RDA After 3 years vaping, I purchased my first RDA today (Looking for guidance)

[ObsceneJesster]

So, after 3 years of vaping, I finally came over to the dark side and purchased my first rda today. A local B&M had just gotten in a few Mutation X V3's so I bit the bullet.

So far, my first build is doing okay but I know I have much to learn. I just got some 26g Kanthal and did 10 wraps around a 2mm post. I'm running it in dual coil mode with a resistance of .4ohms. For wicking purposes I went with Japanese Cotton.

Are there any tips anyone has for me regarding dripping? What builds without getting to crazy are going to give me optimal taste? Should I stay with dual coil or should I go to a single coil? I'm not really a cloud chaser but I like a decent amount of vapor.

Thanks in advance for the information.

 

[State O' Flux]

Hi Jester...

The numbers you provide aren't adding up. Per Steam Engine, 0.4Ω net duals would be 7 full wraps on a 2mm mandrel. 10 full wraps is closer to .55Ω. I mention this because it's possible your ohm meter is not that accurate. Not a big deal at these resistances, but should you drop down to .2Ω or less, discharge values increase rapidly.

If your dual parallel coil net resistance was .4Ω, made from 26 gauge Kanthal A1... you're pulling 44 watts from your battery, if you're using a mech. The "heat flux" for this build would be a slightly warm 243 mW/mm².

Regarding your last paragraph, I'd suggest getting comfortable... and reading everything you find at the end of my three sigline hyperlinks below.

Cheers

 

[ObsceneJesster]

Would 10 wraps of 26g on a 2.5mm net .4ohm? I only ask because maybe that's what I did.

I know my Ohm reader is right because this same build measured .46 on the ohm reader and its measuring .4 on two separate boxes. The Xpro M50 and the iPV Mini.

Could something else be going on?

For information purposes I am vaping it at 30 watts which is netting me 3.7 volts.

 

[caferacer]

To get a .4 ohm dual coil build with a 2.5mm inner diameter, you'd need 6 1/3 wraps, per steam-engine.org. Maybe you used a 1.5mm screwdriver? 9 wraps around a 1.5mm screwdriver should get you to .4 ohm dual coil.

 

[Dissonance]

Since you're just starting, single coil might be better. When you run single coil, you only have to get everything right once, and you don't have consistency issues (which, IMO, helps A LOT when learning the proper amount of wick to use). Think of it like this; With a single coil you have to: Wrap 1 coil, mount 1 coil, make & insert 1 wick, and (potentially) troubleshoot 1 coil. With dual coil, you have to: Wrap 2 coils exactly the same, mount them exactly the same (Same contact if you squeeze your coils, same leg length, etc.), make sure the clipped leads aren't contacting the other coil, make & insert 2 identical wicks, and (potentially) troubleshoot 2 coils. For learning purposes, single coil is MUCH easier to get started on. Once you have your wicking down and your coil wrapping skills are improving, then you should work on dual coils.

As far as your resistance goes, I agree something's wrong. Either you're not using Kanthal (Nichrome 80 or SS 317L have lower resistances), you're not wrapping around a 2mm mandrel, you didn't do 10 wraps, or you have short(s). 7.7 wraps (~ a 8/7 wrap coil) would make .4Ω with kanthal. Nichrome would take 10 wraps, however, so if you're sure your mandrel is 2mm, you definitely have 10 wraps, and it's glowing from the inside out without shorts & your screws are tightened down.... Then it's possible you're using Nichrome instead.

As far as dripping... There's really too much to list It really comes down to what device you're building on (RDA & mod, if you're using a DNA30/IPV3/Mechanical) & what you're building with. With a Mutation X, big flavor is hard to come by (BUT NOT IMPOSSIBLE, you just have to take full advantage of the RDA), and it's honestly one I'd recommend running at a MINIMUM of 50 watts, preferably 100+ if you wanna have the airflow wide open. What device are you building on? If we knew your power restrictions, it'd be a lot easier to recommend a build

 

[ObsceneJesster]

I mainly vape on a Xpro M50. I don't really like going over 40 watts.

I usually like running the Mutation X with 1-3 holes open.

I'm positive I used 26g Kanthal. That's exactly what the package says. I'm positive that I made 10 wraps around a 2mm post and I'm positive that 3 different devices are reading this set up at .4Ω.....I believe each coil came out to about .85Ω........Maybe it's possible some of you weren't accounting for the running of dual coils. So, if I was vaping a single coil, 10 wraps around a 2mm post using 26g Kanthal should yield around 8.5Ω. Being that I'm running 2 of these coils, the resistance of the entire set up is coming in at .46Ω.

Here are some pictures so you guy's can get a better understanding of what everything looks like. Also, let me know if you'd do anything differently. I am going to take the advice of Dissonance and build a single coil next. I think I'd like a single coil more anyway since it eats up less juice and I've heard from many that single coil builds the in Mutation X are better for flavor.

 

[sparkky1]

I think your going to learn that the single coil performance is good to go from .8 - 1.2 ohm on 2.5mm with 26ga

 

[ObsceneJesster]

I think your going to learn that the single coil performance is good to go from .8 - 1.2 ohm on 2.5mm with 26ga

That's what I've been hearing man. Thanks for the info.

I hear that with these 50-100 watt chips, building below .5 is a thing of the past or (a thing for mechs).

 

[Dissonance]

That's what I've been hearing man. Thanks for the info.

I hear that with these 50-100 watt chips, building below .5 is a thing of the past or (a thing for mechs).

