Looking to get back into vaping

[PartyMan1]

Quit smoking and vaping since last spring but kinda want to vape again I just miss it lol. All the great flavors and it relaxes me.

I'm not sure where to start though, technology keeps changing.. I use to have a Kangertech subox mini (50w) which I thought was more than enough vapor for me, I'm not trying to fog out an entire room in one drag. But then I went to a smok v8 stick baby and I thought that was a big improvement over the subox, didn't have the variable wattage but it just seemed to work better because of the design of the coil I think.. This thing ended up leaking and wouldn't shut off though and I threw it out the window because I thought it was going to blow up, would like to prevent a scenario like that from happening again.

What would you recommend me? I'm looking for something that works awesome but is very affordable. Maybe something under $60 for an entire kit to start me off and affordable replacement coils.

I was looking at some of the smok kits because many of them are around $60.. Although the new species v2 kit looks pretty sweet too for a bit more but not sure if it would actually function any better for my needs over other more affordable kits.

 

[Baditude]

Anything other than SMOK products.

Since you want to buy a "kit", do you want a mod that has an internal battery or uses external 18650 batteries? MTL (mouth to lung) or DTL (direct to lung) tank?

Good Starter Setups for a Beginner Vaper​

The Innokin Kroma kit with the MTL Zenith Tank is pretty popular on the forum. I bought the Geekvape Aegis Mini and the Innokin Zenith tank separately for my son, daughter, and her BF for Christmas. The Cerberus tank that comes with the Aegis Mini is a DTL subohm tank.

The Mini is both waterproof and shockproof. The Mini and Kroma mods are both 2200 mAh internal batteries. It only takes 30 minutes to charge from dead to full. Should you want a regulated mod which uses external batteries, I recommend the Geekvape Aegis 100 watt (original). The Aegis Legend (200 watt) is a dual 18650 battery mod.

GeekVape Aegis Mini with Cerberus Starter Kit
List Price: $69.99
Our Price: $54.99

(9)

Innokin Kroma-A with Zenith Starter Kit
List Price: $49.99

(40)

Geekvape Aegis 100W Vape Mod | Vape Wild

 

[AXIOM_1]

Anything other than SMOK products.

LOL

 

[AXIOM_1]

This thing ended up leaking and wouldn't shut off

yeah you definitely do not want to use a mod with a fire button that sticks in the ON position. Could be very dangerous. I have ran across a couple like that and avoid them like the plague.

 

[score69]

Agree on the above. Avoid SMOK, at least the mods. There are much better devices available in the same prices range, or less.

Also, don't limit yourself to what you can purchase in a local store. Get feedback from folks here and make a decision. If you can't find it locally, buy it online.

 

[PartyMan1]

Thanks for the replies. Curious though why no one likes SMOK products? I know I had problems with the v8 stick baby but it functioned very well while it did, I assume their box mods are more safe than the stick since I can power it off easier? Idk but their coils seemed to work very well, very rarely would I get a dry hit. Their mods sure do look cool anyway, literally look like something out of a sci-fi movie lol.

I'm looking at the aegis and kroma-a kit, price seems nice. How would you say the tanks/coils for them compare? Or are they about the same? I just don't want to be replacing the coils every couple days.

Do most people here agree with the aegis or kroma-a recommendation or do you have any other recommendation as I'll probably be ordering a kit online later today. The local smoke shop overprices everything too much.

 

[score69]

SMOK mods seem to have very questionable QA/quality. Personally, I've owned a few and none of them have failed on me. However, very simply, there are higher quality devices out there in the same price range.

I gave my SMOK devices away to friends trying to quit smoking. Not sure if they are still working or not. SMOK seems to be good at marketing, coming out with flashy devices, very often. You will see a good percentage of failures and issues if you look online. Yes, it's possible this could be due to them selling a higher volume of devices than other brands. However, there are simply better mods out there.

If you like the SMOK tank you were using with your old device, you can just pick up a mod and continue using the tank. Or, get a new tank with a kit, and hang onto your SMOK tank as a backup.

If you were using the SMOK tank, that is a DTL tank, the Zenith mentioned above is a MTL tank, completely different vape experience. The tanks that come with the Geekvape kits mentioned above are DTL tanks I believe. I use mostly rebuildables, not familiar with all the new tanks using drop in coils.

I don't own either of the two devices @Baditude mentioned, but the Geekvape mods seem to be pretty popular and are solid devices.

Tons of good devices out there though. Are you happy with a single battery device? He mentioned about the Geekvape devices (mini having internal battery), Aegis, a single external battery, and the Legend a dual external battery. So lots of options right there even just with the Geekvape lineup.

Oh yeah, the two vendors he linked are in my top three for sure. I buy at MVS and Vape Wild all the time. Both are very fast at shipping and have great prices and sales. Vape Wild has a more limited hardware selection, but good prices and sales on what they have.

Another great vendor (to me) is VaporDNA. They are sometimes a bit more expensive, but get new items in stock more quickly. This is US based vendors. There are a lot of them out there as well of course. If you are shopping at VaporDNA, there is a coupon NEWYEAR15 for 15% off through noon on 1/1/19. They have a standing coupon code (either SITE10 or DNA10) for 10% off.

