You know, I am not an ecig expert, but I have tried several different setups and things. I recently bought an igo L because of the hype and people saying how much better rba's are than cartos. I am following all the instructions I have read about or saw in videos, and I don't think I am doing anything wrong. I just think it sucks. Its burny, its not smooth.. It doesn't compare to the smoothness of a carto.. But everyone will say I am out of my mind. I have tried a dripping atty.. and I wasn't impressed with it either. It also had that burny kind of hit to it. I really think that because this has become such a novelty hobby for people,, that if a device looks cooler, and/or just the satisfaction of building your own coil.. it somehow equates to better performance. Is there anyone else out there besides myself who feels like everything they tried just sucks and they think the carto tank is the best option? Even the pro tank sucked.. it was no different than any other T3 I tried, but it looked cooler so everyone loves it. The flavor was muted and it wasn't that great. And everything else I tried that is a straight up coil and silica wick is not smooth and burny harsh hits.. I can't be the only one on the planet who feels this way.. Anyone?
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I'm sure this probably happens. My husband and I call this the "Emperor's New Clothes" syndrome. It's not just in the vaping world.
i used carto tanks for the longest time and I do love them. I recently decided to really crack down on the protank. I had one, but didn't like it more than the cartos. I've been vaping on it for about 2 weeks now, and it's really grown on me. I did try my hand at building my own coils, and I don't know if I'd say they are better than factory ones, but they are certainly not worse, and I can kind of fine tune them to what I like. I think some of it is what you get used to. Back when I started I hated all the clearos. They were all unsatisfactory to me, so I gave up and mastered the carto tank. I was very used to carto tanks and had to give the new clearos a fair chance, so that I could learn how to get the best performance out of them.
i used carto tanks for the longest time and I do love them. I recently decided to really crack down on the protank. I had one, but didn't like it more than the cartos. I've been vaping on it for about 2 weeks now, and it's really grown on me. I did try my hand at building my own coils, and I don't know if I'd say they are better than factory ones, but they are certainly not worse, and I can kind of fine tune them to what I like. I think some of it is what you get used to. Back when I started I hated all the clearos. They were all unsatisfactory to me, so I gave up and mastered the carto tank. I was very used to carto tanks and had to give the new clearos a fair chance, so that I could learn how to get the best performance out of them.
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I often miss the days of cigalikes and prefilled carts from [insert major company here]. You couldn't beat the simplicity. Cost wise however, that wasn't practical for me. I always keep some on hand for when I'm fed up with everything. Despite them lasting quite a while, I never bought blanks and filled them. Not sure why that is.
Jumping on the bandwagon... keeping up with the Joneses...
While there is, I'm sure, some of that going on, especially for the vapers who've also made it a hobby, I find the discussions of different gear, toppers and power sources, to be interesting. I'm willing to try, especially, some of the various toppers that I might otherwise have spent money on. Yeah, some I don't care for, but how do I know unless I try? But it's to satisfy me, and me alone.
That really should be the bottom line - what vaping gear works well for you? Doesn't matter what it is, as long as it fits your needs.
While there is, I'm sure, some of that going on, especially for the vapers who've also made it a hobby, I find the discussions of different gear, toppers and power sources, to be interesting. I'm willing to try, especially, some of the various toppers that I might otherwise have spent money on. Yeah, some I don't care for, but how do I know unless I try? But it's to satisfy me, and me alone.
That really should be the bottom line - what vaping gear works well for you? Doesn't matter what it is, as long as it fits your needs.
what he said the bottom line is what ever keeps you from smoking death sticks
That's the beauty of what we do. Something for everyone. Who knows- one day you could decide to attempt a new build on your RBA and it will be everything you hoped it would be.
The personal progression is 3/4 of the fun!
The personal progression is 3/4 of the fun!
I can see your point, although I absolutely love T3S and ProTanks but I bet you or someone loves tomatos and lettuce and onion on their handburger but I hate any of that salad crap on mine. In fact, I think tomatos taste down right posionous and so do oinions raw, they only are good cooked. You don't eat that raw, thats crazy talk, its discusting(imo). On the other hand I love raw oysters and sushimi (only raw fish) its healthy and tastes fantastic. I think its just matter of opinion, though yes I admit I do "fiddle" with my Protank and coil heads alot and have "issues" thats get me frustrated, but its the core principal that matters...You want to quit analogs, what method will you take? How far will you go to quit smoking for good? You'll do whats best for you, really T2, T3S, Protanks all work great for me. I feel I get more flavor than you get from cartos. Not trying to come off defensive or hostile m8 but I think its a matter of opinion and choices. Placebo effect, no...more like your new "crutch" you prefer and a support group...but I'm not an expert eigther. 
