Attempting to join the world of RBAs..

[Kanj.nguyen]

Hot spot is when one or two wraps of your coil glow way brighter and sooner than the rest. It happens because electricity goes through your wick instead of your coil. When this happens, one spot on your wick gets super heated when the rest is not, thus resulting in burnt vape. This does not happen with an RSST since the contact points are insulated.

 

[jhiga]

Everything I've seen indicates that the AGA-T2 and T+ are exactly the same, but vendors are calling them different things. I got glass tanks with both my AGA-T2/+'s, and I ordered each from different places.
I do know that some vendors list the RBA as the AGA-T+/2 or AGA-T2/+, indicating that they may be referred to as different things, and I saw that from when the first revision went out.

I prefer the v1 because of the o-ring design. In the tank, the v1 has o-rings sealing the tank to the metal body, whereas the v2 has delrin grommets (I think that's the best way to describe them) rather than the o-rings. Personally, I'm an o-ring guy, lol.
My v1's top cap also seals better than my v2's top cap. With the v1, I can grab the thing by the top cap when it's sitting on my ProVari with an 18650 battery in it and shake it, and it won't come off. My v2, it seems if I brush it the wrong way, I can knock the top cap off.
Granted, I could solve that problem with a thicker o-ring between the top cap and the body, but it doesn't bother me. It could be I got a slightly flawed v2 as well, where the top cap doesn't sit tightly.

 

[Satava]

I also saw the silica wick post removal on youtube. I'm definitely going to consider doing it since I want to try a U wick design and a dual wick. Thanks for the heads up!
Btw, how much does SS mesh and kanthal wire costs on average? Very broad I know, but I mean is what is the average you see them for?

Most vendors stock SS Mesh for the neighborhood of $5 for a 3x6 sheet and most vendors stock Kanthal for about $2 for 3 feet.

I'm going to be ordering from steammonkey as soon as Lance gets stock updated on the website. He's selling SS Mesh for $5 per 6x12 and 3ft Kanthal @$1. He has some really nice lookin drip tips too!

For the AGA-T+ you'll need 1.5" x 3" for a solid wick, for a U-Wick I'm guessing 4" x 3" and if you do a U-Wick you'll also need to cut it at 45* diagonal or it'll crimp on the bend. The youtube video from todd doing the u-wick should show it iirc?

 

[Preston97]

i am having the same problem , everyone is out of stock ,

 

[seahawkin]

I got a cobra and I can't make it work, feel like such loser. Has to do with wrapping wire I think

 

[SoundlessHero]

Btw, how do you know if you did it wrong? And how often do you recoil and rewick it?

I take out, unroll and wash the wick then hit it with a torch and make a new coil, but ONLY if I'm changing flavors. Otherwise, it's running strong on day 8

AGA Tiamat PLUS - Rebuildable Atomizer

This is what I did when I got it:

1. Take apart and clean all parts and pieces with hot water and soap
2. Put back together
3. Oxidize wick then roll it - take wire and heat it using lighter
4. Insert wick, make coil - 3/4 gives me 1.7 Ohm consistently
5. Check for hot spots, first two times my hotspot was on the top leg leading into the positive post in the center
6. Use tweezers to adjust coil until hotspot goes away
7. Hotspot still there, take out wick, re-oxidize
8. Insert wick, coil works perfectly, fires at 15 watts for 16 seconds with no hotspot (I don't recommend this BTW, I just did it...well, cause I could..at 1.7 Ohm I find 7 watts to be perfect)
9. Insert juice halfway in tank., tilt vape, tilt, vape, tilt, vape...Don't worry, Be happy

Finished AGA Tiamat Plus with Glass Tank (Bottom of wick looks crimped, it's not. The coil should hug, but not cut into the wick. Mine can be turned inside the coil, but it takes a little force to do so):

10th second@ 7.5 watts:

Finished with cap on top and air hole lined up:

 

[tougestar]

Everything I've seen indicates that the AGA-T2 and T+ are exactly the same, but vendors are calling them different things. I got glass tanks with both my AGA-T2/+'s, and I ordered each from different places.
I do know that some vendors list the RBA as the AGA-T+/2 or AGA-T2/+, indicating that they may be referred to as different things, and I saw that from when the first revision went out.

