Is it possible to roll stainless steel mesh too tight?

[lfries1990]

I am using 325 ss mesh wicks that I oxidized and rolled myself with 80/20 pg/vg juice. I had to pinch and roll the wicks very tightly so it would fit in my DID clone rebuildable wick hole and it seems that even though 325 should move 80/20 juice very well, it isn't hardly at all. I have to hold the device full of juice upside down for around 10 seconds before the wick starts to look even remotely wet. After 5 seconds of firing a 1.8 ohm coil at 3 volts, the wick is completely dry again.

So, did I roll it too tight and/or has anyone else had this problem before?

 

[martinc]

fill hole screw removed?

 

[lfries1990]

Yes it is..

 

[rotohammer]

I'm having success with a 2x5cm 400 mesh, folded in half length wise, then rolled to fit a 3/32" tank hole. I can see down the center of the wick, and its working really well, I can vape out the very last drop of juice from my tank. It hasn't gone dry between draws either.

 

[lfries1990]

Thanks, hammer. I was using a much larger piece (approx. 1.5 inches wide) than that and still trying to get it tight enough to fit in a small hole, which may be my problem.

 

[rotohammer]

I think with that much mesh there isn't any room left for the liquid to wick up through. Not to mention how much more heat it would absorb.

In general, with wicks I've found that "less equals more". That goes for cotton or stainless.

Everyone discusses tight vs loose, but It's more valuable to know the mesh and hole dimensions that work well.

 

[lfries1990]

I think with that much mesh there isn't any room left for the liquid to wick up through.

That might be and the combination of 1)wrapping too much mesh around a very small unfolded paperclip and 2) Removing the paperclip to roll the wick even tighter may be why I'm having problems.
I think I'll just cut up the wicks I have so I can use them in the Phoenix rebuildable as a wick, which works fantastically with ss.

When I go to oxidize and roll more wicks I am going to make sure I roll them on a 19 gauge needle so I know there is plenty of space inside of the wick and use half of the width I was using.

 

[Rule62]

I've been experimenting with this too. My most successful wick so far is 20mm (about 13/16"), rolled around a paperclip, until it slides easily into the hole. My earlier ones were wider, and much more tightly rolled, and didn't wick as well. I may even go narrower than 20mm, but still wind up with the 3/32 finished diameter.

 

[j4mmin42]

I've looked around on the forums on this one, and it seems that a tight wick actually works *better* according to science (blah blah, more capillary action, higher capacity, blah blah) and it makes sense- if the hole in the center is *too* big, the weight of the liquid will be too much to allow it to be suspended between the walls.

Mine is rolled solid on all 4 of my devices- by solid, I mean almost no hole in the center- but I still wrap around a paperclip before closing it up, so there is a tiny amount of space there.

Experimenting is the only way to find what works for you...

 

[j4mmin42]

I am using 325 ss mesh wicks that I oxidized and rolled myself with 80/20 pg/vg juice. I had to pinch and roll the wicks very tightly so it would fit in my DID clone rebuildable wick hole and it seems that even though 325 should move 80/20 juice very well, it isn't hardly at all. I have to hold the device full of juice upside down for around 10 seconds before the wick starts to look even remotely wet. After 5 seconds of firing a 1.8 ohm coil at 3 volts, the wick is completely dry again.

So, did I roll it too tight and/or has anyone else had this problem before?

Hold the phone, did you say "wicks", as in plural? are you running dual wicks? If so, removing one will allow airflow into your tank...

 

[iamtumus]

325 wicks better with gravitational wicking. for gravitational wicking to work properly you need it to be looser.
400 and 500 are much better with capillary action and work well with tight wicks.

i use 400 and roll it as tight as it will go, no hole in the center with 50/50 and have no wicking issues.

 

[zeesmoker]

I find that leaving a hole in the middle helps with wicking. Here is my reasoning: The wick is basically a straw. With the fill hole covered and the top cap on, when you inhale it creates negative pressure in the whole atomizer. That negative pressure helps to suck up the juice through the hole.

I've rolled a wick so tight that you can't fit a needle in the hole, but found that it didn't wick well nor did it vape well.

One post mentioned that less is more, and I agree.

Find the right ratio of mesh for your device.

 

[BJ43]

I find that leaving a hole in the middle helps with wicking. Here is my reasoning: The wick is basically a straw. With the fill hole covered and the top cap on, when you inhale it creates negative pressure in the whole atomizer. That negative pressure helps to suck up the juice through the hole.

I've rolled a wick so tight that you can't fit a needle in the hole, but found that it didn't wick well nor did it vape well.

One post mentioned that less is more, and I agree.

Find the right ratio of mesh for your device.

A hole dosn't help with wicking, that is just sucking and uncontrollable. Read this thread it proves many myths wrong.
http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/modding-forum/330407-500-ss-mesh.html

 

[BJ43]

http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/modding-forum/330407-500-ss-mesh.html
Can a tight coil restrict the wicking (capillary action) on a tightly rolled 500 mesh. Here is a clips with a kanthal wire tightened with needle nose so it cuts into the wick. Clic on pic for video.

 

[lfries1990]

Hold the phone, did you say "wicks", as in plural? are you running dual wicks? If so, removing one will allow airflow into your tank...

No no. I had two wicks that I attempted to run in my DID clone on separate occasions and neither would wick well on their own.

I did unroll them to measure exactly how wide I made them and they were indeed about an inch and a half wide, which explains why when I had them rolled tightly I could barely slide them in the wick hole. I cut each of them in half to get half the width, rolled them, re-coiled them, plugged them back in and they wick amazingly!

Must be with all that extra mesh it was too much surface area for the juice to travel to be a halfway decent vape.

 

[nz1001]

for tightly rolled wick with smal center hole, before first use:
with the fill hole plugged, repeatly drag without supplying power, until liquid reaches the tip of the wick
run a needle down through the center, to rid of any air bobble

 

[BJ43]

The tighter the wick and the denser, the better it wicks, it is pure physics also wicking with the fill hole closed is much reduced, you need to let air in to replace the juice that goes up the wick. If the fill hole is closed the air has to return thru the wick and that just pulls the juice back down the wick, exactly what you don't want.
Good app to calculate the amount of mesh you can get in a wick hole, more is always better with SS mesh.

http://tomcatt2.com/pvapps.html

 

[BJ43]

Ck this out for a solution to the fill hole,
http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/modding-forum/330407-500-ss-mesh.html#post7496430