Should I go rebuildable?

[KenD]

Hey, Timmy. Thanks for the tip. I checked out the Aromamizer and I gotta say, it does look great. I was initially concerned about dropping a $55 RDTA, but it looks like replacement glass is only about $2 a pop, so assuming a broken glass tank would be the usual penalty for dropping it, I could wind up spending less money going forward than I do replacing my T3S's when I break them.

I think that atomizer is considerably over my head and I'm likely biting off more than I can chew, but I've been curious about higher-end atomizers for a long time, so I went ahead and ordered one. No clue if my 40W Coolfire 4 battery will drive it, but hopefully it'll be enough to give me a sense of what that class of atty brings to the table.

So... I now have the Aromamizer Supreme on order, plus two Kayfun Lite+ V2 clones (based on other members' suggestions) and another member has offered to give me some off-list help rebuilding my Kanger coils, all of which should give me a much broader sense of which direction I want to go in the future.

Prepare yourself for possibly needing a more powerful mod for the Aromamizer. I run my Aromamizer v1 clones at around 80w. Depends on your build of course, but they can definitely handle more than 40w. You will use a lot more liquid than you're used to (a good time to start making your own liquid - fun, and easier than coil building). As I think I said before, it would be a really, really good idea to decrease your nicotine level for the liquid you use in the Aromamizer.

Sent from my M7_PLUS using Tapatalk

 

[edyle]

I've been vaping for three years or so and have always used pretty low end gear, i.e. Eleaf 40W iStick with a Kanger T3S non-rebuildable clearomizer. I vape as a cigarette substitute (kicked a 40-year tobacco habit with vapor), so I'm strictly a mouth-to-lung vaper and have always been satisfied with vaping as long as I got decent vapor, an easy draw and a good throat hit.

With the clearomizer I'm using, though, after about a week on one of the little replaceable 1.8-ohm coil units, the atomizer starts getting harder to draw and the amount of vapor begins to diminish, so I've been wondering if a more sophisticated tank (I don't drip) with a rebuildable coil would improve my vaping experience, but I have no idea how much hassle I'd be getting into with a rebuildable.

Assuming I could learn to build a working assembly (I assume "building" means wrapping new coils and replacing wicks...?), how long does a build last before it needs to be done again? How long does it take to do a rebuild? What other maintenance and upkeep chores am I looking at with a rebuildable? How 'bout battery life? Is a higher-end tank, maybe sub-ohm, with a single or dual coil going to deplete my battery a lot faster than the little off-the-shelf clearomizer I'm using? What kind of ongoing costs am I looking at with a rebuildable setup?

Finally, what do I gain with a rebuildable, or even a higher-end non-rebuildable tank, keeping in mind that my current low-end setup is adequately satisfying with a clean $4.00 tank and a new $1.00 coil.

If you are happy with your t3s, you should try out rewicking.
I used to put in a rewicked coil every two days back when I used to use protanks.
Not worth recoiling though, unless you are desperate; just dryburn and rewick a few coils once a week and swap out a fresh coil every few days.

1: how long does a build last:
Thicker wire lasts longer; but you still have to dryburn/rewick.
I dryburn/rewick twice a week and the same coil lasts for months; 28 gauge coil.
But thicker wire needs more power and guzzles more juice.

2: Will a 'sub-ohm' setup deplete you battery a lot faster than the little clearo you are using: Yes.

3: what do you get with a rebuildable :
If you get yourself a simple steel rda, you get a virtually indestructible piece of metal with not much that can go wrong:

 

[Squidward]

Prepare yourself for possibly needing a more powerful mod for the Aromamizer. I run my Aromamizer v1 clones at around 80w. Depends on your build of course, but they can definitely handle more than 40w. You will use a lot more liquid than you're used to (a good time to start making your own liquid - fun, and easier than coil building). As I think I said before, it would be a really, really good idea to decrease your nicotine level for the liquid you use in the Aromamizer.

I'm at 6% nicotine now and really don't care if I have any at all, as long as I still get a throat hit, but I'll try my 6% with the Aromamizer. I started at 32% so I can probably tolerate a higher nicotine content. Good thought on making my own liquid. I've only found one local shop whose liquid doesn't suck so I've been playing it safe with them since I started vaping, but one of my sons is mixing his own and his mix tastes fine, so I may have to query him about what he's doing. I'd be kind of okay upping my mod, but haven't found found a battery or box mod yet that didn't crater after half a year, so I'm hesitant to get into anything much more expensive than the $40 40W battery I'm using now, since I wind up having to throw the darned things away after a few months.

