Flatwire

[Marper]

My flatwire ss316 arrived today, I got 20g and 22g,the 20g is for between 7 and 8 wraps for my tanks that have a wide spacing, so I got down to business and promptly made a 6 wrap parallel build for my old reload rta using the 22g,came in at .1 ohm after getting rid of the hotspots ect,wow,where has this wire been all my life,my reload is like a new tank and I've fell in love with it again, the flavour is pure perfection, absolutely no spitback, I've just ordered some 24g, yes I'm definitely a convert.
Absolutely love this stuff,I'm very surprised that I get a fantastic vape at very low wattage, 45 watts I'm hitting it with, I wasn't expecting that

 

[Marper]

One thing I have to say,its definitely not user friendly, it's like trying to coil a steel bar,I suppose kanthal flat wire to build is a lot easier than ss316

 

[AngeNZ]

One thing I have to say,its definitely not user friendly, it's like trying to coil a steel bar,I suppose kanthal flat wire to build is a lot easier than ss316

I've used 25g 0.68mm x 0.27mm, in both 316l and kanthal. It is a lot easier to coil with. I can imagine the 20g and 22g would be pretty thick in comparison.

I'm glad you found out how awesome flat wire is

 

[Skunk!]

If you are building parallels that low, try out kbee .3×.9 rectangle wire. It ramps up super fast and is much easier to work with than the thinner wire I have tried. It's all I use on my mechanicals now.

SS 316 .32 ohms.

 

[Marper]

@Skunk! Nice build, this is a 7 wrap parallel build using the 20g ss316 came out at .08 ohms, I'm impressed with flat wire but it was so hard to wrap

 

[Skunk!]

@Skunk! Nice build, this is a 7 wrap parallel build using the 20g ss316 came out at .08 ohms, I'm impressed with flat wire but it was so hard to wrap View attachment 868113

Thanks. What I like best about this wire is how easy it is to work with. It isn't springy and doesn't try to unwind itself. I am actually more impressed with your build than mine. I can't get thin flat wire to come out that clean. That looks very nice. This is the spool of wire I am using...

When people refer to parallel coils they usually mean 2 wires side by side on each coil. I built this staged parallel a while ago.

If you do a staged parallel it is a good idea to take whichever wire ramps up faster around one more wrap so it is on both outsides. If the ramp difference is too much, you can end up burning your wicks before the larger wire can ramp up. This build worked good but i had a couple that didn't.

 

[Marper]

Thanks, I just assumed parallel meant 2 coils next to each other, that staged build is something else, very nice, something I've never tried.
Learn something new every day

 

[Marper]

Kbee wire is USA and most probably difficult to source in the UK, looks like it's nice wire

 

[DaveP]

So, how much better is flavor using flat wire coils? I've been vaping since 2010 and only used round wire single and occasionally dual coils with 28ga SS316 at 10W. Is there an improvement with flat wire at low wattage? I see much more mass and higher wattage needed to push those coils.

 

[Marper]

I can certainly say that the flavour is superb and my 6 wrap dual coil build in my reload using the 22g ss316 flatwire is pretty good on wattage, I'm vaping at 45 watts, the build above needs more watts and I'm vaping at 85 watts on my topside dual, so yeah they need some power

 

[Skunk!]

So, how much better is flavor using flat wire coils? I've been vaping since 2010 and only used round wire single and occasionally dual coils with 28ga SS316 at 10W. Is there an improvement with flat wire at low wattage? I see much more mass and higher wattage needed to push those coils.

There are many gauges of Flat wire the thin ones are hard to work with tho. I find it to be in the middle ground of round wire and fused claptons, which is why I use it on my mechanicals. It has a faster ramp up than fused claptons while having similar surface area and flavor. It will undoubtably use more power than a .97, 28ga coil like I have in my Hastur Mini. If I go over 9w on that one it burns. I tried it on a mechanical and it burned.
The coil on the Axial is putting out about 43W on my mechanical squonker.

@AngeNZ could probably help you out with info about mtl flatwire.

 

[Skunk!]

Kbee wire is USA and most probably difficult to source in the UK, looks like it's nice wire

They might have it on ebay UK. It was on ebay here but I am not sure if it still is. They removed almost all vape gear.

 

[virm]

@AngeNZ could probably help you out with info about mtl flatwire.

she essentially told me not to MTL with flat wire... so thin like trying to coil gift-wrapping ribbon or the like she said. but we were talking kanthal, it'd be thicker with SS etc. not sure if enough.

 

[AngeNZ]

Kbee wire is USA and most probably difficult to source in the UK, looks like it's nice wire

What measurements is the 20g and 22g flat wire you are using? @Skunk! 's 0.9mm x 0.3mm would be 22-23g

 

[AngeNZ]

So, how much better is flavor using flat wire coils? I've been vaping since 2010 and only used round wire single and occasionally dual coils with 28ga SS316 at 10W. Is there an improvement with flat wire at low wattage? I see much more mass and higher wattage needed to push those coils.

If you want the same ramp up as 28ga round wire at 10w, then the only equivalent is 0.9mm x 0.1mm ribbon wire.
$2.25 Authentic MKWS Kanthal A1 Ribbon Heating Wire - 0.1mm*0.9mm flat size / 30ft (10m) at FastTech - Free Shipping
I tried the above wire in kanthal, and found it really flimsy and hard to coil. In ss316l it would be even springier. Torching the wire may help, I didn't try that. I'll give it another go tomorrow, and report back

The next step up is 1.0mm x 0.14mm wire:
$2.28 Authentic MKWS 316L Stainless Steel Ribbon Heating Wire - 0.14mm*1.0mm flat size / 30ft (10m) at FastTech - Free Shipping
$2.31 Authentic MKWS Kanthal A1 Ribbon Heating Wire - 0.14mm*1.0mm flat size / 30ft (10m) at FastTech - Free Shipping
I use this in kanthal. It's easy to coil, and acts ramp up wise, like 26ga round wire

0.8mm x 0.2mm is only very slightly larger in mass than the above - it's called 25ga
SS Flat Wire V4A 0.8x0.2mm / .032*.008" - AWG 25
Also can be found at AVS:
Spooled 316L Stainless Steel Wire - (Round and Flat Ribbon)

she essentially told me not to MTL with flat wire... so thin like trying to coil gift-wrapping ribbon or the like she said. but we were talking kanthal, it'd be thicker with SS etc. not sure if enough.

 

[Marper]

I don't know the actual dimensions of the wire, it's made by flatwire and all it says is 20g 22g ect on the package, I suppose I could find out by contacting the company

 

[Marper]

@Skunk! ,tried Ebay and it's all from the USA but no rectangular available