Need advice on replacement cartos

[mentalcompass]

I have been vaping since Nov, 11. I quit the day we found out my husband had cancer. I love to vape, and I do vape too much. As of late, the PG has been really bothering me. I got some blanks and used VG for awhile but I can't them to work as well, plus refilling is a total mess. I overdid it on one refill and blew out my battery.

I'd like to find prefilled cartos to match my Smokestik battery collection. Smokestik cartos are great but they do not sell VG and they are expensive too.

I don't even know what battery I have so it's hard to know what cartos I can use, or where to find them.

Can anyone suggest either another brand to use other than Smokestik, or at least a place to buy the prefilled VG cartos that will work with my battery collection? Once those batteries die, I'll replace the ecig with a better model, I was looking at the Joyce but a bit confused as it how that worked.

I'd appreciate the advice.

I now have two friends using ecigs instead of traditional ones so this has been a good thing for me and the folks in my inner circle. My husband, by the way, quit cold turkey. He went through chemo and radiation and is doing really well - we are expecting remission. We will find out how it looks in a few weeks.

Thanks for reading and thanks in advance for any advice.

I have three Hendu batteries, a Pitbull and one Halligan, all my Smokestik.

Traci

 

[JmeMcG]

Just wanted to say welcome to the ECF, congrats on quitting smoking and wishing you the best of good news regarding your husband!

I am not familiar with your PV, so cannot offer any advice there. Can only speak for what I use but am sure some of the awesome members here will be along very soon to give you all the help you need.

 

[Strigoi]

You probably won't find any pre-filled VG cartos. VG is too thick to wick well in cartos and really needs to be mixed with PG for them.

 

[Forkeh]

I'm sorry, I can't really help with your carto issue, I just wanted to wish you too well with his illness. Cancer is always a raw deal. Stay in good spirits.

 

[Warren D. Lockaby]

Hi Traci & Welcome to ECF! I've never tried the Smokestik brand PVs but from what I've read before & from what you've written it sounds like they're pretty overpriced. For less than $50 you can get a good starter kit with a couple of much more powerful, durable batteries in a standard 510 threading, then spend a few more bucks on sample packages of e-liquids to find what you like. All together, somewhere between $75 & $100 could set you up rather well. I would suggest either of these kits: the E-Power 14650 (which I've been using since I got off the cig-sized batteries) 14650 Stainless Carto Kit (Stainless Steel vers., also avail. in Rubberized Black), and the KGO (haven't tried but it has about the same specs as the E-Power 14650) SLB KGO Starter Kit (I notice Sweet-Vapes has the KGO kit as well but it's considerably more expensive there; not sure if it's the same kit.). The big advantage to the E-Power is the batteries aren't proprietary and can be replaced for $4 - $5 each; the switch, if (or when) it wears out, can be replaced for usually less than $10. With other PVs of a similar style & size (eGo, KGO, RIVA, etc.) the battery & switch are made together so when one goes out they both have to be replaced - IOW, pretty much the whole unit - which is a lot more expensive. For reference, I can get most of the day on one charged battery on my E-Power without recharging.

As to filling cartomizers, it really is a simple process once you understand it. Go to the top right corner of any ECF page & find the Google lookup box, then just enter your search terms & it should take you to a video link to instruct you on filling methods. This will give you a much broader selection of flavors & options from which to choose, including mixture of PG/VG & nic level.

 

[Warren D. Lockaby]

Oops, dual post!

 

[Iusedtoanalog]

Hi mentalcompass. After some preliminary research it appears that your smokestick batteries will take the 4081 cartos. If thats the case then i would consider finding some empty cartos and some thinned vg liquid. Cartos can be found NEW Soft Tip GP4081 Cartomizers here. And he also sells liquids that are vg but thinned for easier use in cartos and tanks. Good Luck. Happy Vaping.

 

[mentalcompass]

Thanks for the great feedback! I have a couple of questions. I looked at the SLB KGO Starter Kit and it's a great price. The set up is different than what I've used, it also asks me about the cartos (drop down menu). I'm not sure what to choose on this? Also, how's the fluid go into these models? Do I need to buy blanks and refill them or use a tank....just want to make sure I don't place an order and find out I'm missing important parts.

For now, while I look at new models, I can buy some blanks and refill, reduced PG was pretty good too, I did not suffer the same caustic bodywide effects of the PG, such as a burning tongue. I also think this PG is concentrated in the urine, especially if you don't drink a grip of water, that causes it's own unique problems for women. I danced around that one nice, eh? That really is the No. 1 reaons I can not hack the strong PG, it's wicked uncomfortable. But, that reduced PG didn't seem so bad, I had two vials, one that was a blend, one that was straight VG.

Any suggestions on a flavor? I don't know what Smokestik uses but I love it! I'd love to know if anyone knows what nic blend is close to the same, I can't seem to find out.

 

[mentalcompass]

and as much as I love the Smokestik blend, it's really not worth the side effects, which have become a big problem for me. So, I have two cartos left, I need to quickly decide what I'm going to do. I guess I'll do the refills to get me through. I swore to myself I would not order more of the strong PG cartos, yet I did it a few weeks ago anyway because I couldn't figure out what to replace it with. Thank God for vaping or I'd be dreaming of smokes again - had a few close calls last week even after all this time, monkey on my back for a good three days, it was weird, first real feeling like I was going to cave since I quit. I wonder if this .... ever leaves your mind.