Mechanical mods ... ?

[meanckz]

1. how are mechanical mods better from vv/vw mods or even stick ones (...if they are)?
2. has anyone started vaping with a purely mechanical mod (...and tried other mods as well)?
3. is it more or less maintenance (including the tanks/wicks and such)?
4. if I choose to switch to a mechanical, will I still be able to use any of my regular (i.e. Kanger tanks)?

I am asking because I pretty much started (and very recently) on a Vamo 2 (which seems to be lacking durability, maybe just mine), I also tried the sticks and got 2 more mods on the way.

 

[Raycecar]

1. They aren't "better" per say, but they're completely customizable to your liking when you throw an RBA/RDA on top.
3. There's still some maintenance needed (Cleaning contacts, threads, etc.), but you don't have to worry about electronics bonking out on you.
4. You will be able to still use anything, but you might have to worry about airflow as some mechanical mods don't have great airflow for carto tanks, or bottom fed atties.

 

[Arnie H]

Hey there.

I'll try to answer your questions.

1. Mechanical mods are in general more durable than regulated ones. There are no wires or circuit boards inside. This also means no protection.

2. Some may have started with a mech, but it is usually not recommended.

3. Not much more maintenance, though you must keap your contacts and threads clean.

4. Depends on the mech, but yes, you will still be able to use 510 threaded devices.

 

[Thrasher]

something not mentioned so...

mechanicals have no regulation meaning the battery will always be dying and on something with higher resistance the vape will not be that great, you either need to find low resistance devices and heads, rebuild your own, or get into rba's so you can tune the coil to the mod.

with a VV like a vamo you just turn up the voltage and it stays there, with a mechanical the battery will not hold a voltage as you run it down so you need to make sure the resistance of the coil is low enough to pull the power you need for a good vape out of the battery.

a great vape can be had with a mechanical but more thought needs to be given to what you screw on them.

 

[meanckz]

thank you for the advise, I will keep reading and learning and trying to figure out if mechanicals are for me or not...
please continue with the advise and information...

 

[9ball_AJ]

1. how are mechanical mods better from vv/vw mods or even stick ones (...if they are)?
2. has anyone started vaping with a purely mechanical mod (...and tried other mods as well)?
3. is it more or less maintenance (including the tanks/wicks and such)?
4. if I choose to switch to a mechanical, will I still be able to use any of my regular (i.e. Kanger tanks)?

I am asking because I pretty much started (and very recently) on a Vamo 2 (which seems to be lacking durability, maybe just mine), I also tried the sticks and got 2 more mods on the way.

1) The main difference is quality, with a few exeptions here and there. Good mechanicals are made by skilled machinists from all over the world. They will generally last a lifetime if cared for. There are many quality variable mods. There are some low quality ones as well. They perform different, as they have some sort of electronic chip controlling the voltage output. A mechanical will have voltage sag... where the battery slowly depletes as you use it, and the voltage to your atomizer depletes along with it. The advantage to mechanicals is that we can get pretty incredible batteries that can power very low resistance coils, which creates incredible performance. Not everyone needs that performance...

2) Plenty of people have started with mechs, but in most cases I would say they have friends that are showing them the way. Nothing wrong with starting out on a mechanical as long as you do the research and understand the safety risks, and good battery safety methods.

3) I would say a bit more maintenance is necessary with mechs as you need to keep them clean. They will drop in performance if too dirty. If you get into re-buildables, there is a sharp learning curve. Lots of fiddling and tweaking at first, but once you get the hang of it you can have a wick and coil that lasts a month with once a week cleaning. At that point, dealing with clearos and carto tanks becomes more maintenance.

4) You can use some Kanger products, but many of these have ego threading. There are a few mechanicals that have ego threads, and you can get an adapter, but the best is to use 510 native toppers. You will also want to make sure you have the low resistance coils for whatever tank you use.

My recommendation is to stick with what works for you now, with eyes toward what you want to upgrade to. Do the research and form your own opinions.

Happy Vaping...

 

[bacc.vap]

There is also a drop in device for mechanicals on the market called "The Kick", which will give you the ablility to have a regulated vape. It does'nt work in all devices, but many.

