New member here! Can we talk seriously?

[lexpres61]

Hey all! Steve here. Been on the web most of the day thinking it is about time to quit smoking. I have been smoking off and on most of my adult life and honestly have enjoyed it. Only problem is what it is doing to my health. So I have been lurking here for the last 5 hours looking at the collection of post and a few questions come up. It seems a lot of people have replaced smoking with vaping ( a new term to me)

Not sure I want to give up one habit for another but it seems from what I read that this is a lot safer than cig smoking. Do any of you members quit smoking and then stop vaping too?

I would like to hear from some of you that have quit smoking by using ecigs and how it worked out for you. Did you quit smokes cold turkey with vaping? What mg of nicotine did you start with. what ecig did you use.

First and formost I am trying to stop smoking.

I am sick of the smokers hack and everything else that goes along with it. (does the hack stop with vaping?)

I have been looking at the ProVari and dont really care about the cost. BUT it is so confusing trying to figure out what accessorys I need. I just want to quit smoking and if I continue vaping then I can get all the wazoo accesories!

So I open my self up to your advice and wisdom!

Thanks for listening,

Steve

Hi. I started 3 months ago. I was a 2 pack a day smoker for over 30 yrs. Since I started I haven't had an analog-tabacco burning cigarette. I started on high- 24mg nicotine e-juice on one of those 510 thin e-cigs. Month 3 I am on Medium vaping-18mg on a eGo-T 1.6ml clearomizer. Don't know if I'll go any lower on the nicotine but I'm still new to this experience.
I am now placing an order for a more powerful battery and dual core tank for a bigger vape. I'll probably either stay on Medium or go back to the 24mg e-juice. But that's just me. Everyone is different.
My Husband started 2 months ago on High-24mg e-juice. He went down to Medium nicotine-18mg last month. He plans on going lower this month until he can eventually quit all together. I am rooting for him.
As I said, everyone's different. Some try the e-cigs to eventually quit and others start for a healthier alternative to smoking tabacco cigarettes.

 

[akajim029]

I started a month ago, felt like its time for a change, as I have a newly born baby boy. Havent looked back since. Im vapin a normal ego with 18mg of nicc, setup is still using Vivinova..Tasted my friends GGTS with a genesis tank, that is it for me..have to get myself a GGTS one of these days..

 

[LV SuzyQ]

Hi Steve! Welcome! This is a great forum and community. I'm sure everyone's covered all the bases here. Just wanted to say hi and I'm in Vegas too if you need any help. You can pm me

 

[MaDeuce]

Hey Steve,
You pose some very good questions in your post, a lot of the same questions I had when I first decided to make the transition from smoking to vaping. I don't presume to have the answers for you. All I can provide is my experience in making the move from one to the other. I was a 1.5 PAD smoker, I was tired of the smokers hack, the foul-smelling clothes and hair, the constant nagging from my friends and family and that perpetual feeling inside that I knew I was doing something detrimental to my health but continuing to do it anyway.

One day I went up to the corner store, as I did everyday, to get my smokes, I walked in and was getting ready to tell the young lady behind the counter that I needed two packs of my normal brand (which she already knew) when I happened to see one of those two-piece e-cig set-ups, so instead of the smokes I told her I would take that instead. I climbed into my car, put it together and started vaping. I haven't smoked a cigarette since. Is it the same as smoking? NO. Does it takes some getting used to? YES. Do I feel better since that day? ABSOLUTELY. Have I spent a little extra money throwing that unhealthy monkey off my back? I HAVE. Is it worth it, at least to me? HELL YES.

Some of your questions I personally don't have an answer for. Will I ever quit vaping? Maybe, but I don't worry about that at the moment, I'm just glad I'm not hacking and stinking. Plus I don't have to go outside and freeze my .... off to smoke a cig, haha. As far as what type of rig you should buy, I suggest reading the forums. There are a lot of great folks with a lot of great comments and opinions about what worked and works for them. Just stick with and give it a whole-hearted attempt. Good luck Steve.