If you are happy with your t3s, you should try out rewicking.
I used to put in a rewicked coil every two days back when I used to use protanks.
Not worth recoiling though, unless you are desperate; just dryburn and rewick a few coils once a week and swap out a fresh coil every few days.

1: how long does a build last:
Thicker wire lasts longer; but you still have to dryburn/rewick.
I dryburn/rewick twice a week and the same coil lasts for months; 28 gauge coil.
But thicker wire needs more power and guzzles more juice.

2: Will a 'sub-ohm' setup deplete you battery a lot faster than the little clearo you are using: Yes.

3: what do you get with a rebuildable :
If you get yourself a simple steel rda, you get a virtually indestructible piece of metal with not much that can go wrong:

Great info, thank you! I have two SS Kayfun clones on order, so I imagine I'll be unintentionally drop-testing one of those guys before too long.

 

[edyle]

....
Great info, thank you! I have two SS Kayfun clones on order, so I imagine I'll be unintentionally drop-testing one of those guys before too long.

here's what I mean by virtually indestructible:

with something like that, there's nothing to break; the kind of thing that can go wrong is like if you lose one of the screws.

 

[Scy123]

I think that atomizer is considerably over my head and I'm likely biting off more than I can chew, but I've been curious about higher-end atomizers for a long time, so I went ahead and ordered one.

I just got it and it is my new favorite rta. Might as well not of even bought the other ones as I can see this being my new all day vape.

 

[Elchin]

without offence but isn't drippers as* pain? i have one dripper ehpro nixon v 2 and used for 3 days , some times even forget to drip and hit dry's. there is also geekvape avocado and i find its design very innovativ and usefull but dont own it.

 

[Foggy Road]

without offence but isn't drippers as* pain? i have one dripper ehpro nixon v 2 and used for 3 days , some times even forget to drip and hit dry's. there is also geekvape avocado and i find its design very innovativ and usefull but dont own it.

I can't comment on *real* drippers. But I do enjoy my little $2 mini dripper when I'm in the mood. I've learned to notice the change coming just before a dry hit and drip again before it happens. I stick with K.I.S.S. philosophy. When simple works why go seeking ways to complicate things.

 

[Elchin]

I can't comment on *real* drippers. But I do enjoy my little $2 mini dripper when I'm in the mood. I've learned to notice the change coming just before a dry hit and drip again before it happens. I stick with K.I.S.S. philosophy. When simple works why go seeking ways to complicate things.

you are happy man bro, perhaps i always use hard ways

 

[mcclintock]

I'm at 6% nicotine now and really don't care if I have any at all, as long as I still get a throat hit, but I'll try my 6% with the Aromamizer. I started at 32% so I can probably tolerate a higher nicotine content. Good thought on making my own liquid. I've only found one local shop whose liquid doesn't suck so I've been playing it safe with them since I started vaping, but one of my sons is mixing his own and his mix tastes fine, so I may have to query him about what he's doing. I'd be kind of okay upping my mod, but haven't found found a battery or box mod yet that didn't crater after half a year, so I'm hesitant to get into anything much more expensive than the $40 40W battery I'm using now, since I wind up having to throw the darned things away after a few months.



Great info, thank you! I have two SS Kayfun clones on order, so I imagine I'll be unintentionally drop-testing one of those guys before too long.

6 mg/ml, not 6%. Close to 0.6% (divide by 10.14). If you see juice that's "2.4" almost surely that's percent when you look carefully, i.e. strong.

As to dripping, yes there is some work to it, but I like the flavor adventure it allows. It's also easier to enjoy DIY juice because you can adjust flavor on the fly, and combine simple flavors.

As to the Aromatizer, I'm sure there's some that would say you're not giving it a chance at only 40 watts, maybe so but if you're not interested in high power, then it can be made good with less or it really isn't any good for you.

 

[Lucas Rong]

You can go rebuildable but the thing is it is a time consuming process. Well, most people enjoy rebuilding because they like it including me. Rebuildables are a totally different experience, depending on type of rda you get, you can get huge clouds with combination of flavor. (petri rda) And it is cheaper to rebuild than to buy new coils. It is a completely different world. But honestly for someone who is trying to stay off cigs, your tank does a pretty good job. I would look into rebuildable tanks because you get the convenience of a tank and dabble into the rebuilding world. It is definitely a learning process but you might enjoy it. Good luck!

 

[wheelie]

I've been vaping for three years or so and have always used pretty low end gear, i.e. Eleaf 40W iStick with a Kanger T3S non-rebuildable clearomizer. I vape as a cigarette substitute (kicked a 40-year tobacco habit with vapor), so I'm strictly a mouth-to-lung vaper and have always been satisfied with vaping as long as I got decent vapor, an easy draw and a good throat hit.

