A newbie's take on NORD

Status
Not open for further replies.

James W.

Full Member
May 21, 2019
10
32
So I am new to all this. I think maybe I had a BLU a couple years ago.
2 pack a day, In my 60's, smoked for 45 years. Still active, no ill effects.

I smoke these things called "filtered cigars" by Signal. To me they taste like cigs, only in brown wrapper. 9.80 a CARTON, less than a buck a pack.

I would like to satisfy my nic need but not smell as bad and possibly down the road cut down on the nic level.

JUUL (only pod I knew existed, good marketing) didn't seem to offer enough flexibility, but I like the pod idea. Different flavors, strengths, refillable. Didn't want a big BOX MOD, didn't want a fake cig like the BLU.

So I looked and read and talked to bunch of guys and decided on a NORD. Went to a local vape shop here in Houston and bought it. Got an extra pod (nice that it comes with the 2 coils .6 & 1.4) A bottle of Charlie's Chalk Dust / Pacha Mama Salt *apple tobacco* 25mg and a bottle of Naked100 *Amazing Mango* 6mg. 70.00 out the door. I could saved a couple bucks online, but I like supporting local businesses when I can too.

It feels well made, very solid and heavy. Looks good in black.

Filled 1 pod with each of the liquids. 1.4 coil with apple tobacco nic salt. The .6 with the mango ejuice. I did prime the coils. Not sure if you have to do that since they are immersed in solution in the pod, but I read that you should. Let them rest for about 30 min before using.

Both seem to work fine. No leaks, no dry hits.

I seem to be both a MTL and DTL smoker. Even with cigs I do both. Don't know if that's normal or not. Might come from smoking other plant based things a LONG time ago in my youth....

I do not care for the nic salt apple tobacco flavor very much. It is a 50/50 VG/PG

The mango is more pleasing. It is a 70/30

I seem to prefer the 1.4 coil over the sub ohm. 1.4 gives a better draw and is a bit "cooler". The .6 seems to be much hotter and I can definitely take in too much vapor, to the point I cough. I'm not interested in chunking giant clouds.

I have ordered more pods and coils online. As well as some more flavors of reg. juice and nic salts. One of the reasons I wanted a pod was to quickly switch between flavors, coils, etc.

Some thoughts on the whole vaping thing overall and the NORD in particular.

1. vaping vs my cigs cost A LOT MORE.
2. Why are most juices in such large volume. 60ml is great if it's you favorite, but terrible if your wanting to sample it at 10.00 plus $$$
3. Someone needs to tell the manf co's if you want to sell to older demographic, need to stop with the crazy names of devices and flavors. We already smoke, have the money and are a perfect market. Probably why JUUL is going to OWN the market.

As for the NORD itself.
1. I like it, think its worth the price for what you get.
2. It does not (yet) replace my cigs. Still doesn't provide the level of satisfaction. Perhaps new juices at different VG/PG and nic levels will make a difference.
3. Need some way to identify what coil is in each pod. Once installed & filled, you cant tell. A number or dot on the bottom (where it contacts battery) would be super helpful. I have stuck numbers on each pod and have a sheet of what flavor, %, coil is in each.
4. Some grooves or ridges on the side of the mouthpiece. The pods are very slick and very tight in the battery/base unit. Great that they are tight, but a total PITA to get out.
5. A syringe is almost a necessity to fill the pod. Droppers and tips on bottle are way too big. Luckily, I had some from previous projects. I also made a "filling station" to hold the pod while filling it. Basically a sponge with a piece cut out, plus it catches any drips. I will upload a couple of pics shortly of the setup.

Sorry for a super long post. Just wanted to put a newcomers viewpoint out there if it helps anyone else.
 

James W.

Full Member
May 21, 2019
10
32
20190521_150134.jpg 20190521_150145.jpg 20190521_150204.jpg 20190521_150308.jpg 20190521_150549.jpg
 

Northstar6

Senior Member
ECF Veteran
May 16, 2019
277
381
I definitely agree about the size of bottles. Manufacturers need to embrace different sizes or even instead of doing solely 30 and 60 ml bottles....why not a variety pack of 3 10 ml bottles? At least then there's a chance you may like one or more.

Today for instance I went to a local vape shop, realized I nearly ran out of juice at home. I ended trying Solace Creamy Tobacco based on their recommendation and it was just awful. So there's 30 ml of juice I'll likely never touch again.

Hopefully vendors find creative solutions for this or I'll be alternating 3 flavors for the rest of my life....
 
  • Like
Reactions: stols001

United States

Ultra Member
ECF Veteran
Aug 17, 2018
1,888
6,388
RVA
Check the shop to see if they carry a Renova Zero by Vapresso, which is a device shaped very similar to a flash drive. They have a new one shaped like a Zippo lighter called Aurora Play that is selling faster than ice cream in the dessert.
No fire button needed to get a drag. So no timing issues where you end up too soon or too late in timing them so you don't get a good hit, or get too much.

The Zero is very, very smooth. The Play 'hits' a wee bit better. My 40+ year smoker lungs prefer the smooth Zero, but the Play is pretty good too.

Like many of us, it seems logical to go from smoking to tobacco flavored vape juice. Or flavored tobaccos. Some stick with tobacco flavors. Most go with candy, pastries or other tastey foods. I said "no candy for me" and ended up digging on fruity type flavors.

A really good tobacco flavor brand is Black Label. Only available online though.
 
  • Like
Reactions: stols001

Rex Everything

Super Member
ECF Veteran
Apr 27, 2014
476
554
Tacoma
I definitely agree about the size of bottles. Manufacturers need to embrace different sizes or even instead of doing solely 30 and 60 ml bottles....why not a variety pack of 3 10 ml bottles? At least then there's a chance you may like one or more.

Today for instance I went to a local vape shop, realized I nearly ran out of juice at home. I ended trying Solace Creamy Tobacco based on their recommendation and it was just awful. So there's 30 ml of juice I'll likely never touch again.

Hopefully vendors find creative solutions for this or I'll be alternating 3 flavors for the rest of my life....
There used to be all kinds of bottle sizes but the impending FDA regulations put an end to that. Each different size and strength of a liquid is considered a different "product" and will have to be registered as such. So a vendor who offers 3 mg, 6 mg, and 12 mg liquid in 15 ml, 30 ml, 60 ml, and 120 ml sizes would have to register 12 different "products". This is why most liquid companies switched to only one bottle size. only 3 products to register if all you offer is a 60 ml. It was pretty common to have 15 ml, 30 ml about 3 years ago.
 
  • Optimistic
Reactions: stols001

HigherStateD

Ultra Member
ECF Veteran
Mar 11, 2019
2,250
5,277
Phoenixville, PA, U.S. of A.
Welcome! A few thoughts. First, your trouble with recognizing the coils, I'm not sure about the Nord, but with the Trinity alpha, which uses the same coils, you can see the base of the chimney with the pod out. The 0.6 coil is significantly bigger. As for cost, I feel you. I was rolling my own, 2 packs a day equivalent, for about 75$ a month. Buying coils and juice is far more expensive, but now that I make my own of both, it's even cheaper than the smokes. As for your not finding satisfaction with vaping as compared, I didn't fully find the cravings satiated until I started sub-ohming salt juice. If the 0.6 ohm direct to lung coil is too warm for you, check out the 0.8ohm MTL coil. The Trinity alpha also has power adjustment too, which may help. Best of luck with it.
 
  • Like
Reactions: stols001
Status
Not open for further replies.

Users who are viewing this thread