So I bought a Smoktech Magneto and an Igo W dripper last week, the helpful guy at the shop set it up with a dual coil build which seem relatively fine(one coil seems to not always fire, so I have to tighten it down here and there).. I want to try my hand at building now and I'd like to know what I need. Kanthal wire seems obvious, but what gauge would you recommend I start with? I bought cotton balls and was told to boil them first. They did not carry organic, but I'm assuming regular will work OK? I know there are many YouTube video to watch, but a list from you lovely folks breaking down a shopping list would be amazing. Tools as well please! Thanks in advance fellow vapers! =D
Bought my first mechanical mod and RDA.. Now I need a beginners list.
- Thread starter Bacardimarty
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If you buy regular cotton, you gotta boil it to get anything they added out. Pretty sure you can skip that step with organic.
As for a tools list...
• Pliers (Regular and needle nose, not necessary but definitely can help)
• Tweezers
• Screwdrivers (Phillips, flat, and in some cases hex)
• Drill + drill bits (Drill is optional, but if you wanna do any sort of twisted wire builds it really helps. Drill bits to wrap your coils on)
• Ohm meter
• Torch (Again, optional, but it's nice to have for oxidizing SS mesh + tightening microcoils before you put them on your device, as well as annealing wire)
• Nail clippers / scissors (Just something to cut the wire with)
As for the gauge of Kanthal, I'd recommend starting with 28-32 gauge. The lower the gauge, the thicker the wire, the lower the resistance. If you go lower than 28 gauge (Or even some builds with 28/30) you're gonna wanna make sure your battery can handle the amp pull. You especially wanna be careful with this on a mech, since it doesn't have the low resistance protection built into APV's. You don't have to use a mech to use RTA/RDA's, since it's very easy to make most builds 1.2Ω or higher with 28g+ kanthal. For example, I just built a dual diamond coil with 30g kanthal that's coming in at 1.4Ω, using it with my Vamo V5.
As for a tools list...
• Pliers (Regular and needle nose, not necessary but definitely can help)
• Tweezers
• Screwdrivers (Phillips, flat, and in some cases hex)
• Drill + drill bits (Drill is optional, but if you wanna do any sort of twisted wire builds it really helps. Drill bits to wrap your coils on)
• Ohm meter
• Torch (Again, optional, but it's nice to have for oxidizing SS mesh + tightening microcoils before you put them on your device, as well as annealing wire)
• Nail clippers / scissors (Just something to cut the wire with)
As for the gauge of Kanthal, I'd recommend starting with 28-32 gauge. The lower the gauge, the thicker the wire, the lower the resistance. If you go lower than 28 gauge (Or even some builds with 28/30) you're gonna wanna make sure your battery can handle the amp pull. You especially wanna be careful with this on a mech, since it doesn't have the low resistance protection built into APV's. You don't have to use a mech to use RTA/RDA's, since it's very easy to make most builds 1.2Ω or higher with 28g+ kanthal. For example, I just built a dual diamond coil with 30g kanthal that's coming in at 1.4Ω, using it with my Vamo V5.
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You can use nails to wrap your coils on, cheaper than drill bits. I use 28 gauge wire mostly. Above tool lists are good. I use electrical diagonal cutters (dykes) instead of nail clippers, they are small and can get them pretty cheap at what ever hardware store is closest. Absolute must have is an ohm reader. Good luck and have fun
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1) Ohm Meter - around $20
2) Nail clippers/scissors/wire cutters - 99 cents - $5
3) Drill bit or whatever you have around that is about 2mm diameter - really cheap (I got 2 5/64 titanium drill bits for like $3
4) Small flat head and Phillips screwdriver - a lot of RBA's come with these (I actually got some from a buddy and they are PC repair screwdrivers and work excellent)
5) Kanthal wire - $4-$8 for 100 feet. I started off with 30 gauge and now solely use 28 gauge.
6) Paper towels - lots and lots of paper towels...
7) Tweezers/pliers - 99 cents - $5.. I bought pliers and never use them anymore only use some tweezers I got.... need some flat ones though.
8) Organic cotton balls - $4 at cvs/walgreens
9) Lots of juice to use in your new RDA/RBA - TBD
In my experience the best way to learn is to watch some videos. I watched quite a few videos of people building coils for the kayfuns before I even purchased the kayfun. Now its just becoming 2nd nature. I can relatively tell how many wraps of 28 gauge is going to make what ohms. Currently using 28 gauge dual coil 6 wraps in my stillare clone and its pushing 0.51 ohms.
2) Nail clippers/scissors/wire cutters - 99 cents - $5
3) Drill bit or whatever you have around that is about 2mm diameter - really cheap (I got 2 5/64 titanium drill bits for like $3
4) Small flat head and Phillips screwdriver - a lot of RBA's come with these (I actually got some from a buddy and they are PC repair screwdrivers and work excellent)
5) Kanthal wire - $4-$8 for 100 feet. I started off with 30 gauge and now solely use 28 gauge.
6) Paper towels - lots and lots of paper towels...
7) Tweezers/pliers - 99 cents - $5.. I bought pliers and never use them anymore only use some tweezers I got.... need some flat ones though.
8) Organic cotton balls - $4 at cvs/walgreens
9) Lots of juice to use in your new RDA/RBA - TBD
In my experience the best way to learn is to watch some videos. I watched quite a few videos of people building coils for the kayfuns before I even purchased the kayfun. Now its just becoming 2nd nature. I can relatively tell how many wraps of 28 gauge is going to make what ohms. Currently using 28 gauge dual coil 6 wraps in my stillare clone and its pushing 0.51 ohms.
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