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in my personal opinion I like blu's logo on PCC rather than red/yellow volcano PCC, however all parts are interchangeable with each other, if you are getting stock cart (although don't know why) always get from Volcano as it holds more and alot cheaper than blu. I personaly liked atty from Blu cause it has longer bridge (guess to counter their half sized e-liquid container on their carts) and seems newer model with how it's groved.
now as far as customer service, Volcano exeeds in every aspect compared to blu. shipping is also way better. but as far as price for starter pack Blu is better as it's $10 cheaper with 1 more atty (that's if you can wait 4week backorder time they've got now)
alot of people prefer 510's instead of L88's as blu/volcano is but 510 is little bit longer and thicker than 100's and comes with some weight, if you want just casual smoking I'll say l88 is easier to carry around with and show around. or if you want to get 510, get Magma from volcano (should be in stores this week) it's 510 with PCC just like Blu/Volcano PCC even has built in red led flash light and battery meter panel.
now as far as customer service, Volcano exeeds in every aspect compared to blu. shipping is also way better. but as far as price for starter pack Blu is better as it's $10 cheaper with 1 more atty (that's if you can wait 4week backorder time they've got now)
alot of people prefer 510's instead of L88's as blu/volcano is but 510 is little bit longer and thicker than 100's and comes with some weight, if you want just casual smoking I'll say l88 is easier to carry around with and show around. or if you want to get 510, get Magma from volcano (should be in stores this week) it's 510 with PCC just like Blu/Volcano PCC even has built in red led flash light and battery meter panel.
I just got my Blu and I like it. I will admit that this is my first e-cig so I chose the Blu for it's economic starter kit. Some of the things that I couldn't see myself trading out of are the cheap replacement parts, and the hands free usage. More times than not I'm stuck at a computer and being able to hold the e-cig in my mouth and not have to press a button is a very large pro to me. Already after just a few days I've learned a few tweaks.
One of the biggest problems I had was the longevity of the carts and the amount of vapor production. After taking a cart apart, I'm a physicist by trade so figuring out how things work isn't just a job to me it's a way of life, I noticed that the packing in the res was not uniform between carts. On top of that the stuffing was folded somewhat similar to the batting inside a Zippo. This is all well and good for a Zippo but I noticed that in a few cases the stuffing was compressed at one of the folds so badly that it stopped any wicking effect in it's tracks. I was able to solve this problem and triple the vapor with a few quick tricks. (Warning: This will void your warranty. I didn't care.)
1. Stock pile a few spent carts. Take a straitened paper clip and pop out the res. Use a pair a tweezers to remove the stock stuffing. I find that Fluval water scrubbing pads for the 304 (I'm sure of the 3 but it might be 306 or something like that) model. This is available at any pet store that works with fish. I found tearing off a layer of a pad just a little thicker than the res and cutting a strip about 3-4 mm longer than the res to be a good amount. Take the strip and insert it into the res and stuff it down with the paper clip. Use the paper clip to "fluff" up the Fluval so that it doesn't have any areas of high density so the juice can spread and be held evenly. Good great grand. You now have a cart that will use every last drop of juice you put in it.
2. Now obviously you need to fill it with something. I got most of my products from Totallywicked I got some nic juice and VG from them as well as some empty bottles. I got my flavors from Lorann Oils. Their super strength candy oils were suggested to me on more than one occasion. WARNING (from some things I've heard): Some of the flavors have artificial color or added sugar which will hurt your atty and feels like steel wool in your lungs. I haven't run into this problem yet just be careful. Using a mixing calculator www dot todmuller dot com/ejuice/ejuice dot php (sorry for the "dot" this is my first post) mix up a batch of juice. I found that the VG was far superior to the PG for vapor production.
Another quick tip is to go to your local Walgreens or CVS and grab a syringe from the pharmacy (they gave me one for free just be sure to ask for one for measuring liquids, 1 or 5 mL will do, or they look at you like you're a junky).