 

[cobraf]

Hello Steve and Welcome,

I am new to vaping myself, been vaping for over 2 months now.

I have started with just an Ego battery and a CE4 clearomizer, its a simple setup which does not require knowledge and fiddling, once you feel you want to move to diffrent level and try other stuff (and there is alot our there), you can get a mod like a Provari or any of the dozens of mods that float around.

Best way to start is to get a simple and reliable kit and juice that will satisfy your need for Nicotine, if you are a heavy smoker start with 18MG and work you way down when you feel you are ready.

 

[serenity21899]

Hey all! Steve here. Been on the web most of the day thinking it is about time to quit smoking. I have been smoking off and on most of my adult life and honestly have enjoyed it. Only problem is what it is doing to my health. So I have been lurking here for the last 5 hours looking at the collection of post and a few questions come up. It seems a lot of people have replaced smoking with vaping ( a new term to me)

Not sure I want to give up one habit for another but it seems from what I read that this is a lot safer than cig smoking. Do any of you members quit smoking and then stop vaping too?

I would like to hear from some of you that have quit smoking by using ecigs and how it worked out for you. Did you quit smokes cold turkey with vaping? What mg of nicotine did you start with. what ecig did you use.

First and formost I am trying to stop smoking.

I am sick of the smokers hack and everything else that goes along with it. (does the hack stop with vaping?)

I have been looking at the ProVari and dont really care about the cost. BUT it is so confusing trying to figure out what accessorys I need. I just want to quit smoking and if I continue vaping then I can get all the wazoo accesories!

So I open my self up to your advice and wisdom!

Thanks for listening,

Steve

I am here because money got tight, and hubby said no more cigarettes. I had tried to quit perviously, with no success. And him forcing my into quitting didn't work either. Several people at his job had ecigs, so I agreed to try it. I went to WalMart and got the Mistic. Didn't real care for it, but liked the concept of having my nicotine. I bought a Blu kit after that, and it was a bit more to my liking. The first few days I finished off the 1/2 pack or so I had left, I have not smoked since. I have since moved on to an ego twist 1000mah and love it.

Provari's are great, a lot of us want those, but I am thinking you might want to start more simply. An ego twist is a good choice. The batteries last up to a day between charges, and there are lots of options to them. I use Kanger t2 clearomizers on the top. You can find all the information on this forum about what all this stuff is.

Welcome and good luck.

 

[mob1900]

Heavy smoker for 18 years, 2 packs a day, if I'm still awake I would be smoking. Turned to vaping since christmas last year and never looked back. No more analogue ciggies since then. Vaping is de-li-cious, fun and less harmful. I would gladly trade smoking off to vaping. Instant Profitz in every way!

 

[T41CK]

Did the op have a hit and run... I think these are illegal

 

[Disconnect]

As others have said, its experimentation. I'm still settling in (as my sig shows..) but what I would recommend, based on my experience (and a lot of reading):

Get some 24mg juice. Get some 'milder' (16-18mg) juice. And if you want the full range, get some 6mg as well. (Sample packs are good for this - I got my initial batch from mypvshop, and my followup from myfreedomsmokes, but there are tons and tons of options.)

Don't avoid menthol just because you didn't smoke menthol cigs, and don't expect the "tobacco" flavors to taste like cigs. (Several of the DeKang flavors DO have a nice feel though, so they might help.. I hated newports, but their "nuport" is decent. Ditto for marlboro vs "myboro".) Cinnamon flavors are also good for cutting the cravings.

Skip the "looks like a cig" gear.. you'll be mad at it in no time.

Assemble a basic starter kit.
Battery: eGo twist or a spinner (or just a basic ego battery)
Attys: I'd suggest a couple of different heads (CE4, CE5, CE6, Nova Mini, things like that.)

I'd also recommend either getting a usb passthrough or a battery with it built-in, so that you don't have any excuse to buy cigs. "Oops, battery died, off to the store.." As a last resort, the nova threads are identical to Blu so if you get in trouble (dead batt, out of juice, etc) you can hit the gas station for a battery or some cartridges instead of getting cigs..

