Need your Suggestion Please

[guitarman56]

Hello: I'm new to this discussion board. I currently smoke Marlboro Silver (lites) and looking to go to the Cig A Like to help me eventually quit. A few years back, I tried the Apollo route and was uninspired. Can anyone offer your experience in the change from smoke to vapor and what starter kit would you recommend for me.
Thanks

 

[Beamslider]

I smoked about 1 1/2 pack of Marlboro for over 45 years. I started out on a cig a like with 48mg nic and found that it was actually a mistake for me. I then went with a small mod and tank with 18 mg nic and it worked for me. Lower nic and higher vapor was the trick for me.

Everyone is different and you will get lots of suggestions. Just my two cents.

Welcome to the board

 

[guitarman56]

Thanks for your input Beamslider. Much appreciated.

 

[gem1204]

I had been smoking for over 50 years and probably have averaged at least 2 pacs a day. I once tried to quit a while back when e-cigs became popular but my problem was I tried to quit completely and start vaping only. About five years ago my doctor told me I had emphysema and said if I didn’t quit I’d be dead in five years. He said I was only at stage 1 and he said there was no cure and that it would never get any better. He said the only thing I could do was to keep it from getting worse and told me if I quit smoking it probably wouldn’t get any worse. I switched to vaping and it hasn’t gotten any worse. I have to take a pulmonary function test (PFT) twice a year – my emphysema has stayed the same but on some of the measurements of the PFT have actually improved over the last five years with none getting any worse. My pulmonologists says he would prefer that I don’t vape but says it has apparently had no effect on making my emphysema worse.



The mannerisms of smoking are just addictive as nicotine and I knew I might be able to give up nicotine but giving up the mannerisms and other habits that go along would be hard. My whole day revolved around smoking and the other activities that go along with smoking but I finally switched. I decided to write everything down and share it and hopefully help someone else.



Here is how I did it. Please keep in mind I was a hard core smoker for over 50 years and I was able to do it and these steps might not work for you. I also had a really good support group with my family and my co-workers and my boss was reasonable about my vaping. I was luck enough to have my own office and most of the building I worked in was very well ventilated so as long as I was reasonable everyone else was reasonable. One possible drawback to this is that I probably vape more than I ever smoked because I can vape in so many more places

1. Step 1: Don’t wait until you get emphysema!
2. Don’t try to completely quit smoking and start vaping. It will take some time to get used to not only the vaping but knowing how to fix your e-cig or mod if something goes wrong. Give yourself some time to get used to how things work. Nothing can set you up for failure more than you e-cig quits working and you’re having a nicotine fit because you don’t have any cigarettes. That happened to me the first time I tried vaping. It quite working and I couldn’t figure out how to fix it so I got fed up and trashed it and went and bought some smokes.
3. Analyze your smoking habits
4. Find you a good brick and mortar store or a friend who vapes that will work with you. I found a really good vapor shop in town that also mixed their own juice. He let me try different mods and he let me sample some of his juices to find which onesI liked. The amount of PG or VG mixture can make a big difference on the throat hit along with the amount of nicotine. I couldn’t have done it without their help.
   1. How many do you smoke a day
   2. Of those times that you smoke, how many were because of a “nicotine fit” and how many were just because that’s what you always did because of some activity
5. Start substituting vaping instead of smoking when you’re during some of those times that your’re smoking just for the hell of it
   1. One of the times that I always smoked was when I drank coffee and I wasn’t about to give up any coffee so I switched between smoking and vaping with every cup of coffee – with one cup I’d smoke and with the other one I’d vape
   2. Of the times that you smoke because of a nicotine fit, start vaping one of those times instead of smoking. Then gradually taper the “nicotine fit smoking” down to one less per day. Don’t try to cut back one a day. Maybe one week drop one “fit” then the next week drop down one more. It make take you a couple of months but get used to the change gradually
6. Start smoking only half a cig at a time. I got me a metal altoids container and when I smoked a cig I would only smoke half then I snub it out and put it in the container and smoke the other half later. That may sound nasty but I had figured out that my “nicotine fit smokes’ was 14 cigs a day. Using this system I smoked half a cigarette 14 time so I was actually only smoking 7! I didn’t start out doing this but after a couple of days I would ask myself during my “fit smokes” do I really want to finish this?
7. Try to make it a point to be somewhere comfortable while you vaping and you can look at all the fools outside in the freezing cold or sweating their asses off in the hot sun smoking and laugh and think “I used to be that stupid too!”.
8. Depending on your support system make it a point to vape in all the places you never smoked before.
   1. In your work place. If you have your own office then vape as much as you want. If you don’t, be respectful of others . You don’t want to annoy others with a cloud of vapor
   2. At home. Vape in your favorite chair while you watching TV. Vape in your home as much as you want but don’t overdo it.
   3. At friends homes vape as much as you want as long as they are ok with it. If they not ok with it then you can go into the bathroom and vape – Just like you did is high school – sneak into the bathroom and smoke in one of the stalls. Act like a kid again
   4. Traveling: Smoke detectors don’t pick up vapor. On an airline flight you can always go into the lavatory and vape on your flight

