A second chance for Cartos pays off

[VaporPhreak]

So about 3 - 4 months ago, I decided to try some cartos. I order an adapter for my 801 and a pack of cartos from a site that I will not mention. Well the experience was horrid! The Menthol cartos tasted like bad fish, and the vapor production was complete crap. They basically just spit juice droplets into my throat and that was it.
So flash forward to a week ago, I decided to give cartos a second go while wondering if the V4L premium cartos were really that much differant. I ordered another adapter as I use a 510 now, and the V4L Premium Cartos Menthol Lover's Sample Pack.
WWWWWWWWOOOOOOOOOWWWWWWWW!!!!!!!!!!
Vapor production on par and in some cases better than a 510 atty on my 3.6v Box mod, and the flavors! Oh the flavors are awesome! Thanks V4L!!! THANK YOU!!!!

 

[JenJen]

Wait till you try them on a VK XL manual batt or manual passthrough!

Welcome, and glad you gave them a second try!

 

[Stephra]

I second the XL Manual, they are brilliant. I've had mine for like a week and it's a champ. In fact, sometimes I have to put it away because it produces more vapor than I can handle!

Welcome VaporPhreak!

 

[Mary Kay]

Welcome to the family! The flavors are wonderful and you can get the samplers to try a large varitey!

 

[the4thpower3]

I can't start a new thread since I'm a newbie..
but this thread is very relative to my concern.

Let me give you a quick background/story.
Smoking since I was 13. 25-30 cigs a day.
Vaping for 4 months.
Started with GreenSmoke, but decided I wanted more.
Wanted to drag for more than 2 seconds without cut off.
Wanted bigger/longer battery to last all/most of the day.
Wanted cheaper price, better quality, higher dose nicotine, and flavor variety.
Ordered V4L XL manual kit along with Pass Through.
Ordered 5 packs of Vapor King Cartos.
Awesome service! Got my order very FAST!
...But was let down very fast.
I vaped on one carto from each pack (with the pass through, while my Xl bats were charging) and got the same disappointing result each time.
NO vapor out of my lungs/mouth. I can feel and see vapor going in, but when I breathe out - bupkis/nada. WTF!?

I'm rather surprised that there isn't specific information listed on V4L website, or even here as a Sticky, about the differences in the cartomizers. And from what I can tell in this one post..there is!

I would have forked out a little more money for the Premiums if I knew I wasn't gonna get jack out of the lesser cartos. I don't even want to know how bad the 3rd tier cartos are.

So can someone post a sticky about the differences? Why does V4L even sell cartos that don't produce vapor? I mean...these things really suck (not blow).

I'm a bit disappointed...
The flavors a good, the throat hit's not bad, the 36mg dose of nicotine is way more than I thought I could handle (lol). But WTF is the VAPOR???
Am I stuck with 5 packs of non-vaping e-cig carts? Is it something I'm doing wrong?

FYI, just cause I'm new, doesn't mean I'm dumb...I've been hitting GreenSmoke for a couple months and they produce a ton of vapor. I can post a YouTube vid showing the difference if you want.

 

[terrie1]

The flavors a good, the throat hit's not bad, the 36mg dose of nicotine is way more than I thought I could handle (lol).

I have been vaping 36 mg for over 100 days... my premium cartos that I got today (36 mg)
have me letting go of my pacifyer more and more... their 36 mg is what I SHOULD have been getting all along. I got my very first V4L order in today, and Im officially not buying any other sellers !@#$ juice!

 

[RanVapor]

Well, as a a former GS user myself, there definitely is a difference in vapor production. The GS really does put out a ton of vapor, a surprising amount actually. Not sure if it is their carto design or the E9 battery. I noticed the difference when I switched to the VK, but it wasn't enough to sway me back.

I have noticed that some V4L flavors put out a bit more vapor than others. Also, the premium cartos are designed to run a little hotter and have better vapor production, and I do notice a difference between them and the older style cartos.

 

[VaporPhreak]

TheFourthPower3,

One thing that is a bit of a learning curve on eCigs in general is the way you hit it. I was in the same boat when i started vaping, until I started asking around on here.
Basically, the question is are you hitting it like a cig or are you taking a long slow hit? The original cartos I got were junk from a random website. The V4L ones on the other hand do produce vapor. And as you saw it go in, there is likely another reason why you dont see it on exhale. Also, how long are you holding the hit in your lung before exhale? Vapor dissipates very quickly and could be doing so in your lung. Try taking a long slow hit, take it into your lung and immediately exhale it. See if that helps.

 

[the4thpower3]

Thanks for the info guys.

I've been trying different ways to hit the Kr808d-1, I can get a little bit of exhale vapor...but no where near the E9 (old style GS). The flavor and the throat hit..being able to feel the vape in my mouth is way better than the E9.

It sounds like I'm just going to have to use these cartos then try some premiums.

