Intro

[yankees4life83]

Hi everyone, new member here and have been a smoker for 18 years (started in my teens) and have decided to look into vaping to reduce and quit the crap already. Currently at a pack or so a day with Marlboro menthol lights. I’ve read the blog with all of the information in it for beginners and it has definitely helped a lot to learn the basics.

I’m looking to start off with a starter kit, that is easy to use, has different flavors but most importantly to help the smoking urge. I know it’s a broad question, and I’ve done some research but there’s tons of options that I’ve seen and would just like some opinions (especially from recently former or current smokers).

Thanks all!

 

[classwife]

Welcome to ECF yankees4life83

You'll get plenty of suggestions here shortly !

 

[flavourchaser]

Hello and Welcome to ECF.

 

[bombastinator]

Howdy and welcome
Current smokers tend toprefer MTL vapes over DL vapes but it is by no means a solid thing. The standard suggested starter is an eleaf pico, an elf, a couple of batteries and a battery charger

 

[Baditude]

Not sure which blog you have read. There are a lot of good ones available.

Good Starter Setups for a Beginner Vaper
Advancing Up the Vaping Ladder
Proper Terminology: Is it a carto, a tank, or what? A Guide to Juice Delivery Devices
​

Most experienced vapers on this forum will recommend a beginner to avoid a "cigalike" for a more advanced vaping setup for the best opportunity for success to quit smoking. This will be either an eGo battery setup or better still a mouth-to-lung (MTL) regulated battery device (mod).

MTL - a tighter, more restrictive draw most like a cigarette
DTL (direct to the lung) - a looser, less restrictive draw often favored by more advanced vapers

Ego battery setup - basic slim vape pen
Regulated Mod - larger battery device with more useful features. Most are variable wattage, meaning you can adjust the vapor output to suit your personal needs.
Mechanical Mod - no electronic chip, so no way to adjust your settings and no protection circuitry. Best leave these devices to the hobbyists.

sub-ohm coils and tanks - generally favored by more advanced vapers; may be too "strong" for many beginners​

Don't get your hopes up for finding an e-liquid flavor that will "taste like a cigarette"; its nearly impossible. Try to find a mint, menthol, fruit, candy, desert, or coffee flavor that you like.

Starting with the right nicotine concentration is important no matter what flavor you choose. Too much nicotine and the vape will be too harsh; not enough nicotine and your success to quit will decrease greatly.

For e-liquid, the typical nicotine recommendations are generally determined by how much you smoked, and are as follows:

1/2 pack per day or less = 6 mg nicotine
1 ppd = 12 mg
1 1/2 ppd = 18 mg
2 ppd = 24 mg​

Should you choose to use a sub-ohm juice attachment (coil less than 1.0 ohm); drop the above recommendations by half.

Figure on consuming at least 3 - 5 ml of liquid daily. Bottles are usually 10 or 30 ml volume.

Good luck, and always feel free to ask questions here on ECF.

 

[Vapemesilly]

Yo' Yankee dude...long time Red Sox fan here! I can't recommend a unit simply because there are so many out there. I'm glad I started vaping before there were this many options and products on the market. Whatever you do, make sure you go with a high enough nicotine content to keep the urge to smoke knocked down. I would even suggest taking Baditude's list and adding 3-6 mg to each as a starting point.

As of today, I think we're 2-1/2 games out in front!

 

[yankees4life83]

Howdy and welcome
Current smokers tend toprefer MTL vapes over DL vapes but it is by no means a solid thing. The standard suggested starter is an Eleaf pico, an elf, a couple of batteries and a battery charger

Thanks for this. I’m going to probably go for the pico. Not doing the sub ohm, but have read 2.5 is a good, standard place to start? How about the tank that comes with it, I’m assuming it’s better to get a second one for another flavor, but am I jumping the gun?

 

[bombastinator]

Thanks for this. I’m going to probably go for the pico. Not doing the sub ohm, but have read 2.5 is a good, standard place to start? How about the tank that comes with it, I’m assuming it’s better to get a second one for another flavor, but am I jumping the gun?

The melo III is an ok but by no means excellent tank. Also it is not MTL. It is possible to buy the pico without a tank. @stols001 is the mistress of MTL coil cartridge mods, and may have some suggestions of a tank to go with it. I only even suggested the elf because she seems to like them

 

[yankees4life83]

Not sure which blog you have read. There are a lot of good ones available.

