Coil building guidance

[Milk Marc]

Hi, I've been vaping for about half a year now, but want to get into building my own coils with an rda (vandy vape bonza), more specifically on a tube mech mod (Wismec Reuleaux rx Machina) since I find them more aesthetically pleasing and I'd rather be holding on to a tube than a box. I've done a good amount of research for safety.

Basically I want to build a dual coil at around 0.33 which will draw out about half of the max cda for the sony vtc5a batteries I'm using, but I'm unsure about what combination of material, gauge, and type of wrap (alien, clapton, etc.) will give me a satisfying hit at that resistance. Guidance for making coils from scratch is also appreciated

 

[Coastal Cowboy]

You'll find this resource to be invaluable.

Coil wrapping | Steam Engine | free vaping calculators

 

[dom qp]

I like this one for fancy coils since you can add claptons and whatnot:

Wire wizard | Steam Engine | free vaping calculators

0.33 dual = 0.66 single.

Everything with vaping seems to have diminishing returns. I feel like a clapton (single/dual/triple core) is the sweet spot.

You'll basically have to play around with it until you find something worth using.

Personally I have a hard time hitting >0.2 with a dual coil with NI80 (unless i'm willing to go for a smallish build, i.e. the one exampled below). For 0.3 and up I much prefer a single coil deck with an extra large coil.

Example would be an NI80 24/26 wrapped in a 36 @ 6-8 wraps. Should sit somewhere between 0.55-0.75 each.

 

[sonicbomb]

0.33 ohms is about 12.5 amps so you as you said you are under budget with the VTC5a which is a 25 amp battery.

Using a single battery mech I would completely avoid anything exotic and stick with standard round wire builds.

Using 26 guage kanthal, dual coil with a 2.5 mm internal diameter 5 wraps gives you 0.33 ohms.
Perhaps a little shy on surface area
Coil wrapping | Steam Engine | free vaping calculators

If you were to use stainless steel and were prepared to a little lower in resistance I would go for
dual coil 26G SS, 2.55 mm ID 8 wraps 0.26 ohms and 16 amps which is still well under budget.
Coil wrapping | Steam Engine | free vaping calculators


The thing is with mechanicals is that you have to be prepared to build a lot of coils and do a lot of experimentation to find what you like and how to get it. The whole thing is highly subjective. Battery safety however is not subjective so well played for choosing a good battery and asking good questions.

Your guidance for coil making is best coming from Youtube as there are lots of great tutorials there.
I personally learned by watching old RipTrippers vids.

I would highly recommend you get a coil jig, coiling by hand on a drill bit or a screwdriver is a total PITA.
FastTech - Gadgets and Electronics


The Ex Machina is has a direct to battery connection (AKA hybrid style). This brings it's own unique set of safety issues which you need to be mindful of .
You need to ensure the positive pin on the atomizer protrudes statically at least 1mm and is not sprung loaded or uses rubber bushes. If the positive pole of the battery comes into contact with both the positive and negative connections of the atomizer 510, it will result in a dead short and you will have a very bad day. The positive connector on your battery will also become slightly concave with regular use increasing the chances of this occurring, so do not become complacent.

Yes

No

 

[bombastinator]

id Add more but that’s already a lot to absorb, and you need to

 

[Milk Marc]

I like this one for fancy coils since you can add claptons and whatnot:

Wire wizard | Steam Engine | free vaping calculators

0.33 dual = 0.66 single.

Everything with vaping seems to have diminishing returns. I feel like a clapton (single/dual/triple core) is the sweet spot.

You'll basically have to play around with it until you find something worth using.

Personally I have a hard time hitting >0.2 with a dual coil with NI80 (unless i'm willing to go for a smallish build, i.e. the one exampled below). For 0.3 and up I much prefer a single coil deck with an extra large coil.

Example would be an NI80 24/26 wrapped in a 36 @ 6-8 wraps. Should sit somewhere between 0.55-0.75 each.

Thanks for all the info, using a single coil might work better for me now that you mention it

 

[Baditude]

You may or may not already know this stuff:

A Beginner's Guide to Your First Mechanical Mod

Explain it to the Dumb Noob: Ohm's Law Calculations

 

[Milk Marc]

0.33 ohms is about 12.5 amps so you as you said you are under budget with the VTC5a which is a 25 amp battery.

Using a single battery mech I would completely avoid anything exotic and stick with standard round wire builds.

