The Erlkönigin : PICTORIAL

[wrath186]

Any problems with leaking?

I will say that I haven't gotten the wicking down correctly yet. I've still been having problems with dry hits and leaking, but it's been the wicking everytime. I thought I had it down this past time, but about half way through a tank BAM!! Leaking all over the place. Pulled the atty apart and found that one of the tails was up against the chimney dome.

It's not as forgiving on wicking as say a kayfun or Fogger and honestly I would have given up on it by now if the flavor weren't so damn good. Also, I'm a stubborn bas.....d and wish to master the skill.

 

[Cloud Hunter]

Also, just saw Phils review of it. He said his Kayfuns are producing better flavor tha the Erl.
How is it that you guys are over the moon with it compared to the kayfuns? Is it really better? The airflow controller looks a bit crappy to me tbh

Sptz, I usually like Phils reviews a lot and appreciate his approach to vape hardware testing as well as liquid testing. But this time, while watching the Erli review I was really surprised, that such an experienced vaper like Phil can be so wrong. I do solemnly swear that the Erli beats all my Kayfuns (Klite+, R91, and some FT clones) with ease when it comes to flavour production. You can get even more vapour out of the Erli if your wicking is optimal.

Rem.: I always use the same wicking material on all my RTA's and end up within the same resistance range of 1.1 to 1.4 Ohms.

I agree, the Erli's Delrin-AFC concept is a bit quirky...but I remove it anyway so that doesn't bother me at all.

 

[SheerLuckHolmes]

I will say that I haven't gotten the wicking down correctly yet. I've still been having problems with dry hits and leaking, but it's been the wicking everytime. I thought I had it down this past time, but about half way through a tank BAM!! Leaking all over the place. Pulled the atty apart and found that one of the tails was up against the chimney dome.

It's not as forgiving on wicking as say a Kayfun or Fogger and honestly I would have given up on it by now if the flavor weren't so damn good. Also, I'm a stubborn bas.....d and wish to master the skill.

In total agreement with you, wrath186. Several times I have thought about throwing my 'Bob' into a drawer, but for the $ I paid and the flavor I have stuck with it. My current build is my best and very VERY pleasing. I cut the wicks leading down the channels the thinnest I have ever dared. Brilliant performance 2 thirds of the way through a tank. As it juice level gets very shallow, leakage! But the first two thirds are so worth it!!!!

Next build will bring more experimentation. My next attempt will keep the same thin wicks at the bottom of the channels, but I'll try more thickness half way up the channels and see how that effects the lowest level of juice and hopefully stop the leaking at the end.

But then this is the joy of the hobbyist within me. I just wouldn't want to spend my free time in any other way.

 

[XBarbarian]

Sptz - you've seen my posts now that I have it. I'm just another enthusiast like you. if it sucked, I would post that promptly. I have no skin in the game, other than the pursuit of joyful vapes! seriously. I dont believe anyone on this thread is a paid spokesperson or anything.

I like Phil too.. my fav really. but he needed guidance I guess, didn't get it.. so.. we got the reveiw we got.

I on the other hand, had qorax's kick .... pictorial, and Cloud Hunters hi res pics.. my Erl worked fabby first build. no leaks anything. Ive refilled it 4 times now. nothing, but awesome sauce.

but Ill say this: the vape world is full of toyz now. tons of innovations. I am almost at a place where I believe users should follow their intuition! I mean.. Ive been lucky, in that I have only bought stuff that I was "moved" to.. hard to explain, but Im beng serious. there is something about being led to certain stuff, not so mucvh to other stuff. I have 100% positive experiences with the few high end things I have.
1) Vapor Shark rDNA
2) Russian 91%
3) REO Grand sl/lp
4) Erlkonigin

even the same items, I see others have struggled with. makes me sad.. because I've been pretty lucky. really hard to elaborate, but I have practiced meditation, being still, learning to trust my gut. If you have doubts about the Erl.. i highly suggest reading all the various threads on ECF about various stuff.. and follow your gut!

regarding the wicking... if my bundle of rayon had 1000 strands in it in the coil ( which because rayon doesnt poof, I packed fairly tight ), the tails I actually let drip down the channels? like 10 strands. all the bulk was trimmed at the top at the edge of the shoulders.

