Benefits of cartos?

[TheKiwi]

Hi all, I've spent a ton of time checking out the threads, and there seems to be a general feeling that while clearos in general are easy to rebuild and maintain, they don't perform quite as well as cartotanks. Personally I've had a bunch of evods, PT2, a kfl+, a kfl+ clone. While I love the kfl, they are both very very expensive as well as produce too intense a vape for some ejuice for me (Boba's bounty is too intense on my kfl, but very yummy on my evod). I do have some questions about cartotanks that I would really really appreciate some objective views and feedback on

1) how are they maintenance wise? I've a .... ton of kanthal wire, cotton, silica, a blowtorch tweezer etc. Would I needa acquire a whole bunch of other stuff? Can I easily dry burn or clean them easily whether it's for maintenance or "rewicking" when changing ejuice?

2) what are some of the advantages over clearos? I personally think that I get great flavor from my clearos with my microcoils and cotton, although having my KFL has shown me the difference in flavor. Any other reasons why making the switch to cartotanks would be a good idea?

3) if for some reason cartotanks aren't much of an upgrade, would you guys recommend any RBAs (no drippers pls. It's too much hassle for a college kid shuttling between classes)? It would be even better if there are solid clones available. My personal policy is that I'll buy a clone to try something out first, and then save up for the real deal just to do my part for the folks who are innovating for us.

Really hope to hear some opinions and feedback on this!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Dzaw]

1: as compared to self made coils, cartos are almost maintenance free. Prime a carto, slap it in a tank, fill er up, and vape on. Refill when low, keep 'era wet, and she'll vape happily for you for several tanks worth of juice.

When vapor and flavor start to decline, or you want a different flavor, switch in a new carto. You can save the used one for cleaning, if you like.

Taste is generally more intense than with a clearo, and if you match resistance to output, vapor and throat hit are comparable to a good clearo. Also, very few clearos have the capacity of a good carto tank.


To clean cartos out to restore flavor and vapor, once it has gone south is a bit tricky, but not too bad. Boil in tap water for ten minutes, change the water and repeat. Keep at it until there is no residue on the top of the water. Some people call it good there. You can do more if you're so inclined. Me, I will be (switching back to cartos soon, after an overall disappointing stint with pro tanks) giving them an overnight vodka bath at this point, followed by boiling (probably twice) in distiller water.

A good cleaning can go a long way to restoring a carto, but it will lose performance faster after it's first round. Ultimately they are disposable. Sure, some people must rebuild them, but it's a tiny space for rebuilding with too many variables to juggle to make it worth it, IMHO.

generally, it's been my observation that carto tanks appear to be tied with good bottom feeders for 'best in class' hassle free performance, at least in the opinions of the cross section of the community that I've run across.

 

[Kirkwood]

I vape with a lot of different things, but when I just want to relax with good flavor and no hassle I use a carto tank. When the flavor goes or I start to get a burnt taste, no cleaning or restoring for me, I toss it and punch and prime a new one and go.

 

[Cromeus]

You might want to look into the iClear 30S - it's built very much like a carto tank, wicks inside, holes punched, and has pretty amazing flavor. Holds 3ml, and new heads are about $2

Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk

 

[BernieVideo]

Go here for all you need to know about carto tanks... it is the Bible http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/blogs/baditude/4830-8-cartotank-help-noob.html

The only thing you need to get right with Cartos is Priming them correctly. That and a good Tank.

At less than $2 a carto, not many make the effort to clean them.
As far as I know, they cannot be rebuilt.

If you buy prepunched or slotted cartos, you do not need any tools at all.

