First Mech ( Sorta )

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Yotdawglife

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May 25, 2014
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So, I've been really enjoying vaping on my Regulated Devices, and I have a couple questions before I pick up a Mechmod. My budget is 100 USD, so I am more than likely going to get a clone device.

1st. 18650 or 26650 for Sub ohm?
I really enjoy airy sub ohm attys, i've been building in the 0.5 range, but would like to step down to maybe .2 .3 ohm coils. I think that the 18650 would be the best choice, I would be using Sony VTC5's for their 30 amp Continuous rating. I am kinda weary because the 26650's aside from the Sony, only have a 20 amp continuous limit.

2nd. Wattage?
Based on using a vaping ohm's law calculator if I have a full charged battery 4.2v that is the number I plug in for the calculator or the lowest point of the battery, 3.7? Also does wattage play any important role in safety, do batteries have a watt limit?

3rd. Build quality.
I want to own the safest possible, best performing mech I can afford, Any inherit dangers I should be aware of aside from battery safety and limits?

4th. What is a kick, is it necessary?

5th. Copper? Brass? Conductivity? Whats the deal, does it only matter if the pins in the mech are of higher conductivity to others?

Anything I miss, I would appreciate any and all answers to ordering my first Mech :)

Aloha!
 

MrPlink

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1) more battery choices now for 18xxx. More Mah for the 26650. If you are absolutely sure on building that low stick to the VTCs

2) 4.2v implies you have a 100% efficient mech. Odds are, you wont have one. Wattage is an end result and does not come into play here.

3) thats up to you to determine. HCigar and Infinite are pretty consistent for clones. As long as your switch is in working order and you dont have any broken insulators etc etc you should be fine

4) a kick is a device you insert on top of your battery that allows you to regulate wattage (and voltage with some kick clones). You probably don't want one as they wont work with super low subohm builds.

5) copper
 

Northern-Lights

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Mar 31, 2014
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1. Either one, just make sure you get a battery with a high continuous discharge(30+ Amps or so) Good batteries are Sony VTC's, LG HE2, or mnke 26650s.

2.Not that Im aware of, and its good to not run your battery past 3.7v, maybe even higher if you have a few batts to go through.

3. Locking rings that wont get frozen are nice,I currently havean Hcigar nemesis with a frozen locking ring so i keep the battery out of it most of the time. Its a pain.

4. A Kick regulates unregulated mods. Its an added safety feature, I do believe you wont be able to run your coils at the .5 range with one tho. Useless imho honestly, but maybe other memebers now a few good reasons to use one.

5. The body of the mod does matter somewhat, but the pins are the most important part. Copper is the best conductivity for the price, and silver plated copper pins are slightly better than solid copper.
 

Vaslovik

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Jul 5, 2013
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So, I've been really enjoying vaping on my Regulated Devices, and I have a couple questions before I pick up a Mechmod. My budget is 100 USD, so I am more than likely going to get a clone device.

1st. 18650 or 26650 for Sub ohm?
I really enjoy airy sub ohm attys, i've been building in the 0.5 range, but would like to step down to maybe .2 .3 ohm coils. I think that the 18650 would be the best choice, I would be using Sony VTC5's for their 30 amp Continuous rating. I am kinda weary because the 26650's aside from the Sony, only have a 20 amp continuous limit.

2nd. Wattage?
Based on using a vaping ohm's law calculator if I have a full charged battery 4.2v that is the number I plug in for the calculator or the lowest point of the battery, 3.7? Also does wattage play any important role in safety, do batteries have a watt limit?

3rd. Build quality.
I want to own the safest possible, best performing mech I can afford, Any inherit dangers I should be aware of aside from battery safety and limits?

4th. What is a kick, is it necessary?

5th. Copper? Brass? Conductivity? Whats the deal, does it only matter if the pins in the mech are of higher conductivity to others?

