New Setup

[Jasoonc]

What's up guys. I started vaping to quit smoking a while ago and I've been using the Kayfun 3.1 and Dragon Sniper Mod that I purchased from my local vape shop. Absolutely love the setup; it's vaping so much better than the eGo Twist that I started off with and brought me into exciting world of mechanical mods.

Now, I've saved up a bit more and I think I'd like to buy another set-up (tank+mod). Any suggestions/opinions/advice would be appreciated. Thanks a lot bros and vape on!

 

[Vaslovik]

Well since you asked for advice, do you have an ohms meter? What kind of batteries are you using in your new mech? Do you have a voltage meter? What's the resistance in your build? You really should know that. What gauge kanthal are you using? How many wraps? What's your wicking material?

I'd counsel you to make sure you know how to operate your mech safely, with the right batteries, and know how to build your Kayfun well since with a mech that's your only control over your vape.

 

[Jasoonc]

I'm using 18650s on my device, but I don't own any of the devices you mentioned above. My friend at the vape shop set me up with the device. I believe it's 4-5 wraps with 22 gauge kanthal and I've been rewicking with sterilized cotton.

Sound advice, thanks Vaslovik!

 

[Vaslovik]

Yer most welcome! 4/5 with 22 kanthal is going to be a sub-ohm build, and that B&M dude had no business setting you up with a sub-ohm build before you know anything about running it safely. There are different kinds of 18650 batteries, not all of them safe to use in a sub-ohm setup. You could easily be vaping on a pipe-bomb!

You have been using ego rigs, and this guy sold you a mech with a sub-ohm build on it, that's just nuts! It's incredibly irresponsible on his part, and he's a galloping idiot for doing it. Yeah, it vapes great, for now. Do you know how to rebuild it when it comes time? You don't even have the equipment to do that.

Check what kind of batteries he put in that thing. They should be safe chemistry batteries AW IMR, Efest IMR or Sony VTC's.

Did you get a charger with this rig? What kind?

 

[Kaezziel]

Here we go again.....

So, I take it that you have no idea what your resistance value is... I would also assume that you do not know what batteries you have... 18650, but what brand? what is the constant amp load rating?
Please read through all of the sections in this link: E-Cigarette Forum - Baditude - Blogs
That link takes you straight to Baditude's blog. Read the battery safety entries at the very least. You need to understand that you are running on a setup that is below 1 ohm. This is dangerous territory for the uninitiated... a simple short or not changing your battery soon enough could easily lead to the battery going into thermal runaway... at which point, you are now wrapping your fingers around a pipe bomb. The questions that Vaslovik asked are all not only legit, but they are questions that mandate answers! If you do not know the precise answers to those questions, you are not ready to SAFELY vape on your current setup.

You wanted suggestions for your next rig? I would suggest an MVP 2 with a Nautilus tank. Order a bunch of the new BVC coils for it... that will be good to go and will be a very safe piece of equipment.

 

[Vaslovik]

I'll gladly second the recommendation for an MVP 2, and it just really chaps my .... to hear about idiots at B&M's doing this, selling mechs with sub-ohm built atty's on them to people who have not the first idea how to run them safely or even rebuild it once they are out the door with it! Did this guy even tell you what you needed to rebuild it? I just cringe at the thought you might open it and find a gray Trustfire battery in there!

 

[Kaezziel]

I know... I'm seeing more and more of this. The MVP 2 is a perfect device for beginners wanting to step up in their equipment. Get an RBA or RDA if they want (just have to build higher ohm coils). Good way to gain experience in coil building, basic troubleshooting and use of necessary equipment (check voltage/resistance, identify shorts etc..) I ran into a guy here at work, I was vaping outside and he comes up with his shiny new mech (Stingray clone with some variety of RDA)... I thought "Cool, another experienced vaper!" I asked him what battery he had and he shrugged... HE SHRUGGED!! Opened the mod and guess what... gray! I asked him what is resistance was and he grinned at me and said that "a buddy" told him it was somewhere around 0.2 ohms! I asked if he had measured it and he said no... I brought him back to my desk, rebuilt his rda to .75 ohm dual parallel, rewicked it with rayon and traded him one of my VTC5's for his crappy gray battery... I showed him how to check resistance and look for shorts, laid out some basic battery safety and what to look for... he seemed happy and said his juice actually tasted better than before...
Oh, and I measured his coils with a Fluke... after taking lead resistance out, the meter said 0.1 ohms....

 

[Vaslovik]

I know... I'm seeing more and more of this. The MVP 2 is a perfect device for beginners wanting to step up in their equipment. Get an RBA or RDA if they want (just have to build higher ohm coils). Good way to gain experience in coil building, basic troubleshooting and use of necessary equipment (check voltage/resistance, identify shorts etc..) I ran into a guy here at work, I was vaping outside and he comes up with his shiny new mech (Stingray clone with some variety of RDA)... I thought "Cool, another experienced vaper!" I asked him what battery he had and he shrugged... HE SHRUGGED!! Opened the mod and guess what... gray! I asked him what is resistance was and he grinned at me and said that "a buddy" told him it was somewhere around 0.2 ohms! I asked if he had measured it and he said no... I brought him back to my desk, rebuilt his rda to .75 ohm dual parallel, rewicked it with rayon and traded him one of my VTC5's for his crappy gray battery... I showed him how to check resistance and look for shorts, laid out some basic battery safety and what to look for... he seemed happy and said his juice actually tasted better than before...
Oh, and I measured his coils with a Fluke... after taking lead resistance out, the meter said 0.1 ohms....