Right out of the door the dry cart will hold about 5 drops before possibly flooding. A down side to this is you can only have 2 modded carts going at a time unless you order more atties to use at caps for the cats. If you do flood your cart and realize it after the fact, i.e. you pull some juice into your mouth, don't panic. Just wash out your mouth, remove the cart and leave the atty on the bat. You see the two holes by the seam between the bat and the LED cover at the tip? That's the main air intake for the atty. Just put the bat in your mouth, LED end, and blow. I'm talking do your best Louie Armstrong impersonation. If you're quick and do it well you can save your atty and bat. A normal Blu bat would last me through an entire cart or two. Now I'm having to recharge before I finish a cart and the vapor is strong the whole time. Plus nothing compares to making your own flavors. I'm currently enjoying some clove juice as I type and I'm looking forward to trying my Key Lime juice later today.
Hope this helps some of you who are having buyers remorse over buying a Blu. I'm not saying Blu is where I'll stop and start in my vaping but it's been a good start thus far.
One of the biggest problems I had was the longevity of the carts and the amount of vapor production. After taking a cart apart, I'm a physicist by trade so figuring out how things work isn't just a job to me it's a way of life, I noticed that the packing in the res was not uniform between carts. On top of that the stuffing was folded somewhat similar to the batting inside a Zippo. This is all well and good for a Zippo but I noticed that in a few cases the stuffing was compressed at one of the folds so badly that it stopped any wicking effect in it's tracks. I was able to solve this problem and triple the vapor with a few quick tricks. (Warning: This will void your warranty. I didn't care.)
1. Stock pile a few spent carts. Take a straitened paper clip and pop out the res. Use a pair a tweezers to remove the stock stuffing. I find that Fluval water scrubbing pads for the 304 (I'm sure of the 3 but it might be 306 or something like that) model. This is available at any pet store that works with fish. I found tearing off a layer of a pad just a little thicker than the res and cutting a strip about 3-4 mm longer than the res to be a good amount. Take the strip and insert it into the res and stuff it down with the paper clip. Use the paper clip to "fluff" up the Fluval so that it doesn't have any areas of high density so the juice can spread and be held evenly. Good great grand. You now have a cart that will use every last drop of juice you put in it.
2. Now obviously you need to fill it with something. I got most of my products from Totallywicked I got some nic juice and VG from them as well as some empty bottles. I got my flavors from Lorann Oils. Their super strength candy oils were suggested to me on more than one occasion. WARNING (from some things I've heard): Some of the flavors have artificial color or added sugar which will hurt your atty and feels like steel wool in your lungs. I haven't run into this problem yet just be careful. Using a mixing calculator www dot todmuller dot com/ejuice/ejuice dot php (sorry for the "dot" this is my first post) mix up a batch of juice. I found that the VG was far superior to the PG for vapor production.
Another quick tip is to go to your local Walgreens or CVS and grab a syringe from the pharmacy (they gave me one for free just be sure to ask for one for measuring liquids, 1 or 5 mL will do, or they look at you like you're a junky).
Right out of the door the dry cart will hold about 5 drops before possibly flooding. A down side to this is you can only have 2 modded carts going at a time unless you order more atties to use at caps for the cats. If you do flood your cart and realize it after the fact, i.e. you pull some juice into your mouth, don't panic. Just wash out your mouth, remove the cart and leave the atty on the bat. You see the two holes by the seam between the bat and the LED cover at the tip? That's the main air intake for the atty. Just put the bat in your mouth, LED end, and blow. I'm talking do your best Louie Armstrong impersonation. If you're quick and do it well you can save your atty and bat. A normal Blu bat would last me through an entire cart or two. Now I'm having to recharge before I finish a cart and the vapor is strong the whole time. Plus nothing compares to making your own flavors. I'm currently enjoying some clove juice as I type and I'm looking forward to trying my Key Lime juice later today.
Hope this helps some of you who are having buyers remorse over buying a Blu. I'm not saying Blu is where I'll stop and start in my vaping but it's been a good start thus far.
Thats great to hear that instead of getting turned off and going to back to analogs you to the initiative to work with what you got.
