Don't have a good thread per se' but can give you what I know...and know that this info was imparted to me by a vaper on another forum. His name is Dayvape and he may be the ultimate carto guy.
When I first started out I was dripping because...??...well...everyone said you had to for the best flavor and whatnot. I chased all "the best" atties out there...read all the threads about care and feeding for your atties...blew out/dry burned/atty refreshers..etc. Even tried the "standing naked in your yard at midnight swinging a dead chicken clockwise while standing on 1 foot" method. It didn't work....but I did rather enjoy standing naked in my yard. the chicken was just an added bonus.
I came to the conclusion that atties and I just were not going to get along. I bought 10 one time and they didn't last a month. some didn't make it a day, and I'm reading posts where others are getting weeks and weeks out of an atty. I was getting pretty frustrated with the whole vaping thing and was thinking that I may have to try quitting the analogs cold turkey or just go back to rolling up my drummies again. Posted my frustrations on a forum and asked Dayvape for advice (many posts, all pro carto) and luckily for me he helped me to "see the light" as far as using cartos over atties goes.
Don't know your set-up or what cartos you have tried in the past, but here's mine. I have a Maxi Roughstack (2 actually...yeah...they are that good) and use it at 3.7/5(4.8) and six volts. Because I jump around on voltages quite a bit someone came up with the dual coil carto...just for me. I can use the same carto with the same juice while I'm swapping out different batts. all willy-nilly and this dual coil doesn't care. The duallie I'm hitting now is on day #8, and yes..it's not hitting like it did on day2/3/4 but it's still going way too good to retire it.
So anyway...let me stop the inane rambling and tell you "my method". I fill from the top. tried the condom method one time and decided that was enough. I take a very long time to fill a carto. sometimes 4 or more hours. A few drops (4 or 5) at a time and then I let it set for a while. That might be 10 minutes or a half hour depending on what I have going on. I continue this until it literally flowing out the bottom. I then give it a real good shake...like the old thermometers...and add more juice. Shake it again and add more juice. I do this until one added drop comes out the bottom. I now know my carto is as filled as it can possibly be. I always clear the center tube. Maybe a light blow or use a small piece of napkin twisted up very tight and twisted into the battery end of the carto to soak up the excess, but I always make sure that I can see through the tube before I lock and load. I top off very often to make sure it keeps wet and another thing I do, that may or may not make a diff., but I do it anyway...I always have a straightened paper clip handy and each and every time I top off I ease/twist it up the carto until it comes out of the top of the tube and spin the carto around on it for a while to keep the tube opened up really good.
That's it. no big mystery. I consistantley get a week..10 days...2 weeks out of a carto. I do have that quirky one now and then that only gives me a few days but not very often.
High vg rate is cartos worst enemy. 80/20 pg/vg rate works good for me. Because of this I don't try a lot of juices that I would like to. Madvapes juices have been very kind to my cartos. Don't let them get dry...and that naked chicken thing MIGHT not actually work, but it can't hurt and is a he** of a lot of fun...well for me...the neighbors don't dig it.
Hope that helps a little bit..if it was in any way coherent. good luck.