 

[Sptz]

Sptz - you've seen my posts now that I have it. I'm just another enthusiast like you. if it sucked, I would post that promptly. I have no skin in the game, other than the pursuit of joyful vapes! seriously. I dont believe anyone on this thread is a paid spokesperson or anything.

I like Phil too.. my fav really. but he needed guidance I guess, didn't get it.. so.. we got the reveiw we got.

I on the other hand, had qorax's kick .... pictorial, and Cloud Hunters hi res pics.. my Erl worked fabby first build. no leaks anything. Ive refilled it 4 times now. nothing, but awesome sauce.

but Ill say this: the vape world is full of toyz now. tons of innovations. I am almost at a place where I believe users should follow their intuition! I mean.. Ive been lucky, in that I have only bought stuff that I was "moved" to.. hard to explain, but Im beng serious. there is something about being led to certain stuff, not so mucvh to other stuff. I have 100% positive experiences with the few high end things I have.
1) Vapor Shark rDNA
2) Russian 91%
3) REO Grand sl/lp
4) Erlkonigin

even the same items, I see others have struggled with. makes me sad.. because I've been pretty lucky. really hard to elaborate, but I have practiced meditation, being still, learning to trust my gut. If you have doubts about the Erl.. i highly suggest reading all the various threads on ECF about various stuff.. and follow your gut!

regarding the wicking... if my bundle of rayon had 1000 strands in it in the coil ( which because rayon doesnt poof, I packed fairly tight ), the tails I actually let drip down the channels? like 10 strands. all the bulk was trimmed at the top at the edge of the shoulders.

Thank you for your post mate. Really appreciate it. My only gripe at the moment with it is the price really. I think it's pretty outrageous for not even coming with spare parts or glass tanks or whatever.

Apart from that, looks are right up my alley.

One quick question, twisted said, first time filling it you need to tighten the AFC to the max, is that true?

 

[Newportlocal]

I received my Erlkonigin and extra 22mm stainless tank this morning. I will be building it today. Can't wait to start enjoying it.

 

[XBarbarian]

he only meant while you pour.. once you fill, re open it to liking. but I haven't done that since the first fill. every fill since.. just left it on the VS, opened the easily opened top, filled it, closed it, used it..
yes.. it is expensive. yes, they should add parts for that price. but qorax has a post way back in this thread, proving it isnt as bad as others. authentic kayfuns from svoemesto arent cheap either.. and they arent new.. this just released... I would do the same...

 

[XBarbarian]

grats newportlocal!! make sure you use Cloud Hunter's hi res pics! and see my post above!

regarding the wicking... if my bundle of rayon had 1000 strands in it in the coil ( which because rayon doesnt poof, I packed fairly tight ), the tails I actually let drip down the channels? like 10 strands. all the bulk was trimmed at the top at the edge of the shoulders.

 

[vapdivrr]

Also, just saw Phils review of it. He said his Kayfuns are producing better flavor tha the Erl.
How is it that you guys are over the moon with it compared to the kayfuns? Is it really better? The airflow controller looks a bit crappy to me tbh

Have had the erlk for maybe a month now and is definitely my favorite atty. I own 4 kayfuns, 2 aquas, and a couple foggers. Imho, when set up correctly, there are differences in each atty but I'm not to sure if someone blind folded me and all the attys had the same juice in them, that I could really say, "hey that's the kayfun, or that's the aqua". Maybe by the draw, or by the sound I could, but for pure flavor and vapor, I don't think I could. Maybe it's my particular tastes buds not as good as others but I only can tell minor differences in flavor from one of those tanks to the other. I like each of those tanks for different reasons like the foggers open draw, I like the erlk for juice capacity and light weight, I like the aqua for warmth and how it looks on the origen mod, and I like the kayfuns because of the consistency they have given me in the past year and a half. But I wouldn't say that when I vape one over the other, I say Wow this one blows the doors over the others. It's the same for me with wicking materials, I use sterile cotton, kgd, and rayon and tbh, there again I think when done just right, the flavors are pretty close. I often hear people saying that rayon is 100x's better then cotton or vis versa, I don't see that. Honestly I'm sure it's just my particular taste, but for me, it's not like there is night and day differences in these hi end tanks.

 

[Cloud Hunter]

...Brilliant performance 2 thirds of the way through a tank. As it juice level gets very shallow, leakage! But the first two thirds are so worth it!!!!

