4th day vaping, 2 cartos toasted: getting expensive!

[Azyre]

Day 4 of vaping. Day 2-4 have been using Boge LR 510 punched cartos in a plexi tank with my Vision spinner at 3.8v-4v. I have been vaping Tasty Vapors "Kretek" juice, which is a dark amber liquid. My cartos are lasting about 1.5 days with this juice, then stop working. This will get expensive fast: I love the Kretek and want to vape it everyday as a replacement for my clove cigs, but if I have to budget 2 cartos every 3 days it is going to be costly to wean myself off my analog cloves.

Does anyone have any carto suggestions so that I can squeeze out more use per carto? Should I try a different brand? Different resistance or voltage? I did invest in a glass tank as I had already read that this juice would crack most clearos and plastic tanks available. I've ordered a Vivi Nova as they are polypropylene so should work, but I will probably have to dedicate it to the kretek since it is unlikely I'll get all the flavor out of it when cleaning- but I'm afraid I'll burn it out in a day and a half like the cartos!

What do you think will be the best combo for me for all day vaping of kretek juice?

Thanks!

 

[JCJohn23]

I would recommend getting some standard res boges. The LR ones never seem to work as well as the SR ones for me personally. I always run standard res on my twist and usually hang around 4.4v. I have cartos run like that for a couple weeks before changing. Off the top of my head I don't know the pg/vg ratio on Tasty Vapors juice, it might be too thick and not wicking fast enough. Try an extra hole in the punched carto too. I use a dremmell and slot mine and I have been getting a lot more life out of them because they wick super fast. Pbusardo has a video on how to slot boge cartos.

 

[r77r7r]

You can find Boge's on here for less than a dollar. You can get your juice in a more PG mix to help things.

 

[WeMoov]

I'd try a Vivi Nova Tank and buy 5 replacement heads at 2.8ohms. I've been through a ton of set-ups and it's the best option IMO.

 

[Azyre]

The Kretek is 20%VG per TV's recommendation, the Boge's have 2 holes punched. I originally had trouble with the carto flooding, so I just repositioned the carto in the tank so part of the holes were covered and they vaped great. The work fantastic for most of the day, and decrease in performance until they stop producing any vapor at all.

You can find Boge's on here for less than a dollar.

Where?

I'll give the vivi a go, but I would prefer to use my nice pyrex tank. Thinking of trying the IKV carts- they've gotten pretty good reviews in other threads for those disappointed with the Boge in their tanks.

 

[Cknine]

Maybe you are covering too much of the holes and the carto is not wicking enough juice and that is why it's burning. I use Smoktech 1.7 ohm Pfcs from Mr. Eliquid. I set my pv to 3.9 V. You can get one, two or three holes. I honestly don't notice much difference between the three but if you are having flooding problems, try the one hole. They last me about 10 days.

 

[r77r7r]

Well, all else fails, how about going to their sub-forum on ECF here and asking ?

Tasty Vapor

 

[Azyre]

I've written to Tasty vapors for suggestions. I tried 2 other brand cartos, same thing happened. Tried a vivi nova and a kanger mt3 and after a half hour or so, getting a burnt taste at 3.7v. Change the wick and can go another half hour or so. This is aggravating, time consuming, and not cost effective. I haven't had any issues with vaping any other juice.

 

[T41CK]

This really sounds like a wicking problem. This has happened to me on stardust style clear carts and also the nova. I am using a complete RBA tank now and love if you need a hand on choosing one let me know. For the wicking problem(this is what it sounds like) you can always try adding DISTILLED water or Vodka to your e juice. For instance, I vape 100% VG and I have to do this or after several puffs I have to turn my device upside down to get the juice to wick at my coil(top coil tank). Adding vodka to my mixture I do not and have not ran into this problem.

Note: I only add about 3-4 drops of alcohol per 1ml of e-juice, shake well. Also I've heard people doing this and leaving for longer periods of time(with bigger batches of coarse) to let the PG/VG/Flavoring/nicotine fuse to the alcohol/water

Also r77r7rs' Idea would be much more convenient for someone. This method would not work for vendors that do not offer PG/VG mixing preferences

Hope this helps T41CK

 

[T41CK]

I've written to Tasty vapors for suggestions. I tried 2 other brand cartos, same thing happened. Tried a vivi nova and a kanger mt3 and after a half hour or so, getting a burnt taste at 3.7v. Change the wick and can go another half hour or so. This is aggravating, time consuming, and not cost effective. I haven't had any issues with vaping any other juice.