Oh, except something like one of these carto tank filling tools, they are very helpful. https://www.ibtanked.com/accessories/drip-tips/refilling/black-anodized-refilling-drip-tip-detail

Delrin Slap Yo' Mama Multi-Purpose Adapter [SYMD] - $7.99 : Big Daddy Vapor

 

[edyle]

Hi all, I've spent a ton of time checking out the threads, and there seems to be a general feeling that while clearos in general are easy to rebuild and maintain, they don't perform quite as well as cartotanks. Personally I've had a bunch of evods, PT2, a kfl+, a kfl+ clone. While I love the kfl, they are both very very expensive as well as produce too intense a vape for some ejuice for me (Boba's bounty is too intense on my kfl, but very yummy on my evod). I do have some questions about cartotanks that I would really really appreciate some objective views and feedback on

1) how are they maintenance wise? I've a .... ton of kanthal wire, cotton, silica, a blowtorch tweezer etc. Would I needa acquire a whole bunch of other stuff? Can I easily dry burn or clean them easily whether it's for maintenance or "rewicking" when changing ejuice?

2) what are some of the advantages over clearos? I personally think that I get great flavor from my clearos with my microcoils and cotton, although having my KFL has shown me the difference in flavor. Any other reasons why making the switch to cartotanks would be a good idea?

3) if for some reason cartotanks aren't much of an upgrade, would you guys recommend any RBAs (no drippers pls. It's too much hassle for a college kid shuttling between classes)? It would be even better if there are solid clones available. My personal policy is that I'll buy a clone to try something out first, and then save up for the real deal just to do my part for the folks who are innovating for us.

Really hope to hear some opinions and feedback on this!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

So far there are no rebuildable cartos. They are designed to be used and tossed.
A cartotank brings the advantages of a clearotank to the carto world.

Advantage of a carto? BIG FAT WICK on a hot steelmesh bridge.

 

[Myrany]

So far there are no rebuildable cartos. They are designed to be used and tossed.
A cartotank brings the advantages of a clearotank to the carto world.

Advantage of a carto? BIG FAT WICK on a hot steelmesh bridge.

Not quite true
V2 Diver Rebuildable Atomizer by Atmistique - Phiniac Rugged Pyrex Glass Tanks
The diver is a rebuildable atomizer that replaces the carto in a carto tank. THere are a few other options in rebuildables out there too.

 

[boborone]

Hi all, I've spent a ton of time checking out the threads, and there seems to be a general feeling that while clearos in general are easy to rebuild and maintain, they don't perform quite as well as cartotanks. Personally I've had a bunch of evods, PT2, a kfl+, a kfl+ clone. While I love the kfl, they are both very very expensive as well as produce too intense a vape for some ejuice for me (Boba's bounty is too intense on my kfl, but very yummy on my evod). I do have some questions about cartotanks that I would really really appreciate some objective views and feedback on

1) how are they maintenance wise? I've a .... ton of kanthal wire, cotton, silica, a blowtorch tweezer etc. Would I needa acquire a whole bunch of other stuff? Can I easily dry burn or clean them easily whether it's for maintenance or "rewicking" when changing ejuice?

2) what are some of the advantages over clearos? I personally think that I get great flavor from my clearos with my microcoils and cotton, although having my KFL has shown me the difference in flavor. Any other reasons why making the switch to cartotanks would be a good idea?

3) if for some reason cartotanks aren't much of an upgrade, would you guys recommend any RBAs (no drippers pls. It's too much hassle for a college kid shuttling between classes)? It would be even better if there are solid clones available. My personal policy is that I'll buy a clone to try something out first, and then save up for the real deal just to do my part for the folks who are innovating for us.

Really hope to hear some opinions and feedback on this!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

1) As far as maintenance goes, there's not much. A needle cap for a juice bottle and a slap-yo-mamma. I can't comment on changing juice in the middle of a carto's use, haven't done that. I have tons of tanks and keep different flavors in them all.

2) Cartos to me produce the same great flavor I get from my iClear 16 clearos. It's just a tad bit better. Keep in mind that I love the flavor that comes from a top wicking dual coil. I use an iClear 30 for my all day vape when running around town working and whatnot. (now I can tell you that will change when I get a couple locking tanks for my cartos. Part of the reason I use the 30 is it's big, great flavor, and won't come off when I pull on the tank to get the mod out of my pocket.)