As far as your build goes: Coil wrapping | Steam Engine | free vaping calculators

First off, that's a 11 wrap, (or 11/10) not a 10 wrap. Secondly, a single coil using 26g kanthal around a 2mm mandrel consisting of 10.5 wraps comes out to ~ 1.08Ω, meaning your dual coil should be reading at .54Ω. We aren't ....ing with you, this is just how it is. There's a set amount of kanthal (which has a fairly set resistance / foot) you can fit into said coil, so calculating what the exact resistance should be is easy (with the use of steam-engine)... If you're getting readings that far off, and that consistently, then there's no two ways about it... Something's wrong. Either your 26g Kanthal isn't 26g Kanthal (Mislabled, manufacturing defect, whatever), you have a short, or whatever mandrel you're using just isn't 2mm. You NEED to figure out which one it is so you don't continue running into issues.

Also, as far as the .5Ω+ with regulated devices thing... It's a thing of preference. A .5Ω coil pushing 100 watts does NOT vape the same as a mech build pushing 100 watts. Personally, I think that higher ohm coils with more voltage pushed in them seem to burn and get hot spots a whole lot easier than their lower ohm equal wattage counterparts. Personally, I prefer lower ohms & a mech, but the only regulated device I've used was a SMY God 180+ that you HAVE to build .5Ω+ for (When I'm used to building .1-.2). So really, it all comes down to what you prefer

 

[ObsceneJesster]

As far as your build goes: Coil wrapping | Steam Engine | free vaping calculators

First off, that's a 11 wrap, (or 11/10) not a 10 wrap. Secondly, a single coil using 26g kanthal around a 2mm mandrel consisting of 10.5 wraps comes out to ~ 1.08Ω, meaning your dual coil should be reading at .54Ω. We aren't ....ing with you, this is just how it is. There's a set amount of kanthal (which has a fairly set resistance / foot) you can fit into said coil, so calculating what the exact resistance should be is easy (with the use of steam-engine)... If you're getting readings that far off, and that consistently, then there's no two ways about it... Something's wrong. Either your 26g Kanthal isn't 26g Kanthal (Mislabled, manufacturing defect, whatever), you have a short, or whatever mandrel you're using just isn't 2mm. You NEED to figure out which one it is so you don't continue running into issues.

Also, as far as the .5Ω+ with regulated devices thing... It's a thing of preference. A .5Ω coil pushing 100 watts does NOT vape the same as a mech build pushing 100 watts. Personally, I think that higher ohm coils with more voltage pushed in them seem to burn and get hot spots a whole lot easier than their lower ohm equal wattage counterparts. Personally, I prefer lower ohms & a mech, but the only regulated device I've used was a SMY God 180+ that you HAVE to build .5Ω+ for (When I'm used to building .1-.2). So really, it all comes down to what you prefer

Sorry for all of the confusion. I just rechecked everything and the screw driver I was using actually has the diameter of 1.5mm..............Does everything make sense now or is it still coming out wrong?

 

[Dissonance]

Sorry for all of the confusion. I just rechecked everything and the screw driver I was using actually has the diameter of 1.5mm..............Does everything make sense now or is it still coming out wrong?

Nope, that .5mm makes a huge difference xD 1.5mm 11/10 wraps 26g dual coil comes out to ~ .45Ω, so basically anything from .4-.5 would be acceptable (Sometimes even good wire has slight variances in width, which is why I mentioned earlier it only has a fairly set resistance/foot).

As far as a build goes... To make that 11 wrap coil fit better into the Mutation X's airflow, I have a kind of go-to build. Just make your dual coils like normal, then bend each coil in half carefully so there's one leg coming out from between the two coils and the second coming out from the side, but both pointing in the same direction if that makes sense. This is technically a quad coil, series-parallel build (For if you wanted to play with it in Steam-Engine, which is a site I highly recommend you familiarize yourself with... It will save you so much wire xD). Mount it in, lift the coils slightly, fire & squeeze (if you wrap contact coils, which this works just fine with tho I'm a spaced coil person ), then wick it by running a wick in basically a 'n' shape on each side. By this, I mean thread it up one side & down the other, then clip the tails so there is JUST enough to touch the deck (and on each side, ofc, for 2 total wicks for the 4 coils). The reason I recommend this build is the flavor is great and it's shaped more appropriately for the MX airflow than a straight coil.

 

[ObsceneJesster]

Cool. Thanks for the info. Do you mind posting some pics so I can have a better idea on your build.

Sent from my SM-G900T using Tapatalk

 

[Dissonance]

From the top and bottom, that's half of the "quad" coil. Make two of those, 1 wick for each, and you're good to go ^_^

By the way, when wicking this... You want the wick to be tight enough in the coil that it definitely contacts the spot that's bent, but not so tight that it messes with wicking or not making full contact with the coils. What I always do is pull it tight, then fluff it up just a 'lil.

 

[bohrdom]

Lately, I've been running single coil setups at ~1.2 ohms on a regulated VW (9-ish wraps of 28 ga around a little mini screwdriver). There is plenty - PLENTY - of vapor. Like it's honestly hard to tell the difference between that and the 0.6 ohm duals I run on the mech. Flavor I think really depends on the wicking. If you have good contact between the wick and coil but not too much wick getting in the way of airflow, the flavor will be there. I dug the nano-coil w/ dragon wicking design, but generally use a single micro-coil with some cotton through the center, neatly tucked underneath. It's a simple design and vapes like a champ.

Welcome down the rabbit hole of dripping! It's a pleasure to have your company.