Wow, that's a lot of info in one post
That many words deserves at least 4 to 6 more line-breaks. It's quite a chore to read and retain massive blocks of text like that.
Looking for advice on RDA's
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That many words deserves at least 4 to 6 more line-breaks. It's quite a chore to read and retain massive blocks of text like that.
Thanks for the advise guys. As always @suprtrkr I will bow to your superior knowledge. I will certainly look at the Plume Veil. In fact I will look at all of the suggestions with the same obsessive ferocity that I do everything else. I really needed a starting point and you have all helped. @sonicbomb I have quickly realised that vaping preferences are very subjective. I guess I'll give the suggestions a shot and see whether it works for me.
I have always been really good with my hands, more in an art sense than a mechanical one but I'm sure I can apply the general principal to coil building. I'm also a perfectionist in the extreme so I think I'll enjoy mastering a build. Saying that, maybe I'll cheat to start with some pre coiled wire thingies. I had a look on fasttech and they were offered in varying resistances (I understand that bit) and sizes. How do I work out which size I need if I decide to take the cheater route?
Another question, is it much cheaper to build your own coils? Does it make a significant difference to the vape? If so, how?
I guess I'll apologise now for so many questions. The ones I've asked and the ones that are bound to come later
1: plume veil versus derringer:
One thing about the plume veil is the dual center posts;
With dual coils you can connect and disconnect each coil separately;
the derringer has a single centerpost which each coil shares.
2: size
standard coil diameter is usually 2mm.
for thicker wire coils, 3mm.
If using cotton, you just use the right amount of cotton to fit inside the coil.
3: It's like a hundred times cheaper to build your own coils
It's not a chuff cap.
The top cap comes off and the airflow control ring will stay on.
I run mine with the airflow control ring removed.
You're right. I did.That many words deserves at least 4 to 6 more line-breaks. It's quite a chore to read and retain massive blocks of text like that.
It's held by O rings on the deck.
It's not lose at all.
The top cap goes over it, and is held by another on ring on the deck.
?
Ok,
Well I don't have one, but it sounds like an almost chuff cap to me;
you pop the top off and can see the inside without excess juice spiffing off to one side when you pop the top off.
Yes you can do that,
but that's not a chuff cap.
Check out the pics here
$6.56 Derringer Styled RDA Rebuildable Dripping Atomizer - stainless steel / 22mm diameter at FastTech - Worldwide Free Shipping
It's a clone but the design is the same as an original.
It is much cheaper to build your own coils. You'll have to spend some coin up front to get set up. You need a basic selection of tools, plus an ohmmeter. But once that cost is sunk, if you spent the price of a 5-pack of coils on wire and wick, you'd have enough to last a year or two. It can make a significant difference in the vape as well, but this requires some care and attention-- something you'll have no trouble with given your "obsessive ferocity." To me, the cost is actually a secondary issue. I'd build my own coils even if it were more expensive, partly because I like it, but mostly because i am in control. I can make it do anything I want and am not limited to somebody else's idea of the right thing to do. Of course, I have to know what I want, and that takes some trial and error.
As to how... There are a number of issues involved, and they are interdependent. The wire you will be using has a specific resistance per length. I like to build coils between 4 and 10 wraps, depending on the deck I am putting them on. To make my desired resistance, I can change the mandrel size to use more (bigger mandrel) or less (smaller mandrel) wire in the same number of wraps, thus varying the end resistance.
Another point-- I told you it was interdependent-- is the bigger mandrel you use, the more wick you can get in the middle of the coil, and the fatter the tails are. Some tanks like more wick, others less. Adjusting the mandrel helps put you in the right ball park. Similarly power levels: a high power coil vaporizes more juice per second than a low power coil, and it needs more wick to do so. And on and on.
Vapor is produced by power radiating from the coil surface in contact with wet wick. The more surface area, and the more power, the more vapor you get. It is possible to build, say, a 20ga wire coil at X ohms, and a 2 x 28ga twisted wire to the same resistance. In power level they will be the same. But the twist will have more surface area than the round wire, and thus make more of the heat energy available to make vapor.
