Hi Mechanical Mods--Help Me Pls

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New to these forums.
I'm interested in a mechanical mod even though it'd be my first non disposable ecig/hookah. A few of my college friends had one, and i loved it for the fat rips and the solid mechanical build. I'm really into messing with stuff with my hands, so I think i'd find a mechanical mod more fun then cumbersome compared to the average first timer.

I am not quite certain I know all the basic parts that are needed though. My understanding is I need the mechanical mod, batteries, charger, and an atomizer(plus juices). Are there other parts you need in addition to this?

If you have any suggestions for the first timer, they would be appreciated. Particularly, if anyone has thoughts on dripping atomizers versus tank atomizers, I'd like to hear more about these from experienced users.

Thanks, happy vaping

HeisenburgSensei
 

pwheeler

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First and foremost, learn ohms law and battery safety. I'm on my cell and don't have quick access to the links. I can't stress this enough. When you know that, learn proper coil building. As far as atomizers are concerned, there are a multitude of those. Just go shopping, read reviews and see what strikes your fancy. Welcome to the forum, and have fun, but do it safely :)
 

Rage661

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if you have access to a local vape store, that builds and can offer you help, ive found that youtube is helpful but sometimes talking it over with somebody caan be much more helpful... beside what everybody else is sayaing about understand of the ohm laws, its just generally a good idea to see what it is you're working towards before you just jump into the ocean and try to leaarn to swim, the internet is helpful but.. idk that could just be me :) it took me a few months to be willing to build, but i also didnt jump from disposables to a full on mech. be careful you can hurt yourself very easily.


also batteries alone can kill you if they are not meant to be used in that mannor, alot of people on ebay pass off cheap flaslight batteries as vape cells.
 

Kaezziel

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readeuler

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Welcome to ECF!

I'm going to recommend that you not get an unregulated/mechanical mod as your first non-disposable.

Generally, most people go mechanical to pair it with an RBA (ReBuildable tank Atomizer) or an RDA (Rebuildable Dripping Atomizer). You can use certain factory heads, but it's rather uncommon to do so with a mechanical mod.

Most of the hands-on part of using a mechanical mod is cleaning and fiddling (sanding down parts near the switch, adjusting the 510 connection, etc). I don't own a mechanical mod, but that's my impression, anyway.

The majority of the hands-on experience comes from rebuilding the coils and rewicking an RBA/RDA, and these don't need to be paired with a mechanical mod. If you do get an RBA/RDA, you'll also need resistance wire (typically Kanthal A1 or nichrome) for the coils, as well as some kind of wicking material (cotton, silica, rayon, etc. Lots of choices here), and something to measure the resistance of your coils. Most APVs (Advanced Personal Vaporizers, typically intended to mean a regulated device that isn't purely mechanical) have the ability to measure resistance, although a digital multimeter or dedicated ohmeter will also work.

I looked into a mechanical mod as a step up from an eGo/clearomizer, but found a great deal on an Innokin VTR and a Kayfun (an RBA), and chose to go regulated instead. I won't have to worry as much about shorting my battery to catastrophic failure, like I would with a mechanical mod. I will also get to become proficient at rebuilding coils, before (and if) I move on to a mechanical device for truly advanced users.

It's really the atomizer/coils/wicking that determines the quality of your vape, in my opinion. I think you would do well to master this part of the process, before going with a bare-bones battery in a tube, personally.
 

Kaezziel

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readeuler is absolutely correct, mechs are as fiddly as an old ham radio... also, as he said, you would be better served by getting an RBA/RDA and pairing it with a variable voltage/variable wattage device (MVP2 would be a great suggestion). This would allow you to become familiar with coiling/wicking without being subjected to the inherent dangers of mechanical mods. I say this with no prior knowledge of your skill set, as an electronics technician, this stuff was pretty basic for me, but I understand that most people don't poke things with multimeters/o-scopes for a living....
 

realsis

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Hi I think everyone pretty much said it all.BEFORE you make you way to mechanical mods, know ohms law, know how to work ohms math formula to determine weather or not the build will exceed your batteries limitations. Know your batteries limitations. Use a ohm reader to determine the resistance of your coils. Remember there are NO safty features on a mechanical. On a regulated mod however their are safty features. The newer regulated mods will still allow you to sub ohm some down to .2. Maybe you should look into something like that before you get a mechanical. Hope this helps. Best wishes and vape safe.
 

