1. What is the best overall RDA for both vapor production and flavor? I know this is subjective but what would be a solid one? Something that would work well with my Lost Vape Thelema DNA 250c mod.
- I have purchased a lot of RDA's recently - all squonk capable since I have no interest in dripping juice onto the deck every 3-4 puffs. The biggest turn-off that I've noticed with most of these has been how hot the actual atomizer gets after 2-4 puffs. Now when I get a new RDA, I build the deck and vape it, and if it's burning my lips - I toss it to the side. If this is something you think you might be concerned with, here are a few that I would suggest:
Favorites so far, from front to back, left to right: Front - Damn Vape Mongrel RDA, Psyclone Citadel (clone) RDA, Yachtvape Claymore RDA, Oumier VLS RDA, Hellvape Hellbeast RDA, Vandy Vape Lit RDA (mesh or reg. coil), THC Tauren Solo RDA; Back - Wotofo Profile 1.5 RDTA/RDA (mesh or reg. coil), OXVA Arbiter RTA, GeekVape Zeus X II (mesh), Damn Vape Doom X (mesh)
- Damn Vape Mongrel - just got this yesterday along with 4 other squonk capable RDAs and it's by far my favorite of any I've purchased so far. Been vaping it all night. More of a DL vape (open) with a big drip tip (closer to what you get from the Mesh Pro 2), single coil, barrel stays cool, very deep juice well - 9mm I believe (makes it less easy for juice to leak out if you over squonk/put too much juice in it - think of it as a fish bowl), wicking is very forgiving - tons of room, probably supports up to a single 3.5 ID coil (I'm using a 3 and there's a bit of room left), various airflow options, good flavor, good clouds. Also coming from mesh Sub-ohm tanks (Fireluke 3/Maxus & OBS Tank S), I've been fairly disappointed with most of the RDAs, but I also don't vape them in TC mode so there's likely room for some fine tuning. Regardless, this bugger hangs in there pretty well.
- Yachtvape Claymore & Psyclone Citadel (I'm using a clone from FT $17.49 ULTON Citadel Styled RDA Rebuildable Dripping Atomizer - 316 stainless steel / 22mm diameter / w/ BF pin at FastTech - Free Shipping) - very similar as ducasse had mentioned above. Both stay very cool, they're lower profile, smaller decks/chambers tend to concentrate the taste better as well as the distance from the end of the drip tip - these are good for this, shallower juice wells, easy to build and wick.
- Oumier VLS - single or dual coil, honeycomb airflow control, deep juice well, good taste and clouds.
- Hellvape Hellbeast - single or dual coil, honeycomb airflow control, deep juice well (because of high vents), also easy to build and wick.
- Vandy Vape Lit - super cheap (like $5 cheap), has a spring-loaded stacked platform that you clamp down onto either mesh or reg. coils (can be configured vertically if you'd like to try), honeycomb airflow, good flavor and clouds not as easy to build as the others, but it's definitely fun/interesting.
- THC Tauren Solo - more of a restricted DL vape, warmer but smooth, extremely well machined, decent flavor (again, don't use TC so I might be a jackass for not grading some of these higher), good clouds. Supports maybe a 3.5 ID coil - cool ventilation system, easy to coil/wick.
The rest of these are not RDA exclusive. RDTA/RTAs have a tank built into them, so no dripping or squonk necessary.
- Wotofo Profile 1.5 - can be converted into either squonkable RDA or RDTA, supports both mesh and single/dual coil, definitely one of my overall favs simply because of what it's capable of, and how well it does all of them, I've only used this in mesh RDTA config, so it's a cooler vape, honeycomb airflow, super fun to build, taste is amazing (kind of cheating when compared to reg. RDAs), great clouds, mid point refill (top half is removed to refill), highly highly recommend. Great way to learn everything in one package.
- OXVA Arbiter - RTA, looks wise, this is like the big boy version of the Zeus X II mentioned next, 28mm width, twist top refill, 6mL tank, single/dual coil, top to bottom airflow which makes it near leak proof, easy to build and wick, great flavor and clouds.
- Zeus X II - mesh or reg. coil via horizontal clamps, cooler vape cuz of mesh, also a cheater in flavor/clouds cuz of mesh. Easy to wick and coil. Cheater.