That will be fairly inexpensive ($15-$40 for the battery and under $10 for each head) and lets you find a setup you like while experimenting with different flavors/strengths. (Right now my travel case has a CE4 full of reeces cup and 5 Novas with various flavors and strengths.)

Fill 1 with "high test" (24mg) juice. Set it aside. Fill at least 1 other with the milder juice, and just use it off and on throughout the day. (Frequently, at least to start. It isn't a cig that you hit 2-3 times once an hour, its more like a slow-drip medicine. Try to get a baseline of nic running so you don't get all wonky..) When you start thinking it is time for a cig, take a few hits off the high test and wait 5 mins. If it doesn't fade, keep using the big juice, otherwise switch back to the 'maintenance' one.

Water. LOTS of water. Between the cig detox, the dehydrating PG/VG, and the occasional (minor) nic OD, you're gonna want to chug water..

I started as about 1.5 packs a day (and quit as soon as my cig-lookalike kit was charged) but by the 3rd day, I was using almost exclusively 6mg (every 2-10 mins) with occasional craving-killer hits of 18 and 24.

This week I'm going to experiment with 3mg for my chain-vaping.. (I wasn't intending to quit nicotine, and I'm still going through a lot of juice, but I haven't even thought about smoking in days. Not even when all the smokers were over at the house yesterday drinking and chain-smoking.. It looked cold out there, and the TV was too far away.)

Just my

 

[Baditude]

I could not completely quit until I got a genisis. Don't listen to the nay sayers about genisis. It hard to quit on the carts. People do. Get a mechanical mod that takes a 18650 and a genisis atty. you will save lots of money in the long run and it will work for you.

This is a new video. He finally saw the light.

A PBusardo Video - The Genesis Epiphany - YouTube

I can't imagine starting up directly with a mechanical mod and a rebuildable atomizer. There was so much to learn about clearomizers, atomizers, cartomizers and tanks, PG and VG, watts, volts and ohms. Once I did move on to an RBA I had to learn about coils, wicks, oxidizing, SS mesh, silica, kanthal/nichrome. In my case I had a friend who started first so he just told me what to get for a starter kit and he answered all my questions (you have him to thank, general ECF public - now you just get my annoying RBA questions).

I'll just be quiet for now about an RBA for a beginner.

i just wanted to add to the safety issue with mech mods. they have no protection against shorts or low battery voltage which can be truly dangerous to inexperienced users. so please stop advising complicated and advanced mods to beginners. many of us can drive a car but very few can race it

But PBusardo also DID NOT RECOMMEND the Genesis rebuildable atomizers for beginners in that very same video, and I totally agree. These are to be used by advanced users only. They do not just work magically out of the box. I'm surprised that more of the more experienced vapors did not question the recommendation of an RBA to someone yet to take his first vape.

One must have knowledge of how to make a metal mesh wick and how to make a coil from wire by themselves. One must be able to use a multimeter and a small butane torch. One must have a knowledge of electrical shorts and what causes them and how to avoid them. They must have a working knowledge of ohms and resistance. There is a lot going on with these! A beginner that doesn't even know how to fill a clearomizer or cartomizer with liquid doesn't need to depend upon an RBA to supply his nicotine.

People, when offering advice to a newbie, please consider how advanced or difficult the device would be for a total newbie to the vaping world.

Yes, it may be the best thing you've experienced in the vaping world to date, but some things are best left to the more advanced users. And an RBA is one of them.


No one wants the following that is displayed in the image below to happen to their unprotected mod:

 

[DanFromRioRancho]

Skip the "looks like a cig" gear.. you'll be mad at it in no time.

Maybe......maybe not. Depends on you, your needs, and the specific cig-a-like that is purchased (I include the fancy-schmanzy colored/textured KR8 devices in the category alongside the Blu style products).

Most cig-a-likes truly are crap, some are exceptional (especially when teamed with the proper juice). Search the threads and you'll find more than a few loyal users.

