New ZAP - first RBA

[Jacoji]

Any concerns with putting it back in the "fresh" bottle? They are going to end up blended when I next fill the tanks so I can't see this being an issue.

Normally I won't change flavors mid-tank but I HAD to try a new flavor I also received today - but wanted to start out with something to complement the scotch.

With first firing I definitely wasn't going to change the wicking. In a month I'll want to look into the prevention tactics. .

 

[nvmedjpain]

Personally I wouldn't mix it with my fresh juice... But that's just me

Sent from my PC36100 using Tapatalk 2

 

[markophonic]

Mine arrived yesterday and I'm getting ready to fire it up right now.

 

[Jacoji]

Link to discussion and videos for Petar K method mentioned by jsl1ce on page 1.

http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/modding-forum/363175-petar-k-method-hybrid-wick.html

 

[sawlight]

I've used the Petar K method on my AGA and it works very well! A 5/6 wrap with 32ga Kanthal A1 will put you right around 2 ohms, and I agree, it's really about the best place to run it on the Provaril
Looking at the juice you put back in the bottle, I'd check your coil over for hot spots. I was having that problem as well as getting a burnt flavor now and again. After looking very closely I found the top coil was still giving me fits and I had to re-burn the wick to clean it up and fiddle with the coil some more. That's the great thing about the Petar K method, you can take the wick out and put it back in without disturbing the coil! The top coil getting hot is a common problem with the AGA, it shouldn't be as bad on the ZAP, but it's something I'd check just in case.
That thing is big! It looks bigger than my AGA! Enjoy it, maybe I'll get one one of these days.

 

[Jacoji]

Yes that happens.
It will not effect the liquid in anyway it's cause when the liquid heats up and then drains back down and mixes with the liquid already in the tank.
There is ways to reduce this or even stop it but if you are just now learning rebuildables it would confuse you for me to tell you how to fix it.
Here is a brief summary. You may need to get different mesh or use a burrito wick. Both are simple fixes really.

I'm able to find a lot of posts on different wick materials and the #500 mesh.

What is a burrito wick? I searched forums for "burrito wick" with no results, and when I reduced to just "burrito" there were a lot of off-topic food posts and somebody inquiring about a "bean and cheese burrito flavored e-juice" that both made me gag and develop a craving for Mexican from the corner taqueria for lunch.

I will probably replace the coil today, both for the experience and to see if it decreases the juice discoloration. I'm not going to change to a new wick methodology any time soon - I have no mesh, just the wicks provided with purchase.

 

[sawlight]

I'd look for a week and never find the thread, but a guy in the RBA section is wrapping SS mesh over silica wick. He claims better wicking, less burning and the silica filters the juice so you don't get the residue you've been seeing. I've never tried it as I'm content with 400 mesh as it is.
I believe that is the burrito wick.

 

[ninfreak]

ever since switching over to solid wicks(highly recommended) my juices don't discolor at all...ever. the supplied wicks don't work for me...straw like wicks tend to volcano the juice and cause boiling of the juice and overwicking(more like draining). to those that say this doesn't affect the juice are wrong. first and foremost it degrades the nic, and alters many flavors as many flavors are sensitive to heat.

solid wicks wick what they need to wick, not more, not less. my current wick is over 5 months old and still going strong, i can use pure vg and it still wicks like a beast. i love my zap...it has replaced all my other zens, even my bam.

 

[lowboy]

That is it.
A guy named Pete came up with it.
He uses 3mm silica wick. You roll the silica up in the middle of the mesh.
By doing this you use less mesh and it takes less time to heat up (less mesh to heat up)and like Sawlight said it will help keep the liquid from darkening. The mesh acts like a heatsink.
Please understand that the discoloration will not effect the liquid enough that you will notice and it poses no harm as far as I know. Some people will disagree but I have not noticed any difference. I use a almost solid wick so I usually don't have any problem with the liquid draining back into the tank.
I never liked nor got any of the supplied wicks to work right anyways.

I'd look for a week and never find the thread, but a guy in the RBA section is wrapping SS mesh over silica wick. He claims better wicking, less burning and the silica filters the juice so you don't get the residue you've been seeing. I've never tried it as I'm content with 400 mesh as it is.
I believe that is the burrito wick.

 

[Jacoji]

My only guess was that for a *burrito wick you folded in the ends and then rolled it. : ) I can be dumb.

I started over with a fresh (supplied) wick and coil. I followed the "hybrid" method mentioned previously and made a Petar K coil and then wrapped the top of the SS wick with some wisps of cotton. I did end up with higher resistance than I wanted, but hey, I can adjust the volts and I'm not vaping at high watts. I'll see what the coil and juice look like at the end of the night.

SS mesh #500 is on its way - ordered and shipped today.

Edit to Add: *It is NOT a wick folded like a burrito, but a wick of SS mesh wrapped around silica, which is a "taquito". I call misnomer!

 

[lowboy]

You don't tuck the ends you just put it on the end and roll your mesh tightly around it. Not to tight tho as you don't want to squeeze the silica too much. It dose work good.

 

[Jacoji]

http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/modding-forum/336752-consolidated-wicking-material-info.html

Posting thread link backs when I'm finding useful, consolidated posts. Still haven't found detailed instructions for SS-wrapped silica, but based on what has been described and information on other wick styles I think I can figure it out with some practice - if needed.

 

[lowboy]

Link is broken.
I'm sure you can figure out the burrito wick. It's not hard.

 

[ninfreak]

i have tried ss wrapped silica and ss wrapped cotton......solid ss wicks are still the best in my opinion....the more ss you can cram together in a small space the better the wicking is....capillary action at it's finest

 

[Jacoji]

Thanks for the feedback. I'll pick up some silica wicking material to have on hand. The hybrid will get me by - working better than the first day. No burned gunk attached to the coil.

So Petar recommends coiling around a 2mm drill bit and then it is stretched out a tiny bit. What size SS sheet should I start with? 3mm Silica? Wrapped tight enough to fit through the 2mm coil?

 

[lowboy]

Just roll a piece of mesh and keep rolling till it's solid or semi solid(that's up to your preference) and will fit into the coil. I usually make a wick that will fit loose in the wick hole before I make my coil using the Peter K method.
If you get it to where you want it(solid/semi solid) and it is too big then just cut a little off and try again. Repeat till you are happy.
If it is too small just roll in opposite direction till it fits in the coil loose but still has some resistance and dose not just fall thru the coil. It should have a little resistance but not so much you have to force it thru. A little twisting motion helps.
Hope I'm not confusing you more. It's hard to type what I mean.

 

[Jacoji]

Not confused more. Thanks!

 

[lowboy]

Good
Hope I have helped you and others some.

 

[kiba]

thats just overwicking (too much juice @ coil, excess juice just gets burnt and wicks back down into the tank), if you use a solid wick that wont happen, you can also try pinching the top of the wick.

also, since you have a black one, you can do this to it and strip the satin off of the ring, i think it looks pretty sweet, i even did it to the satin one .

just do emery cloth or high grit sandpaper, then 800, then scotch pad then mothers polish (lightly or youll get a chrome finish), then 800 again under running water

So, I pulled the juice out to change flavors and here's a shot of the same juice at start with the juice from tank on the left.

View attachment 167693

Is juice discoloration a normal part if the "break-in" of the wick? I thought I maybe saw that somewhere today but didn't pay too much attention at the time. I read through a lot this evening.

 

[kiba]

errr, i forgot what forum I was in, rules and such edited