I prefer the v1 because of the o-ring design. In the tank, the v1 has o-rings sealing the tank to the metal body, whereas the v2 has delrin grommets (I think that's the best way to describe them) rather than the o-rings. Personally, I'm an o-ring guy, lol.
My v1's top cap also seals better than my v2's top cap. With the v1, I can grab the thing by the top cap when it's sitting on my ProVari with an 18650 battery in it and shake it, and it won't come off. My v2, it seems if I brush it the wrong way, I can knock the top cap off.
Granted, I could solve that problem with a thicker o-ring between the top cap and the body, but it doesn't bother me. It could be I got a slightly flawed v2 as well, where the top cap doesn't sit tightly.

Aside from the O-ring problem, would you say the v2 is worth considering?

Most vendors stock SS Mesh for the neighborhood of $5 for a 3x6 sheet and most vendors stock Kanthal for about $2 for 3 feet.

I'm going to be ordering from steammonkey as soon as Lance gets stock updated on the website. He's selling SS Mesh for $5 per 6x12 and 3ft Kanthal @$1. He has some really nice lookin drip tips too!

For the AGA-T+ you'll need 1.5" x 3" for a solid wick, for a U-Wick I'm guessing 4" x 3" and if you do a U-Wick you'll also need to cut it at 45* diagonal or it'll crimp on the bend. The youtube video from todd doing the u-wick should show it iirc?

I actually saw that vid too, it was very informing and helpful. Even though he says that it wasnt going to be in much detail, I learned a very nice amount from it. Please update when he gets back in with the wire and mesh! BTW, what gauge of wire and mesh should I use?

i am having the same problem , everyone is out of stock ,

I heard that my local vape shop will be in stock again in 2 weeks for 30 bucks but sadly they dont have an online shop . Hopefully theyll open one up soon, their customer service sucks when its busy, no sort of order anywhere!

I got a cobra and I can't make it work, feel like such loser. Has to do with wrapping wire I think

This is one of my worries as well :/

I take out, unroll and wash the wick then hit it with a torch and make a new coil, but ONLY if I'm changing flavors. Otherwise, it's running strong on day 8

AGA Tiamat PLUS - Rebuildable Atomizer

This is what I did when I got it:

1. Take apart and clean all parts and pieces with hot water and soap
2. Put back together
3. Oxidize wick then roll it - take wire and heat it using lighter
4. Insert wick, make coil - 3/4 gives me 1.7 Ohm consistently
5. Check for hot spots, first two times my hotspot was on the top leg leading into the positive post in the center
6. Use tweezers to adjust coil until hotspot goes away
7. Hotspot still there, take out wick, re-oxidize
8. Insert wick, coil works perfectly, fires at 15 watts for 16 seconds with no hotspot (I don't recommend this BTW, I just did it...well, cause I could..at 1.7 Ohm I find 7 watts to be perfect)
9. Insert juice halfway in tank., tilt vape, tilt, vape, tilt, vape...Don't worry, Be happy

Finished AGA Tiamat Plus with Glass Tank (Bottom of wick looks crimped, it's not. The coil should hug, but not cut into the wick. Mine can be turned inside the coil, but it takes a little force to do so):

10th second@ 7.5 watts:

Finished with cap on top and air hole lined up:

The mesh isnt too fragile when you unroll it after oxidizing it the first time around?
Im starting to know why everyone gets higher end devices. Im not too sure about what wattage my itaste mvp is running at. How do you test the Ohm levels on a multimeter? BTW thank you for this amazing write up instructions

 

[SoundlessHero]

Im not too sure about what wattage my itaste mvp is running at. How do you test the Ohm levels on a multimeter? BTW thank you for this amazing write up instructions

No Problem, I too was hesitant, but the thing is, if it interests you and you have the money, I say go for it. Setting up one of these gets to be really, really quick once you get the hang of it, but you won't until you make the plunge and buy one. I myself am waiting for the Zenisis II

A standard digital multimeter: Make your coil. Set your meter to Ohms and connect one lead to to one end of the coil and the other lead other to the other end. The display shows your resistance.

