Fustrated with these ecigs

[Birdy]

On every atomizer I had which lost taste and vapor I looked into the atomizer to find burnt material just under the bridge, at the peek. The area between the actual bridge mesh and metal bridge under it. I picked this material out with tweezers for the atty to never function again. It was a fiberglass type strand.

Ah ok, the wick.
I dissected he first 510 atty I had that died and pulled the wick out. It had turned dark brown in spots and I assumed it was burnt. But I went and washed everything after disassembly to use the parts... and the wick washed out to a clean white color.

So in my experience what's actually burning isn't the wick itself- its the juice that gets gunked up on the wick and won't wash out.
The end result is the same: nasty flavor. But its not as creepy as actual burning plastic which has been documented with the cartos.

That's my opinion anyway.

 

[tribalmasters]

I remember the wick being mentioned in atomiser disassemblies long ago before the 510 existed so its probably there in others but bigger in the 510...maybe

 

[DanF]

How about this Scotty, I am happy with my KR, it is keeping me off cigarettes, THAT'S what matters to me.
(having a 510 also, I can say that if I only had the 510, I would still be smoking whenever not at home)

Have fun arguing with others about it....

 

[Scottbee]

I'll counter this: "On the other hand, PV's like the 510, 901, M702, 801, etc.. do NOT have any such material in their design that melts or burns when the liquid runs dry."

The 510 sure does. Can't speak for the others, but this I know as fact.

You are mistaken.

The "wick" that is between the bridge and the coil on the 510 is a fiberglass material. It is basically the same material that is inside the coil. You can take this material and put it in the flame of a Bunsen burner.. until it literally glows red hot. Ultimately it will carbonize. But it does that at a temperature well above what the nichrome coil can produce.

On the other hand, the poly batting and the poly woven sleeve on the KR are in direct contact with the coil, and they can and will melt and/or burn with normal use.

 

[Scottbee]

How about this Scotty, I am happy with my KR, it is keeping me off cigarettes, THAT'S what matters to me.
(having a 510 also, I can say that if I only had the 510, I would still be smoking whenever not at home)

Have fun arguing with others about it....

Arguing? Dan, my boy, I am just pointing out various things about various models of PV's.. and then backing them up with additional information and facts.

I'm sorry that you don't like that information and that it is inconsistent with your opinions and suppositions, but that doesn't change the story... nor does it imply an argument.

 

[Scottbee]

I remember the wick being mentioned in atomiser disassemblies long ago before the 510 existed so its probably there in others but bigger in the 510...maybe

Different "wick". The 901, 801, M401, etc.. etc.. all have a "wick" that runs down the length of the coil (even the KR808D-1 has one of these). The 510 has an additional "supplemental" wick that runs from the atomizer bridge directly down to the coil. I know of no other model that has this feature.

 

[Scottbee]

Not all of us have that problem with a 2-piece. I had the 510 and NHaler juices. The vapor production was about the same as the VK I have now (on the other hand, I'm not one to need mushroom clouds of vapor to get a good vaping experience). Nor have I had the massive carto inconsistencies that you speak of. I've had a bum carto or two, for sure, but I've seen many posts about bum atty's right out of the box as well --which would also fall under the poor quality control category that you mentioned. As for inhaling burnt and melting poly, yes, that will happen if you run the carto too dry, and you can get that same burnt taste if you run an atty too dry, among other other reasons (judging by this thread).

Really, the bottom line is that it's all in what you want. Some people simply can't deal with dripping, tea bag/straw/whatever mods, and those people will do better with a 2-piece e-cig. Others will prefer the dripping and mods, etc. and wouldn't like a 2-piece model. That's why there are so many models and mods out there --one size won't fit all.

JLeigh,

It is a widely held belief that the 510 and a few other models put out more vapor than the KR808D-1... by design. I share that belief. And I actually have tested more KR808D-1 "atomizers" than any other. But, of course, vapor isn't the whole story. Far from it.

Of the 60+ KR808D-1 cartomizers that I have tested (different flavors, different nicotine levels) the vapor, throat "hit", and overall performance has been all over the map. Form poor to "pretty good". Many other reviews and forum posts appear to echo those sentiments. I consider that to be a "massive inconsistency", but other terms would certainly apply.

There is "bum" equipment right out of the box for virtually all of these PV's. Absolutely no doubt about it. Bad attys, bad batteries, bad chargers, bad PCC's. There is a lot of crap out there and I am saddened by the QC on almost all of these products. I never said or implied otherwise.

You are correct that if you run a KR808D-1 carto "too dry" the internal poly will burn and melt. You are also correct that you can get a "burnt taste" from the atty on a 901, 510, 801, M401... etc. etc... but that's a completely different issue. On the KR808D-1 the internals literally are burning/melting and you are inhaling it. On the other models, there is no poly to burn or melt. If you "taste" something burnt, then that is probably either the remnants of your e-liquid, or something errant that got into your atty. Big difference in my book.

As far as the dipping, dripping, straw mods and the like. Nobody really needs to do those things, but many want to. They are looking for just that much more performance or money savings. Frankly, you can just go out.. but a 901... buy a bunch of pre-filled carts (for about $.50 a piece) and vape away. When the cart runs dry, you take it off and replace it with another one. When the atty goes soft, you take it off and replace it with another one. Pretty much like you do with the 2-piece. This is how these PV's were designed to be operated.... it's just that people just don't want to use them that way. And the 3-piece design gives them more tinkering options.

