DC LR XL Cartomizer autopsy [macro shots]

[Kosmarnik]

So, these are my favorite attys dissected. I use them on a 18650 mod, no voltage regulation so 3.8-4.2 (dunno load voltages). I use ~6ml of e-liquid per day.

The recipe I use:
35% 36mg FA traditional (50% PG, 40% VG, 10% water)
10% FA Desert Ship
5% FA Flash (PG 63%, VG 35%, Flavoring 2%)
50% PG

The cartos last me 4-7 days.
Here are photos of a 5 day old one, click for a bigger picture:

The insides:


The filler unrolled


The coils and wrapping


Coil wrap no1


Coil wrap no2


Coil no1


Coil no2


Coil stretched no1


Coil stretched no2



There doesn't seem to be any burnt stuff, it seems like its only the accreted juice, but ofc, I could be very wrong.
At the end of life of my cartos they get harder to draw and just produce less and less vapor.

 

[WillyB]

Nice pics and I like the real details you have provided, 4-7 days and ~6ml of e-liquid per day.

Your vaping voltages are probably in the 3.2 - 3.6V average range (except for the very first drags).

 

[Switched]

Nice detailed pics... Cartos are meant to be vaped once and tossed. We have come to vape them to death. Considering the amount of liquid you run through them, I would be tossing the carto after 2 days. A reasonable amount from a reputable source states we can expect to run 10ml through a carto before it goes wonky. You are running 30-36ml.

 

[Kosmarnik]

Nice detailed pics... Cartos are meant to be vaped once and tossed. We have come to vape them to death. Considering the amount of liquid you run through them, I would be tossing the carto after 2 days. A reasonable amount from a reputable source states we can expect to run 10ml through a carto before it goes wonky. You are running 30-36ml.

Erm, it's the same with regular attys, I dissected them and sure enough:
510 LR attys:

 

[Kosmarnik]

Well, I washed the diapers/wrapper and the filler a bit in boiling water and some detergent. I did try to stir a bit, but I feel like more agitation would clean them even better, but was afraid to push as they're fragile.
These are the same diapers that I shot in the OP.

Click on the photos to get a full resolution pic.

The filler


The wrappings/diapers


More closeups



Conclusion? I don't think they're burning, just getting gunked up. The fibers make it easy for gunk to interwove with them and that makes it easy to tear, as gunk is hard.

Some crops:

 

[440BB]

Thanks for your work at this! I've been getting over a month out of these and after cleaning they taste close to new, in spite of claims they are burning the sock or filler. Your conclusion sure seems accurate based on what's left after cleaning. No wonder I love these DCC's!

 

[Kosmarnik]

Thanks for your work at this! I've been getting over a month out of these and after cleaning they taste close to new, in spite of claims they are burning the sock or filler. Your conclusion sure seems accurate based on what's left after cleaning. No wonder I love these DCC's!

Now, I can only attest for mine, some other attys might be burning for real.

At less than $2 a pop shipped I see no reason to go through the trouble of cleaning them, esp after seeing the insides.
If they could be batch cleaned with no cleaning fluid residue, sure, I'd give it a go, but I've yet to see such a method.
I'm more concerned about possible health issues, and my dissection did clear that up a bit and gave me a peace of mind.

OT: my old mods with crappy switches, I lost a few attys:

 

[WillyB]

Erm, it's the same with regular attys, I dissected them and sure enough:
510 LR attys:

Well I don't exactly know what you mean by "it's the same", but a certain amount of coil crud is needed for atties, they tend to work better after about a day.

Everyone should try the clears, helps to get a handle on how they work.

Whether burnt or not as this happens the flavor changes.

I've also had this happen a few times.

That hole in the filler may explain why when tanked they work fine for a couple of fills, then just leak out the bottom. You can't tell by the pic but it's quite dark around the hole in the filler.

Here's another pic from RoadRash.

 

[Nelson76]

What exactly is the advantage to using these over a fluxo ce2 style? A fluxo can be completely cleaned and dryburned to look and function exactly as new with no muted taste and can last weeks.

 

[wyojoe]

What exactly is the advantage to using these over a fluxo ce2 style? A fluxo can be completely cleaned and dryburned to look and function exactly as new with no muted taste and can last weeks.

The ce2 type carto's have no filler of diaper to burn, so I think that is a good thing. And you can dry burn the coils and they are like new again. When the coils get gunked up they can't wick like they should and they don't vaporize the juice like when new. So in my opinion if you can't dry burn the coil when it quits performing like it should, your wasting your time, no amount of cleaning/flushing will ever get them to work like they should.

 

[Switched]

Question? When we smoked did we collect all our old ciggy butts to get the extra mileage from our pack and roll 'em?

Let's say one carto a week $2 or less and 20mls of liquid ($0.38) = $9.60 I used to pay $10.50 a pack???

Atties last me 4-6 months, when they go wonky I move 'em up to HV until dead or if they stop producing. Why are we trying to be so frugal? I prefer taste and performance.

 

[donesmokin]

Got tired of poor wicking with CE2 MAP tanks but I did learn from them. Some juices have a lot more sediment in them which gunks up the coil way faster. I've moved on to dc tanks and use RY4 and DK Tab from MV cut with 25% VG. With hot water flushing to clean I'm getting pretty good mileage.