From what i have heard most ppl that go back to analogs say they they just dont wanna mess a bit and find what works for them they just wanna buy something and have it work perfect with no adjustments and they want it for 20 bucks.
i went with volcano myself but i did most of what you did also and have a better experience because of it.
i havent tried the blue foam mods yet but theres no where local for me to get it i did get the PTB and it did the same for me.
VERY GLAD you made BLU work for you its great to hear that.
From what i have heard most ppl that go back to analogs say they they just dont wanna mess a bit and find what works for them they just wanna buy something and have it work perfect with no adjustments and they want it for 20 bucks.
i went with volcano myself but i did most of what you did also and have a better experience because of it.
i havent tried the blue foam mods yet but theres no where local for me to get it i did get the PTB and it did the same for me.
VERY GLAD you made BLU work for you its great to hear that.
Hello all, new member coming through. I actually wish I found this forum a few weeks ago since I probably wouldn't have made such a hasty choice for my first e-cig. I was introduced to the world of e-cigs when myself and a couple of friends were walking through the mall. We walked past a kiosk where the worker did some quick "profiling"..
.. and assumed that we must be smokers. He pulled out his generic brand of e-cigs (l88b's) and began breaking down the pros and cons as well as letting us sample the flavor and vapor. I was extremely interested but then he hit us with the price bomb... $250 for the starter kit which only came with one automatic battery and one atomizer. Seeing the reaction on our faces he quickly pulled out the discount card and said he could drop it down to $180 and throw in an extra battery and atomizer. That was a little better but I still wasn't sold on it. Even though my wallet was getting hot in my pocket I didn't splurge.
I decided to do a little research (note: little) on google. I stumbled upon blu cigs and was sold on their shiny website and attractive starter kit pack, price and blue light. Bang... I ordered my black starter kit. A couple of days later after checking my email every five minutes, I ventured back to the site and saw something new that wasn't there before. Starter kits on backorder, please allow 4 weeks shipping time. I was already so excited that I couldn't possibly wait that long, so I ordered everything that came in the starter kit seperately, this time in white, thinking it would come before my black starter kit would. 8 days after my first order the black starter kit arrived in the mail, despite the starter kits being back ordered. I cracked her open and charged it up (came almost fully charged) and started vaping away. I really liked the vapor production at first with my black kit, but then the white pieces came in the mail. I assembled the white ones and instantly noticed that the draw was easier and my white blu's produced much more vapor then my black ones did even when they were fresh out of the box. Strange.
Well everyone at work was noticing my new blu's and I even got one of my partners to take the plunge into the wonderful world of vaping. I ordered a blu starter kit for him, and right after I ordered his kit I ordered one for my grandmother literally 2 or 3 minutes after I ordered my friends.
A week went by and my friend got his starter kit. It's been almost another week, and my grandmother's starter kit order is still "processing". I contacted blu customer support asking them how two identical items ordered a few minutes from each other being delivered to the same zip code have two totally different results. Their reply two days later just pointed out the fact that their starter kits are on backorder and expect 4 weeks shipping time, not really answering my question. I wouldn't be so concerned if I was 100% satisfied with their product, but sadly I am not. My black cigs require a much harder pull to get good vapor. If I use the same suction power on my black ones as I do on my white ones, the black ones will just stop working mid-hit and the blue light will go out. I usually need to suck as hard as I can and straight down my throat with my black cigs, and pull very gingerly with my white ones to get the same vapor production. I thought that it may be the atty's, so I put a cartridge and atty on my black that was hitting like a champ on my white with no results. I found that the battery is restricting air flow somehow. I also noticed that when I'm just holding the batteries and atty's without the cartridges and blow through them from the blue light tip, the white battery offer's less resistance and starts vaping right away, while the black battery doesn't vap at all that way. I also noticed how the cartridges are hit or miss.
Then I found this site!
Thank you all for your input, I wish I had found this place sooner. I'm already over the smallness and fancy lights on the smaller e-cig models. I did some research on the new Tornado/Ego and made a purchase the other night from Totally Wicked. Can't wait to get it. I hope those that do decide to get blu cigs don't experience stupid shipping times and inconsistency with parts like I did.