With the clearomizer I'm using, though, after about a week on one of the little replaceable 1.8-ohm coil units, the atomizer starts getting harder to draw and the amount of vapor begins to diminish, so I've been wondering if a more sophisticated tank (I don't drip) with a rebuildable coil would improve my vaping experience, but I have no idea how much hassle I'd be getting into with a rebuildable.

Assuming I could learn to build a working assembly (I assume "building" means wrapping new coils and replacing wicks...?), how long does a build last before it needs to be done again? How long does it take to do a rebuild? What other maintenance and upkeep chores am I looking at with a rebuildable? How 'bout battery life? Is a higher-end tank, maybe sub-ohm, with a single or dual coil going to deplete my battery a lot faster than the little off-the-shelf clearomizer I'm using? What kind of ongoing costs am I looking at with a rebuildable setup?

Finally, what do I gain with a rebuildable, or even a higher-end non-rebuildable tank, keeping in mind that my current low-end setup is adequately satisfying with a clean $4.00 tank and a new $1.00 coil.

Defiantly get a Kayfun 3.1 or Kayfun Lite V2. They can be found under $10 for clones which they are all good. You can keep on going with mouth to lung hits. Change the coil perhaps once a month or more but change cotton every couple days. CHEERS!

 

[Squidward]

6 mg/ml, not 6%. Close to 0.6% (divide by 10.14). If you see juice that's "2.4" almost surely that's percent when you look carefully, i.e. strong.

As to dripping, yes there is some work to it, but I like the flavor adventure it allows. It's also easier to enjoy DIY juice because you can adjust flavor on the fly, and combine simple flavors.

As to the Aromatizer, I'm sure there's some that would say you're not giving it a chance at only 40 watts, maybe so but if you're not interested in high power, then it can be made good with less or it really isn't any good for you.

You're right about the nicotine content, of course. Senior moment, I suppose.

Re: dripping - I've just never been interested in going to that much trouble to vape. Flavor hasn't really entered into the equation for me. Either the little throwaway tanks I've been using don't produce enough flavor to taste, or 40 years of smoking have decimated my taste buds to the point where the only way I can taste an e-liquid is to squirt some on my tongue. The Kayfun and/or Aromatizer tanks I have on order might produce enough flavor for me to taste, but I'm not holding my breath.

Re: Aromatizer with my 40W mod - I'll just have to give it a try, but I am researching higher-power mods, just in case.

 

[Scy123]

Re: Aromatizer with my 40W mod - I'll just have to give it a try, but I am researching higher-power mods, just in case.

Oh did not realize you have a 40w mod. Will defiantly need more power. I vape it at 65 for mouth to lung hits and 110w for direct lung hits.

 

[Foggy Road]

You're right about the nicotine content, of course. Senior moment, I suppose.

Re: dripping - I've just never been interested in going to that much trouble to vape. Flavor hasn't really entered into the equation for me. Either the little throwaway tanks I've been using don't produce enough flavor to taste, or 40 years of smoking have decimated my taste buds to the point where the only way I can taste an e-liquid is to squirt some on my tongue. The Kayfun and/or Aromatizer tanks I have on order might produce enough flavor for me to taste, but I'm not holding my breath.

Re: Aromatizer with my 40W mod - I'll just have to give it a try, but I am researching higher-power mods, just in case.

Oh my, I'm an ex 2 PAD for 45 years and I seriously doubt vaping would have worked for me if not for the myriad of flavors.

One old codger to another I just want share this. I've had my Evods airflow so jacked up at one point that I started lung hitting them. It just seemed to happen with the increased airflow. Anyway after a little while doing lung hits the VG started getting to me. I assume I was experiencing what they call *heavy lung* or chest. It started feeling almost as bad as the time I had to have nearly a liter of fluid drained from my left lung. *Way before I ever vaped.* That backed me down to MTL real quick. Just a heads up about something you may or may not encounter as you progress.


About those various wick samples I sent. I have yet to try the Rayon or cotton yarn myself. The KGD is great. I've had the cotton cheesecloth in my ProTanks now for about a week and it's doing great. I keep 4 tanks in rotation. So no single tank seems near ready for rewick yet. No leak issues, just an occasional hint of a gurgle if i leave one tank standing verticle for awhile, goes away after 1st hit. I didn't do the 30 strand flavor wick as instructed in the link posted previously, Just the 15 doubled over thru the coil. My experience with flavor wick is that they swell or get drawn towards the chimney and interrupt air flow exactly as you describe in your OP.

