Newb start-up advice

[mavaks]

Got the liquid in yesterday, kit arrived today.

First impressions:

6ml of liquid seems like alot, and I got 4 bottles, but I guess we'll see how fast I go through it.

Kit is well put together and in a nice box. Contains 2 batts, 2 attys, 1 cone that is really just for aesthetics, 10 empty carts, a usb charger and AC brick for the USB.

Eager to get started I screw everything together hoping the batts will have a little charge, no luck. So I plug them both in and each goes green within about 30 minutes. I decide to try the 555 menthol first, so I saturate the poly and put everything together, press the button and it glows blue. I took a long but gentle drag and got a little flavor, but not much else. 2nd hit I drag a little harder and get a nice mouthful of vapor, and a nice TH. The flavor is subtle and more like spearmint gum.

At this point I'm grinning ear to ear because I know I'm going to enjoy this, and that I made a good purchase. I'll try the other flavors later and see how I enjoy those, but so far it's been a great first experience. Thanks again for all the help and friendly advice!

 

[Matt_417]

I think you made a good decision. I wish I would have skipped the frustrating little kit I started with.

My best advice is just to stick with it. After that, for me, the most important thing is to order juice before you think you need to. I always seem to run out while I'm waiting on an order. Then I have to spend $20 at the mall for 10ml.




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[mavaks]

So far so good. Definitely enjoyed not having to go outside this morning in freezing temps to get my morning fix. Still haven't tried the other flavors yet but now that I've learned about atty dripping in another thread, I'll give that a try later. Something is wrong with the cap on my Nuport bottle though, as it won't open. It's not engaging the child-proof inner cap and just turns freely.

 

[swedishfish]

So far so good. Definitely enjoyed not having to go outside this morning in freezing temps to get my morning fix. Still haven't tried the other flavors yet but now that I've learned about atty dripping in another thread, I'll give that a try later. Something is wrong with the cap on my Nuport bottle though, as it won't open. It's not engaging the child-proof inner cap and just turns freely.

Where did you get the juice?

 

[MegaBee]

Yay I'm glad things are going well for your first experience with vaping. Please keep us updated with your progress!


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[mavaks]

Where did you get the juice?

Juice is from nHaler. Finally got the Nuport bottle to open, just had to torque the heck out of the cap to get it to engage the child-proof. Wasn't really worth the trouble though as I like the 555 Menthol much more. Tried the Vanilla Coke and Almond Joy as well and although I did like the Almond Joy flavor, I still prefer menthol at this early stage.

Had my first burn out yesterday. Slid my pv in a pocket in my backpack and although it looked like the button would be safe there it somehow got pressed. It was only in there a few minutes but it did manage to melt the tip of the cartridge. I rinsed it out and did some dry burns to make sure there was no plastic residue left over and the atty appears to be working fine. I'm still switching to the 2nd atty and ordering more and keeping this one as an emergency spare.

Now that I've become familiar with the 3-click button action, that shouldn't be a problem again!

 

[lcompeau]

Start with an ego type device.. Its really the only real way to start..

 

[swedishfish]

Juice is from nHaler. Finally got the Nuport bottle to open, just had to torque the heck out of the cap to get it to engage the child-proof. Wasn't really worth the trouble though as I like the 555 Menthol much more. Tried the Vanilla Coke and Almond Joy as well and although I did like the Almond Joy flavor, I still prefer menthol at this early stage.

Had my first burn out yesterday. Slid my pv in a pocket in my backpack and although it looked like the button would be safe there it somehow got pressed. It was only in there a few minutes but it did manage to melt the tip of the cartridge. I rinsed it out and did some dry burns to make sure there was no plastic residue left over and the atty appears to be working fine. I'm still switching to the 2nd atty and ordering more and keeping this one as an emergency spare.

Now that I've become familiar with the 3-click button action, that shouldn't be a problem again!

I was wondering because some use those european tips on the juice bottles. I like the nuport better, but it seems like most people like the 555 menthol more.

Drew used to smoke menthol, so he has pretty good menthol juice.

 

[mavaks]

The great news is that I'm still on the first battery and first charge! I'm also getting alot better vapor and flavor the more I use this cartridge and atty, so that's a plus. I put one of the cartridge tip caps on the mouth end and carry it in my pocket with the button disabled and it's always there when I need it.

 

[shark03]

welcome...

 

[mavaks]

I was wondering because some use those european tips on the juice bottles. I like the nuport better, but it seems like most people like the 555 menthol more.

Drew used to smoke menthol, so he has pretty good menthol juice.

swedishfish, do you know of any juices that taste like the 555 menthol but are stronger?

 

[swedishfish]

Stronger than 555 menthol? In what way? More flavor, more menthol. Are you using the nhale/xhale 24mg?

BWB has a good menthol but I'd say it's more subtle. I have never tried it but Vapor Station has good tobacco juices and they do carry a menthol.

If you want to go in a different direction with STRONG- Vapor Bomb has Fire n Ice. It's a mixture of cinnabomb (red hots) and menthol. Not tobacco flavor, but strong flavor.

 

[mynameisrob]

Thats great to hear your enjoying your Riva!!!

I dont know if you have any but Id recommend getting some cartomizers. Most people like them more than an atty and cartridge.
Check out the 'Ressurector" cartomizers from Crystal Clear Vaping. They are incredible and will make your Riva hit like a beast!
Their 1.7ohm and hold 2ml of juice so they last a long time before they need to be refilled. Their single coil but many people feel they produce vapor similar to a dual coil. I actually like them more than dual coils, I find some dual coils dull the flavor of your juices, the Ressurectors give great flavor. Plus the Ressurectors arnt expensive like dual coils are. You get a free syringe with every carto purchase to use to fill them and if you get a 15-pack of cartos you get a syringe AND a free drip tip! Plus they have free shipping which is nice when your just buying cartos.