.. and assumed that we must be smokers. He pulled out his generic brand of e-cigs (l88b's) and began breaking down the pros and cons as well as letting us sample the flavor and vapor. I was extremely interested but then he hit us with the price bomb... $250 for the starter kit which only came with one automatic battery and one atomizer. Seeing the reaction on our faces he quickly pulled out the discount card and said he could drop it down to $180 and throw in an extra battery and atomizer. That was a little better but I still wasn't sold on it. Even though my wallet was getting hot in my pocket I didn't splurge.I decided to do a little research (note: little) on google. I stumbled upon blu cigs and was sold on their shiny website and attractive starter kit pack, price and blue light. Bang... I ordered my black starter kit. A couple of days later after checking my email every five minutes, I ventured back to the site and saw something new that wasn't there before. Starter kits on backorder, please allow 4 weeks shipping time. I was already so excited that I couldn't possibly wait that long, so I ordered everything that came in the starter kit seperately, this time in white, thinking it would come before my black starter kit would. 8 days after my first order the black starter kit arrived in the mail, despite the starter kits being back ordered. I cracked her open and charged it up (came almost fully charged) and started vaping away. I really liked the vapor production at first with my black kit, but then the white pieces came in the mail. I assembled the white ones and instantly noticed that the draw was easier and my white blu's produced much more vapor then my black ones did even when they were fresh out of the box. Strange.
Well everyone at work was noticing my new blu's and I even got one of my partners to take the plunge into the wonderful world of vaping. I ordered a blu starter kit for him, and right after I ordered his kit I ordered one for my grandmother literally 2 or 3 minutes after I ordered my friends.
A week went by and my friend got his starter kit. It's been almost another week, and my grandmother's starter kit order is still "processing". I contacted blu customer support asking them how two identical items ordered a few minutes from each other being delivered to the same zip code have two totally different results. Their reply two days later just pointed out the fact that their starter kits are on backorder and expect 4 weeks shipping time, not really answering my question. I wouldn't be so concerned if I was 100% satisfied with their product, but sadly I am not. My black cigs require a much harder pull to get good vapor. If I use the same suction power on my black ones as I do on my white ones, the black ones will just stop working mid-hit and the blue light will go out. I usually need to suck as hard as I can and straight down my throat with my black cigs, and pull very gingerly with my white ones to get the same vapor production. I thought that it may be the atty's, so I put a cartridge and atty on my black that was hitting like a champ on my white with no results. I found that the battery is restricting air flow somehow. I also noticed that when I'm just holding the batteries and atty's without the cartridges and blow through them from the blue light tip, the white battery offer's less resistance and starts vaping right away, while the black battery doesn't vap at all that way. I also noticed how the cartridges are hit or miss.
Then I found this site!
Thank you all for your input, I wish I had found this place sooner. I'm already over the smallness and fancy lights on the smaller e-cig models. I did some research on the new Tornado/Ego and made a purchase the other night from Totally Wicked. Can't wait to get it. I hope those that do decide to get blu cigs don't experience stupid shipping times and inconsistency with parts like I did.
another bonus with starting with blu...
When I decided to upgrade to a Joye510. All I needed to buy was a 510 atty, a pass through, and one 5 pack of filled carts... all for less than $25. The 510 is great, and it also interchanges batterys and attys with the blu. Now I can use my Blu charger pack to charge batts... use my pass through when on my computer... and get to use that more powerful 510 atty. I'll probably get one of those Mega Batts and an extra atty or two to complete my set. (My Blu attys are happily retired).
When I decided to upgrade to a Joye510. All I needed to buy was a 510 atty, a pass through, and one 5 pack of filled carts... all for less than $25. The 510 is great, and it also interchanges batterys and attys with the blu. Now I can use my Blu charger pack to charge batts... use my pass through when on my computer... and get to use that more powerful 510 atty. I'll probably get one of those Mega Batts and an extra atty or two to complete my set. (My Blu attys are happily retired).