 

[jerrydon10]

And I love tinkering with my 510s. I have 510s that will put out more vape than I can stand to inhale. And that's the way I like it, uhhuh, uhhuh.

 

[Synthesis]

I've found in my (limited experience) that if something tastes dry or burnt it's because the atomizer is dry. A drop (or two) onto the atty usually resolves the issue.

I have to agree tinkering is fun, but I can also see there may be a convenience factor with cartomizers. I'd be interested in trying them.

 

[JLeigh]

JLeigh,

It is a widely held belief that the 510 and a few other models put out more vapor than the KR808D-1... by design. I share that belief. And I actually have tested more KR808D-1 "atomizers" than any other. But, of course, vapor isn't the whole story. Far from it.

Yes, I do know that many people feel the 510 puts out more vapor than the 2-piece units. There just wasn't that much difference in my two models, but part of that may have been user error. But again, tons of vapor isn't my thing.

Of the 60+ KR808D-1 cartomizers that I have tested (different flavors, different nicotine levels) the vapor, throat "hit", and overall performance has been all over the map. Form poor to "pretty good". Many other reviews and forum posts appear to echo those sentiments. I consider that to be a "massive inconsistency", but other terms would certainly apply.

Again, this boils down to personal experiences. I simply haven't had the massive problems you have described, and I've ordered cartomizers (both blank and filled) and Dekang juice from three different vendors. There have been one or two DOA cartos, and one time I got some "off" liquid, but that is the sum total of the problems I've had (other than needing to dial down the nic level a few weeks back). Everything has been pretty consistent for me in terms of flavor, throat hit, and vapor production since I started vaping with the VK. I also do a LOT of refilling to keep this affordable for me, and since I started with the VK, with doing all that refilling, I've only had to throw out three cartos. Other than those three cartos, I am still able to use every single carto I have purchased, and they have all been refilled numerous times. I have one that's going on 25 refills. I think that says a lot for the quality of the product.

There is "bum" equipment right out of the box for virtually all of these PV's. Absolutely no doubt about it. Bad attys, bad batteries, bad chargers, bad PCC's. There is a lot of crap out there and I am saddened by the QC on almost all of these products. I never said or implied otherwise.

I know you didn't. I was just commenting on the fact that there are going to be quality control issues and DOA items no matter what model one uses.

You are correct that if you run a KR808D-1 carto "too dry" the internal poly will burn and melt. You are also correct that you can get a "burnt taste" from the atty on a 901, 510, 801, M401... etc. etc... but that's a completely different issue. On the KR808D-1 the internals literally are burning/melting and you are inhaling it. On the other models, there is no poly to burn or melt. If you "taste" something burnt, then that is probably either the remnants of your e-liquid, or something errant that got into your atty. Big difference in my book.

The burning carto problem won't happen if the end user takes some care. Inhaling poly is what happens when the user runs his/her cart too dry. It's no different than atomizers being shipped with some sort of lubricant (I think that's what it is) that the user inhales if he/she doesn't realize that it needs to be cleaned off/blown out so that they aren't vaping the stuff.

As far as the dipping, dripping, straw mods and the like. Nobody really needs to do those things, but many want to. They are looking for just that much more performance or money savings. Frankly, you can just go out.. but a 901... buy a bunch of pre-filled carts (for about $.50 a piece) and vape away. When the cart runs dry, you take it off and replace it with another one. When the atty goes soft, you take it off and replace it with another one. Pretty much like you do with the 2-piece. This is how these PV's were designed to be operated.... it's just that people just don't want to use them that way. And the 3-piece design gives them more tinkering options.

Well, I started with the pre-filled carts for my 510. There is no comparison to the 2-piece pre-filled cartos at all. The pre-filled carts (for the 510 at least) don't cut it unless you use them + do some direct dripping on the atty, whereas the 2-piece cartos combine the carts and the attys for a pretty consistent, no-fuss-no-muss experience. I don't do tinkering.

 

[DanF]

Arguing? Dan, my boy, I am just pointing out various things about various models of PV's.. and then backing them up with additional information and facts.

I'm sorry that you don't like that information and that it is inconsistent with your opinions and suppositions, but that doesn't change the story... nor does it imply an argument.

Ok, fair enough. BUT, from reading your posts, your facts are facts, and my facts are hearsay, which is a no win situation and not really worth the time or effort.

 

[Gemini_Lightning]

Wow... lots of anger and frustration with this so called 510 thingy... just switch to the Vapor King: you'll be happy (smilin) again!

 

[Kent C]

Ah ok, the wick.
I dissected he first 510 atty I had that died and pulled the wick out. It had turned dark brown in spots and I assumed it was burnt. But I went and washed everything after disassembly to use the parts... and the wick washed out to a clean white color.

That's exactly right. The wick doesn't 'burn' - it's the stuff on it - juice residue and some cleaning is needed but you have to chose for yourself and see for yourself (others Birdy,not you ;-) what works best and what kills attys. Isopropyl is good for almost all electronics Except attys, imo. I use 151 proof vodka and I've had one die in 5 months. Another is a low performer ever since I pulled out some of the wick by mistake.

 

[Kent C]

Wow... lots of anger and frustration with this so called 510 thingy... just switch to the Vapor King: you'll be happy (smilin) again!

You don't want to compare the number of posts pro and con of 4xx vs. the 510. Glad you're happy with your VK though.