I see lots of hardware clones on EBay. Are Clones just as good as authentic gear? They look identical.
Are Clones Any Good?
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For the most part, no. One generally gets what they pay for, unless the authentic is also junk...
It's like hammers and screwdrivers.
One clone hammer or screwdriver might be very good, and another clone hammer or scewdriver might be a piece of junk; its up to the user to know what the user is looking for.
Some clones are just as good, and some are better -- my Tobeco kayfun lite plus tanks are outstanding. My Fallen Angel -- clone of the Electric Angel -- is outstanding, and reviews say its quality is actually better than the Electric Angel.
But I have another Kayfun clone which is a total piece of crap -- it's certainly not a Tobeco!
Andria
I assume you're talking about mechanical mods/RTA/RDAs.
In general high quality clones of RDA/RTA/ are acceptable and can get the job done...I own both authentic and clones...etc..also..clone or authentic, as another member stated, it's up to you to understand pro/cons of device whether clone or authentic
I would try to do research on the manufacture of the "clone" and see if there are reviews on this forum or youtube on the device you're interested in.
Wish you luck, you can post a thread about the device you're intersted in...btw..there are lot of good black Friday sales on mods etc...that are from online vendors that have good customer service...that are equivalent to eBay prices or ever lower.
In general high quality clones of RDA/RTA/ are acceptable and can get the job done...I own both authentic and clones...etc..also..clone or authentic, as another member stated, it's up to you to understand pro/cons of device whether clone or authentic
I would try to do research on the manufacture of the "clone" and see if there are reviews on this forum or youtube on the device you're interested in.
Wish you luck, you can post a thread about the device you're intersted in...btw..there are lot of good black Friday sales on mods etc...that are from online vendors that have good customer service...that are equivalent to eBay prices or ever lower.
so far clones have not let me down. 1:1 penny mod clone. it works well. but some attys have long 510. 1:1 magma clone, amazing flavor. 1:1 TOBH clone, good air flow. other clones are on the way. almost every product has some limitation. as long as you research and understand the limitation, they are great.
The Infinite CLV V2 Plus is cloning all RDA's into 1 bad ..... Best RDA out there imo. Blows all my authentic's away.
I'm vaping a kayfun ES clone (from Fasttech) right at this moment. It's been very good to me (as long as I wick it correctly). My mods are authentic (MVP, Sigelei Zmax V3 and Vamo V6 - at least I think the V6 is authentic 
) Don't do mech mods, so I can't speak to those. I'm a happy camper, er, vaper.
) Don't do mech mods, so I can't speak to those. I'm a happy camper, er, vaper.
I'll chime in and say I've had plenty of good luck with clones of RBA's.
Mech mods, not so much. For me, it's always the switch that dies.
I decided to give clones another go and picked up 3 from FT: The Paragon, Tesla Vapelyfe, and the Kato. All are working great, so far, but it's only been a couple of days. The m16, nemesis, and paps clones I've tried all failed.
You'll probably hear someone saying "how can you charge $200 for a metal tube and a button?". Well, I'm here to tell you the answer is "because it will actually survive real world use".
I'll eat my words if these new mods last at all, but something tells me I've wasted more money and should have just saved up for one good mod that is actually nice.
Mech mods, not so much. For me, it's always the switch that dies.
I decided to give clones another go and picked up 3 from FT: The Paragon, Tesla Vapelyfe, and the Kato. All are working great, so far, but it's only been a couple of days. The m16, nemesis, and paps clones I've tried all failed.
You'll probably hear someone saying "how can you charge $200 for a metal tube and a button?". Well, I'm here to tell you the answer is "because it will actually survive real world use".
I'll eat my words if these new mods last at all, but something tells me I've wasted more money and should have just saved up for one good mod that is actually nice.
Do you bother to maintain your Mods? If not even most of the Originals will not survive as you call it. Many even sell replacement parts knowing there are many WEAR items in a mod.
Think about it.
Yes, I have 20 Mods
Some 16 or so Tanks
Nearing a Dozen RDA's
All are Clones or just China Made
All are in good condition and work well. I do regular cleanings including switch dis-assembly. Full Tank strip downs and do not take RDA's below their intended design.
