ego one clr coils suddenly not working. Please help?

[catf1sh]

Hi everyone. I have been vaping since mid December (after smoking since I was 16). I ran into countless issues at first with the various tanks I was trying out. Finally I got a joytech ego one mini and was in love. All the other tanks I'd collected were shoved into the back of a drawer. None of them matched the ease of use or flavour of the ego one. I was also very pleased to no longer deal with my tanks leaking - ever!

I bought another joytech tank (the mega) and CLR coils. These have been working great for me for several months. Suddenly, as of yesterday, none of them will work. I have rebuilt them all numerous times and keep having the same problem. I check the resistance, and each time it reads something crazy low, like 0.19 ohm. I prefer vaping at 1.0 - 1.5 and built all the coils to be around that level. I have tried using various batteries and mods and they all read that same super low resistance or won't fire (indicating atomizer too low). I tried with both tanks as well. What gives? This is driving me crazy! I've spent the last hour trying to find a solution to my problem online with no luck.

I'm using 28g kanthal wire.

I really hope someone can help me. My ecig is basically useless right now

 

[Rickajho]

If it's a rebuild you have something going on that's a near short or creating a short. Can you post a picture of your build?

 

[catf1sh]

Okay, sure. I have rebuilt these so many times without a problem I'm not sure what I could be doing wrong now. I just tried to take some pics with my phone but the camera is terrible. When my bf gets home I'll borrow his phone and add pics then. I'm extremely frustrated with this and hope you're right and can help me out!

Edit: Here are some pics of two of the CLR heads I've been having trouble with. Hopefully they are clear enough. Any and all help is appreciated! I'm at my wits end and have wasted so much wire trying to figure this out on my own

 

[catf1sh]

Can anyone see anything wrong that could be causing this problem? No matter how many times I rebuild the coils they always read extremely low and won't fire.

 

[Topwater Elvis]

Are you positive the wire you're using
is kanthal?
How far up off the deck is the coil?

 

[catf1sh]

I WAS positive, but have started to wonder. I'm pretty sure I made some coils with this wire that worked just fine, but there's a slight chance the problems began with this current spool of wire. Is there any way I can find out for sure if the wire is kanthal? It was sold to me as such. I have some 24g kanthal I could technically try, but I've had no success whatsoever rebuilding the joytech ego one clr coils with it. It seems like it's just too thick for them.

The coil is even with the wicking holes at the sides.

 

[BrotherBob]

Welcome and glad you joined. Could build with known good wire to test. If it reads as it should, the 28 ga. is not right.
If you still have the build instructions for the coil, could re read and follow exactly.
Might consider taking everything to B&M vape shop and see if they can help.

 

[Topwater Elvis]

Cut one inch of the wire & measure the resistance.
28 gauge kanthal should = .43 - .46 per inch.

 

[DingerCPA]

Check your insulator? Maybe torn or cracked? However, I'd be surprised that all have failed at the same time. If you don't have a multimeter to test the 1" piece of wire, mount it like you would a coil, but don't wrap it. Just arc it without touching the coil head sides....

 

[catf1sh]

BrotherBob - Thank you I don't have instructions to rebuild the coils but have been rebuilding them for months without any issues whatsoever.

TopWater & Dinger - How do I go about checking the one inch of wire? I don't quite understand how to do so without a multimeter. Can you try to explain it to me?

Some of the insulators are definitely torn - but I made a point of trying with ones that are in perfect condition as well as the torn ones (which had still been working fine, surprisingly).

On a side note, does anyone know where I can buy new insulators? It seems like an expensive hassle to have to replace the whole clr head just because the insulator is torn.

 

[bwh79]

How do I go about checking the one inch of wire? I don't quite understand how to do so without a multimeter. Can you try to explain it to me?

Take one inch of wire, bend it into a "U" shape and mount it in an atomizer. Check the atomizer on your ohm meter.

 

[Grimwald]

It's the wrong wire. Or the positive wire (the one that goes down the middle is touching the side wall or touching the negative wire. Or the coil itself is touching the side wall. Or the center positive metal post is touching the side wall or negative wire because of a bad insulator. Or the wires have not been clipped close enough and are touching the walls of the 510 well when screwed into the mod.

 

[catf1sh]

Okay, so I tested a piece of wire roughly 1" - 1.5" long. It reads 0.04ohm. So, seasoned vapers - what does this tell you about my wire?

Grimwald - I was thinking it may be the wires not clipped close enough, as I find that part difficult with the nail clippers I have. I seem to have trouble getting it close enough - but have been managing just fine for months. Do you have any tips to more easily prevent this being an issue? Maybe a different tool....Hopefully one I already have. I bought a new kit out of frustration (and impulse haha) and definitely pushed the budget on that.

 

[Gramdogg]

Okay, so I tested a piece of wire roughly 1" - 1.5" long. It reads 0.04ohm. So, seasoned vapers - what does this tell you about my wire?

Grimwald - I was thinking it may be the wires not clipped close enough, as I find that part difficult with the nail clippers I have. I seem to have trouble getting it close enough - but have been managing just fine for months. Do you have any tips to more easily prevent this being an issue? Maybe a different tool....Hopefully one I already have. I bought a new kit out of frustration (and impulse haha) and definitely pushed the budget on that.

don't sound right to me 0.04 for 1" no wonder it's reading so low.

 

[Topwater Elvis]

If you accurately measured 1" of your wire & it read .04 it isn't kanthal.
1" of 28ga kanthal has .43 - .46 resistance, not .04.

 

[catf1sh]

Well this is both good and bad. Bad because I'm ...... I bought wire labelled as kanthal and it isn't...And this led me to buying a whole new unit, nevermind the wasted wire, and all the time I've spent rebuilding coils lol. I feel like I spent an entire frustrating day doing that.

Do you think the shop would exchange it for me if I brought it back? I've triple checked the packaging and it definitely states kanthal. Has this happened to anyone else here?

I appreciate the help everyone! I probably would have rebuilt until I used the entire spool if left to my own devices

 

[bwh79]

Okay, so I tested a piece of wire roughly 1" - 1.5" long. It reads 0.04ohm. So, seasoned vapers - what does this tell you about my wire?

Either it's not Kanthal, or there's a short somewhere else in the circuit. I would also test a piece of known wire in the same atomizer/ohm reader and see if you get a more normal result.

Do you think the shop would exchange it for me if I brought it back? I've triple checked the packaging and it definitely states kanthal.

I would think they should ought to, yeah. The item you received is not the one you paid for.

 

[Gramdogg]

test a factory coil. 28ga I'd use 6/5 wrap for 1-1.2ohm. No wire should be reading that low so its not your wire. looks like you have alot of wraps so its a short... brush up on building and try again. I had 1 CLR come up atty short protection and couldn't see how it was. make sure the middle wire is left straight and between the two posts so it's not touching the post. I know videos show it bend over and under post but if its a tad to long it will read that tiny bit of wire and add it to the actual resistance.

 

[Gramdogg]

For DTL I use 26GA 5/4 wraps on 2.4mm, get about 0.6. I would think you would know if it was a wire that could read that low because it would be like 22GA... WAY thicker then 28GA.

 

[Gramdogg]

Side note, I ripped a couple rubber tubes as well. Discovered it was the center wire, because I was bending it over it was catching the inside. Pinch both sides to hold the wire while pulling it out. Seemed to stop it from happening so far.