 

[the4thpower3]

And now that I've looked back again on V4L's website, the last cartomizer is listed as VG - which from quick search found that this maybe a Vegetable Glycerin...produces more vapor?
So is the Premium and the Vapor King cartos made with PG (Propylene Glycol)??

Anyone have experience or can share the differences between the 3 different types?

 

[Brandnew vper]

the4thpower3- I couldnt tell you whats going on. The premiums to me are way better vapor. I take deep lung hits and the vapor is really good. I have an old green smoke and its not even close to the vapor of the regular cartos V4L has. Maybe your batteries are messed but I doubt it. Sometimes if I play with the connection from batt to carto I get better vapor. they do take a little bit to brake in. The Premiums are all PG I think but not sure. Vg-vegitable glycerin packs more vapor and less throat hit and tends to be a little sweeter tasting to some. I find PG sweeter personally. PG-propylene glycol produces less vapor then vg but packs a better TH and tends to be less sweeter. A good place to go is in the noobie section for actual differences. But also It could be your batteries. I didnt want to say it but I have gotten 2 batteries from V4L that worked but are no good. The newer ones I got auto and manual seem to pack a bugger punch and work great. Hope this helps but maybe the green smoke is the way to go for you. There are other distributors that sell the e 9 and E8 cheaper then greensmoke. I believe nhaler is one. So maybe thats an option. Good luck!

 

[jamvector]

One problem is people tend to group these products in general categories; as I believe Belletrist once posted, we are all just beta testers (forgive me if it was someone else).

What I mean is, I have had bad regular carts, bad premium carts, bad blank carts, batteries of all types with vastly different draws. When coupling different batteries with the variations in the carts, any one user can have a negative experience and substandard performance. While the "factory defect rate" is in the 1-2% range, I believe other variations although within the stated tolerance criteria are the cause for many of the performance issues cited by users across the whole ECF forum, not just V4L. In contrast, after fiddling, experimenting, trial and error, and sorting, you can come to the nexus of having an incredibly superior setup with V4L compared to anything else out there. Don't assume "all the watermelon premium carts don't hold as much juice" (as I found with a pack of 5), or "the new batts don't work with the old carts", etc. etc. Some of my best combos are with old carts / new batts and vice versa. When I get some new carts or batts, this may very well change.

My main point is to try to avoid the trap of assuming someone else's specific observations apply unilaterally to everyone else. Good luck in your continued quest to find the optimum system; be patient, you will find it sooner or later, V4L or somewhere else.

 

[Adrenalynn]

Cartomizers can take a little bit of break-in time before they warm up and start generating a lot of vapor. I get more vapor from a regular cartomizer than I ever got smoke from a cigarette. That said - some people's "none" and my "none" differ a bit. Some seem to classify "none" as "twice what the volume of smoke was I got when smoking"...

 

[miss MiA]

Yup, it's mostly about different preferences, vaping styles and subjective criteria; I use regulars and they provide plenty of everything for me, including vapor! (Tho of course like others, I've encountered the occasional unavoidable low-performers too.)

 

[Above God]

yeah its all trial and error. i think i got it down packed now. even a fresh premium cart takes a couple of hits to get vaping great imo. i find it best to do atleast 2 primer puffs, then a long slow hit. they always get there for me. tons of vapor.

 

[the4thpower3]

I agree, vapor production is subjective and too many variables to account for..even in the same brand (sadly, from what I've just read).

I've been hittin these all day and I've gotten a little vapor on exhale..but still no where near the GS E9. And maybe half of a real marlboro light.
The inhale is great, I can see plenty of vapor going in (yes looking at myself in the mirror), and a nice throat hit that doesn't my tongue and throat. But I really like blowing smoke rings and seeing a large cloud of smoke/vapor.

Again, thanks for all the input. I just can't wait to find out, so I put in another small order for a few Premiums and a couple of the VGs. So, I guess I'll find out in a couple days. In the mean time I will consider the benefits of vaping stealth.

 

[Laz777]

Hey Power,

I just received my kit on Friday, it's now Sunday. My VK manual batteries with premium carts, regular carts, juice, etc., all give me massive vapor. I draw slowly (maybe 5 seconds worth of consistent draw) and get awesome vapor. This should be good news for everyone. As Jamvector said, we're in beta mod still. It seems like the quality has vastly improved over the past several months. It should only get better from this point on and the products should also become more trustworthy over the next year or so.

Eventually it will be virtually impossible to tell the difference between an e-cig (if the maniacs in Washington don't have their way) and an analog. The only way we'll be able to tell the difference is the damaging tars and chemicals, that heavy chest feeling we get from smoking an analog after vaping for a few days. That to me is the most noticeable difference between the two so far (besides taste of course). When I'm vaping I feel pretty good. When I attempt to smoke an analog I can feel the chest restriction after a few drags and I have to put it out.