Old Kayfun Clones and a new TC mod.

[Credo]

It's been a while since I've been in the market for vaping gear. I'm not into chasing clouds, I just need a reliable and simple system that delivers nicotine and produces good flavor.

Back in 2015 or so I picked up a couple of nemisis clones, some Kayfun clones (V2 and Lites I think), and some Kicks and Crowns.

Over time I've lost or broken things and am down to one working setup.

So I've ordered a Joye Tech Cuboid 200 TC and a set of batteries, for no other reason than it was a cheap setup (why are low powered setups more expensive than a 200 watt mod and 2 sets of quality IMR 18650 batteries?). I think it's way overkill for how I've been vaping, but it cost less than the simpler, lower power mods so I decided to grab one to keep me vaping as I relearn my options.

Since I still have a couple of working Kayfun clones and plenty of 28 gauge Kanthal wire, from the 2015ish era: My first question is, "What's up with the Temperature Control these days? Do I need to change from the Kanthol type wire I've been running all these years?

I've been really content with 1.5 to 2 ohm micro-coils and cotton from 4 to 12 watts all this time. I assume I can keep this setup with the oversized 3 battery Cuboid, am I right? Can I expect good battery life (after all, I'll be carrying around 2 more cells)?

Any recommendations on better ways to do a Kayfun build to take advantage of the Temperature Control, or is it even worth the bother?

If I were to look into a proper modern RBT for a mod like this to play around with, what should I be looking at?

Thanks...

 

[Hawise]

Since I still have a couple of working Kayfun clones and plenty of 28 gauge Kanthal wire, from the 2015ish era: My first question is, "What's up with the Temperature Control these days? Do I need to change from the Kanthol type wire I've been running all these years?

Yes. TC uses changes in the coil's resistance to estimate temperature, and kanthal doesn't change as much as other metals so it doesn't work well in TC. As a result, mods don't tend to have TC kanthal settings - your Cuboid should have TC - Ni (Nickel 200), TC - Ti (Titanium) and TC - SS (stainless steel 316 L). A key point with TC is to make sure you've got the right setting for your coil type. SS 316L is pretty much the standard at this point, so that's probably what you'll want to go with.

I've been really content with 1.5 to 2 ohm micro-coils and cotton from 4 to 12 watts all this time. I assume I can keep this setup with the oversized 3 battery Cuboid, am I right? Can I expect good battery life (after all, I'll be carrying around 2 more cells)?

Definitely. Even the high-powered mods usually go right down to the bottom, so there's no problem there. With three cells, they'll last for ages.

Any recommendations on better ways to do a Kayfun build to take advantage of the Temperature Control, or is it even worth the bother?

I don't know how well your older Kayfuns will work with TC - perhaps someone with more experience there will stop by. I'm currently getting excellent performance from my Kayfun 5 and Kayfun Prime on TC. Tips for TC building:

• Use SS 316L - nickel's resistance is way too low to work well with a kayfun
• Your coils have to be below 1.5 ohm to work with TC (and that's on a Joyetech - some mods require < 1 ohm for TC). 1 ohm - 1.2 ohms might be a good target.
  
• Spaced coils work better with TC
• SS 316L has lower resistance than kanthal, so you may want to adjust your build. On the other hand, I've heard it suggested to build the same way you would with kanthal and use the temperature settings to get the same vape. You should probably make sure your resistance doesn't go too low if you do that with your older kayfuns. For those, you'll want to keep the resistance over an ohm. The newer kayfuns can go down to 0.5 ohms, but they don't work well below that.
• Make sure you lock in your resistance when the coil is cool.

If I were to look into a proper modern RBT for a mod like this to play around with, what should I be looking at?

I'm not familiar with RBT - is that an RTA (rebuildable tank atomizer)? If so, you might want to take a look at the latest kayfun - the Prime (or you might prefer to wait a few weeks for the clones to appear). If you like the older kayfuns the Kayfun 5 might not suit you as its airflow is a lot more open. It's really sitting somewhere between a true MTL and a restricted DTL. The Prime goes back to the older-style true MTL.

If you'd like to check out a higher-powered DTL tank, someone else will have to help you there.

Good luck!

 

[tokarev]

I use KFL+ v2 clones on my TC mods all the time. I vape in wattage mode about the same as you. I know SS wire is all the rage now, but I have never been able to build a decent coil with it myself (I'll keep trying though).

My favorite build on the KF is 6-7 wraps of 26g Ti (titanium) wire around a 2.5mm mandrel. It comes in around 0.4-0.5 ohms, which is fine in TC mode. I set my TC watts to around 20 or so and adjust the temp to taste.

In wattage mode you should stay above 1 ohm on a older KF to prevent melting the insulator. In TC mode it shouldn't matter as you control the temperature.

I've also tried Ni wire but it's too soft for me. I keep messing up the coil when I wick it.