3) Not much experience in this area as I'm building my first RSST now. Still trying to work out the kinks and get it how I like.

Some disadvantages of a carto is if you like to use chocolate flavors, they can be lost in the carto. Say you like a chunky monkey ice cream flavor in your clearo. You'll get a strong peanut, marshmallow, ice cream flavor, but miss out on the chocolate swirl that makes a chunky monkey so nice. I get all I want from my dual coil clearos, and single coil cartos. Just doing the rba cause it was free to me. I don't use single coil ProTanks, Hypertanks, and any other cheapo clearo anymore. But the dual coil iClears do a great job for me. And at the same wattage, they produce the same vape as the carto, but the carto intensifies the flavor. All I can say is, if you like a flavor, make dam sure you like it before you put in a carto, cause if you don't absolutely love it, it'll blow your mind when you vape it from a carto.

My thinking is, vaping is like carrying around your own personal hookah. I smoke a hookah cause the flavor is great. I want the flavor in my vape to be great also. A carto will take you to a level above a single coil clearo, but not as high as a well built rba. And it is the flavor we are all after in the end, it's just up to how far you want to take it, and what works for you.

I say pull the plug and get one. The initial investment isn't that much. 15 bucks for a setup that includes a tank, tip, and carto. And if you like it, you got one, if you don't, well you're only out a good 12 pack.

 

[Visus]

Carts are very easy to rebuild, better than new, its huge in there after you get acclimated. SS mesh wicking makes it very difficult working out the shorts but uber rewarding. I can vape a storm cloud with my carts @3ohms. I would not rebuild a punched boge but the unpunched oh yes, they get a rebuild, all airholes wider, an atomizer e juice holder cup from a blu disposable, and ss mesh,--sublime vape-- just gets annoying @8drips since all my other drippers are 15-28drops.

 

[GoodNews!]

@ borborone, I think of vaping like a portable hookah as well!

The thing I love about hookah is that the smoke is extremely clean - there seems to be not one harsh, dirty, or weird tasting smoke in hookah tobacco, so that's really what I got used to for that little activity. What I always hated about it was that you have to inhale so hard with hookah, it seems.

When I discovered vaping years ago, just on disposable e-cigs, I was taken aback by how clean the vapor was (on certain brands) and the taste and cleanliness of hookah was pretty much replicated for me. I loved it. However, since then, I've had so much trouble out of virtually any device beyond disposable e-cigs, where they give me a sort of dirty, wicky taste no matter how well they're wicking and producing vapor. It's sort of a layer that I always seem to taste, and I really dislike it.

I'm sort of confused as to wether this is something many people just can't taste, or if I've just had some bad luck, but I'm noticing how the higher I climb into gear that the flavor pros really stand behind, that I'm getting less and less of that "wicky" taste, and I think that having less of this taste pretty much goes hand in hand with experiencing a lot of strong flavor. Some of the flavors I received on a recent Cisco atomizer were a dream come true, flavors that were extraordinarily clean with no single bad tinge. And people really stand behind the Ciscos for giving the strongest, cleanest flavor.

So I'm hoping that in the end, maybe cartos really do give a very strong, clean flavor without the dirty tinge I tend to taste. I'm still aprehensive because while I've had luck with disposable e-cigs (which have cartos that are essentially made just like cartomizers), I've tried the "carto kits" of even some of the same brands, and those cartos have all tasted like a singed sock, or at worst, completely burnt. Looking around at various brand reviews, I see a lot of reviewers saying the same thing. Since it's essentially the same technology, actual cartos have been one thing I've been sort of reluctant to get into, wondering if bad cartomizers do spring up often as they do on kit cartos, or if they're very easy to burn if you don't have the right draw technique or something for them.

All I know is that they're a last resort attempt for me if RDA'ing doesn't work.