Some forum members absolutely need a cig-a-like to get past some psychological barriers -- they need the feel and look of a cig in their hand, self-consciousness won't allow them to use a larger unit in the public/office/car, they need the simplest most convenient piece of equipment, etc.

Although in the minority, some cig-a-like users have never purchased an upgrade. Some have purchased an upgrade but continue to use their KR8's -- very convenient for driving, hiking, and stealth vaping. There are more than a few threads where members with larger units added mini's, KR8's, etc to their kits for those same reasons.

If it gets them off the smokes, either directly or indirectly, then I'm happy for them!

Just food for thought......

 

[albcig]

i just wanted to add to the safety issue with mech mods. they have no protection against shorts or low battery voltage which can be truly dangerous to inexperienced users. so please stop advising complicated and advanced mods to beginners. many of us can drive a car but very few can race it

 

[Baditude]

i just wanted to add to the safety issue with mech mods. they have no protection against shorts or low battery voltage which can be truly dangerous to inexperienced users. so please stop advising complicated and advanced mods to beginners. many of us can drive a car but very few can race it

I totally agree with this. And I have linked your comment as a quote to my previous statement voicing my recommendation against a new vapor attempting to use an advanced device such as a rebuildable atomizer. Recommending an RBA for a total newbie borders on irresponsibility. Thank you for voicing your concerns also.

http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/new-members-forum/377494-new-member-here-can-we-talk-seriously-5.html#post8542496

But PBusardo also DID NOT RECOMMEND the Genesis rebuildable atomizers for beginners in that very video, and I totally agree. These are to be used by advanced users only. They do not just work magically out of the box. I'm surprised that more of the more experienced vapors did not question the recommendation of an RBA to someone yet to take his first vape.

One must have knowledge of how to make a metal mesh wick and how to make a coil from wire by themselves. One must be able to use a multimeter and a small butane torch. Once must have a knowledge of electrical shorts and what causes them and how to avoid them. They must have a working knowledge of ohms and resistance. There is a lot going on with these! A beginner that doesn't even know how to fill a clearomizer or cartomizer with liquid doesn't need to depend upon an RBA to supply his nicotine.

People, when offering advice to a newbie, please consider how advanced or difficult the device would be for a total newbie to the vaping world.

Yes, it may be the best thing you experienced in the vaping world to date, but some things are best left to the advanced users. And an RBA is one of them.

 

[Disconnect]

Maybe......maybe not. Depends on you, your needs, and the specific cig-a-like that is purchased (I include the fancy-schmanzy colored/textured KR8 devices in the category alongside the Blu style products).

Most cig-a-likes truly are crap, some are exceptional (especially when teamed with the proper juice). Search the threads and you'll find more than a few loyal users.

Some forum members absolutely need a cig-a-like to get past some psychological barriers -- they need the feel and look of a cig in their hand, self-consciousness won't allow them to use a larger unit in the public/office/car, they need the simplest most convenient piece of equipment, etc.

If it gets them off the smokes, either directly or indirectly, then I'm happy for them!

Just food for thought......

Absolutely, and my coworker is still totally content with my 510/510-T cigalike gear. Swaps batteries back and forth from the charger all day, and only grabs his twist when he wants more bang (kill a craving etc) or if he is going drinking. He lasted way longer on it than I did and might just keep it as his long-term PV. (He's a full week cig-free as of Wed, and by the end of my first week I'd already gotten up to a VV and novas..)

There are definitely users who love their cigalikes, but I'd still say it is reasonable to be.. hmm.. if not discouraging, at least cautionary. (Before I set him up with my gear, I spent a long time telling him why I didn't like it.) If they go in eyes open, it could be exactly what they wanted and (as the troll was saying in another thread) "why would anyone ever have a different opinion of this perfect-for-me solution?" Alternately, I almost gave up entirely because it was such a terrible fit for me.

(Edit to add: A like from Baditude should count double )

 

[reeree9800]

Hi Steve, I'm Jane, and brand new to this forum today as well!