There's a trick for keeping the Erli's performance till she's nearly dry. In the picture below I marked the important buid details and you'll see why:

Next build will bring more experimentation. My next attempt will keep the same thin wicks at the bottom of the channels, but I'll try more thickness half way up the channels and see how that effects the lowest level of juice and hopefully stop the leaking at the end.

With the above method, you won't need to thicken your wick inside the channel. Lay the "buffer-wick" (which runs through the coil) on top of the channels openings inside the dome and try to find the optimal size for it in a way, that the lateral side of the buffer-wick also touches the inside wall of the dome (see red markings). There you have your "sealing"! OK, it doesn't seal the Erli for all times, but it gives you way much more time before too much liquid enters the dome. If you have too much of this buffer-wick you will fail because when screwing down the dome, you would cause an offset (due to friction) of the buffer-wick and that results in "opening" the juice channels again. That's the whole trick. OMG. I hope you can follow my explanation....sorry if that doesn't make sense^^ English isn't my mother language.

Cheers,
C H

EDIT: Oh, I forgot to mention, that with this setup you won't have to close the AFC while refilling! You have enough time to refill before the Erli gets flooded ;-)

 

[vapdivrr]

There's a trick for keeping the Erli's performance till she's nearly dry. In the picture below I marked the important buid details and you'll see why:

With the above method, you won't need to thicken your wick inside the channel. Lay the "buffer-wick" (which runs through the coil) on top of the channel opening inside the dome and try to find the optimal size for it in a way, that the lateral buffer-wick also touches the inside wall of the dome (see red markings). There you have your "sealing"! OK, it doesn't seal the Erli for all times, but it gives you way much more time before too much liquid enters the dome. If you have too much of this buffer-wick you will fail because when screwing down the dome, you would cause an offset of the buffer-wick and that results in "opening" the juice channels again. That's the whole trick. OMG. I hope you can follow my explanation....sorry if that doesn't make sense^^ English isn't my mother language.

Cheers,
C H

EDIT: Oh, I forgot to mention, that with this setup you won't have to close the AFC while refilling! You have enough time to refill before the Erli gets flooded ;-)

Excellent pics!

 

[Newportlocal]

There's a trick for keeping the Erli's performance till she's nearly dry. In the picture below I marked the important buid details and you'll see why:

With the above method, you won't need to thicken your wick inside the channel. Lay the "buffer-wick" (which runs through the coil) on top of the channels openings inside the dome and try to find the optimal size for it in a way, that the lateral side of the buffer-wick also touches the inside wall of the dome (see red markings). There you have your "sealing"! OK, it doesn't seal the Erli for all times, but it gives you way much more time before too much liquid enters the dome. If you have too much of this buffer-wick you will fail because when screwing down the dome, you would cause an offset (due to friction) of the buffer-wick and that results in "opening" the juice channels again. That's the whole trick. OMG. I hope you can follow my explanation....sorry if that doesn't make sense^^ English isn't my mother language.

Cheers,
C H

EDIT: Oh, I forgot to mention, that with this setup you won't have to close the AFC while refilling! You have enough time to refill before the Erli gets flooded ;-)

Yet, another really great post.

 

[XBarbarian]

thank you Cloud Hunter - Denke! <3

 

[Cloud Hunter]

Thank you guys for your appreciation!

That build is also the reason why veeery little cotton is sufficient in the channels. Hmm...maybe with this method you wouldn't even need cotton in the channels...?? Nah, forget it, never change a winning team, ey? ;-)

 

[qorax]

There's a trick for keeping the Erli's performance till she's nearly dry. In the picture below I marked the important buid details and you'll see why:



With the above method, you won't need to thicken your wick inside the channel. Lay the "buffer-wick" (which runs through the coil) on top of the channels openings inside the dome and try to find the optimal size for it in a way, that the lateral side of the buffer-wick also touches the inside wall of the dome (see red markings). There you have your "sealing"! OK, it doesn't seal the Erli for all times, but it gives you way much more time before too much liquid enters the dome. If you have too much of this buffer-wick you will fail because when screwing down the dome, you would cause an offset (due to friction) of the buffer-wick and that results in "opening" the juice channels again. That's the whole trick. OMG. I hope you can follow my explanation....sorry if that doesn't make sense^^ English isn't my mother language.