I use my Zmax V2 to check resistance. It has built in circuitry to shut off if there is a short detected. I don't trust it though, so I make sure when I wrap my coil on the AGA that both ends of the coil are firmly in place and not touching anything else before I check resistance. A 3/4 wrap will give me 1.7 ohms and a 4/5 will give me 2.2 ohms. I adjust based on the PG/VG/VG-only juice I will be using. The mesh can tear since it softens, so I just unroll and re-roll very carefully.

 

[ktbeasley]

The web site for Vapor Bank is vaporbank dot com. They still show it in stock.

 

[Kanj.nguyen]

I take out, unroll and wash the wick then hit it with a torch and make a new coil, but ONLY if I'm changing flavors. Otherwise, it's running strong on day 8

AGA Tiamat PLUS - Rebuildable Atomizer

This is what I did when I got it:

1. Take apart and clean all parts and pieces with hot water and soap
2. Put back together
3. Oxidize wick then roll it - take wire and heat it using lighter
4. Insert wick, make coil - 3/4 gives me 1.7 Ohm consistently
5. Check for hot spots, first two times my hotspot was on the top leg leading into the positive post in the center
6. Use tweezers to adjust coil until hotspot goes away
7. Hotspot still there, take out wick, re-oxidize
8. Insert wick, coil works perfectly, fires at 15 watts for 16 seconds with no hotspot (I don't recommend this BTW, I just did it...well, cause I could..at 1.7 Ohm I find 7 watts to be perfect)
9. Insert juice halfway in tank., tilt vape, tilt, vape, tilt, vape...Don't worry, Be happy

Finished AGA Tiamat Plus with Glass Tank (Bottom of wick looks crimped, it's not. The coil should hug, but not cut into the wick. Mine can be turned inside the coil, but it takes a little force to do so):

10th second@ 7.5 watts:

Finished with cap on top and air hole lined up:

Your wick could use some better rolling, and the coil is cutting into it too much. I doubt the heat is evenly distributed.

Also, a good wattage doesnt depend on coil resistance. A good voltage depends on a good wattage depends on the juice being vaped and the wick material. Resistance is just part of the math.

7.5 watts is likely too low for a Genesis. Remember, you are losing tons of heat into the metal wick. Too low power will lead to washbacks of gunks from underheated juice.

FOR EVERYONE LOOKING TO ENTER THE WORLD OF RBAs:

- $8 clone can work just as well as a $150 original. It may break sooner, but with $150 i can replace my clone 18 times. Bring it on, original.

- 500 mesh always works better, regardless of juices. Google "how wicks work" to find out why.

- Thoroughly oxidized wicks work just as well as completely unoxidized. The opposite assumption is a myth.

- Instead of asking other newbies for possibly wrong guidances, read (and watch) 3 things: eHuman's blog posts, Zen's coil wrapping video, and Petar K (aka drill bit) coil wrapping method.

- There is nothing wrong with the AGA or pretty much any other RBAs out there. With an RBA, most of the performance depends on the wuality of your build. Which also means that if it doesnt work well, 95% of the times its your fault. Dont blame your device, find out how to fix it.

- It is much easier to build a perfect RBA set up than most people would have you think. First trial took me 5 hours, and after than under 1 minute. Perfect every single time.


My AGA can be cleaned just by taking the wick out and rinse. The wick slides right out with a little turn, almost no force. But it fits snugly going in.

