Pleas keep in mind that when I say hybrid I don't mean like a genisis. More like a machined in chalice. Winner right there. The differences between chalice and era are setup and caps. Performance also depends on the air hole. If you have both airhole a bored out the same they will perform te same. I machine attys quite a lot and can tell you the difference is minimal. It's why I was telling people to not even bother spending so much on the chalice and get an era and now that I see how easy it is to mod a Phoenix for this application, don't bother with the era if you have the tools I mod it.
Anyone try the A7 RBA ?? Will it fit?
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Got the A7 in today. Its a bad day for it, since I also got in 2 ERA's. Long story short, don't waste your time and/or $. Get an ERA or Chalice if you can, or wait for something else.
Since I also got the ERA's I didn't spend much time with the A7 but this is what I found.
It does fit the Grand, not sure about other Reos but its snug in there so I doubt it'll fit the Minis.
It does feed juice and you can blind squonk, but it will easily overflow the catch cup if you're not careful.
Coil replacement is relatively easy, but make sure you leave enough wick hanging down into the cup to catch juice, WHILE not blocking the center juice stem otherwise you also will be blocking the ONLY air intake, and make sure your wick isn't tucked into the threads or you will have a hard time screwing the cap in all the way.
My vape was always gurgly, assuming because there was always juice in the air stem and in the catch cup. This can probably be mitigated with careful blind squonks and letting the unit sit for a minute before taking an actual toke, but again, who wants to do all that when there are perfectly good ERA's just begging to be vaped!
The vapor seemed thin and the flavor was okay, but honestly I didn't give it much time.
If you can't get an ERA or Chalice and you really want to give Cisco $25 you'd be better off buying a 357.
Since I also got the ERA's I didn't spend much time with the A7 but this is what I found.
It does fit the Grand, not sure about other Reos but its snug in there so I doubt it'll fit the Minis.
It does feed juice and you can blind squonk, but it will easily overflow the catch cup if you're not careful.
Coil replacement is relatively easy, but make sure you leave enough wick hanging down into the cup to catch juice, WHILE not blocking the center juice stem otherwise you also will be blocking the ONLY air intake, and make sure your wick isn't tucked into the threads or you will have a hard time screwing the cap in all the way.
My vape was always gurgly, assuming because there was always juice in the air stem and in the catch cup. This can probably be mitigated with careful blind squonks and letting the unit sit for a minute before taking an actual toke, but again, who wants to do all that when there are perfectly good ERA's just begging to be vaped!
The vapor seemed thin and the flavor was okay, but honestly I didn't give it much time.
If you can't get an ERA or Chalice and you really want to give Cisco $25 you'd be better off buying a 357.
If u didn't spend that much time on it bro your shouldn't really knock it, if course it did get tough vape mail competition with ur eras 
there is a lot of factors to be carefully inspected or this way of feeding the air. As a dripper I imagine its a dream. But the bottom feed since your connection area is inside the juice feed port, juice wil gurgle with the air coming it. I think this will create some auto feed also since you are directly drawing it in. Got mine from the co op and have to wait to see what they are working with. Here I my question tho. Is this really ss? Highly doubt it but if Cisco said it was, I don't doubt his word. Keep us posted if u can put your era down lol. And pictures would be great
there is a lot of factors to be carefully inspected or this way of feeding the air. As a dripper I imagine its a dream. But the bottom feed since your connection area is inside the juice feed port, juice wil gurgle with the air coming it. I think this will create some auto feed also since you are directly drawing it in. Got mine from the co op and have to wait to see what they are working with. Here I my question tho. Is this really ss? Highly doubt it but if Cisco said it was, I don't doubt his word. Keep us posted if u can put your era down lol. And pictures would be great
keep in mind that if your having any issues with it fitting in the catch cup just use this
V2 510 Shorty Extension- Unsealed
V2 510 Shorty Extension- Unsealed
some pics
I deliberately mucked the wicks around a bit to try and touch the loose ends of coil and prevent hot spots, not thrilled with the appearance of the stock set up
That aside, I have no complaints. Its my first time using a bottom feeder, but thus far I'm getting mucho hits after a squonk.