- Damn Vape Doom X - Also mesh, pretty much the same in performance as the Zeus X II, but a slightly warmer vape (might also be the glazed donut I have in it), bottom airflow vents (which you'll want to close when refilling or you'll get a sticky mess - a good habit to get into for all RTAs that you're refilling), on par flavor with Sub-ohm tanks (really good), and great clouds.
I came back to add another RTA that's squonkable:
- THC Tauren Max - single/dual coil, has a 2 mL tank but also supports squonk as an RTA because the pin goes to the top of the tank - you can refill the tank whenever you want so no worries of overflow, vapes like a loose RDL, slightly warmer vape, atomizer does get a bit warm if you're chainvaping but I currently have dual coils in it - it'll likely be less warm with a single coil, so very smooth and I love the flavor, great clouds as well.
2. Since I’m new to RDA’s should I try and build my own coils? Or buy ready made ones for now? If so which ready made coils are good to buy?
- You can get fairly cheap Coilology premade coils in 10 packs, but they won't be as cheap as wire unless you find a really good deal. To give you an idea, decent but cheap wire ($5 for 15 ft.) is going to cost you about $0.08 to $0.11 per coil depending on how many coils you can get out of a foot. Less wraps with a bigger wire is going to use up less wire than thinner wire wrapped more times. I estimate 3 or 4 coils out of a foot. I've never actually measured the length of my coils - I just wrap them based on what I want from Steam Engine. For prewrapped coils (Coilology for example), you're looking at spending probably closer to $0.20 per coil, but these are for multiple wire strands usually (duo-core to quad or quint-core wrapped wires). So although you are spending more, you can get a fancier coil than just a single wire. On the steeper end of things, you can buy alienwire claptons that can easily cost you $2 to $5 per coil or even more. Also remember that you can buy spools of fancier wire like this mesh or this ribboned clapton (it's not legitimate alienwire) for slightly more than just basic wire. If you do choose to go with a mesh RTA, I'd highly suggest picking up some mesh spools.
- In regards to what's good, start looking around FastTech and reading reviews. Many have said to stay away from Demon Killer, but I've used prebuilt coils and they've been fine. I'm not sure what their experience(s) were, but to each their own.
3. What resistance and wattage is ideal to get the full benefits and full RDA experience for flavor and vapor output? I’m currently vaping on a 0.2ohm @ 70w.
- This sounds to be pretty good actually. Lower ohms will want a higher wattage which might yield you more clouds, but you'll lose flavor. Also, be sure your mod can handle the low ohms, and also be aware of what batteries you're using to get those higher wattages. A good rule of thumb is wattage divided by 3 per battery for recommended Continuous Discharge Rating in Amps. For 70 watts in a single battery mod, you'd want a 25A Continuous Discharge Rating or better 70w/3 = roughly 23.3A. For a dual battery mod, you'd want at least 12.5A Continuous Discharge Rating batteries. 70w/3 = roughly 23.3A / 2 (batteries) = roughly 11.6A.
4. Is there anything I need to know before diving in? I have done some research (YouTube videos etc) and I think I can manage it. But is there any tips you guys would give to a first time RDA builder / user?
- Have fun. I kind of get excited when my coils start to go bad or I get a new RDA in the mail - enjoy yourself. Also, coil position in relation to air vents is huge - play around with that some if you're not getting the flavor you want. Also remember that wicks should be considered "plugs" or "covers" and not "stuffing". In 90% of the builds I've made, the wicks just need to cover the juice ports - you don't need to stuff a huge wad down into the holes or you're going to create a choke point for juice absorption. Let the juice flow into the wick, not the wick looking to pick up more juice.
5. What type of wicks should I use? Are they all created equal? Or are some better than others?
- Up to you really. I've used most of the wicks they send in a lot of the rebuildable decks and they all seem to work fine. I've never used Cotton Bacon or any of the other "premium" wicks, so I have nothing to offer in regards to that. I would suggest this though if you're looking for a good bang for your buck. 13 feets
6. Am I better off going with a single or dual coil?[/QUOTE]
- Start with single until you're comfortable with building imo. Dual can get a little cramped and require a lot of adjusting to work properly. Also, with dual coil, it halves your ohm resistance, so it's going to want double the power to pump out the same performance. Back to the dual battery stuff I mentioned above.
Just have fun dude. Experiment. Try everything. Also as a last recommendation, don't burn your face off. Cheers!