I have been vaping for over a year now and if you really get deep with this and suck down tons of juice, it will not be cost effective at all. Way worth it because I fell much better physically and mentally

 

[Scottinboca]

That's the problem I had with cartos. It get way too expensive. I know your a newb, but I suggest getting a re-buildable atty(RBA). It's not that difficult to do and it's extremely cheaper than cartos!

Day 4 of vaping. Day 2-4 have been using Boge LR 510 punched cartos in a plexi tank with my Vision spinner at 3.8v-4v. I have been vaping Tasty Vapors "Kretek" juice, which is a dark amber liquid. My cartos are lasting about 1.5 days with this juice, then stop working. This will get expensive fast: I love the Kretek and want to vape it everyday as a replacement for my clove cigs, but if I have to budget 2 cartos every 3 days it is going to be costly to wean myself off my analog cloves.

Does anyone have any carto suggestions so that I can squeeze out more use per carto? Should I try a different brand? Different resistance or voltage? I did invest in a glass tank as I had already read that this juice would crack most clearos and plastic tanks available. I've ordered a Vivi Nova as they are polypropylene so should work, but I will probably have to dedicate it to the kretek since it is unlikely I'll get all the flavor out of it when cleaning- but I'm afraid I'll burn it out in a day and a half like the cartos!

What do you think will be the best combo for me for all day vaping of kretek juice?

Thanks!

 

[GrannyGrump]

Cartomizer tanks and the vivi novas really have a learning curve. I decided to try the vivi nova and it tasted burnt. I was bound and determined to make it work and after it was broken in it works great. Problem I have is that I shouldnt have to suffer the burnt taste until I get to the good stuff. Real pain.

 

[markfm]

On filler-based cartos you need to do a good top priming, though not a complete fill from the top, to set up proper wicking.

I use Ikenvape cartos exclusively, very happy with their 801 fusions and their 510 platinums, and seen good reviews on their new 510 fusions. I run about 18 - 20 ml of eliquid through a carto before changing. I do my own hole punches, two decent sized holes on opposite sides of the carto, placed so that they are just above the lower cap of the tank when the carto is inserted.

My eliquids are typically moderately thin, 25% VG but the flavorings component also has some PGA in it. Darker/cloudier eliquids are known to sometimes be more problematic with cartos, nature of the beast.

I vape exclusively VV, generally prefer 2.5 ohms, though will go as low as 2 ohms for some atties. Real LR is generally wasted on VV; the original purpose of LR was to get higher power using non-VV devices.

 

[Azyre]

This really sounds like a wicking problem. This has happened to me on stardust style clear carts and also the nova. I am using a complete RBA tank now and love if you need a hand on choosing one let me know. For the wicking problem(this is what it sounds like) you can always try adding DISTILLED water or Vodka to your e juice. For instance, I vape 100% VG and I have to do this or after several puffs I have to turn my device upside down to get the juice to wick at my coil(top coil tank). Adding vodka to my mixture I do not and have not ran into this problem.

Note: I only add about 3-4 drops of alcohol per 1ml of e-juice, shake well. Also I've heard people doing this and leaving for longer periods of time(with bigger batches of coarse) to let the PG/VG/Flavoring/nicotine fuse to the alcohol/water

I think you may be right! I have replacement heads for the kanger. I pulled out a bit of the wick, and have been vaping nearly an hour with no burnt taste/wick. I could try a drip atomizer as well. I have one for tasting juice, but I should probably get another couple so I can dedicate one to the clove since that taste won't come out of anything.

I've looked at the RBA's, and have been considering giving that a try- they don't look that difficult and I have an ohm meter. I've bookmarked a couple that have polypro or pyrex tanks available as well as the stainless ones since I like clove and cinnamon so much.

If you have a particular recommendation for an RBA, please share!

I'll also give the vodka a try. I'm using it to clean my stuff now, may as well add a drop to the juice to see if it helps. My kretek juice is 20%VG so it's not too thick, but it is very dark and sticky.