The draw is loose, it reminds me of a Cannon V2. Rich flavor, thick vapor, really light TH (which I don't like generally, but I have my moments). I'm sure there is major potential for tweaking here.
Tomorrow I'm going to tear it down and rebuild with bamboo crochet thread and see what I can do to tighten up the draw. Or maybe leave the draw alone and use SS mesh to boost the TH.
I deliberately mucked the wicks around a bit to try and touch the loose ends of coil and prevent hot spots, not thrilled with the appearance of the stock set up
That aside, I have no complaints. Its my first time using a bottom feeder, but thus far I'm getting mucho hits after a squonk.
The draw is loose, it reminds me of a Cannon V2. Rich flavor, thick vapor, really light TH (which I don't like generally, but I have my moments). I'm sure there is major potential for tweaking here.
Tomorrow I'm going to tear it down and rebuild with bamboo crochet thread and see what I can do to tighten up the draw. Or maybe leave the draw alone and use SS mesh to boost the TH.
that's a good point, thank you. I didn't fiddle much as I just got in from Cali, just jiggled the wicks a bit. I'll try that tomorrow when I play around some more
I know you were looking for pics, so if there is anything else you want a shot of let me know man
I know you were looking for pics, so if there is anything else you want a shot of let me know man
so ss or not? lol i must sound like a broken record. thanks bro appreciate the pics.
when you go to make your wick, leave tails so you can lodge them in the bowl shaped like an "s" should help out a bit and the higher coil will help with the gurgles. just squonk, take a couple of puffs to clear it and vape. in theory should work.
when you go to make your wick, leave tails so you can lodge them in the bowl shaped like an "s" should help out a bit and the higher coil will help with the gurgles. just squonk, take a couple of puffs to clear it and vape. in theory should work.
SS or not is a good question
I had my suspicions, but I also find a hard time believing that Keith and Cisco would jive us
As far as what I can tell..well, I can't tell much The only units I have that I "know" are SS are the ZAP, GTUS and DID. Much thicker walls, much heavier obviously, compared to the A7. Beyond that I wouldn't know how to tell. And I did email Keith and as if it was ALL through and through SS, as I would probably end up drilling something, and specifically mentioned my concerns with copper, brass etc, to which he replied that it was entirely SS.
The stock set up, in its defense had the "S tucks" that you mention, but there was too much air under the coils on the wick, and the runs to the posts were a bit long and just looked like they were going to be a problem, hence the mess you see in my pics
I had my suspicions, but I also find a hard time believing that Keith and Cisco would jive us
As far as what I can tell..well, I can't tell much
The only units I have that I "know" are SS are the ZAP, GTUS and DID. Much thicker walls, much heavier obviously, compared to the A7. Beyond that I wouldn't know how to tell. And I did email Keith and as if it was ALL through and through SS, as I would probably end up drilling something, and specifically mentioned my concerns with copper, brass etc, to which he replied that it was entirely SS.The stock set up, in its defense had the "S tucks" that you mention, but there was too much air under the coils on the wick, and the runs to the posts were a bit long and just looked like they were going to be a problem, hence the mess you see in my pics
If u didn't spend that much time on it bro your shouldn't really knock it, if course it did get tough vape mail competition with ur eras
You're right, I should not have panned the A7 completely without giving it a fair shake. But can you really blame me? I have a Chalice, a working BF modded Phoenix and now 2 ERA's. In my opinion the stock A7 just does not compare, though with some fiddling I'm sure one could make it into a nice vape. Call me spoiled, aside from making coils I just don't want to tinker any more.
I've spent the last two months trying to mod RBA's into good bottom feeders, or trying to build one from spare parts, and as it turns out, I'm not much of a modder. I'm actually quite bad at it.
After finding two products that just work right outta the box I was not in the mood to 'fiddle' any more, but I do appreciate all of you that tinker and tweak and test things out. You make it better for the folks like me that are unskilled at best, or just plain lazy at worst.
VVG's and ERA's, I'm a happy (and lazy) camper.
I guess if I went from a standard atty to the A7 I might think it was the bomb. But using an ERA or a Phoenix first doesn't help the A7's chances at all.
