In the last year, there has been a surge in various vaping products available to us, due to the rising popularity of vaping. In all candor, I've spent more money than I care to admit on searching for the 'ultimate vape set-up', which has lead me to a very in-depth analysis of the various 'cottons' on the market, in the interest of finding 'The One'. Here are my OPINIONS of what I have tried and found so far, in descending order.
1) Drago Egyptian
Pros - The flavor is supreme and pure with NO 'BREAK-IN' TIME and is, in my OPINION, the best if you're looking for pure flavor from your cotton and it's worth mentioning that you do get a LOT of cotton in the package for the money, at a very reasonable price.
Cons - Not easy to find but not impossible either. Also, it's not what you would consider to be a 'cloud chasing' cotton and although it does produce decent cloud volume, this is not a cotton you would prefer for a cloud competition. Another thing is that it lacks a 'directional grain' and has the consistency of 'lint', making it somewhat difficult to work with, especially on longer coils, as it tends to want to break apart. Not my first choice for someone new to building coils. This is the cotton for the 'flavor chaser', which is what I am, which is why this cotton ranks so high on my list.
2) Cottonman
Pros - This cotton is about as pure as pure gets, unless you go to a cotton field and pick it off the plant yourself.
Cons - Price and availability come to mind first. The only place you can get it is from the Cottonman website and this stuff is very expensive for the small amount that they send you and like Drago, this is also a 'flavor chaser' cotton and it also lacks a 'directional grain' and has the consistency of 'lint', making it somewhat difficult to work with, especially on longer coils, as it tends to want to break apart. Not my first choice for someone new to building coils.
3) Cotton Bacon V2
Pros - The cotton of choice for cloud chasers. If 'chuckin' massive clouds' is your thing, then this is your cotton. Also, this stuff is very easy to work with ! It comes in pre-cut lengths in the package, that are easily pulled apart and has a very pronounced 'directional grain', making it very easy to thread through a coil. The flavor is excellent and the price is reasonable, especially if you hunt for bargains online, making this what I would call the best 'all around cotton' in regards to clouds, flavor and price.
Cons - Flavor. There definitely is a 'break-in' period to this stuff but not a long one and the flavor is not on par with either the Cottonman or the Drago by a long shot but is still VERY good.
4) F5
Pros - This is an organic Supima cotton. It has VERY long strands and excellent directional grain, making it very easy to work with and you get a quite a bit of it in the package, although not as much as Drago. It also will not collapse as quickly as most organic cottons, giving you a much longer vape time before needing to replace it and has AWESOME flavor AFTER the break-in period.
Cons - Again, price and availability. This is the second most expensive cotton on the market after Cottonman, given how much you get and you will have to do some searching to find it but not that much. Cloud production is average and on par with Ko Gen Do and then there's that long break-in period which does give your juice an odd flavor but once you've vaped it for a while, the awesome flavor will come through.
5) Ko Gen Do
Pros - Availability, price and good performance. Ko Gen Do is easily the most popular vape cotton in use today and for some very good reasons. It has good flavor, good cloud production, is easy to work with and is very inexpensive if you shop for bargains.
Cons - Although it is good at many things, it's not great at any one thing, aside from price. If you're the average vape user who doesn't care to spend the extra money and is ok with not having great flavor or cloud production, then this is the cotton for you and there's nothing wrong with that. Ko Gen Do is definitely my first choice for someone new to vaping and coil building.
6) CVS cotton balls
Pros - It's cotton, it's cheap and you can find it at any CVS pharmacy.
Cons - This is actually the first cotton that I ever used, as my first RDA arrived before my cotton order and I was anxious to get started, so I ran down and got this. (insert sad face here) Should anyone else be inclined to make this mistake out of ignorance or necessity, I VEHEMENTLY suggest that you, unlike what I did, immerse the cotton ball in boiling water about 4 times, changing the water each time to remove the bleach, then dry it out, unroll it and proceed. In all candor, I would only use this again out of desperation and/or extreme poverty.
I hope this review is of some help to many, especially those new to building coils. Again, these are my OPINIONS, based on my experience with these products. If you disagree with anything I've posted, that's fine and I'm glad you're happy with what you're using and if anyone is aware of other cottons not mentioned, please do comment below, as I'm always on the hunt for something better, although be aware that I am a 'flavor chaser' and not a 'cloud chaser'.