A really good tool for this is Steam Engine, a coil calculator that is the best I have ever found. Let me suggest you bring it up on your screen. When it pops up, it will display a coil of 30ga Kanthal A1 round wire for a dual coil setup at .5 ohms on a 1.3mm mandrel. Look over to the right at the "Results" box. The top two lines show how many wraps to make on that mandrel to give the desired resistance; in this case 6 "full" wraps or 6/5 "half" wraps. A full wrap coil ends up with the coil legs pointing in opposite directions and is primarily used in single coil setups. A half wrap coil winds up with the legs pointing in the same directions and is normally used for duals. If you go and change any variable-- highlight the 1.3 mandrel and change it to 2mm-- you will change the results; in this case it drops the wraps to 4 or 4/3.
Now below that on the 6th line, you will see the "heat flux" box. That tells you how much power the surface of the specified coil is making at a specified wattage. You can change the wattage by clicking the arrows. on our 4/3 wrap 30ga .5 ohm build, you can see the color is green at 6 watts for 107 milliwatts per millimeter squared (mW/mm^2). Raise the watts to 12, and the green takes on a decidedly orange tint and the value raises to 217 mW/mm^2. This tells you the wire is starting to get hot at the surface, and may scorch your juice.
So, below 6, it's too cool, and above 12, it's getting too hot. The 100-200 mW/mm^2 thing is not absolute: you might like 85 or maybe 225. That doesn't matter, really. Once you know what you like, you can adjust the coil design to give you that power level at whatever wattage you want to vape.
Thanks. As always I hold your advice in high regard. Is there any way to save this post so I can refer to it later? I can obviously copy and paste it to my notepad or something but I wondered if there was a feature on this site.
Marginally?
How about astronomically cheaper.
100ft kanthal: $5
500ft rayon : $9
That will make HUNDREDS of coils that will last WEEKS not days.
Considering pre built coils run a couple dollars each, that's not a marginal difference it's a HUGE difference.
The Plume Veil was my first dripper and it's good, but Sonic is right. It is infuriatingly leaky. And the well is really shallow. It's really easy to build on though.
My suggestion would be the Velocity. Super easy to build on and the airflow is pretty unique and gives you the widest range of options. If you get one, make sure it's the Tobeco clone. They are the best and only $12.
My suggestion would be the Velocity. Super easy to build on and the airflow is pretty unique and gives you the widest range of options. If you get one, make sure it's the Tobeco clone. They are the best and only $12.
Hi, first let me say that I know NOTHING about RDA's. I know that I want to try dripping and that I need an RDA for this and will need to build my own coils *gulp*. I would like some advise about which RDA's to look at getting. I'll tell you a bit about my vaping preferences and I guess that will help. I'm definitely not a super high wattage vaper; I found that I didn't get on with the TFV4 mini since it performs better at high wattages. However, I'm not satisfied with my current tootle puffer set up either. I'm currently looking at another sub ohm tank and think I'll be happy vaping at around 15w - 35w. I don't like a super airy draw either. Does this help with recommending am RDA? I was just going to grab a velocity mini clone off Fasttech, simply because I've heard that particular RDA come up a lot, but then I thought I should really ask here first
An aside, I have no idea whether the information I've given you is even relevant.
$8.55 Petri V1.5 Styled RDA Rebuildable Dripping Atomizer - aluminum + stainless steel / 22mm diameter at FastTech - Worldwide Free Shipping
$7.77 Coil Master V3 6-in-1 E-Cigarette Wire Coil Winder - 1.5 + 2 + 2.5 + 3 + 3.5 + 4mm poles at FastTech - Worldwide Free Shipping
Have you tried a "low" (15-35w) power build on the velocity ?
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What wicking material do I need? I'm not sure what to look for on Fasttech? I looked for organic cotton. Would this be right?
Yep. There are half a dozen things you can use as a wick. My fave is Cotton Bacon, but the square "organic" "Japanese" cotton pads work just fine. Some folks like rayon and silica too. Or you can buy cotton balls at thew Mega-Lo Mart and unroll them. Just make sure it's unbleached cotton. Clorox doesn't vape well.