Anything I miss, I would appreciate any and all answers to ordering my first Mech :)

Aloha!

Just to add my .02

I've been doing sub-ohm on a mech for a year now, and have always used 18650 IMR batteries with good performance. I have 8 of them I rotate through my mechs. The VTC5's will serve you very well. Don't worry about watts, it's a mech, all it cares about are volts. A 26650 mech would be nice, and I'm thinking to get one myself, but an 18650 will do ya just fine and it's less bulky.

I'm not sure why you want to vape at .3 -.2 ohm, that's really low and very hot. What attracts you to that? I've never seen a reason to go lower than .7 ohm, but as long as you go about it safely and know what you are doing....

A kick is that little round circuit board do-hickey you can stick into your mech between the battery and the topper that allows you to limit the wattage, and renders the mech you bought for it's simplicity just another regulated mod, defeating the purpose of buying a mech in the first place.

Some metals conduct better than others, but I've had good luck with stainless steel mechs so far, and I doubt I could tell the difference in the vape if they were brass or copper.

As for build quality, if you are not buying a high end original Hcigar does a very good job on it's clones. I have their Nemesis and I'm pleased with the build quality, although it did require a bit of fiddling with the button to smooth it out.
 

Yotdawglife

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May 25, 2014
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Putting my replys in your quote with bold.
Just to add my .02

I've been doing sub-ohm on a mech for a year now, and have always used 18650 IMR batteries with good performance. I have 8 of them I rotate through my mechs. The VTC5's will serve you very well. Don't worry about watts, it's a mech, all it cares about are volts. A 26650 mech would be nice, and I'm thinking to get one myself, but an 18650 will do ya just fine and it's less bulky.

It seems like the 18650's are a generation ahead, I am very sincere and genuine when it comes to batteries so ONLY VTC5's will be used.

I'm not sure why you want to vape at .3 -.2 ohm, that's really low and very hot. What attracts you to that? I've never seen a reason to go lower than .7 ohm, but as long as you go about it safely and know what you are doing....

As long as I am within the continuous amp limit 30A for the VTC5 Nothing to be concerned about battery wise? am I missing anything? Also aside from the fact it is a hot vape, I just enjoy the clouds because I found that is what kept me away from analogs, I smoked the most hardcore of cigarettes available on the market, American Spirit Red Hand-rolled. That's a heavy tobacco. I am aware too of the production of not necessarily good chemicals running such low set ups.

A kick is that little round circuit board do-hickey you can stick into your mech between the battery and the topper that allows you to limit the wattage, and renders the mech you bought for it's simplicity just another regulated mod, defeating the purpose of buying a mech in the first place.

good I don't need, nor want one

Some metals conduct better than others, but I've had good luck with stainless steel mechs so far, and I doubt I could tell the difference in the vape if they were brass or copper.

When I see some people talk about specific mod variatals hitting "harder" is this what they are implying? for instance, Copper Hades clone vs Stainless steel clone.

As for build quality, if you are not buying a high end original Hcigar does a very good job on it's clones. I have their Nemesis and I'm pleased with the build quality, although it did require a bit of fiddling with the button to smooth it out.

I really don't see the difference aside from a huge mark up on the side of the Americans, I can still absolutely believe that the Chinese may use shoddy metals which would make me want to buy an original, but it seems so much people are buying clones, it would be beneficial for me and my budget.
 

Northern-Lights

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Mar 31, 2014
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You will be safe down to .3ish, even lower if you have a copper mod, with a VTC5.

Copper mods do "hit harder" because copper conducts better than any other common mod material, and therefor there is less voltage drop from the battery to the atomizer, and more power from the battery is supplied.

An example would be, I cant build lower than 0.3ohms on my Smoktech magneto because it has brass pins and an SS body, which does not conduct as well as my copper nemesis with copper pins, which I can build down to about .15 ohms (not reccomended for beginners tho).
 