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I agree with the above points...what works for you and makes you happy and off the tar sticks is the way to go.
And I'm with Chica... the only thing I want on my burger is cheese and bacon.
And I'm with Chica... the only thing I want on my burger is cheese and bacon.
Sure new things might not be what we like or are after, but at least you gave it a try.
Everyone is different, and everyone will find different things they like that others don't. I wasn't interested in an rebuildables either, until I won one in a contest. Now it's my best new device I use the RDA and the iclear and put away those airy, cooler Protanks. I love warm vapor and a tighter draw.
It never hurts to try new things. If you hadn't tried ecigs, you would still be smoking. Sometimes the results will be good, sometime not so much. But keep the adventure alive!!
Everyone is different, and everyone will find different things they like that others don't. I wasn't interested in an rebuildables either, until I won one in a contest. Now it's my best new device
I use the RDA and the iclear and put away those airy, cooler Protanks. I love warm vapor and a tighter draw.It never hurts to try new things. If you hadn't tried ecigs, you would still be smoking. Sometimes the results will be good, sometime not so much. But keep the adventure alive!!
I just think that it all comes down to the person and their tastes. I love my RDA's. My second choice would be vivi nova style tanks. I have the aga and rsst and although some people love them, I can't get mesh to taste right, I like silica much better. I find carto's by themselves to be ok, but carto tanks always seem to flood and gurgle on me and never work the way I want them to.
But that's what works for me. I'm glad there are so many options out there for us. I like the hobby side of it and new toys in the mail every once and a while keeps me interested. But some people want the simplest way to vape and that is cool too.
But that's what works for me. I'm glad there are so many options out there for us. I like the hobby side of it and new toys in the mail every once and a while keeps me interested. But some people want the simplest way to vape and that is cool too.
I understand what you all are saying and you are right.. use whatever works best for you.. I am talking about how the community and reviewers just constantly hype something up and make claims like this is the best.. it blows this away or that away just because its expensive or looks cool. I think its a wire and wick no matter how you spin it. And everything I have tried fails short. I mean we all have our preferences and should like different things... but im just curious how much of it is is actual opinion and how much of it is like a placebo hype train.
I've experienced something similar with trying juices. I recently ordered 16 sample bottles of juice from a supplier. All of them had 90%+ good reviews. I liked one of them. The rest I found were meh. I think I need to start vaping juice that everyone else hates.
And my EVOD sucks.
And my EVOD sucks.
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Well, we're all ex-smokers. Means we all have an addictive personality, which means we get addicted to lots of things: juice, devices, tinkering. We tend to be compulsive. That bleeds out into our new lifestyle/hobby.
We explode into mania.
It's inside us all.
But it's up to use to be good consumers: do research before we buy, etc.
The nature of the beast of an addictive personality.
We explode into mania.
It's inside us all.
But it's up to use to be good consumers: do research before we buy, etc.
The nature of the beast of an addictive personality.
i have to disagree, while i think certain devices do get overhyped they usually still work as advertised. i have an igo as well as a dozen other drippers, and if its not one of the best vapes in regards to flavor of the juice and smoothness of vapor i still say your doing something wrong.
I agree it may not be your preferred method but there is too much anecdotal evidence that shows rba's in general and especially dripping are pretty much as tasteful as it can get.
i am not trying to insult you but it is known that rbas do have a learning curve and you may not have the mechanical skills or the patience to keep trying until it works as advertised. we tried to help in the other forum and you just said f it and gave up.
again not raggin on you but some people just arent in tune with all the variables that make up rba's. for some people there is some work involved until it performs to the desired results.
one of the requirements is pretty much being a person who like to play and tinker. 510 drippers suck i agree but an rda is pretty much superior when set up correctly and almost everything else becomes very muted tasting after using them for extended periods.
if it is all scratchy and harsh it can only be that the dripper was run too hot, run too dry, or the airhole/wick alignment was not adjusted properly. i only get this effect when the wick runs dry. this is not a vivinova and the wick must be maintained constantly with rewetting.
againnot everyone will like the same things but they (rda) really do work the way people say they do. it just may not be what you prefer to use.