 

[orbach]

If you like clove you may want to try Marcado from Johnson Creek. It's 100% VG but they must thin it somehow because it flows well. I only got my sample yesterday and I've only used it on the Shorty clearo's and it's vaping like a charm. I have 5 of these Shorty's trying out 5 juices and they are all working flawlessly. Each takes about 15-20 drops of juice and produce great vapor and taste plus they are cheap.

Note: Marcado is the first clove juice I've tried so I can't compare it against others but it's definitely clove.

 

[piedmontqc]

I too have had trouble using a carto in a tank. Either they flood or I get dry hits and a burned flavor. I've found that the pre-punched holes are too small and when I punch an extra hole I go too far. Today I thought I would just tape over the pre-punched hole and use a carto without the tank... works great, I get a nice cloud of vapor and good flavor. These are Boge LR cartos. I'll have to see how long it goes before it needs refilled.

As far as RBA's, I only have a phoenix clone but I like it alot, it's great for testing DIY juice and learning to build coils. It only gets used at home, I like dripping but not when I'm out and about.

 

[Caridwen]

This really sounds like a wicking problem. This has happened to me on stardust style clear carts and also the nova. I am using a complete RBA tank now and love if you need a hand on choosing one let me know. For the wicking problem(this is what it sounds like) you can always try adding DISTILLED water or Vodka to your e juice. For instance, I vape 100% VG and I have to do this or after several puffs I have to turn my device upside down to get the juice to wick at my coil(top coil tank). Adding vodka to my mixture I do not and have not ran into this problem.

Note: I only add about 3-4 drops of alcohol per 1ml of e-juice, shake well. Also I've heard people doing this and leaving for longer periods of time(with bigger batches of coarse) to let the PG/VG/Flavoring/nicotine fuse to the alcohol/water

Also r77r7rs' Idea would be much more convenient for someone. This method would not work for vendors that do not offer PG/VG mixing preferences

Hope this helps T41CK

There's no wicking involved with cartomizers.

 

[Felonyruckus]

Priming is the key to cartos. The best and fastest way to prime your carto is the "condom" method remove all the rubber and things and then fill the bottom rubber part about 2/3 of the way and slowly start sticking the carto in to the fluid and it will slowly start priming, I prime a carto in 1-2 mins with minimal work.

 

[markfm]

On classic filler cartos, like normal Boge and the densely packed Ikenvape models, there is effectively wicking. The eliquid in the tank gets to the central coil by having to go across the carto filler. Doing an initial carto topfill/priming, squirting some eliquid into the top while the carto is held diagonally and rotating it, helps by initially dampening the filler, and you'll then get good flow from the tank through the punched holes. if you don't do this you can expect to get the infamous dry hit/burnt taste, at which point you've toasted that carto.

Call it wicking, call it priming, it's real. After 17 months of use I've lost a couple cartos when I neglected to do this. Nowadays, I normally do this as part of first inserting a new carto into the tank, doing that first tank fill -- I purposely overfill the tank a little, excess eliquid going into the carto filler, before pushing the carto through the top cap.

 

[fourthrok]

Cartos aren't really the "problem". And clearomizer type tanks don't usually play that well with heavy VG and/or thick dark juice. What you can do is invest $6 or so in a basic carto punch (available at most vendors) and place an extra hole directly above one of the pre-punched holes in your present cartomizers about 3-4mm up. Don't go crazy and mash or anything. Hold the carto up close to your ear while you turn the screw that punches and listen for the instant that it makes a pop or "whoosh" noise...then stop! You can "clear" the hole with a sturdy needle, small wood screw tip or dental pick. That will greatly increase your wicking...thus your carto life.

I run approximately 9ml. of juice A DAY through my 6ml. tank...sometimes more...and have had a carto hold up perfectly well with continuous use (don't change flavors or tanks) for over 10 days. The extra hole above one of the pre-punched holes seems to be the "secret". Also be sure to prime the cartomizer. Not only fill it from the top before filling the tank...also put several drops directly into the battery hole at the bottom of the carto. Just one drop at a time. It'll absorb. Wipe off..and you are good to go,

EDIT: The cartos that run so long with so much juice through them taste and perform fine. The reason I changed them out was the coils were getting coated over time, and need cleaning. They are 2ohm but after awhile they end up being 3ohm due to the build up....that's when I retire them or clean them.