 

[SoundlessHero]

Your wick could use some better rolling, and the coil is cutting into it too much. I doubt the heat is evenly distributed.

Ya looks that way, but coils are perfect and vaping like a champ

The wick has taken a beating, lol. Cleaned and re-rolled about 8 or so times now for 8 diff flavors. As I stated, my wick is able to rotate 360 degrees with juuuuuust a little bit of effort. I build the coil around the wick freehand and that's why it looks bad, but that's the beauty of these things. You get that flexibility once you figure out how it works.

 

[Kanj.nguyen]

You dont really need to reroll after each clean...

And yeah, your wick is supposed to be able to move.

If youre happy with your current coil then no problem, but try the drill bit method (i dont have drill bits so used a qtip body) and see if you can tell a difference. My money is on yes.

 

[ktbeasley]

Here is the actual link to the page at Vapor Bank (had to go to the sandbox to figure out how to do this).

AGA-T+

 

[SoundlessHero]

oh man you know what I did? I mixed 3 Johnson Creek pure VG! Hahahaha!! First tried the Tennessee Cured, then the Island then the Domestic by the fourth tank it was horrible! Great juices, but man, that combo...There's still remnants of Island in the orings inside the tank. Have run two Watermelons and three Double Apples and this tank is finally the first one where I don't have any hints of the Johnson's Creek Island. Pure VG is seriously strong stuff...

At home I use a M2.5X0.45 fastner. The minor diameter is about 1.993mm. Makes a perfect coil although the pitch is small, so I have to spread the coils out.

It looks like this: http://www.mouser.com/search/ProductDetail.aspx?qs=dwkm%2bGAHGA3k3/AJwmheKA==

Click the data sheet. The one I have I used a Digital Vernier Caliper and got 1.993 on the Minor. This is better than the drill bit, I feel, since you can make the coil without having to stick the bit into your tank.

 

[Mh2k5]

Love my cobra and fatty <3

 

[Kanj.nguyen]

oh man you know what I did? I mixed 3 Johnson Creek pure VG! Hahahaha!! First tried the Tennessee Cured, then the Island then the Domestic by the fourth tank it was horrible! Great juices, but man, that combo...There's still remnants of Island in the orings inside the tank. Have run two Watermelons and three Double Apples and this tank is finally the first one where I don't have any hints of the Johnson's Creek Island. Pure VG is seriously strong stuff...

At home I use a M2.5X0.45 fastner. The minor diameter is about 1.993mm. Makes a perfect coil although the pitch is small, so I have to spread the coils out.

It looks like this: M0276-SS RAF Electronic Hardware | Mouser

Click the data sheet. The one I have I used a Digital Vernier Caliper and got 1.993 on the Minor. This is better than the drill bit, I feel, since you can make the coil without having to stick the bit into your tank.

What harm is sticking the bit into your tank? A wick is probably dirtier than the drill bit. And certainly dirtier than the body of a qtip.

And also, VG actually mutes flavor... Pure VG even more so. So either the flavor is intense by nature or you didnt clean your tank/ wick enough...

 

[SoundlessHero]

And also, VG actually mutes flavor... Pure VG even more so. So either the flavor is intense by nature or you didnt clean your tank/ wick enough...

Exactly, hence my beat up wick.

 

[Kanj.nguyen]

... Huh? I do not follow.

 

[SoundlessHero]

Oh I just meant that after each tank I washed the wick and that's why it looks so beat up. Have you tried the ceramic wicks yet? I wonder how well they work...

 

[VaWildlife]

I agree the AGA T's are great RBA for the price. I have two with the screw cap and wish I'd known they were working on the 2. 400 mesh is the way to go but you may want to try 30gauge kanthal it's easier to work with and getting that all important 2ohm setup. Given time you may want a Z atty or even the full out cobra but aga's are easiest to the new vaper price point is right and the build is good. Just remember watch vids on building Scott Bonner at E-cig review does a good build as does Zen at House of Hybrids.