I agree it may not be your preferred method but there is too much anecdotal evidence that shows rba's in general and especially dripping are pretty much as tasteful as it can get.
i am not trying to insult you but it is known that rbas do have a learning curve and you may not have the mechanical skills or the patience to keep trying until it works as advertised. we tried to help in the other forum and you just said f it and gave up.
again not raggin on you but some people just arent in tune with all the variables that make up rba's. for some people there is some work involved until it performs to the desired results.
one of the requirements is pretty much being a person who like to play and tinker. 510 drippers suck i agree but an rda is pretty much superior when set up correctly and almost everything else becomes very muted tasting after using them for extended periods.
if it is all scratchy and harsh it can only be that the dripper was run too hot, run too dry, or the airhole/wick alignment was not adjusted properly. i only get this effect when the wick runs dry. this is not a vivinova and the wick must be maintained constantly with rewetting.
againnot everyone will like the same things but they (rda) really do work the way people say they do. it just may not be what you prefer to use.
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I think, in some cases, it is an attempt to justify to themselves, the purchase of some rather expensive equipment.
Whatever works for you is the best system out there.
I have a number of full sized devices and am now building my own mechanical and DNA20 mods. I make my own tips on my lathes and DIY my own juice. I've tried various RBA's and am pretty good at doing coils.
You know what devices I still use at least half the time? Simple eGo Twists with simple clearos on top.
The taste is a bit different on an inexpensive clearo then on a RBA but I DIY my own juice so I can adjust the flavour myself.
Cartos are great but I don't use them anymore because I could never find one that was ever consistent from one batch the next. I really should give them a try again.
Whatever works for you is the best system out there.
I have a number of full sized devices and am now building my own mechanical and DNA20 mods. I make my own tips on my lathes and DIY my own juice. I've tried various RBA's and am pretty good at doing coils.
You know what devices I still use at least half the time? Simple eGo Twists with simple clearos on top.
The taste is a bit different on an inexpensive clearo then on a RBA but I DIY my own juice so I can adjust the flavour myself.
Cartos are great but I don't use them anymore because I could never find one that was ever consistent from one batch the next. I really should give them a try again.
You'll find the same thing in any hobby - and make no mistake about it, vaping becomes a hobby for many of us. Go to a guitar forum and read the heated discussions about tonewoods, different metals in bridge saddles, tube vs. solid state amps (and/or hand-wired PTP vs. mass-built), "boutique" stomp boxes, etc. Some people consider it "cork sniffing", while others swear there's a very noticeable difference and wonder aloud why everybody doesn't "get it". In the end, it can be boiled down in any hobby to "YMMV" and "taste is subjective".
I can't comment first-hand on RBA/RDA's because I haven't started playing with them yet. I can't say I'm not curious about it because I am, but I'm going to do my homework before I dive in with both feet. I've tried different clearos/tanks/cartos and have started to develop my own personal opinions about each. Haven't even ventured into dripping yet, but have a cheap 510 atomizer on the way to try it out and see what all the buzz is about. Curiosity will probably eventually get the best of me, just as it did with guitars when I eventually put a pretty severe ding in my credit card for a boutique, hand-build, PTP-wired tube amp (and/or when I waited 5 weeks and paid a pretty price for a hand-built Zendrive stomp box), so I have no doubt I'll eventually end up with an RBA and a bunch of wire and wick strewn all over my desk - just because "I gotta know". Maybe I'll be into it, maybe not - won't know until I get there. Either way, I don't feel as though my vaping is diminished in any way at this point just because I'm not winding coils and twisting wicks out of virgin, hand-harvested, organically-grown, shaman-blessed bamboo from Wheredaheckistan.
We all travel our own roads and they all lead to different destinations. Whatever keeps you off the cigarettes and enjoying vaping is a winner, IMO.
I can't comment first-hand on RBA/RDA's because I haven't started playing with them yet. I can't say I'm not curious about it because I am, but I'm going to do my homework before I dive in with both feet. I've tried different clearos/tanks/cartos and have started to develop my own personal opinions about each. Haven't even ventured into dripping yet, but have a cheap 510 atomizer on the way to try it out and see what all the buzz is about. Curiosity will probably eventually get the best of me, just as it did with guitars when I eventually put a pretty severe ding in my credit card for a boutique, hand-build, PTP-wired tube amp (and/or when I waited 5 weeks and paid a pretty price for a hand-built Zendrive stomp box), so I have no doubt I'll eventually end up with an RBA and a bunch of wire and wick strewn all over my desk - just because "I gotta know". Maybe I'll be into it, maybe not - won't know until I get there. Either way, I don't feel as though my vaping is diminished in any way at this point just because I'm not winding coils and twisting wicks out of virgin, hand-harvested, organically-grown, shaman-blessed bamboo from Wheredaheckistan.
We all travel our own roads and they all lead to different destinations. Whatever keeps you off the cigarettes and enjoying vaping is a winner, IMO.
