first time putting wick inside ss mesh. can this cause hot spots?

[rubblebucket]

I've recoiled my rba's a few times with no issues. Now that I put cotton wick in I get a hot spot on the top coil of both my rba's I can't get rid of. I messed with my aga t2 for 2 hours last night and the kanthal kept poppin. Now I'm messing with an ATTY that I had pretty well rigged up but thought cotton would help with the wicking process. Should the wick be the same length as the ss mesh? Because I think I cut it a little shorter then the mesh. T.I.A.