Using 26 guage kanthal, dual coil with a 2.5 mm internal diameter 5 wraps gives you 0.33 ohms.
Perhaps a little shy on surface area
Coil wrapping | Steam Engine | free vaping calculators

If you were to use stainless steel and were prepared to a little lower in resistance I would go for
dual coil 26G SS, 2.55 mm ID 8 wraps 0.26 ohms and 16 amps which is still well under budget.
Coil wrapping | Steam Engine | free vaping calculators


The thing is with mechanicals is that you have to be prepared to build a lot of coils and do a lot of experimentation to find what you like and how to get it. The whole thing is highly subjective. Battery safety however is not subjective so well played for choosing a good battery and asking good questions.

Your guidance for coil making is best coming from Youtube as there are lots of great tutorials there.
I personally learned by watching old RipTrippers vids.

I would highly recommend you get a coil jig, coiling by hand on a drill bit or a screwdriver is a total PITA.
FastTech - Gadgets and Electronics


The Ex Machina is has a direct to battery connection (AKA hybrid style). This brings it's own unique set of safety issues which you need to be mindful of .
You need to ensure the positive pin on the atomizer protrudes statically at least 1mm and is not sprung loaded or uses rubber bushes. If the positive pole of the battery comes into contact with both the positive and negative connections of the atomizer 510, it will result in a dead short and you will have a very bad day. The positive connector on your battery will also become slightly concave with regular use increasing the chances of this occurring, so do not become complacent.

Yes

No

very helpful and some fantastic guidlines to go by. My rx machina has a cap between the battery and atomizer so I think I should be fine there.

My main concern and the reason I want to be under budgeted with my battery is I've been reading that degrading batteries will significantly drop in cdr. Of course dependant on the battery but more so using <0.2 builds

 

[Baditude]

My main concern and the reason I want to be under budgeted with my battery is I've been reading that degrading batteries will significantly drop in cdr. Of course dependant on the battery but more so using <0.2 builds

Yes, that is true

Everyone is free to set their own parameters, and I can only say what mine are.

I try to never exceed 50% of the CDR (continuous discharge rating) of a fully charged battery (4.2v). So with a 20A batteries, that would be 10A. An Ohm's Law Calculator tells me that a 0.4 ohm build is as low as I would want to use.

The reason that I place a 50% limit is because as a battery ages the mAh of the battery degrades, as the mAh degrades so does the batteries c rating (amp limit). So down the road, your 20A battery may only be a 10A battery.

The batteries we use can be quite safe if you use the correct batteries and do not abuse them beyond their recommended amp limit. Most battery incidents result from user error or wrong calculations, or ignoring safe battery practices.

 

[sonicbomb]

The Ex machina has a proper 510, please discount what I said.
Probably a good idea to know in case you ever have another mod that does have a 'hybrid' style connector.

 

[Milk Marc]

Yes, that is true

Everyone is free to set their own parameters, and I can only say what mine are.

I try to never exceed 50% of the CDR (continuous discharge rating) of a fully charged battery (4.2v). So with a 20A batteries, that would be 10A. An Ohm's Law Calculator tells me that a 0.4 ohm build is as low as I would want to use.

The reason that I place a 50% limit is because as a battery ages the mAh of the battery degrades, as the mAh degrades so does the batteries c rating (amp limit). So down the road, your 20A battery may only be a 10A battery.

The batteries we use can be quite safe if you use the correct batteries and do not abuse them beyond their recommended amp limit. Most battery incidents result from user error or wrong calculations, or ignoring safe battery practices.

How would you measure the degradation of a battery?

 

[Baditude]

How would you measure the degradation of a battery?

Simply by observed performance dynamics. If you notice you're getting a couple less hours of usable battery life compared to what you observed when the battery was new, then the capacity of the battery has dropped.

Some chargers are able to document the capacity of a battery.

 

[Milk Marc]

Simply by observed performance dynamics. If you notice you're getting a couple less hours of usable battery life compared to what you observed when the battery was new, then the capacity of the battery has dropped.

Some chargers are able to document the capacity of a battery.

Will the percentage in mAh loss be equal to the loss percentage in current?

 

[suprtrkr]

Hi and welcome. I vape a lot of one-battery tubes because, like yourself, I like them. It has been my experience they are happier with single, round-wire coils than anything fancy. I'd also recommend you not go below about .5Ω, at least at first. A .5 build will put the vape in the 25-30 watt range across the useful battery charge, and it will help the batteries last a while. If you build a lot lower than that, you'll find you're constantly changing batteries. If you need more watts than that for a satisfying vape, you'll be better off with a regulated mod or a two-cell box. Just my

 

[BrotherBob]

I'm unsure about what combination of material, gauge, and type of wrap (alien, clapton, etc.) will give me a satisfying hit at that resistance

Welcome and glad you joined.
Might like to read some commentaries:
What Ohms should I choose?
https://spinfuel.com/sub-ohm-vaping/