Wishing you well in your new experiences!

 

[sofarsogood]

You can go rebuildable but the thing is it is a time consuming process.

It doesn't have to be. My coils last for weeks, may be indefinitely. In the past that was't true. My experience is too much flavoring and sweetners are mostly responsible for gunking up coils. I use 1% flavoring with no sweetners. It tastes fine. My coils turn black but gunk is insignicant. I use an rda and like to rewick every few days. That takes less than 5 minutes. I make 100 ml's of liquid every 2 weeks. That takes 20 minutes. I use a 22mm x 12mm silicone slip ring around the barrel to seal the air supply for pocket carry. Redripping takes 10 seconds every 1-2 hours.

I believe most life long vapers will eventually be doing DIY, rebuilding and using rda's.

 

[Lucas Rong]

It doesn't have to be. My coils last for weeks, may be indefinitely. In the past that was't true. My experience is too much flavoring and sweetners are mostly responsible for gunking up coils. I use 1% flavoring with no sweetners. It tastes fine. My coils turn black but gunk is insignicant. I use an rda and like to rewick every few days. That takes less than 5 minutes. I make 100 ml's of liquid every 2 weeks. That takes 20 minutes. I use a 22mm x 12mm silicone slip ring around the barrel to seal the air supply for pocket carry. Redripping takes 10 seconds every 1-2 hours.

I believe most life long vapers will eventually be doing DIY, rebuilding and using rda's.

I should've specified. I meant when you get really serious into rebuilding. fraples and aliens and all that. I didn't say it as a bad thing necessarily. In fact most people enjoy this process.

 

[f1vefour]

The Kayfun and/or Aromatizer tanks I have on order might produce enough flavor for me to taste, but I'm not holding my breath.

Re: Aromatizer with my 40W mod - I'll just have to give it a try, but I am researching higher-power mods, just in case.

You will be surprised by the increase in flavor.

Innokin is about to release a 100 watt Cool Fire 4, it can be pre-ordered now for a little over $40. It would be the perfect device to run the aromizer, and you would have the old CF4 to use for your new Kayfun.

 

[f1vefour]

About those various wick samples I sent. I have yet to try the Rayon or cotton yarn myself. The KGD is great.

Cotton yarn works for protank style coils but it isn't very good.

KGD is great (as far as cotton goes) but rayon is a large step above.

 

[mcclintock]

You're right about the nicotine content, of course. Senior moment, I suppose.

Re: dripping - I've just never been interested in going to that much trouble to vape. Flavor hasn't really entered into the equation for me. Either the little throwaway tanks I've been using don't produce enough flavor to taste, or 40 years of smoking have decimated my taste buds to the point where the only way I can taste an e-liquid is to squirt some on my tongue. The Kayfun and/or Aromatizer tanks I have on order might produce enough flavor for me to taste, but I'm not holding my breath.

Re: Aromatizer with my 40W mod - I'll just have to give it a try, but I am researching higher-power mods, just in case.

I find it odd that dripping is seen as too much trouble. Some time it is trouble, but for example sitting around watching TV it's just enough activity.

Vaping has been about flavor and sensation for me ever since I first tried refilling a disposable ecig with mint chocolate. Some of my taste came back and now I use and taste some very subtle blends. I mostly used $2 EVOD tanks and frankly I had trouble finding anything else that came close for flavor, they can be amazing and there's still tobacco flavors I love through them and don't like through anything else. "Better" devices do have an advantage of "cleaner" flavor but have to make considerably more vapor and be relatively good on the flavor scale to have a chance to compete. (I don't know how the T3S compares with the EVOD, but I know that the mini Protank 2 also uses the exact same coils and yet is highly different in result, believe it or not. Magic???)

Oh did not realize you have a 40w mod. Will defiantly need more power. I vape it at 65 for mouth to lung hits and 110w for direct lung hits.

Never heard of 65W MTL hits, I direct lung at 15W. Must have some huge coil(s) barely working at 65W. It may be highly nonideal for that tank, but I'm sure you don't have to build it like that.

 

[Scy123]

Never heard of 65W MTL hits, I direct lung at 15W. Must have some huge coil(s) barely working at 65W. It may be highly nonideal for that tank, but I'm sure you don't have to build it like that.

Not really huge at all. The coils are dual 28g spaced 3.5mm 10 wrap ss316L on the aromamizer supreme (the tank the op bought and which I was commenting about). They work very well at 65w mtl and even better at 110w lung hits. This is actually on the smaller scale as far as coils go.