And I 'spose you never bought a pet rock either? lol
Hype is hype and it exists everywhere. It's certainly no bigger an issue here than it is in any other consumer market place. (I, for one, don't own an iP.... anything.) There is no point in being irritated if it appears any given piece of e-cig hardware has developed a cult following - justified or not. The beauty of vaping is the flexibility - both in hardware and liquids choices. But anyone has to exercise their own judgment in this game and occasionally take chances. If cartos are working for you - fine, at least you have found a setup that works for you. I can't stand cartos - they all taste like vaping air to me, which sounds like the exact opposite of your experience with them. But if I never tried them - oops, due to their cult like status - I woulda never known. Considering the cost involved, it was no sweat in the greater scheme of things.
When it comes to vaping, different strokes will work for different folks. But nothing is universal once you get past a battery powers it, and a coil heats it up.
Hype is hype and it exists everywhere. It's certainly no bigger an issue here than it is in any other consumer market place. (I, for one, don't own an iP.... anything.) There is no point in being irritated if it appears any given piece of e-cig hardware has developed a cult following - justified or not. The beauty of vaping is the flexibility - both in hardware and liquids choices. But anyone has to exercise their own judgment in this game and occasionally take chances. If cartos are working for you - fine, at least you have found a setup that works for you. I can't stand cartos - they all taste like vaping air to me, which sounds like the exact opposite of your experience with them. But if I never tried them - oops, due to their cult like status - I woulda never known. Considering the cost involved, it was no sweat in the greater scheme of things.
When it comes to vaping, different strokes will work for different folks. But nothing is universal once you get past a battery powers it, and a coil heats it up.
I don't think people's fondness of RBAs comes from trying to rationalize an expensive purchase. Before getting into RBAs I was a cartotank user and most of my tanks were in the $40 range. The majority of my current gennys and drippers are either much cheaper than that, or slightly over that. RBAs, either gennys or silica drippers can be had quite cheap, and some of the more popular models are on the cheap side. Drippers like the Igo-L are around the same price as many cheaper carto tanks and things like the protank.
With cartos and what not you have a standard that is pretty much the same for everyone. Person A uses a Boge carto, and it performs like a Boge carto. Person B uses a Boge carto, and it performs like a Boge carto. But with rebuildables it all depends on how you build it. You can make a single device perform an an infinite number of different ways by changing how you build the wick and coil, so you can't compare one person's experience with another.
I got into rebuildables to save money, because I was tired of buying boxes of cartos all the time. But after getting a good setup on my first rebuildable dripper, I got spoiled and now "standard" vape gear just doesn't compare.
I do enjoy fiddling around with my gear and often will rebuild stuff when there is no need, but that's not why I use gennys and rdas. I use them because I can extract more performance from them than any other type of vaping equipment currently on the market. It's not a placebo effect, anyone experienced with building coils can easily detect the difference between a good setup, and one with issues. And a good setup will trump any clearo/disposable atty/cart/etc on the market.
With cartos and what not you have a standard that is pretty much the same for everyone. Person A uses a Boge carto, and it performs like a Boge carto. Person B uses a Boge carto, and it performs like a Boge carto. But with rebuildables it all depends on how you build it. You can make a single device perform an an infinite number of different ways by changing how you build the wick and coil, so you can't compare one person's experience with another.
I got into rebuildables to save money, because I was tired of buying boxes of cartos all the time. But after getting a good setup on my first rebuildable dripper, I got spoiled and now "standard" vape gear just doesn't compare.
I do enjoy fiddling around with my gear and often will rebuild stuff when there is no need, but that's not why I use gennys and rdas. I use them because I can extract more performance from them than any other type of vaping equipment currently on the market. It's not a placebo effect, anyone experienced with building coils can easily detect the difference between a good setup, and one with issues. And a good setup will trump any clearo/disposable atty/cart/etc on the market.
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I second uncle chucks post. I myself never saw the point but I was coerced into my IGO-W and I love the freaking thing. I can swap wicks and coils in less then 2 minutes. I can change a flavor on the fly, and I don't have to pull it off of my mod and then clean it and then put it back on. It's a matter of it being simple from a building stand point for me. I can't tell you how much I have saved in just that one atty alone. I was given a box of joye 510 attys and I still have 4 of them due to the fact that my IGO-W draws so well. And I spent $14 total to get it shipped to me. So it's actually cheaper then the attys and/or a protank.
Puleeessse... That is so last month. Now it is, "virgin, hand-harvested by vegan virgins, organically-grown, shaman-blessed bamboo from Wheredaheckistan."
True. The price of admission for rebuildables and come down a lot in the last half year. I was more refering to those who go on and on about the latest high dollar, low production boutique devices.
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