I acquired several Nautilus Mini tanks about two months ago and the purpose of this post is to share my experiences with them thus far.
First, a brief description of my vaping history and preferences to give readers an idea where I am coming from: I have been vaping on and off since 2009, with a gradual shift over the last two years or so to where vaping has now replaced my smoking habit nearly completely. The hardware I had been using previous to my Nautilus acquisitions was a rotation of four SmokTech Micro ADC II clearomizers, which I found robust and reliable through nearly 2 years of use. I am a MTL style vaper, preferring the cigarette-like feel of a draw into the mouth and then down into the lungs. My juice preferences are for lightly-colored juices at 6mg or 12mg nicotine.
I have been using the BVC (single vertical coil) heads at 1.8ohms in the Nautilus Minis, and after much experimentation I have settled on firing them at 7 watts. The vapor production at this level is plenty sufficient for me. I have fired them at up to 14 watts and they do perform well at this power level, producing perhaps 30-40% more vapor; however, I enjoy cooler vapor and find that most flavors taste better at a lower power level. In addition, I get some peace of mind knowing that I am certain not to burn my wicks at 7 watts. Thus far I have not used any atomizer head to failure, with a maximum uptime for a single head of about three weeks.
I have had zero leaks and zero incidences of a flooded atomizer. Refilling the tank is easy. There are only four pieces and they are easy to keep track of and easy to clean. Overall I am very satisfied with the performance, operation, and ease of maintenance of the Nautilus Mini devices. Nevertheless, I have encountered some issues with which a newcomer might struggle and about which a more experienced user might be able to provide advice.
The tank tends to become stuck if left closed for too long. I have been able to alleviate this issue by tightening it just past the point where the bottom gasket feels snug, which comes long before the threads feel properly tightened. Twisting the threads closed to full tightness will guarantee a very difficult and perhaps even near-maddening opening process. If this does happen, frequently the atomizer head will remain affixed into the center of the device when the bottom is unscrewed, resulting in the necessity of a secondary removal process for the atomizer head followed by a rethreading of the atomizer head into the tank bottom. A paperclip can be useful for removing the atomizer head in this case. Getting a stuck tank started unscrewing can be a real chore--the best method I've discovered is to don latex finger cots on my thumb and index finger or to put on a latex glove.
I would recommend the Nautilus Mini to any MTL style vaper looking for a low-power setup. I certainly find it a well-worthwhile upgrade to my old Micro ADC IIs.
I hope someone out there finds this post helpful. Good luck and keep away from the stinkies!
First, a brief description of my vaping history and preferences to give readers an idea where I am coming from: I have been vaping on and off since 2009, with a gradual shift over the last two years or so to where vaping has now replaced my smoking habit nearly completely. The hardware I had been using previous to my Nautilus acquisitions was a rotation of four SmokTech Micro ADC II clearomizers, which I found robust and reliable through nearly 2 years of use. I am a MTL style vaper, preferring the cigarette-like feel of a draw into the mouth and then down into the lungs. My juice preferences are for lightly-colored juices at 6mg or 12mg nicotine.
I have been using the BVC (single vertical coil) heads at 1.8ohms in the Nautilus Minis, and after much experimentation I have settled on firing them at 7 watts. The vapor production at this level is plenty sufficient for me. I have fired them at up to 14 watts and they do perform well at this power level, producing perhaps 30-40% more vapor; however, I enjoy cooler vapor and find that most flavors taste better at a lower power level. In addition, I get some peace of mind knowing that I am certain not to burn my wicks at 7 watts. Thus far I have not used any atomizer head to failure, with a maximum uptime for a single head of about three weeks.
I have had zero leaks and zero incidences of a flooded atomizer. Refilling the tank is easy. There are only four pieces and they are easy to keep track of and easy to clean. Overall I am very satisfied with the performance, operation, and ease of maintenance of the Nautilus Mini devices. Nevertheless, I have encountered some issues with which a newcomer might struggle and about which a more experienced user might be able to provide advice.
The tank tends to become stuck if left closed for too long. I have been able to alleviate this issue by tightening it just past the point where the bottom gasket feels snug, which comes long before the threads feel properly tightened. Twisting the threads closed to full tightness will guarantee a very difficult and perhaps even near-maddening opening process. If this does happen, frequently the atomizer head will remain affixed into the center of the device when the bottom is unscrewed, resulting in the necessity of a secondary removal process for the atomizer head followed by a rethreading of the atomizer head into the tank bottom. A paperclip can be useful for removing the atomizer head in this case. Getting a stuck tank started unscrewing can be a real chore--the best method I've discovered is to don latex finger cots on my thumb and index finger or to put on a latex glove.
I would recommend the Nautilus Mini to any MTL style vaper looking for a low-power setup. I certainly find it a well-worthwhile upgrade to my old Micro ADC IIs.
I hope someone out there finds this post helpful. Good luck and keep away from the stinkies!
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