 

[rdacrazy]

The main thing to keep in mind when looking into mechanical mods is battery safety. In general if you are smart about using a mech mod they can be very rewarding. But for every day. If you want a easy vape you dont have to think about. I would go with a regulated vv vw mod.

That being said. My around towb vape is a mech with an igo-w. Lol

 

[meanckz]

My recommendation is to stick with what works for you now, with eyes toward what you want to upgrade to. Do the research and form your own opinions.

Happy Vaping...

that's the plan! I've watched some videos and reviews (oh...and spent some weeks just reading and lurking about), but definitely have a lot more to learn...and I'm not in any kind of rush, just trying to get a feel for it, now that I took the vaping plunge, as it were

 

[Baditude]

I'll add my

A regulated mod is a better choice for novices and intermediate vapors just because it offers more options than a mechanical, and because it has the artificial intelligence of a micro computer it will keep you out of trouble from hard shorts or battery failure. With a mechanical mod, YOU are the intelligence (hopefully).

IMHO the only advantage a mechanical mod has over a regulated mod is the ability to do sub-ohm coils with an RBA. Regulated mods are fully capable of using normal resistance coils with an RBA. Mechanicals require a little more "tweaking" with the right resistance atomizers to get them to perform at a level of a regulated mod, and are at the mercy of the ever declining voltage of the battery.


Advancing from Cigalikes to Ego's to Mods

Mechanical Mod Proper Usage Guide

Vape Safe Mod Fuse

Battery Basics for Mods: IMR or Protected?

The KICK drop in processor module for mechanical mods

 

[Thrasher]

that's the plan! I've watched some videos and reviews (oh...and spent some weeks just reading and lurking about), but definitely have a lot more to learn...and I'm not in any kind of rush, just trying to get a feel for it, now that I took the vaping plunge, as it were

yea it doesnt take long poking around ECF for that bug to start biting at ya lol

(the best description ever is "i have OCD and I dropped myself in the middle of 5000 enablers")

 

[meanckz]

oooooooooooooooooooooohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh
so much info!!!
this will take a while to work thru
thank you so much everyone

but now time

 

[oliverstonehenge]

Hello if you want to use mech mod without a kick, you need to know a freshly charged battery gives you 4.2 volts, when the battery is discharging, the voltage drop and so if you want to know the power (watts) you need to do a calculation.
there are good tools to know the power, for example here: Ohm's Law Calculator
you just need to enter two values for ​​to know others.
if you want to know your power with a mech mod with a freshly charged battery, just enter 4.2 volts and the value of your resistance.
For example for to have a power between 14 and 15 watts with a freshly charged baterry you need to have a resistance about 1.2 ohm.
Otherwise it exists also differents brands of kicks for mech mod but some don't support low resistance unless than 1.2 ohm.

And off course you can use your vamo for to know voltage value of your baterry and also your resitance value of your different atomizer.

 

[meanckz]

Hello if you want to use mech mod without a kick, you need to know a freshly charged battery gives you 4.2 volts, when the battery is discharging, the voltage drop and so if you want to know the power (watts) you need to do a calculation.
there are good tools to know the power, for example here: Ohm's Law Calculator
you just need to enter two values for ​​to know others.
if you want to know your power with a mech mod with a freshly charged battery, just enter 4.2 volts and the value of your resistance.
For example for to have a power between 14 and 15 watts with a freshly charged baterry you need to have a resistance about 1.2 ohm.
Otherwise it exists also differents brands of kicks for mech mod but some don't support low resistance unless than 1.2 ohm.

And off course you can use your vamo for to know voltage value of your baterry and also your resitance value of your different atomizer.

Thanks, I love all this information gathering and learning new stuff!!

just noticed you're in France, my Mom lives there too (don't ask exact location, won't find out till I visit over christmas)
So, hi to you in France!

 

[Sindain]

After growing tired of my original tiny e-go starter kit batteries, I started poking around on this forum. Gained a ton of knowledge, and made some new purchases. In addition to my 2 e-go twists, which I love, I bought a mech mod. It's nothing fancy, but I didn't want anything too expensive until my local store starts holding it's rebuildables class. As of today I use a Magneto mech with a Kick and a Cirrus carto tank on top. It performs beautifully! When I finally learn the art of rebuilding coils I plan to purchase something nice from Grand Vapors!