I've always truly wondered why there's so many manufacturing issues with "kit" cartomizers though (the type that Blu and whoever else sells). Essentially, it's the same polyfil and coil system and all that, that everyone uses with cartotanks... at least, it seems to be. Yet these types of cartos, even sold by brands like Johnson's Creek and such, just seem to have a horrible reputation, and I can attest to it personally. I wonder why these are so faulty when a lot of people really stand behind "actual" cartos (Boge and such). Though Boge has recently went down the drain according various members. Just a lot of rank QC in vaping, I guess.

 

[BillyWJ]

Hi all, I've spent a ton of time checking out the threads, and there seems to be a general feeling that while clearos in general are easy to rebuild and maintain, they don't perform quite as well as cartotanks. Personally I've had a bunch of evods, PT2, a kfl+, a kfl+ clone. While I love the kfl, they are both very very expensive as well as produce too intense a vape for some ejuice for me (Boba's bounty is too intense on my kfl, but very yummy on my evod). I do have some questions about cartotanks that I would really really appreciate some objective views and feedback on

1) how are they maintenance wise? I've a .... ton of kanthal wire, cotton, silica, a blowtorch tweezer etc. Would I needa acquire a whole bunch of other stuff? Can I easily dry burn or clean them easily whether it's for maintenance or "rewicking" when changing ejuice?

2) what are some of the advantages over clearos? I personally think that I get great flavor from my clearos with my microcoils and cotton, although having my KFL has shown me the difference in flavor. Any other reasons why making the switch to cartotanks would be a good idea?

3) if for some reason cartotanks aren't much of an upgrade, would you guys recommend any RBAs (no drippers pls. It's too much hassle for a college kid shuttling between classes)? It would be even better if there are solid clones available. My personal policy is that I'll buy a clone to try something out first, and then save up for the real deal just to do my part for the folks who are innovating for us.

Really hope to hear some opinions and feedback on this!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Maintenance: other than cleaning the tank between cartos, none.

Advantages: Flavor, great vapor, consistent quality throughout the life of the carto, you can get tanks that hold a lot of juice, and once it's set for watts or volts, there's no fiddling or anything to worry about. They're cheap, too.

Cons: Occasionally you get a bad one. Of the 15 I've bought so far, I've had two that were bad. Switching flavors is usually a decision to change cartos (but, they're cheap). Some of the cheaper tanks can leak. You need more juice to fill them - no tasting with a tank! They can be a pain to fill, without a syringe or a bottle with a needle tip - it's something you definitely don't want to try filling while driving!

I think the quality of a carto will be somewhere between a ProTank, and a Kayfun, depending on what cartos you get, and what resistance and how many coils. A single coil 2.5 ohm is a different animal than a 1.8 dual coil. (Both are great). My experience was a BIG upgrade in flavor and vapor than a ProTank II with rebuilt coils and a cotton wick.

A top of the line tank would be a Phiniac tank, or some of the custom ones with fancy glass, running around $40 - cheaper ones like Smok DCT tanks, or Naked tanks, or the Submarine, are usually around $10-20. Cartos can be anywhere from $1.50 to $2.50 each - Ikenvapes are reviewed as the best, Boge next, Smok after that. (I use Smok's right now, they're great.)

And don't forget a drip tip!

One of the cool things about tanks, is you can have a lot of fun getting them to look good with whatever mod you're using them on.

Where cartos fit for me is filling it with my favorite all-day vapes, and knowing if I reach for it, I'm going to enjoy it. No tilting it, like a top feeder when it gets low, no quick burn out or dry hits like a ProTank, no constant filling like with a dripper. They're my Old Faithfuls of my PVs. I haven't carried one around all day, I use my proTanks for that, and some have complained of lower perfromance with going from cold to warm a lot, like walking around campus this time of year.

