal than cotton balls.

7 to 8 is a few too many but liveable. not gonna kill anything.

if you look at my pic you see i use a paperclip, anything like that helps, when you pull it out it gives the wick a little room to expand.

as for too tight it depends on the wick, too tight can cause problems but some wick is so solid you cant crush it. if it looks squeezed in the coil and thinner then the rest of the wick yea back off a bit.


air in an RBA is EVERYTHING and has to hit that coil just right for best effect.

 

[FogHawg]

It doesn't get more frugal than cotton balls.

No doubt. And I think that's one reason why I resisted trying it for so long. But I finally gave it a shot & found that it works great and set-ups are an absolute breeze. I still use SS, silica, & ceramic sometimes (according to the application), but good ole cotton gets the nod more often than not these days. Don't let the low cost fool you like it did me, it's really good stuff.

 

[steven445]

Yeah try to loosen up the wrap a little bit and a hot spot will instantly make a vaping nightmare!
After just getting into RBA a few weeks ago I been through so much trial and error!
Try making the legs almost identical in length.

 

[UncleChuck]

If I had to guess, I'd say you have a wrap that is either too tight, or too loose.

Too tight and you choke your wick, and get a nasty burnt taste when it dries out.

Too loose, and you have a portion of the wire that isn't making good contact with the wick, so it doesn't get adequate juice and burns, again causing nasty flavors.

The coil should be tight enough to hold the wick firmly in place, but loose enough that you can still move the wick if you really try. Before I used ekowool I used standard 3mm silica doubled over. I would wrap my coil on a little stainless rod I have, place it into the dripper, remove the rod, and feed the wick in through the coil. I would use a piece of scrap wire, secure it to the bend in the silica, feed the wire through the coil, then use the wire to pull the silica through all the way. Using this method the coil was solid and snug on the wick, but if I held the coil I could still pull the wick out with a little effort. That always seemed to be the perfect spot between too tight and too loose.

I'd just suggest wrapping a new coil. Wick and wire is really cheap, and the more you build, the better you get. It's also easier in some cases to start fresh instead of trying to deal with a failed experiment.

 

[gotalotgoingon]

Try cotton. Simple but most effective. I have 5 Igo-L's, yes I like them that much. All of them use cotton wicks. The one I am currently vaping on is a 1.4 micro coil with a cotton wick at 12 watts on a Vamo v2. Air flow is important so make sure the air hole is aligned with the coil like previously noted. Also you may want to try and drill out the air hole to 1.5mm from the stock 1mm. The draw will be more airy but the performance will be a lot better with more air going over the coil.

 

[jdg]

Try cotton. Simple but most effective. I have 5 Igo-L's, yes I like them that much. All of them use cotton wicks. The one I am currently vaping on is a 1.4 micro coil with a cotton wick at 12 watts on a Vamo v2. Air flow is important so make sure the air hole is aligned with the coil like previously noted. Also you may want to try and drill out the air hole to 1.5mm from the stock 1mm. The draw will be more airy but the performance will be a lot better with more air going over the coil.

I've seen this recommended a lot, but it's going to be difficult for me. I already find the draw to be quite airy, but I've been using 510s and 306s for so long.

 

[jdg]

Update: I rewicked with the short wick that came with the IGO. It appeared to be the same material, but thicker. Thrasher, I took your advice and used a paperclip when winding to give the wick some room to expand. Flavor is awesome! Now it's the throat hit and lung hit that's killing me.. along with a marked reduction in vapor production, which I found odd. These things take some playing with, I have gathered. Will probably update with progress along the way.

Edit: I'm liking this a lot actually. The throat hit is still a little strong, but it seems to be breaking in nicely. Could the increased throat hit and perceived loss of vapor have to do with the Dekand juice I'm using? As I understand, it's 100% PG.

 

[Thrasher]

i found with the igo it takes some fiddling to get the coil and airhole lined up just right. i think the air hole is just a tad too low and had to kinda lower the coil just a hair. its one of the resons i gave up on it. but keep messing with it and adjusting things a bit and you should find the sweet spot.
i tossed the wick that came with it so im no help there, i like fatty wicks.