Cheers,
C H

EDIT: Oh, I forgot to mention, that with this setup you won't have to close the AFC while refilling! You have enough time to refill before the Erli gets flooded ;-)

Beautifully explained Hunter, Two Thumbs Up!

 

[jaxgator]

Excellent pics!

Yet, another really great post.

thank you Cloud Hunter - Denke! <3

Beautifully explained Hunter, Two Thumbs Up!

I wholeheartedly agree with these posters. Superb explanation with an great graphic to boot. Thanks a lot CH!

 

[VBdev]

He Who hunts Clouds, that made an AhhHaa moment for me. Thank you. I have been one of the ones that struggled on filling. If I had a layer of juice in there and was topping off, no issue, but if I vaped it way down to next to no juice I'd get flooding if I didn't close the AFC. Tanks almost empty so I will rewick tonight sometime with this in mind. I wasn't real concious before when thinning the wick and generally cut it pretty close to the coil.

As far as those struggling on building...I built my very first coil on the elf queen. The learning curve was very reasonable IMO, and with all the tips in the thread now I don't see how it could be frustratingly slow to get it wicked right...Now if I picked up a kayfun I'd prolly be scratching my head though. I have a dripper too but that build is straight forward but leaves enough room for tinkering with different approaches. Is the expectation that the first build should work perfect? I think the delicate balancing act of the physics involved on any of the reverse pressure style tank systems pretty much necessitates some builder trial and error learning process. I'm not very experienced though so??? I know I can build it quickly and with confidence today. Have no problem doing a from scratch build and walking out the door for the day knowing its good to go.

 

[vapdivrr]

To a previous question that was posted before about why Phil didn't seem to think as highly about the erlk then most of us do, well I really believe the reason is that he never had the proper build in it. Although i personally don't think there is a major difference, i do think the erlk produces a slight better flavor and vapor. It also has better capacity and airflow while being alot lighter. Add those all up and imo, it's a better tank. I do think the erlk is very build specific and if not done just right, the performance can suffer. I have tried a bunch of different builds before finding the optimal set up and although some of those worked ok, they weren't perfect. I watched a bunch of videos on utube about the erlk including basardos and looking at their builds and knowing what I know now, tbh I don't think they had the erlk even close to what it should of been. Not only phils build but also todds, and a few others. I would venture to say if they did have the right build in their erlks, they would say what we all are saying

 

[qorax]

To a previous question that was posted before about why Phil didn't seem to think as highly about the erlk then most of us do, well I really believe the reason is that he never had the proper build in it. Although i personally don't think there is a major difference, i do think the erlk produces a slight better flavor and vapor. It also has better capacity and airflow while being alot lighter. Add those all up and imo, it's a better tank. I do think the erlk is very build specific and if not done just right, the performance can suffer. I have tried a bunch of different builds before finding the optimal set up and although some of those worked ok, they weren't perfect. I watched a bunch of videos on utube about the erlk including basardos and looking at their builds and knowing what I know now, tbh I don't think they had the erlk even close to what it should of been. Not only phils build but also todds, and a few others. I would venture to say if they did have the right build in their erlks, they would say what we all are saying

^That - Bingo! It was unfortunate that both the [only]two English video reviewers of the Erlk didn't do their homework well. That frustrated them - and so did that to their audience/viewers.

Twisted on the other hand studied it deeper - and thus had better luck! I had multiple exchanges with him and understood that he was genuinely keen to set it right the first time ~ which he pretty much did.

Now we wait for Suck.My.Mod do the same. We have been communicating back and forth for a while - and I know that he has already set it up with a few different builds.

 

[vapdivrr]

^That - Bingo! It was unfortunate that both the [only]two English video reviewers of the Erlk didn't do their homework well. That frustrated them - and so did that to their audience/viewers.

Twisted on the other hand studied it deeper - and thus had better luck! I had multiple exchanges with him and understood that he was genuinely keen to set it right the first time ~ which he pretty much did.

Now we wait for Suck.My.Mod do the same. We have been communicating back and forth for a while - and I know that he has already set it up with a few different builds.

Not that I have anywhere near the subscribers of those guys, I am going to do a video on the erlk next week for my subscribers and for here. Won't be focusing alot on the pieces and parts so much but more on the wicking