 

[guitarman56]

Thanks Gem: Some very good advice there. Like you mentioned, the reason I didn't stay with it before was because I was trying to quit real cigs completely. All at one time. This time around, I'm simply cutting out the cig smoke and keeping the nicotine. I'll step down on the level in the future.

 

[gem1204]

I'm down to 0 nicotine now and mixing my own juice now that I don't have to fool with the nicotine. All you need is VG and PG and some flavoring. With the way I did it within a few months I preferred vaping to smoking. I don't feel like I gave up anything. I was a hard core smoker but now I'm a hard core vapor and I'll vape until the day I die.

Good luck!

 

[Fidola13]

Hello: I'm new to this discussion board. I currently smoke Marlboro Silver (lites) and looking to go to the Cig A Like to help me eventually quit. A few years back, I tried the Apollo route and was uninspired. Can anyone offer your experience in the change from smoke to vapor and what starter kit would you recommend for me.
Thanks

Hello and welcome! I was smoking pall malls which is somewhat “light” smoke. I succeeded in quitting them using a Joytech Exceed D19. I did a ton and was overwhelmed with mods that have so many controls. it’s Very similar to cigarette inhalation and simple to use. I was using a tobacco flavored e juice by Naked 100 called Euro Gold. It’s excellent and I still vape with it occasionally.

Good Luck!!

sara

 

[suprtrkr]

Hi and welcome. I did not find the cig-a-likes to be effective. That said, some people like them. I also believe a lower nic level with more vapor is what helped me to get off the sticks. As for a recommendation... it's hard to say. I like to recommend the Kanger Topbox kit for new vapers as it is quality gear and capable of operating in a lot of different regimes. One of the biggest problems new vapers face is there's a lot of moving parts and to make it successful you have to get most of the stars aligned all at once. Having a kit that is decent, if not fabulous, at anything from low-watt, restricted mouth inhales to moderately high watt direct lung vaping is a help. It won't clue you in about where you want to be, but at least you won't be stuck with gear that won't do something you need. Then all you'll have to do is try the various coils and settings while finding a juice you like and which delivers enough nic to still the cravings, which is a tall enough order for most people.

Other options, and cheaper ones, are also available. A Pico starter kit is one such and has had some success.

 

[Brewdawg1181]

Hi Guitarman - some say dual use is the way to go, tapering off the cigs until you like vaping more than the cigs. That wouldn't work for me. I'd smoked about 40 years, quitting several times, and being a closet smoker for several of the last years (I didn't smoke in front of my kids until they were teenagers).

For me, the hardest thing about quitting was the rationalization - "I'll just have a few today, and quit for good tomorrow" - things like that. It's always too easy to allow yourself one more, and put off quitting for good.

I made a deal with my son that I was going to quit on a certain date, and I knew I'd refuse to go back on my word to him. I'd quit for a while back in 2010, and used NJoy cigalikes as a crutch, and although they really kind of sucked, they did help. So after agreeing to quit, I got nervous about how hard it'd be as the date approached, and remembered vaping. Did some (a lot) of research, and determined that the Nautilus 2 seemed to be the best tank, so I got one. I started with a RY4 juice (18mg) that was really too sweet for me, but it got me over the hump. After about 3-4 weeks, it became pretty easy. I found better tobacco juice from Halo and Indigo, and it was even easier. I realized I liked vaping (and felt awesome physically) and was in no hurry to quit, and since I'm somewhat of a tightwad, decided to graduate to an RTA. Got a Kayfun Mini V3 (still my favorite), and started DIY'ing juice (down to 12-14mg now). If I hadn't started DIY, I'd be buying a NET tobacco.