I still think my Blu is cute and I think that size/shape e-cig is good to show to very tentative smokers who are scared off by my 510 with manual battery or even my cute little TW 901.
I got two friends to try the Blu and they liked it, but then could see immediately that the 510 and 901 perform MUCH better. Blu was good for getting them INTERESTED. 510/901 good for getting them off analogs.
It has its uses.
I had a good experience with ordering/shipping. Good flavor in the carts but they last 2 seconds. Battery life not so great, it's true. Yeah, Blu is cute, but IMHO overpriced for what you get and performance not good enough to justify going with the cute factor.
My PCC stopped working properly already also (had it for around a month). It only charges the batts IF it is also plugged into the USB port on my PC. So it's going back for exchange/repair. Let's see how that comes out...
I got two friends to try the Blu and they liked it, but then could see immediately that the 510 and 901 perform MUCH better. Blu was good for getting them INTERESTED. 510/901 good for getting them off analogs.
It has its uses.
I had a good experience with ordering/shipping. Good flavor in the carts but they last 2 seconds. Battery life not so great, it's true. Yeah, Blu is cute, but IMHO overpriced for what you get and performance not good enough to justify going with the cute factor.
My PCC stopped working properly already also (had it for around a month). It only charges the batts IF it is also plugged into the USB port on my PC. So it's going back for exchange/repair. Let's see how that comes out...
I agree. You know some forums have this option that when you hover on specific words related to the forum niche, they give a hover text with explanation. E-cigarette forum should implement this as well.
Hi all,
Newbie here. I've been reading this site for a few days and have decided I would like something similar to an analogue (84mm or the 88mm) that has a PPC (that isn't ugly!).
Unfortunately, Blu and Volcano do not ship internationally (Australia).
Is there any other companies that have the same/similar package that ships internationally? I have been google-ing for days and getting so confused about the dodgy sites and the trusted sites.
Thanks in advance
Newbie here. I've been reading this site for a few days and have decided I would like something similar to an analogue (84mm or the 88mm) that has a PPC (that isn't ugly!).
Unfortunately, Blu and Volcano do not ship internationally (Australia).
Is there any other companies that have the same/similar package that ships internationally? I have been google-ing for days and getting so confused about the dodgy sites and the trusted sites.
Thanks in advance
I am curious as to why the blu e cig is hated so much. Just FYI I do own a JOYE 510 and I love it by the way. I am NOOB as well. I know the Blu's have a short battery life but thats why they have the PCC. As for the carts yeah they suck flavor wise, but if you add the Liquid you prefer then it rocks. Even more vapor production. Not as much as the 510 but it is good enough. I mean as an e cig it performs really well considering its size. I mean everyone is comparing the Blu to the 510 and pen style ecigs and of course its gonna suck in comparison for certain reasons. I am happy with my Blu and I am happy with my 510. Both do what I need them to do and each has there pros and there cons. If you dont have a tight fit on your cart on the 510 occasionally juice may leak out (Not over filling BTW). I dont have that with my Blu e cig. Basically I just once want to read a review that doesnt compare an e cig solely on what high performers do. In my honest oppinion for what you get in the blu starter kit it IS worth the money. I have 2 ways to charge my batteries right out of the box. I have a PCC, two atomizers, two batteries, and 25 carts(NOT THAT GREAT BUT HEY). All of that for like 10 dollars more than most 510 starter kits. Anyways If I am completely wrong its cool but people are trying to get the most for there money and I believe that Blu does that well and is a good enough product as well.
@ronpage25,
I'm (relatively) new to this as well, and I agree... blu is not as bad as everyone seems to be saying (at least not to me).
What I have found around here is most people have issues with the company (shipping, customer service) rather than the product itself. With that said, if you do like blu, check out Volcano, they have the exact same model (colors differ) and customer service & shipping appear to be much better. Plus they offer coupon codes and points for discounts.
And they have the new Magma... great product.
I'm (relatively) new to this as well, and I agree... blu is not as bad as everyone seems to be saying (at least not to me).