 

[Baditude]

As @score69 shared, SMOK is rather notorious for outstanding marketing with an uncanny ability to get their mods and tanks into vape shops. If only they devoted the same effort into making quality gear with decent quality control practices. SMOK customer support and warranty support is nearly nonexistant. If you peruse this forum long enough, you'll find members have more problems with SMOK devices than any other brand. Caveat emptor. Buyer beware.

Here's a few that I came across very quickly.

208 Smok Reviews and Complaints @ ...... Consumer
Smok
T-Priv 3 wont fire but it will
Mod Help SMOK Devilkin Button
G-priv2 fire button kills it
Vape is not working and is skipping the timer on screen.
Smok mag or Smok Majesty


SMOK Stick X8 Lipo battery explosion





​

 

[PartyMan1]

Scary, I had a few close calls with batteries. With smok and kangertech so maybe I'll just stay away from those brands for now on.

Back when I use to vape before the terms DTL and MTL weren't being thrown around those are new to me.. although I've always known that some people vape differently. I guess I fall under the MTL category but if the tank on the v8 stick baby beast is a DTL tank I wouldn't had known I liked it for MTL.
Having a hard time deciding which kit to try still lol, back years ago I use to do rebuildables too and liked playing with those, I had the eleaf lemo when it first came out, everyone loved it because before that everyone was just using kayfuns and the eleaf lemo featured a nice glass tank you could see the liquid inside. Never been much of a dripper though, more of a fill and go guy but still like the features of digital display mods.

 

[wackygt]

Bought my other half a Kroma-a with Zenith kit a few weeks ago as she is trying to quit smoking. She really enjoys it as it replicates the action of smoking pretty well.

The way I look at it is this - MTL will be less vapour but often better flavour. Like smoking a ciggie as you draw the vapour into your mouth and then take it back into your lungs.

DTL - a lot more cloud, sometimes less flavour (Horizontech Falcon and Freemax Fireluke Mesh tanks are an exception to the less flavour rule for me). With DTL you are inhaling directly into your lungs and then exhaling without holding it in your mouth.

With the above said you can MTL on a DTL tank to an extent although the amount of vapour produced tends to limit this somewhat.

The kits you have been recommended are good choices. However if you want something to the SMOK setup you had then go with the DTL tanks. With the sales on at the minute there should be plenty of choices!

 

[PartyMan1]

Thanks yall, I'm probably going to go with the kroma-a + zenith then.

 

[PapawBrett]

Not familiar with drop in coils, but Eleaf World is making some quality gear in your price range.

 

[PartyMan1]

I jumped the gun and got a gun metal kora-a + zenith ordered from vapordna.
What juices yall using nowadays? I use to use mountbakervapor. I liked their "hawk sauce" and I also use to like sour seas, rockin seas, crave strawberry, and prickly pear. Not sure if they make those anymore though.

 

[PapawBrett]

I make my own tobacco flavors. I buy my Bakery flavors from Heather's Heavenly Vapes.

 

[Zazie]

I think you'll be happy with the longevity of the Zenith coils. I have one that's been in service for more than six weeks now, and it's performing just fine.

 

[PartyMan1]

I think you'll be happy with the longevity of the Zenith coils. I have one that's been in service for more than six weeks now, and it's performing just fine.

Impressive.

 

[Baditude]

What juices yall using nowadays?

My favorite and most used flavor is 100% VG Coffee Cake eLiquid - Spring Vapor. I can easily go through 8 ml of this a day.

I also like all of the fruit flavors (Watermelon, Apple, Pineapple, Strawberry) from Simply Fruit. Watermelon by Simply Fruit - 60ml

I also recently found a cherry slush flavor that I've been using lately. I don't recall the name or manufacturer.

 

[Jwaterski]

If MBV juice worked before, I would at least start there. I still order from them on occasion.

 

[MrsWood]

Definitely avoid Smok. It looks like that point has already been driven home. This is all I’ll say on it. I manage a rather successful vape shop. We have have a return drawer, this drawer is full(about 70 mods, I’m running a little behind on turning them in as defects due to holiday season). 69 of these mods are Smok. One is a Sigelei(we got 40 in, I sold 40). These mods all came in on different orders over a period of time.

Look into Vaporesso Revenger Mini, GeekVape Aegis Mini (built in batteries) 80-85w starter mods. Come with decent tanks and great for a beginner.

Vaporesso Swag 85w starter comes with tank and will require one 18650

If you’ve ran a starter like the KBox mini and want more power look into the Vaporesso Luxe 220W with the 8ml SKRR tank, not a bad tank uses mesh coils. Personally I prefer the vaporesso cascade tank.

Voopoo Drag 2 is a 177w kit requires 2 18650s comes with the UForce Tank. Gene chip is awesome and ramps up pretty fast. This mod is a sturdy little thing and can take a beating!

If you’re looking for something extremely durable

Look into getting a GeekVape Aegis Legend 2. It’s military grade material, water proof, shock proof, dust and finger print resistant. It’s a 200w Mod.

Here are a couple of good pen vapes as well:
Voopoo Caliber vapes at 110W has a long battery life. Smooth hits from meshcoil but has multiple coil options.

Vaporesso Cascade one Plus: Vapes up to 80w has 3 coil options and LED battery light indicator letting you know what your approximate charge is while vaping with a color changing LED light located around the fire button.