 

[TheJakeBailey]

Hello op. I'm definitely a carto cheerleader. It looks like most of your questions have already been answered, and if you haven't already, I second the blogs of mr baditude. As for other clearos, you might want to try an iclear 30, or an iclear30s. Neither are anything like a carto tank, but they are probably the only clearo I like nowadays. (yes the 30s looks like a carto, but completely different technology. its a dual top coil with a bunch of wicks. the wicks are encased in the shaft, but the coils are still at the top. In a carto, the filler material surrounds the coil.) I think the 30s has a better draw than the the original, but you can't rebuild it.

As for why tanked cartos are better? For me, it's all about the flavor! Here's a couple of recent threads from converts, as well as my first thread, from my very first carto.

http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/general-e-smoking-discussion/508477-wow-flavor.html
http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/fo...-ok-everyone-who-loves-carto-tanks-right.html
http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/cartomizers/487264-so-what-ive-been-missing.html

 

[NicoHolic]

I've used them, and cartos are a step up from clearomizers. But here's what I have in my carto tanks these days. It's a leap beyond cartos, and using Stormy's NR-R-NR ready wires to wind 1/16" micro coils for organic cotton wick, not much more setup than priming a carto.

http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/rebuildable-atomizer-systems/480993-sophia-rebuildable-atomizer-leo-discussion-tips.html

 

[Johnnie Price]

Not quite true
V2 Diver Rebuildable Atomizer by Atmistique - Phiniac Rugged Pyrex Glass Tanks
The diver is a rebuildable atomizer that replaces the carto in a carto tank. THere are a few other options in rebuildables out there too.

You can also rebuild Echo style cartomizers, but it takes a bit of work. And they're too large to go in a tank.

 

[BillyWJ]

I've used them, and cartos are a step up from clearomizers. But here's what I have in my carto tanks these days. It's a leap beyond cartos, and using Stormy's NR-R-NR ready wires to wind 1/16" micro coils for organic cotton wick, not much more setup than priming a carto.

http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/rebuildable-atomizer-systems/480993-sophia-rebuildable-atomizer-leo-discussion-tips.html

Nooooooo, no more rebuildables! LOL!

 

[DaveP]

I love the taste of a fresh carto or a fresh Kanger Protank or TS3 head. I vape them until they begin to get bland and then I wash and dry burn the heads until they don't snap back to good flavor. Then, I re-coil them and go again.

With a carto I use it for a day or two and toss it. Washing a carto just doesn't seem worth the trouble anymore.

 

[Baditude]

I rarely use cartomizers solo, mainly because they're difficult to know how much liquid is left in them to know when to do a refill. This requires you to do frequent "topping off" with juice to keep the filler wet and avoid burning the filler. This is especially true with dual coil cartos. Once the filler is burnt, the carto is ruined.

I prefer using cartos in cartotanks because the filler is continuously refilled with each vape you take. This means no maintanace with a cartotank other than re-filling the tank, which you can figure out easily because you can see the juice left in the tank.

I get better flavor and consistancy with a cartotank over a clearomizer. The cartos last as long as the replaceable heads in a clearomizer - 2 to 3 weeks. The most important thing to know about cartomizers is to properly prime the carto initially, which will determine how well that carto will perform for the rest of its life. Most beginners do not fill them right and ruin their first couple. Once they find a method of properly priming them, they will be golden.

BADITUDE'S CARTOTANK SETUP GUIDE

IS IT A CARTO, A TANK, OR WHAT?

 

[edyle]

Not quite true
V2 Diver Rebuildable Atomizer by Atmistique - Phiniac Rugged Pyrex Glass Tanks
The diver is a rebuildable atomizer that replaces the carto in a carto tank. THere are a few other options in rebuildables out there too.

So the V2 Diver seems to be the first and so far only rebuildable carto ?

edit:

and sounds like the Sophia is another example of a rebuildable cartomizer?

 

[sawlight]

So the V2 Diver seems to be the first and so far only rebuildable carto ?

No, there's also the Killer 705, The Killer and it's clones.

 

[serenity21899]

An IBTanked and bad's tips were all I needed to get started with carto tanks. Once you get the hang of it, you really don't have do to much.