New Member to ECF

[Maurice Pudlo]

21 hours and no smokes, not one, haven't even unwrapped a pack.

I think that's a huge leap forward for me. A few times I have felt the desire to smoke but just grabbed my MVP and went out on the porch to vape instead.

Maurice

Edit: I'm at 27 hours without smoking or opening a pack of smokes. I have to say the vaping is working. I'm looking at 132 puffs so far today out of a single iClear 16 filled with 50:50 seven star and cappuccino and 0.6ml is still in the tank.

I'm pretty hopeful that this will be a calculable use for me, I'm not restricting myself, just feeding the desire as it hits me.

Happy Thanksgiving folks.

Maurice

 

[DavidOck]

Good going, Maurice!

I wouldn't be concerned with puff count or juice use, unless you're just wanting to get a ballpark on how much juice to have on hand Then double that. I like to have lots of juice and lots of backups as a stress reducer. I will NOT fret over potential hardware failure or running out.

And, depending, you may actually get to vape inside. My wife quit cigs many years before me (huh, if she's so smart, why did she marry me??), so I never smoked in the house. Vape doesn't bother her, so I don't have to go out in the cold and wet WA anymore. But if keeping up some of the "ritual" helps, by all means go for it!

I found getting the right level nic and flavors I liked was the key, and it seems like you're pretty much there. Keep on keeping on!!

 

[Nibiru2012]

IF you can make it through the Christmas season, then you'll be fine!

I've been analog free for 80 days now and enjoying vaping very much.

You came to the right place for your new experience, nearly all the members here are very helpful and supportive.

 

[Dieseler]

Hi Maurice, and welcome to ECF.

 

[JusCruizin]

Welcome Maurice!

It certainly makes a big difference when you have a support network like the one here at ECF behind you.

Like DavidOck my wife will let me vape inside, but not around the kids as it still has the smoking connotations.

 

[Tiffany Hurtado-Cerasoli]

I am new to ecigs as well. I have been a long time smoker of over 30 years. I never quit. Not even when I was preggers. Dr just had me cut down to 5 a day. I do not want the smell or what it is doing to my body anymore. I tried my first ecig 2 months ago and never looked back. I like it so much that I may never stop. I have tried all the store bought ecigs but these are expensive and not very tasty or dont work well. I have just switched to Bloog but I cannot get them to charge with the chargers I bought from Boolg. We will see if I can get them to work. Otherwise I will try a new brand. I liked the flavor of Blu but again they will not recharge either!!! Ahhh! I dont want to go back to smoking! I need something reliable.

 

[Rina]

I too have been a smoker for around 20 years and never considered stopping but then I decided to try vaping to just cut down. At first, I didn't know if I could stick with just vaping but I just told myself that whenever I "wanted" to smoke, I'd vape a couple of times first and if the urge to smoke was still there, then that's the only time I'd actually light up a cigarette. To my surprise, I haven't lit up for about four months now! Hoping to keep it up...

 

[Maurice Pudlo]

My vape rig, if it goes down I have local access to spares, and any gas station has an assortment of throw aways.

I'm going to keep about a month or two worth of juice on hand and maybe build up a few spare iClear 16s to fill with whatever juices I plan to keep plus spares if any die on me.

I'm fairly confident in the quality of the MVP v2, it feels as solid as any electronic gadget made back when they gave a damn about making things nice.

I'm not about to bust it open but I would almost bet the batteries will be available sometime down the road, or one would think the folks who make these would be inclined to at least consider that route.

On a side note, I need to get a few things drycleaned, I'm starting to dislike the lingering ashy smell. Anyone know if I can sell off most of an unused carton of smokes...I'll probably just find some homeless guy and make his Christmas a little better.

Maurice

 

[DavidOck]

Get a few spare heads for your Iclears as well. While it's great to have some good B&Ms around, prices can be high, and they're seldom open when calamity strikes.

Murphy was an optimist...

Since they're soldered into the MVP, it won't likely be a "home" job, but I could see a cottage industry starting up....

 

[Maurice Pudlo]

I like to support my local shops and vendors when I can. I realize I'm getting hit with a markup; its just part of trying to keep a bit of your money in the local area.

I'm not sure about all the terminology used between equipment bits (just now realized I locked myself out of the house; be right back)!

 

[Maurice Pudlo]

Okay, back in

In any case, I'm not sure what spares I'd need or even how to ask for them.

I'm excited that I figured out how to properly set volts and watts based on ohms, I suppose that'll increase the life of my coils (I presume the head you speak of is the bit that contains the coils in my iClear 16s).

I've looked a bit into the whole wrapping coils thing, looks like fun.

