Microcoil with silica or kanthal?
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I think most people are making their coils with Kanthal - or did I misunderstand the question?
Main advantage of using cotton is that you can make the coil (to pretty much any diameter) and then it's easy to thread a piece of cotton through the coil. With Silica wicking (or most other types of wick material) it's a little trickier to thread it through the coil.
Most people get the silica wick and then wrap the coil around the wick. If you make the coil first, it's much easier to get a uniform compressed coil that you can thread afterwards.
Main advantage of using cotton is that you can make the coil (to pretty much any diameter) and then it's easy to thread a piece of cotton through the coil. With Silica wicking (or most other types of wick material) it's a little trickier to thread it through the coil.
Most people get the silica wick and then wrap the coil around the wick. If you make the coil first, it's much easier to get a uniform compressed coil that you can thread afterwards.
Kanthal is wire
Silica is a synthetic fiber for wicking
Cotton wicks from organic cotton balls are cheaper, more readily available, and perform better than silica. IMHO
Silica is a synthetic fiber for wicking
Cotton wicks from organic cotton balls are cheaper, more readily available, and perform better than silica. IMHO
Kanthal is resistance wire, but not the only brand. You'd have to google different types of wire, but Kanthal is pretty much the standard.
Silica you can mistreat with dry hits, dry burns, and it won't burn. Cotton will burn if you dry hit it. My local B&M (vipervapor in SF, just looking for an excuse to recommend them) wicked my coil with cotton and I'm not going back to silica. Cotton is not for chain vaping so much, but the flavor is much greater.
Silica you can mistreat with dry hits, dry burns, and it won't burn. Cotton will burn if you dry hit it. My local B&M (vipervapor in SF, just looking for an excuse to recommend them) wicked my coil with cotton and I'm not going back to silica. Cotton is not for chain vaping so much, but the flavor is much greater.
Hate to throw in another suggestion but I just found out about this and it looks pretty darn interesting. I finally tried cotton and loved it. This morning I was in a hurry and used a premade coil from FT (which are wonderful) and I honestly don't think I have as much flavor as I did with the cotton.
RBA Supplies LLC
Good luck to you and happy building.
RBA Supplies LLC
Good luck to you and happy building.
Like a couple of posters have said, it's hard to thread silica or Ekowool into a micro coil. Micro coils are maximum 1/16" (1 1/2mm) inside diameter. It's easy to do that with cotton.
Even if I make coils that are bigger in diameter, I only used to use silica when I could get a torch on the wick and wire for dry burning. I would wrap the coil around the silica and a thick needle. Been a while since I've done that. Everything I make is cotton now.
I was using cotton but I like dessert vapes(custards)and had to change out too often .Started using ekowool.Now when it gets gunked up I just power till all the gunk burns off and I'm all set.
If your talking about wicking material for your micro coil I like cotton because it's MUCH easier to insert into the micro coil. I have actually tried silica and it is at least for me, much more difficult to insert into the tiny coil. Cotton can be easily manipulated into the coil. That's just my opnion. Hope this helps and best wishes.
I've been using cotton recently, works fine and yes you can thread it through just about any size coil. I've also found that the cotton doesn't quite wick as fast to the centre of the coil. Increasing the potential for dry hits for all you deep lung and chain vapers out there, a few seconds break is required for the juice to wick back in. That's just my observation unless I'm doing something wrong during the build.
Silica is easier to work with than ekowool, ekowool you have to wrap coils on it and can fall apart easy if not careful or cutting it with dull scissors or cutting tool, where silica you can wrap on it or feed it through your coils.
With both you can dry burn to clean off coils and burn off unwanted juice to change flavors, silica is cheaper than ekowool, cotton is cheaper than both, but you can't dry burn and do have to change more often and if you hit dry you usually need to replace it, but it gives better flavor, but if you're too lazy to change the cotton and aren't careful you can destroy your coils replacing it. I use all 3 depending on my build and my laziness.
The easiest way to insert silica in a micro coil is to take your kanthal and fold it in half and place your silica in between and pinch it down and carefully feed it through the coil so it doesn't start to come apart.
It's pretty tricky (maybe I just don't have the patience). Cotton seems to be the way to go, especially because of the way it expands. I've never had anything but issues with silica. To each his own though.
I use all 3, but I do lower sub ohms so silica is easiest for me to wick and maintain, but I prefer the taste and vapor production from cotton wicks much better, and it's a good way too save money, to some what balance the amount of juice I run through everyday.
It took me a while to like cotton. Then I discovered I was using too much, even though I thought I was using only a little. Seriously, cotton doesn't take much at all. I use sterile cotton balls or cotton yarn (easier to work with). Wal-mart sells Peaches and Cream cotton yarn, Hobby Lobby has Sugar and Cream cotton yarn. Buy Ecru color if you go that route. I boil my yarn, it dries quickly. I change out the yarn when the taste of the vape gets murky or funky tasting (depending on the kind of juice you use, that could be a few days to a week). Gently pull out yarn, dry burn coil, blow off ashy gunk, rinse if desired, thread cotton (or yarn) through.
I generally do a build on a 5/64 drill bit. A full strand of yarn will go through pretty easily, I choose to use 3 of the 4 threads that make up one strand of yarn... hope that made sense. Twist one end to tighten it up to thread through the coil a bit easier.
I generally do a build on a 5/64 drill bit. A full strand of yarn will go through pretty easily, I choose to use 3 of the 4 threads that make up one strand of yarn... hope that made sense. Twist one end to tighten it up to thread through the coil a bit easier.
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