I believe this to be personal preference.
I've tried organic cotton balls, Cotton Bacon, Japanese Cotton (KoGenDo ?), and Rayon (cellucotton). I prefer Rayon. It doesn't have that "new cotton" taste when you use organic cotton initially. The fibers also don't scorch inside the coils like the cotton products can. Overall, extremely satisfied with the wicking ability and the flavor production.
My nephew purchased a lifetime supply (a huge box) of Rayon for about $10 at Sally's Beauty Supply, and gave me a freezer bag full of it. You might be required to be a card carrying certified cosmetologist to buy it in a store, which my sister is. Maybe try buying online? Compared to Japanese Cotton and Cotton Bacon prices, this is a steal.
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It is much cheaper to build your own coils. You'll have to spend some coin up front to get set up. You need a basic selection of tools, plus an ohmmeter. But once that cost is sunk, if you spent the price of a 5-pack of coils on wire and wick, you'd have enough to last a year or two. It can make a significant difference in the vape as well, but this requires some care and attention-- something you'll have no trouble with given your "obsessive ferocity." To me, the cost is actually a secondary issue. I'd build my own coils even if it were more expensive, partly because I like it, but mostly because i am in control. I can make it do anything I want and am not limited to somebody else's idea of the right thing to do. Of course, I have to know what I want, and that takes some trial and error.
As to how... There are a number of issues involved, and they are interdependent. The wire you will be using has a specific resistance per length. I like to build coils between 4 and 10 wraps, depending on the deck I am putting them on. To make my desired resistance, I can change the mandrel size to use more (bigger mandrel) or less (smaller mandrel) wire in the same number of wraps, thus varying the end resistance.
Another point-- I told you it was interdependent-- is the bigger mandrel you use, the more wick you can get in the middle of the coil, and the fatter the tails are. Some tanks like more wick, others less. Adjusting the mandrel helps put you in the right ball park. Similarly power levels: a high power coil vaporizes more juice per second than a low power coil, and it needs more wick to do so. And on and on.
Vapor is produced by power radiating from the coil surface in contact with wet wick. The more surface area, and the more power, the more vapor you get. It is possible to build, say, a 20ga wire coil at X ohms, and a 2 x 28ga twisted wire to the same resistance. In power level they will be the same. But the twist will have more surface area than the round wire, and thus make more of the heat energy available to make vapor.
A really good tool for this is Steam Engine, a coil calculator that is the best I have ever found. Let me suggest you bring it up on your screen. When it pops up, it will display a coil of 30ga Kanthal A1 round wire for a dual coil setup at .5 ohms on a 1.3mm mandrel. Look over to the right at the "Results" box. The top two lines show how many wraps to make on that mandrel to give the desired resistance; in this case 6 "full" wraps or 6/5 "half" wraps. A full wrap coil ends up with the coil legs pointing in opposite directions and is primarily used in single coil setups. A half wrap coil winds up with the legs pointing in the same directions and is normally used for duals. If you go and change any variable-- highlight the 1.3 mandrel and change it to 2mm-- you will change the results; in this case it drops the wraps to 4 or 4/3.
Now below that on the 6th line, you will see the "heat flux" box. That tells you how much power the surface of the specified coil is making at a specified wattage. You can change the wattage by clicking the arrows. on our 4/3 wrap 30ga .5 ohm build, you can see the color is green at 6 watts for 107 milliwatts per millimeter squared (mW/mm^2). Raise the watts to 12, and the green takes on a decidedly orange tint and the value raises to 217 mW/mm^2. This tells you the wire is starting to get hot at the surface, and may scorch your juice.
So, below 6, it's too cool, and above 12, it's getting too hot. The 100-200 mW/mm^2 thing is not absolute: you might like 85 or maybe 225. That doesn't matter, really. Once you know what you like, you can adjust the coil design to give you that power level at whatever wattage you want to vape.
Great post! I just copied it in to my notes!!!
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