Good Starter Setups for a Beginner Vaper
Advancing Up the Vaping Ladder
Proper Terminology: Is it a carto, a tank, or what? A Guide to Juice Delivery Devices
​

Most experienced vapers on this forum will recommend a beginner to avoid a "cigalike" for a more advanced vaping setup for the best opportunity for success to quit smoking. This will be either an eGo battery setup or better still a mouth-to-lung (MTL) regulated battery device (mod).

MTL - a tighter, more restrictive draw most like a cigarette
DTL (direct to the lung) - a looser, less restrictive draw often favored by more advanced vapers

Ego battery setup - basic slim vape pen
Regulated Mod - larger battery device with more useful features. Most are variable wattage, meaning you can adjust the vapor output to suit your personal needs.
Mechanical Mod - no electronic chip, so no way to adjust your settings and no protection circuitry. Best leave these devices to the hobbyists.

sub-ohm coils and tanks - generally favored by more advanced vapers; may be too "strong" for many beginners​

Don't get your hopes up for finding an e-liquid flavor that will "taste like a cigarette"; its nearly impossible. Try to find a mint, menthol, fruit, candy, desert, or coffee flavor that you like.

Starting with the right nicotine concentration is important no matter what flavor you choose. Too much nicotine and the vape will be too harsh; not enough nicotine and your success to quit will decrease greatly.

For e-liquid, the typical nicotine recommendations are generally determined by how much you smoked, and are as follows:

1/2 pack per day or less = 6 mg nicotine
1 ppd = 12 mg
1 1/2 ppd = 18 mg
2 ppd = 24 mg​

Should you choose to use a sub-ohm juice attachment (coil less than 1.0 ohm); drop the above recommendations by half.

Figure on consuming at least 3 - 5 ml of liquid daily. Bottles are usually 10 or 30 ml volume.

Good luck, and always feel free to ask questions here on ECF.

Thank you very much! I actually read this but it’s definitely great to revisit. I guess I’m just very new to this world, so still trying to get a grasp on all of these products/terms/etc.

 

[Baditude]

I’m assuming it’s better to get a second one for another flavor, but am I jumping the gun?

"Backups for your backups" is a standard motto around here.

You can use a second tank for a different flavor, sure. But you should always have a backup tank, coils, battery device, and batteries (everything you use to vape) for those times when something breaks down or stops working. Don't give yourself an excuse to have to buy a pack of cigarettes when your daily vape breaks down.

 

[yankees4life83]

Yo' Yankee dude...long time Red Sox fan here! I can't recommend a unit simply because there are so many out there. I'm glad I started vaping before there were this many options and products on the market. Whatever you do, make sure you go with a high enough nicotine content to keep the urge to smoke knocked down. I would even suggest taking Baditude's list and adding 3-6 mg to each as a starting point.

As of today, I think we're 2-1/2 games out in front!

I didn’t want to even to reply to a Boston fan, but it is what it is lol. Yeah when I look at all the vape website and products, I compare it to the old school Nintendo system and like an Xbox or new PlayStation. 2 buttons to do everything and they had to complicate things and have 30 buttons, of which 1000 combinations can be used.
Go yanks

 

[stols001]

Okay the good the bad the ugly on MTL tanks.

The Nautilus 2 (or mini, if you want and can find it),.Full disclosure this was my quitting tank, it's an easy-ish setup, and I'm never going to knock it even thought I have moved on. Pros: inexpensive and can get a 0.7 coil (slightly subohm but how a tank's airflow and etc. is set up matters) I vaped the coil pretty much the same as my other coils, but maybe a BIT more vapor. 1.8 coil most restricted coil a lot of folks love this one, most cigarette like draw) my personal favorite the 1.6 resistance coil, it's perfect. Pros: it's delivers good flavor, good MTL draw, adjustable airflow. It also has a metal dome to protect it (but is also a heat sink in my opinion) slightly fiddley fill system and really not even quite 2 ml (1.7 ml if using the fill line and you should.)
Metal tank PROTECTIVE against drops I even dented mine once, and the tank was still usable, coil can sometimes get stuck in the chimney when filling.

The Ijoy Elf I would get this honestly and some N2 coils, ,it fixes ALL the N2 problems and an easier, true 2 ml capacity. Has proprietary coils but will take nautilus coils imho the Ncoils are better.