I tried a cigarette on the 3 month anniversary, and although it tasted ok, I could really feel the poison. Got a headache that wouldn't go away for a whole day, and it just made me feel bad generally - and that was really from not even a whole cigarette. 8 months later, I have absolutely 0 desire to ever go back, even if I couldn't vape.

Anyway, I wouldn't recommend a cigalike - I'm sure they're much better than they used to be, but it seems almost everyone graduates to a tank eventually, so I wouldn't recommend cigalikes and the frustration many find with them. Quitting is hard enough at first without decent equipment and juice.

Good luck!

 

[Baditude]

Let me save you a lot of time, money, and frustration. Forget about using a "cigalike". They have poor performance, poor battery life, and are extremely expensive in the long run. Those of us who started out with them quickly moved on to more advanced setups, those who didn't went back to smoking.

cigalike​

At the very least, get a pod mod. Still quite small in size (pocket friendly), but because they use a stronger nicotine content, they don't require as frequent use as a cigalike to relieve nicotine cravings. Although convenient and easy to use for a beginner, they are still rather expensive in the long run.

pod mod​

I suggest either an Ego Battery setup or better still a Mod setup. Much longer battery time (last all day on a charge), ability to use a larger juice attachment (less frequent filling), many are variable power which allows you to adjust your vaping experience (more vaper/less vaper; warmer vaper/cooler vaper) on the fly. Mods also have built-in battery voltage meters and coil resistance meters; may not seem important to a beginner, but they will be as you learn more about vaping. The iTaste Pico is a highly recommend inexpensive mod for beginners.

I do not recommend an unregulated mechanical mod (no microchip) for a beginner.

Ego battery setup

Regulated mod setup

A clearomizer tank (juice delivery device) such as an Aspire Nautilus or Uwell Crown to use on your battery device.

Good Starter Setups for a Beginner Vaper

• Typical starter setups recommended for a new vaper. Includes a video on the use of an eGo variable voltage battery/clearomizer and of the iStick and MVP mods.

Advancing Up the Vaping Ladder

• From cigalike batteries, to eGo's, to mods. Pro's and cons of each category. Another picture dictionary of terminology and form factors for beginning vapers. Includes videos.

Proper Terminology: Is it a carto, a tank, or what? A Guide to Juice Delivery Devices

• A picture dictionary for beginners with descriptions of clearomizers, nano's, drip atomizers, bottom feeding mods, cartomizers, cartotanks, and RBA's (rebuildable atomizers). Includes video demos/reviews of all devices. Includes tips on clearomizer tanks to avoid flooding or dry hit issues.

I was a 30+ year smoker. I tried nicotine gum/lozenges/patches, prescription drugs, and hypnosis. Nothing helped.

My first starter kit was a cigalike, and I did quit smoking using those. But in hindsight I wish I had done more research and started out with a mod setup. After a month use of the cigalikes, I ditched them and bought a mod. That was so much more like the experience of smoking a cigarette that a cigalike could never approach.

 

[BrotherBob]

Hello: I'm new to this discussion board. I currently smoke Marlboro Silver (lites) and looking to go to the Cig A Like to help me eventually quit. A few years back, I tried the Apollo route and was uninspired. Can anyone offer your experience in the change from smoke to vapor and what starter kit would you recommend for me.
Thanks

Welcome and glad you joined.
Might want to do non sub-ohm first [sub ohm'g = under 1 ohm coil(s)]. You will get great flavor but the cloud production is not as intense as you can produce with sub ohm'g. Can't see the sense in massive clouds at high cost for an debatable flavor increase payout.
Could look into the pros and cons of sub ohm'g vs non sub ohm'g before you decide which way you want to go. Some folks jump right into sub ohm'g without looking at the hidden ramifications.Successful sub ohm'rs tend to know the ins and outs of vaping. That's why sub ohm'g is tagged as advanced vaping.
This information may help you make up your mind.
Might like to read:
http://www.vaporauthority.com/pages/learn
Vaping and Inhaling: Everything You Need To Know
https://spinfuel.com/new-vapers-start/
http://www.ecigarettedirect.co.uk/a...tte-college-guides-tutorials-information.html
Beginner – Guide To Vaping
http://vapingcheap.com/vaping-101/
6 Quick & Useful Vaping Tips for Beginners
https://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/f...up-the-vaping-ladder-with-egos-and-mods.5058/
https://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/f...nk-or-what-a-guide-to-juice-attachments.3230/