What I have found around here is most people have issues with the company (shipping, customer service) rather than the product itself. With that said, if you do like blu, check out Volcano, they have the exact same model (colors differ) and customer service & shipping appear to be much better. Plus they offer coupon codes and points for discounts.
And they have the new Magma... great product.
For what it's worth:
I ordered 2 of the Blu Atomizer (with a spare) units Sunday afternoon, and received an email today saying my order had shipped.
Their shipping service is miles ahead of a couple months ago, IMO...
BTW, I have a Blu, a 510 and a KR8 - and just ordered an EVO today.
Each has its place - I use all 3 interchangeably during the day (I drive for hours at a time in my job, and have each filled with different flavor)...
My perfect PV:
The analog form factor of the Blu, the vapor and TH of the 510, and the longevity and cool flavor of the KR8.
(Hopefully, the EVO will come close.)
But until that perfect PV comes along, the Blu definitely fills a place in my life...
Thats exactly what I was thnking about doing! I also wonder if volcanos 510 works as good as the manual version. I wouldnt see why not, but the 510 is good because you really dont have to drag too hard on it because the manual button. Volcano is actually the brand I wanted to get just I found it right after I found blu. LOL! Oh well I will get it soon enough. But I appreciate the back up. OH ONE FINAL THING ABOUT Blu. As far as shipping they werent that bad. I am stationed in korea and it took a week and a half from order to getting my kit. So I was impressed. But other companys did arrive sooner than Blu. CUSTOMER SERVICE IS CRAP though. THey are way to vague and dont really act like they care. But other than that still enjoying the blu. Only on day 2 though. We shall see after a couple weeks using my blu. THe 510 will always be my fave though.
I also wonder if volcanos 510 works as good as the manual version. I wouldnt see why not, but the 510 is good because you really dont have to drag too hard on it because the manual button. Volcano is actually the brand I wanted to get just I found it right after I found blu. LOL! Oh well I will get it soon enough. But I appreciate the back up. OH ONE FINAL THING ABOUT Blu. As far as shipping they werent that bad. I am stationed in korea and it took a week and a half from order to getting my kit. So I was impressed. But other companys did arrive sooner than Blu. CUSTOMER SERVICE IS CRAP though. THey are way to vague and dont really act like they care. But other than that still enjoying the blu. Only on day 2 though. We shall see after a couple weeks using my blu. THe 510 will always be my fave though.
I agree, if you look at blu's website, they clearly state orders will take between 7 and 10 business days; I too got lucky in my last order which only took 6 days.
If you like the 510, you may not like the Magma. I was just the opposite, I didn't like the TH from the 510 but I really like the Magma. It seems to be less harsh and I can actually taste the flavor of the cart.
Everything from the 510 and Magma are interchangeable except the carts. For some reason the 510 carts are just a tad smaller and don't stay in the Magma atty. But, the Magma carts appear to hold a lot of juice. (bonus!)
If you like the 510, you may not like the Magma. I was just the opposite, I didn't like the TH from the 510 but I really like the Magma. It seems to be less harsh and I can actually taste the flavor of the cart.
Everything from the 510 and Magma are interchangeable except the carts. For some reason the 510 carts are just a tad smaller and don't stay in the Magma atty. But, the Magma carts appear to hold a lot of juice. (bonus!)
You know I do like the TH on the 510 sometimes it is a little harsh. I still might try the Magma out though. Oh Maybe you guys can help me test this. Alright so as far as blus go I was ready on here someone said why not just push the inner cart up a little and people were afraid of breaking the atty. Well I have four and figured I could spare one if it breaks. WITH A STOCK cart no mods I am getting quite a bit more vapor. I didnt shove the inner cart up hard just a little, so that way it would meet the atty more. Now I did notice if I pushed it up a little too far the cart would leak. I moved it back down a notch and back to good vapor production. I just started this and if it work it would be a way to at least enjoy the carts they sent along with the kit. Basically if anyone is willing to try that as well just to see if it does work for them as well we may have found a way to just use some of the extra carts they send without wasting too much stuff. I would try it though if you only have two attys. But if you try it let me know how it goes and I will post updates as well.
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