Maurice

 

[DavidOck]

Wrapping you own coils can make for a better vape. Not for all, but actually pretty easy if you're good with your hands and small things

Just take your rig in when you go to your local shop, and ask for some spare heads / coils for it. Yes, in general, the head will contain the coil/wick assembly. The terms are pretty loose, not standardized part names yet. (If ever??)

 

[jwag1973]

Your already ahead of the curve Maurice, and definitely in the right place. Good luck and enjoy!

 

[Maurice Pudlo]

Wrapping you own coils can make for a better vape. Not for all, but actually pretty easy if you're good with your hands and small things

Just take your rig in when you go to your local shop, and ask for some spare heads / coils for it. Yes, in general, the head will contain the coil/wick assembly. The terms are pretty loose, not standardized part names yet. (If ever??)

I can see how building a vaporizer from near scratch would be pretty fun, and maybe a good excuse to purchase a lathe and some stainless steel...

Your already ahead of the curve Maurice, and definitely in the right place. Good luck and enjoy!

I don't know just how far ahead of the curve I am, I have had a pretty rough day today and still haven't touched my smokes (but the urge has been taunting me like crazy), been vaping like a fiend all day.

Maybe someone could sticky a vaping tool nomenclature guide.

Maurice

 

[DavidOck]

There are some here: New Members Information although I don't know how correct they are

I was just referring to coils, not the whole darn contraption.... but if you have the tools and the ability, building your own mod could be a lot of fun, yes! Mechanicals aren't too involved, VV/VW you'd need to run down the right electronics of course.

Sounds like you're doing fine Maurice. Keep in mind that you're still at the start of the process of changing your life. As they say, one step. And you've made some giant ones already. It seems to me it's not a question of if you can do it - you ARE doing it!

 

[Darla499]

Hi Maurice!

Welcome to the forum. I'm new here too. But I've been poking around for awhile. I started vaping back in August and I'm hooked. I've managed to cut from 24mg to 18 so that's some progress.

I, like you, am addicted to the oral habit as well as the nicotine. I find vaping very satisfying. I experimented with a lot of flavors but eventually settled with a hot cinnamon candy flavor because it kind of gives that same burn in your throat. And it tastes SOOOO much better!

I think we've come to the right spot!

 

[Pinggolfer]

welcome and enjoy learning.

 

[Maurice Pudlo]

Thanks again to everyone, I certainly am still at that hungry for info stage. I'm a curious sort and do enjoy soaking up bits of knowledge when I can.

As for flavors I am not even close to knowing what a favorite might or might not be, I tend to gravitate towards savory foods and pass up sweets, but who knows with vaping flavors.

I want to try some 100% VG based juice mainly to wean myself away from the throat hit experience. I'm not sure if that's something I want without trying. I figure if I prefer a PG/VG mix of some sort I can always combine the two later.

I really do like the fact that vaping allows so much more control over what my nicotine habit involves. I'm not about to sing the song of safer just yet, its a pathway toward getting off of big tobaccos lap that much is certain. If I can eek out a few more years than I would have on tobacco great, I feel no worse for it so far.

I'd love to understand the tools enough to be able to construct my own equipment, you never know when a skill might come in handy down the road. Plus it would be pretty cool to have a 100% custom made vaping tool all artsy fartsy looking and such.

Maurice

 

[Maurice Pudlo]

So it's been 69 days, I still haven't slipped up.

My MVP is still trucking along, I've purchased a couple i-clear 30s tanks that I'm only moderately pleased with.

I've tried a few e-juices with mixed results in so far. I like a red hot cinnamon from my local shop and a Cinthol version I purchased online. I'm vaping a cluster mix of juices now as I type this, bits left over from several ... its OK.

Thus far, I think I'm ready to take my nicotine level down to 12mg, and I'm fairly sure I prefer the juice to be mostly PG for the throat hit. I tried a 80:20 VG/PG juice and miss the feel of the inhale quite a bit.

I purchased an el-cheap-o tube mod, charger, battery, kick, and totally failed at getting the included attomizer to work. The tube section fires my i-clears but ... and this is from a guy that's still new ... its cost is clearly proportional to its quality. I'm kicking myself for buying it. On a positive note, I like the form and heft. I will be buying a real Nemasis or similar, once I figure out what I'm doing wrong with the one I have now.

I still have very clear "I want a smoke" cravings, but they aren't panicked feelings like when I've tried to quit cold turkey, just identifiable as being different from needing nicotine. I've been around smokers without a single feeling that I ever want to go back, that is a great feeling.

Maurice

 

[DavidOck]

Congrats on your progress, Maurice! Good to hear.

You may want to stay at your current nic level a bit longer. Part of TH is from the nic, and you say you still have "cravings."

Not knowing what tube you got it's hard to suggest much, but since you're putting a Kick into it anyway, why not just a VV/VW tube mod? A lot easier to adjust than pulling the tube apart, finding the phillips screwdriver....