GrandSam

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1. That's a matter of personal preference. I would stick with 18650 devices for a few reasons. A. More batteries available since they've been around longer. B. More battery options (most 18650 devices can be configured to use 18350 and 18500 batteries). C. An 18650 should last you at least an entire day, before needing to be recharged.

2. Irrelevant. Too many factors come into play when it comes to mechanical mods (conductivity, cleanliness of contacts, etc.). Regarding safety concerns; check your battery often, and do not let it drop below 3.4V. Stick with VTC batteries; they are the same price as IMR batteries and tend to outperform them.

3. Not really. Your better off investing in something with non-stainless steel contacts. In my experience, they tend to heat up quickly, and remain warm. Stick with Copper, Brass, or any silver plated variant of the two. Safety concerns should be aimed at battery/battery abuse (Again, don't drop below 3.4V just to be safe, don't let your mod or battery overheat). As it stands, the Stingray clone is my favorite mechanical mod.

4. A kick transforms applicable mechanical mods into variable wattage/volate devices. They are by no means necessary. In my honest opinion, if you're going to be using a kick, you may as well not waste your money on a mechanical mod; they are meant to be simple.

5. As a general rule, Silver is more conductive than copper, copper more than brass, and brass more than stainless steel. Most contacts today are made of silver plated brass. There is a slight difference among different types of metals, but overall any should meet your needs (try avoiding stainless steel).

Enjoy your first mechanical. If it matters, here are my current set-ups.

Hana Modz clone DNA 30 + TOBH clone (Variable Wattage)

Stingray clone + Stillare clone (Mechanical)
 

MrPlink

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Burning out insulators is a danger on anything when you subohm or run high voltage.

Just be smart about your builds and where you place your coils and you should be fine.

incidentally this is one reason (of many) I really like the magma design. Insulation is nowhere near the coils

by the way, mrplink, do you sleep? lol

Im semi nocturnal by nature. Starting my JD program soon so that will change though
 

PLANofMAN

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Made a commitment, purchased a
https://www.fasttech.com/products/1448300

gonna top it with a
https://www.fasttech.com/products/1716603

Gonna run Sony VTC5's with no kick, probably gonna run in the .2/.3 ohm range.


thanks for all the advice, I have a strange feeling this may become an addiction ;)
I have both of those (well, the brass TOBH clone anyways) and I think you will be pretty happy with that setup. Just remember that the lock ring does not have to be screwed down tight and you shouldn't have any issues with it. The atty design is meant to keep things on the cool side, but all the same, you might want to consider getting an insulated drip tip. any of these will work Found 6 atmos at FastTech - Worldwide Free Shipping and so will this one $2.05 Stainless Steel + Acrylic 510 Drip Tip at FastTech - Worldwide Free Shipping

All of the drip tips linked above are clones of expensive drip tips.
 

MrPlink

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Just to be 100 percent, we are talking about the plastic around the posts on the deck of the base right?

also yeah I think ill be happy with this nemesis clone and tobh clone. Should be a nice start.

JD program?

yes.

JD program =lawyer skoolz. I plan to defend all the clone importers in the future, should be an easy way to make a fortune.
 

Yotdawglife

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May 25, 2014
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I have both of those (well, the brass TOBH clone anyways) and I think you will be pretty happy with that setup. Just remember that the lock ring does not have to be screwed down tight and you shouldn't have any issues with it. The atty design is meant to keep things on the cool side, but all the same, you might want to consider getting an insulated drip tip. any of these will work Found 6 atmos at FastTech - Worldwide Free Shipping and so will this one $2.05 Stainless Steel + Acrylic 510 Drip Tip at FastTech - Worldwide Free Shipping

All of the drip tips linked above are clones of expensive drip tips.


Thank you, I'm excited, just need to order more VTC5's now, just placed a nice order of ejuice from Velvet Cloud in SF...

I was going to maybe get something authentic for the drip tip... haha.
 
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