Kindest regards,
- Lhotse 5
1) Drago Egyptian
Pros - The flavor is supreme and pure with NO 'BREAK-IN' TIME and is, in my OPINION, the best if you're looking for pure flavor from your cotton and it's worth mentioning that you do get a LOT of cotton in the package for the money, at a very reasonable price.
Cons - Not easy to find but not impossible either. Also, it's not what you would consider to be a 'cloud chasing' cotton and although it does produce decent cloud volume, this is not a cotton you would prefer for a cloud competition. Another thing is that it lacks a 'directional grain' and has the consistency of 'lint', making it somewhat difficult to work with, especially on longer coils, as it tends to want to break apart. Not my first choice for someone new to building coils. This is the cotton for the 'flavor chaser', which is what I am, which is why this cotton ranks so high on my list.
2) Cottonman
Pros - This cotton is about as pure as pure gets, unless you go to a cotton field and pick it off the plant yourself.
Cons - Price and availability come to mind first. The only place you can get it is from the Cottonman website and this stuff is very expensive for the small amount that they send you and like Drago, this is also a 'flavor chaser' cotton and it also lacks a 'directional grain' and has the consistency of 'lint', making it somewhat difficult to work with, especially on longer coils, as it tends to want to break apart. Not my first choice for someone new to building coils.
3) Cotton Bacon V2
Pros - The cotton of choice for cloud chasers. If 'chuckin' massive clouds' is your thing, then this is your cotton. Also, this stuff is very easy to work with ! It comes in pre-cut lengths in the package, that are easily pulled apart and has a very pronounced 'directional grain', making it very easy to thread through a coil. The flavor is excellent and the price is reasonable, especially if you hunt for bargains online, making this what I would call the best 'all around cotton' in regards to clouds, flavor and price.
Cons - Flavor. There definitely is a 'break-in' period to this stuff but not a long one and the flavor is not on par with either the Cottonman or the Drago by a long shot but is still VERY good.
4) F5
Pros - This is an organic Supima cotton. It has VERY long strands and excellent directional grain, making it very easy to work with and you get a quite a bit of it in the package, although not as much as Drago. It also will not collapse as quickly as most organic cottons, giving you a much longer vape time before needing to replace it and has AWESOME flavor AFTER the break-in period.
Cons - Again, price and availability. This is the second most expensive cotton on the market after Cottonman, given how much you get and you will have to do some searching to find it but not that much. Cloud production is average and on par with Ko Gen Do and then there's that long break-in period which does give your juice an odd flavor but once you've vaped it for a while, the awesome flavor will come through.
5) Ko Gen Do
Pros - Availability, price and good performance. Ko Gen Do is easily the most popular vape cotton in use today and for some very good reasons. It has good flavor, good cloud production, is easy to work with and is very inexpensive if you shop for bargains.
Cons - Although it is good at many things, it's not great at any one thing, aside from price. If you're the average vape user who doesn't care to spend the extra money and is ok with not having great flavor or cloud production, then this is the cotton for you and there's nothing wrong with that. Ko Gen Do is definitely my first choice for someone new to vaping and coil building.
6) CVS cotton balls
Pros - It's cotton, it's cheap and you can find it at any CVS pharmacy.
Cons - This is actually the first cotton that I ever used, as my first RDA arrived before my cotton order and I was anxious to get started, so I ran down and got this. (insert sad face here) Should anyone else be inclined to make this mistake out of ignorance or necessity, I VEHEMENTLY suggest that you, unlike what I did, immerse the cotton ball in boiling water about 4 times, changing the water each time to remove the bleach, then dry it out, unroll it and proceed. In all candor, I would only use this again out of desperation and/or extreme poverty.
I hope this review is of some help to many, especially those new to building coils. Again, these are my OPINIONS, based on my experience with these products. If you disagree with anything I've posted, that's fine and I'm glad you're happy with what you're using and if anyone is aware of other cottons not mentioned, please do comment below, as I'm always on the hunt for something better, although be aware that I am a 'flavor chaser' and not a 'cloud chaser'.
Kindest regards,
- Lhotse 5
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but his reviews are usually very accurate, his vape company is awesome and I really like his Alliance RDA's and his line of premium juices.