"for the most part no"
you must be ordering the wrong clones then man. yes, theres plenty of good clones out there. some are great, some are bad. Do research, read reviews, and youll be fine. but dont listen to someone that tells you flat ou, no.
you must be ordering the wrong clones then man. yes, theres plenty of good clones out there. some are great, some are bad. Do research, read reviews, and youll be fine. but dont listen to someone that tells you flat ou, no.
Do you bother to maintain your Mods? If not even most of the Originals will not survive as you call it. Many even sell replacement parts knowing there are many WEAR items in a mod.
Think about it.
Yes, I have 20 Mods
Some 16 or so Tanks
Nearing a Dozen RDA's
All are Clones or just China Made
All are in good condition and work well. I do regular cleanings including switch dis-assembly. Full Tank strip downs and do not take RDA's below their intended design.
So, by maintenance, you're just talking about disassembly and cleaning? I'm not really sure what else might be needed, or if I'm capable -- not even really sure I'm capable of disassembly/reassembly, to be honest -- what if I can't get it put back together right? I mean I know I can take all the tube pieces apart, but I'm not sure I'm brave enough to take the switch apart, because.. what if I can't put it back together?
When I got my mech, I applied noalox to all the threads, and I know that has to be cleaned and re-done from time to time, but I'm really not a "gear head," machine disassembly/reassembly is pretty far outside my skillset.
Andria
If/when a switch fails or starts giving you trouble, give a try. Remember, it is already Not working so no loss if your considering replacing. Most switches are straight forward. A few like the Nemesis have tricky little pins to NOT loose and get Aligned again on installation.
Most are simply a threaded section, a spring, a Button to push(with a threaded hole in the center post) and a Threaded Contact on top holding it all together.
The problem most suffer is particle accumulation causing Bind. A good periodic cleaning is always recommended for best performance.
My 22 dollar Nemesis clone from fasttech cured me of VV/VW mods...
But it also cured me of clones.
It had a 5 star rating...Solid top pin, all the battery tubes and came in a plain box.
It works soo dang good I feel it necessary to buy an original.
So, what I do is research the original, buy a clone, try it for a few weeks and if I like it I spring for the real gear...
Dont buy from a site unless its rated, read all of the feedback and make an informed decision.
On fastech, if it doesnt get 4 stars skip it.
But it also cured me of clones.
It had a 5 star rating...Solid top pin, all the battery tubes and came in a plain box.
It works soo dang good I feel it necessary to buy an original.
So, what I do is research the original, buy a clone, try it for a few weeks and if I like it I spring for the real gear...
Dont buy from a site unless its rated, read all of the feedback and make an informed decision.
On fastech, if it doesnt get 4 stars skip it.
+1 good advise...
You also have friends in the area....Steam Ecigs in Lawrenceville is a good place to go. they are very helpful and not to terribly overpriced.
I usually just chase corrosion in my mods...eliminate the corrosion and it works just fine.
This is not something that needs to be over-thought.
I've been loving the clones that I have. Most, if not all of them are EHPro clones. I wouldn't buy clones from Ebay or Amazon because you don't actually know what you're going to get. So I recommend going to a good vaping website and order from there.
The funny thing is, some clones are so good, people are actually making clones of clones.
As many have already said, it kinda depends on the manufacturer. One great way to tell if it's the clone for you is to do a search on youtube for the mod's maker and name, i.e. EHPro Panzer or HCigar M16. If you can find more than one video about the clone you're looking at, it's best to watch them all to get some idea of the consistency of quality. If there's three reviews of one clone, and one is great but the other two say it's terrible, you might get a terrible one.
Good luck!
Good luck!
"Just as good" depends on what qualities you're looking at. There are a lot of clones that can perform just as good as the originals. But when you start looking at the details - burrs, cheap screws (that rust quickly), poorly done o-ring grooves that do nothing but slice right through an o-ring as soon as you put the parts together, "rough" machining. The list can go on.
There are, however, some clones are almost indistinguishable from the originals.
There are, however, some clones are almost indistinguishable from the originals.
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