If you cant find a good menthol juice you like or you want a stronger menthol, you can buy menthol drops or menthol crystals and then just add them to any juice. Doing that will allow you to get a wider array of juices because you dont necessarily have to buy a menthol juice then. You could buy a regular juice and make it a menthol juice with the drops, or you can give a menthol juice a stronger menthol taste. A few vendors sell it. I know BlueMist Vapor sells the drops and the crystals. The crystals are cheaper and probably the better way to go bc they perform the same way everytime. Their $1.00 for 1/4 ounce bag. With the crystals though you would have to disolve them in either PGA or crush alittle bit and mix into some PG. Then add to your juice.
If you dont want to have to do that, you can just buy the menthol drops. Their $3 bucks for 6ml. The drops are 66% crystals dissolved in 34% ethyl alcohol. Both of these would allow you to put as much or as little into a juice to give you the menthol flavor your looking for. Its strong so start slow. Id add a drop or two then vape it. If you want more, add another drop and vape again. Continue doing that till if gives you the extra kick your looking for.

Heres the link for the menthol drops: BlueMist Vaping Supplies

And heres the link for the menthol crystals: BlueMist Vaping Supplies

Hope this helps!

 

[mavaks]

swedish, more menthol, and yes I'm using the 24mg xhale 555 menthol, although now that I'm giving Nuport another try I think I'm liking it more. Maybe it's just my taste buds coming back...lol.

Alot of good info there rob. I probably will try some cartos just to see if I like "easy mode". I reckon I've only used about 2ml of juice so far, so a 2ml carto would last me a couple of days pretty easily. I figure I'll probably grow out of the menthol at some point as I get farther away from analogs, but it's good to know that there's drops if I want some.

I finally drained my first battery just now, so I got about 2 days out of one charge, so I'm really pleased with that. The juice seems to be going alot longer now that the cartridge is fully saturated and the atty is primed. I was getting there with my first cartridge until I burned it up but now this one is giving a good supply.

I think I'll swap over to Almond Joy for the rest of the night and see how I like it over a longer period.

 

[mavaks]

Finally drained battery #2 just now, so the Riva gets great marks for battery life. I don't think even the heaviest vaper could kill one in a day. My Nhaler 555 Menthol is almost gone, so I ordered a 10ml 24mg Menthol juice from Backwoods Brew last night. Can't wait to try it. I was tempted to order a large bottle of 555 from NHaler but I didn't want to lock onto one juice so soon before trying some others first.

I'm definitely getting no joy from either the Vanilla Coke or Almond Joy flavors at this point..gotta have my minty hit. The Nuport is okay too...it's just more tobacco and less minty. As far as juicing goes, I filled my cartridge this morning and it made it through the day.

Have no urge to smoke analogs, but I can definitely smell them alot better now. When I walk past the smoking area at work I can pick up the smell even when nobody is there smoking, it it's not tempting at all. In fact it kinda smells bad now.

 

[chatter97]

I dont vape menthol too often but I order allot from this company and all their flavors have been great(tobacco haze). You might want to try Mom and Pops Minty Menthol as well as some of their other flavors. They have a subforum here and are really invested in making things right for the customer.

 

[sandybeach]

Finally drained battery #2 just now, so the Riva gets great marks for battery life. I don't think even the heaviest vaper could kill one in a day. My Nhaler 555 Menthol is almost gone, so I ordered a 10ml 24mg Menthol juice from Backwoods Brew last night. Can't wait to try it. I was tempted to order a large bottle of 555 from NHaler but I didn't want to lock onto one juice so soon before trying some others first.

I'm definitely getting no joy from either the Vanilla Coke or Almond Joy flavors at this point..gotta have my minty hit. The Nuport is okay too...it's just more tobacco and less minty. As far as juicing goes, I filled my cartridge this morning and it made it through the day.

Have no urge to smoke analogs, but I can definitely smell them alot better now. When I walk past the smoking area at work I can pick up the smell even when nobody is there smoking, it it's not tempting at all. In fact it kinda smells bad now.

Let me know how the Backwoods Brew menthol is. I may get some too.

 

[wv2win]

Finally drained battery #2 just now, so the Riva gets great marks for battery life. I don't think even the heaviest vaper could kill one in a day...........

Mine never lasted more than 5 and a half hours. This length of time seems to hold true for many from posts on ECF. "Heavy" is a very subjective term. If you hit it every 5 - 10 minutes, you will get around 5 hours.

 

[nosmokie]

Glad you are doing so well with the vaping! I'm only two weeks in with my Volt, but the limitation of the battery, combined with me hunting for a better, stronger TH\vapor combo, has me eyeballing other options. I am now researching the Riva. However, I have been THRILLED with everything about SmokelessImage. Sooooo many choices!

 

[mavaks]

The Riva is still going strong as is my smoke-free streak! I got my order of Backwoods Brew Menthol in last Wednesday. I like it, but not nearly as much as my 555 Menthol from nHaler. I could be the PG/VG ratio but there's just a hint of a burnt aftertaste with this liquid vs. the 555. I had just a little bit of 555 and about 3ml of Nuport left over, so I combined all 3 together in my "carry-around" bottle and I like it alot more mixed, so it very well could be the ratio. I am going to be re-ordering the 555 Menthol from nHaler soon though, since it was definitely my favorite menthol of the 3...fresh, smooth, and clean.