The Innokin Zenith comes with a 0.8 coil and a 1.6 coil. Solid well built tank with AWESOME topfill protective metal cage and it's SOLID. Coil life is STELLAR and by that I mean I did everything to try and kill my first coil, overheat it, run storebought sweet juice through it vaping it at inadvisable wattage levels. Finally gave up in disgust because I wanted to try the 0.8 coil. They're both nice coils aren't cheap but IMHO LAST FOREVER. I am still on my second coil, though to be fair I rotate tanks. 4 ml capacity, definitely recommend.

The ego CLR COIL (1.0 resistance for MTL) this COIL is insane, it has the GREATEST flavor and lasts and not only that you can rewick the coils (don't worry about the coils but if you go this option, well save your coils when they are spent and investigate this thread, the CLR coil thread later on.

Fair disclosure I also HATE this coil or at least many of the tanks that take it. For me the coils last longer than the tanks, and I'm not sure I'd start with one, personally, but some available tanks for it include the ego mega one V2 and the Tron S tank and the Totally Wicked Oddessy tank (hard to find can find at buy best). There are a ton of other available tanks for the coils, my preferred one that has lasted the longest is the Oddessy tank, but ALSO I have not MOVED or TAKEN it anywhere. I have way more coils than tanks left, let me put it that way. But, not EVERYONE is as hard on gear as I am, in all fairness. I seem to be the main person having this complaint.

Too tired for mods and whatnot but plenty of good options. Really any tank can go on any (non proprietary) system, they all use 510/510 connections these days so if you are going to MTL it up, it's fine to have a two battery tank as long as you can vape at a reasonable wattage and etc. I have several two battery mods and I enjoy battery life for days or weeks so it's not an issue. Also enjoy some smaller tube style mods for the form factor..

Finally, like, adjust your nic to the point you aren't having to vape constantly to stave off cravings. anywhere between say 12 to 18 is a reasonable place to start depending on wattage and or vapor. But, like you will figure it all out by experimenting and your body should let you know when you are under or over nic'ed.

LOL that was a LOT welcome and etc.

Anna

 

[chellie]

Go Yanks --former NY-er here. As far as a starter kit are you looking to start with something that looks like a regular cigarette where you twist on and off the top part (like a filter) or are you looking to for something more like a box mod with a tank that screws into a box that you refill?

 

[Eskie]

Hey, the Yankees are doing just fine. Early enough in the season and at a minimum will have a wildcard spot. Hopefully better than that.

You may also want to look at some of the newer pod mods. Reasonably affordable entry price, simple to use, and you can find plenty with refillable pods, making them cost effective. That way you don't start out dumping a bunch of money you can't be sure will work for you. I tried every other quit smoking product out there and it was only vaping that finally did it for me, but we're all not the same and there are no guarantees.

There's a good pod mod section on this forum to get feedback from actual users which is worth checking out if the idea appeals to you. If vaping really works well you can always buy all sorts of good stuff down the road. Good luck!

 

[sultan1966]

Hello and Welcome aboard. New member here myself, but have been vaping for 4yrs.

 

[yankees4life83]

Thank you all for the replies, with a special shout out to stols001! Greatly appreciated.

I’m going with the pico, but am having a hell of a time trying to find a reputable site that has the IJOY ELF Tank (not sub ohm) in stock. I’ve even come across something that said it was discontinued. Am I missing something?

I’ve bought the batteries, charger, case (all after reading mooch’s write up) but are there any stores online that you can get the mod, tank and coils all at once instead of getting them from separate places?

Once again, thanks for the help!

 

[MJCSD]

Hello and welcome to ecf

 

[My Batt Hurts]

Hi - BuyBest.com has the Ijoy Elf and the original Pico (75w) in stock.

 

[yankees4life83]

Hey, the Yankees are doing just fine. Early enough in the season and at a minimum will have a wildcard spot. Hopefully better than that.

You may also want to look at some of the newer pod mods. Reasonably affordable entry price, simple to use, and you can find plenty with refillable pods, making them cost effective. That way you don't start out dumping a bunch of money you can't be sure will work for you. I tried every other quit smoking product out there and it was only vaping that finally did it for me, but we're all not the same and there are no guarantees.

There's a good pod mod section on this forum to get feedback from actual users which is worth checking out if the idea appeals to you. If vaping really works well you can always buy all sorts of good stuff down the road. Good luck!

Thanks for this. I’ve seen the breeze which looks interesting. I’ll take a look around that forum and see about picking one up. Any recommendations for smokers looking to quit that you know of?

 

[yankees4life83]

Hi - BuyBest.com has the Ijoy Elf and the original Pico (75w) in stock.

Thanks, saw a review that said shipping took about 20 days, would you say that’s accurate?