I've been a smoker for over 30 years....started before I was in high school! I managed to quit once before, for 15 months, but fell back into it. So here I am, quitting again. I started out using the nicotine patch, which helps me tremendously with the cravings. But then I discovered the e-cig. I started out just using disposable ones....I just wanted something to hold onto, and "smoke" without actually smoking...especially while out at a local bar listening to live music, which I do often.

I've only been vaping for a few weeks now, and thoroughly enjoy it. I have the same thoughts about this as you though: it seems we are just replacing one vice for another. Personally, for me, I think vaping is healthier than smoking. But I DO plan to quit altogether. For me, it's the "act" rather than the nicotine, at this point. I am going to be switching out my juice for the non-nicotine stuff as soon as I get some.

I get confused about all the different types of e-cigs and accessories. I purchased the FS510, and I'm not even sure if the cartridges are refillable or not. If they are, oops! Cause I've been tossing them puppies in the trash once they're empty! Having trouble finding information on exactly HOW to do things.

Anyway.....didn't mean to ramble on and on! Hope you find what you are looking for here and that the e-cig is an avenue that assists your long term goal of quitting all together!

Best,
~Jane

 

[Baditude]

I get confused about all the different types of e-cigs and accessories. I purchased the FS510, and I'm not even sure if the cartridges are refillable or not. If they are, oops! Cause I've been tossing them puppies in the trash once they're empty! Having trouble finding information on exactly HOW to do things.

I'm not totally familiar with what the FS510 is that you are using, but it sounds like you are using pre-filled cartridges, which are likely pre-fill cartomizers. If you can find some bottled e-liquid, perhaps from the vendor you purchase your pre-filled's, you can top them off or refill them with that. Below is a video demonstration on how to do so:

 

[priv8pilot]

WOW thanks all! Lots of responses and have not even read them all. Gonna have to do it tonight after work! But Thank you all! I feel like I have found a new home! I promise tonight I will read every response and take notes. Keep them coming! Sounds like I have tons of support here! Again thanks!

Steve

 

[reeree9800]

Thank you for your response Baditude.

In doing some more reading, I did learn that what I have are NOT "cartimizers." I have a separate atomizer and a separate cartridge. Not sure if the cartridge is refillable or not. Don't know if I can post inks here, but I'll try. This is what my cartridges look like: 510 Cartridges

 

[Steeler Girl]

I smoked 2+PAD for about 23 years. I decided I wanted to stop smoking before I turned 40 so I started looking into ecigs. I decided to go with a small 808 cigalike type. I ordered the biggest starter kit they carried and 18mg cartomizers. The day I received my kit I had about a pack of analogs left and decided to just finish them off and wake up the next day smoke free. I went to bed with 1 cigarette left and woke up the next day and jumped into vaping with both feet. I still have that last cigarette in a bedroom drawer. Not sure why I kept it, lol. It's just there. That was over nine months ago.

I feel I was very lucky as the transition was effortless. In fact only twice in the last nine months have I felt the urge for the "real thing." Of course I abstained and am happy for it. Everyones journey is different. Some stop immediately. Some do not. There is no wrong way to do this. Every analog avoided is a victory won.

As for health benefits, I have noticed a lot of changes in my body. My hair seems softer, my skin seems more hydrated. I breathe so much better and no longer wake up with that terrible smokers hack. I can run on the treadmill and spend an hour on the eliptical without pleading for death As they say YMMV I was an extremely heavy smoker. A lighter smoker may not see as much difference.

Anyway, that's my story. Good luck with whatever you decide!

 

[Baditude]

Thank you for your response Baditude.

In doing some more reading, I did learn that what I have are NOT "cartimizers." I have a separate atomizer and a separate cartridge. Not sure if the cartridge is refillable or not. Don't know if I can post inks here, but I'll try. This is what my cartridges look like: 510 Cartridges

Yeah, I'm not familiar with the atty/cartridge systems. They are very "old school" and not very popular now a days. Only seen with the cheaper starter kits. I did see that the vendor that you linked to does sell bottled e-liquid, so there may be a way to re-fill them. Perhaps someone who uses that system can provide more information.