OH YEOW!!!!!!

See, that's what scares the crap out of me! You might well have saved that guy's life! I've heard many tales of someone's "buddy" or some fool at a B&M putting such things in the hands of unknowing people thinking it was cool to do that. I wonder how many have lost hands or been disfigured this way.

 

[Kaezziel]

Yeah.... it's truly frightening! I'm glad that I had the opportunity to show him how to build a coil and check it out to make sure that everything is good to go... He said that he had one more battery at home just like the one I took from him... I told him to go get another Sony battery and pointed him to the one vape shop around here that I trust with mech mods... at least he did say that he bought his stuff online, so I can't really blame any particular shop around here, and I assume his "buddy" built the coils for him... with no meter... but at least, now he has been informed... Hopefully I won't see him in a week or two with bandages wrapped around his hand!

 

[Kaezziel]

Update: The guy here at work just came by and told me that he just ordered 2 more Sony VTC5s and an MVP2 with a Nautilus tank and about 20 of the BVC coils!!
Holy crap, apparently sometimes people do listen!!

 

[Jasoonc]

Yikes So I found out he gave me a Sony battery(green ones). I think these should be the vtc5's that you mentioned. However, I've been swapping it out with a Sanyo brand (reddish batteries) that I had lying around the house. Is that a reliable battery?

Regarding rebuilds: the shop I went to does the rebuilds for free, so I didn't bother thinking about buying the equipment to do it myself. Is that still something I should definitely do? And if so, any recommendations for less-costly equipment?

 

[red6093rum]

Im not trying to sound harsh or come off rude, but you simply have not done research. Learn about battery safety, ohms law, wire resistance, building and more battery safety. Not knowing these thing can get you seriously hurt. Which is not what I or anyone here would want to happen. Research those topics and really weigh out if this realm of vaping is really what you want to do. If so the tools may be a good sum of coin but they are worth it. Most of your cost will go to batteries. Which are really not that expensive. IMO only you should be building inside your atty. Cause ultimately your the one using it. Wouldn't you like to know whats in there and whats going on? Good luck either way, stay safe.

 

[dchemist]

Yikes So I found out he gave me a Sony battery(green ones). I think these should be the vtc5's that you mentioned. However, I've been swapping it out with a Sanyo brand (reddish batteries) that I had lying around the house. Is that a reliable battery?

Regarding rebuilds: the shop I went to does the rebuilds for free, so I didn't bother thinking about buying the equipment to do it myself. Is that still something I should definitely do? And if so, any recommendations for less-costly equipment?

My first recommendation would be a digital multi meter (DMM). You will need this to check battery voltage to prevent over charging, check battery voltage to prevent over dis-charging, checking continuity for dead shorts, and checking resistance on your coil to confirm it is in the safe operating range of your battery.

The second purchase I would recommend is a regulated mod or equivalent (something with built in protection) to protect you while you learn about battery safety and re-building.

Third I would recommend getting an atomizer with replaceable coils while you learn.

The MVP with a Nautilus and a couple of packs of bottom vertical coils (bvc) would probably do you well.

DMM $20-$300 (I bought an Innova 3320 for $25 at Wal-Mart)

MVP $40-$60

Nautilus $20-$40

BVCs $24-$38

Just promise the next purchase you make will be a DMM.

 

[Jasoonc]

My first recommendation would be a digital multi meter (DMM). You will need this to check battery voltage to prevent over charging, check battery voltage to prevent over dis-charging, checking continuity for dead shorts, and checking resistance on your coil to confirm it is in the safe operating range of your battery.

The second purchase I would recommend is a regulated mod or equivalent (something with built in protection) to protect you while you learn about battery safety and re-building.

Third I would recommend getting an atomizer with replaceable coils while you learn.

The MVP with a Nautilus and a couple of packs of bottom vertical coils (bvc) would probably do you well.

DMM $20-$300 (I bought an Innova 3320 for $25 at Wal-Mart)

MVP $40-$60

Nautilus $20-$40

BVCs $24-$38

Just promise the next purchase you make will be a DMM.

Haha, gotcha. Will definitely be getting a DMM after reading these. Thanks for the price estimates. They'll help a lot for budgeting.

 

[dchemist]

Haha, gotcha. Will definitely be getting a DMM after reading these. Thanks for the price estimates. They'll help a lot for budgeting.

Excellent, to give you a bit of my story I went straight from an eGo/ce4 setup to a mech mod. Fortunately for me I partnered it with a Nautilus instead of the re-buildable dripping atomizer (RDA) that local store (B&M) was pushing. I spent the next month studying batteries/amp ratings/ohms law, etc before purchasing an i2 charger, a couple of vtc5 batteries, and an Innova DMM. It was several months after that before I purchased a re-buildable tank atomizer (RTA). I've still yet to build a coil less than 1.0 ohm and in fact have found my happy spot to be around 11 watts on my Kayfun clone. So much so that I'm now trying to decide if I want a kick module or to purchase the MVP.

The one thing I can tell you for sure, I've never received bad information on ECF...well, from the senior members and moderators anyhow. For me building coils has been wonderful and my Kayfun filled the void I was looking for in flavor/vapor/throat hit. I'm just really glad I followed the advice given and didn't get into anything overly dangerous up front.

Good luck, and here's to an awesome Vaping journey