Agreed bit keep tinkering, and don't be lazy! You will see how far more tasty bottom air is on a rebuildable. I just need mine to get here now!!!!! Hahaha I will post my findings for you lazies lol.
I set things up with 30 awg kanthal (1.9 ohms) and a thick bamboo yarn wick. Was having amazing results than things got wonky, likely as I was playing with too many things at once.
The center hole is a bit of a priss. Tucked ends of the wick get too close and air flow gets tighter, but then you get scalding hot, thin vapor type of hits. I'm guessing the airflow got too occluded as the bamboo swelled.
Also I placed a half o ring between the center pin (which is adjustable and can entirely screw out) and one of the side airflow holes. Again, at first it was a tighter draw and kicking ..... Then things got crappy.
Anyway, off to a short work day, bbl.
The center hole is a bit of a priss. Tucked ends of the wick get too close and air flow gets tighter, but then you get scalding hot, thin vapor type of hits. I'm guessing the airflow got too occluded as the bamboo swelled.
Also I placed a half o ring between the center pin (which is adjustable and can entirely screw out) and one of the side airflow holes. Again, at first it was a tighter draw and kicking ..... Then things got crappy.
Anyway, off to a short work day, bbl.
OK, gave it another shot today. Built a new coil, 1.8Ω with two strands of 2mm silica. I primed it up first, dripping from the top. Once the wicks were soaked I hit it at 3.4v. Not bad, took it up to 4.0v and it vapes pretty well. The most noticeable draw back is the gurgling after a squonk. That goes away after a couple of drags if I'm careful not to over feed it. Guess I got spoiled by just flooding my Chalice and ERA then letting the juice flow back into the bottle.
Its putting out pretty good vapor and the flavor is good. I'm not much into throat hit, but it does feel smooth. I have to say, the atty gets hot real fast, not sure what thats about, but even with the plastic drip tip I can feel the heat on my lips.
I have to give the edge on every category to the Chalice/ERA, but this seems to be an alternative if someone doesn't want to spend much money and try an RBA, in fact, this one vape most like a standard atty of the ones I've tried so far, so that may be a plus to some.
Again, this is stock other than a new wick and coil. It works, and had I never experienced an ERA I would be happy to vape this over an IKV or Cisco atty, but in my experience the ERA/Chalice put out more vapor, have better flavor, and give a smoother, more satisfying draw.
Its putting out pretty good vapor and the flavor is good. I'm not much into throat hit, but it does feel smooth. I have to say, the atty gets hot real fast, not sure what thats about, but even with the plastic drip tip I can feel the heat on my lips.
I have to give the edge on every category to the Chalice/ERA, but this seems to be an alternative if someone doesn't want to spend much money and try an RBA, in fact, this one vape most like a standard atty of the ones I've tried so far, so that may be a plus to some.
Again, this is stock other than a new wick and coil. It works, and had I never experienced an ERA I would be happy to vape this over an IKV or Cisco atty, but in my experience the ERA/Chalice put out more vapor, have better flavor, and give a smoother, more satisfying draw.
Make your could further always from the air hole and you will get more th. flood the s out of it man, take couple of primer pufs excess will go back into bottle. I know off the batt I'm boring the air holes out immediately after I get it. You might wanna try that. Member, more air, better performance in rbas
Next time I get bored I'll try that out. Right now I'm too busy vaping my ERA's!
I have to say I'm liking this atty more and more.
After switching to dripping on it today, I realized that I just suck at squonking lol. In all honesty, its standing up to my penelope, and beats out any pre fab atty I've had (.357, I06, Cannon V2, etc)
Returned to squonking, and lo and behold, I'm starting to get it. I think. For now
Seriously, yeah its a bit airy, but the flavor and nic hit are stellar for me. Seems as I learn to feed it right the draw isn't bothering me anymore either.
After switching to dripping on it today, I realized that I just suck at squonking lol. In all honesty, its standing up to my penelope, and beats out any pre fab atty I've had (.357, I06, Cannon V2, etc)
Returned to squonking, and lo and behold, I'm starting to get it. I think. For now
Seriously, yeah its a bit airy, but the flavor and nic hit are stellar for me. Seems as I learn to feed it right the draw isn't bothering me anymore either.
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