Wickedgt

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Why is it, every time I see the words "Mech Mod and new to vaping", I CRINGE!!! We as a vaping community should be banding together to advise NEW vapors AWAY FROM MECH MODS!!! We should also be educated enough to know how to spell "safety"!!! How can the new vapors take our advise seriously when we can't even spell the word SAFETY correctly?

Rant finished...

To the OP (original poster). PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE do not jump straight into mech mods. Mech mods can be dangerous if you do not understand the laws of direct current electricity, voltage limitations, battery limitations and safety, and Ohms Law.

Vaping first and foremost was developed to assist and encourage smokers to stop smoking. If you are interested in quitting smoking or taking up vaping instead of smoking, then we as a community should be recommending a starter kit of some sort. Learn the basics of vaping, progress naturally, and be SAFE as you progress!!!

The words "Mech Mod" and "New to Vaping" should NOT be encouraged AT ALL IMHO!!!

Just my :2c:
 
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Wickedgt

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Kaezziel:

Thanks for the support... I'm sure there are others who will disagree with me, but we REALLY need to emphasize SAFETY and SOUND ADVISE when it comes to New Vapors. We ALL (or at least most of us) need to remember why we started vaping in the first place... It was to quit smoking and save our lives!

I understand there is a natural progression to vaping. I started off with a Innokin VV/VW V3 and have progressed to RBA's, DNA30's and Mech Mods. Whether it be RTA's or RDA's my vaping experience and pleasure is increasing exponentially. But jumping right into Mech Mods is just not smart IMO and we (as a supportive community) should not encourage this behavior.
 

Kaezziel

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Wickedgt:

I couldn't agree more... I think that too many people are seeing the cloud competition videos on youtube and just think: "I WANNA DO THAT!" without having any idea of what it actually takes to do that... the focus of getting off of the combustibles is being lost...

I started with the cig-a-likes when they first came out, moved to the eGo, eGo Tank, eGo MegaTank, Phiniac carto-tank, Tesla VV/VW, , to a Screwdriver 18350 mod, and now to a hybrid mech mod... and I've been using Ohm's law for a living for 20 years! Honestly, the mechs scared the crap out of me, because I have a complete understanding of what a short is, and just how dangerously close to a short we are with mechs... (I won't get into my current coil resistance here :evil:). But I try to point the newer vapers towards MVPs or something similar when they are looking to move from eGos to something bigger... I feel that they NEED that level of built in safety while they are learning the ins and outs of coil building, etc...
 

pwheeler

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Awwh thanks everyone for the concern, but I was well aware of the dangers already. My friend had a battery explode while he was hitting his turtleship (luckily it was only a supposedly 1200 mah battery when fully charged so he was ok).

I intended to use some sony 3.7v(4.2 max)batterys that are rated to 30a, which should be safe with the way i intend to coil my wicks when the time comes(i dont intend to go sub-ohm). Would yall say that type of setup is safe?

I fail to see how getting a different type of vaporizer would make a mechanical mod safer down the rode, aren't you entering the same danger zone with the same amount of battery experience ether way?

Can anyone recommend a good and cheap ohm meter?
And if you have a good site for other components for mechanical mods, that would also be appreciated
 

GolemGolem

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Because the regulated devices won't allow you to stress the battery by letting you fire a short, or sub-ohm for that matter.
but this is good:
"I intended to use some sony 3.7v(4.2 max)batterys that are rated to 30a, which should be safe with the way i intend to coil my wicks when the time comes(i dont intend to go sub-ohm). Would yall say that type of setup is safe?"

Hey bro, they mean well, and I'm going to take poop for this but if you're not going to start with say a 30W regulated device and go mech....
Cartomizer and Atomizer Ohm Meter Madvapes is good, Fastech is also good and cheaper but shipping takes ages.
Where did you get your batteries, lot of unsafe counterfeits going about...
Your funeral if things go sideways.
 
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