I've been a lurker on this forum on and off for... quite a long while. My first e-cig was a Volcano Inferno. It didn't give the throat hit nor satisfy my nicotine addiction. I soon gave up and went back to analogs. About once a month or so, I'd break out the inferno, install a new cart and give it a try again. Same results. It eventually became my smoking method for smoking where smoking isn't allowed. It definitely was better than nicotine withdrawals on airplanes, cars, movies, restaurants and the like.
My son purchased a provari. He went back to analogs after a few days and gave the provari to me. OMG. What a difference! After two days, I had no desire for an analog. All I can say is the provari is one sweet personal vaporizer. If you are a newbie and smoke a few packs a day of analogs, I highly recommend getting a variable voltage ecig. Wasting money on anything less is just that. I do not understand the reason all the vape stores push off the cheapo kits onto newbies. Possibly because they know they won't be satisfied and will come back and purchase again?
After several months of pure vaping pleasure, my son noticed how much I enjoyed his provari and wanted it back to try again. I cringed inside, but handed it over and headed to the local convenience store for a pack of analogs after finding my old inferno was dead. The analogs tasted like licking a dirty ashtray nor did they satisfy me. They didn't have the lovely throat hit of the provari. I had to smoke an entire pack before I got used to them again. It was a nasty experience.
Yesterday, I went to the local Vaporessence to purchase a new provari. They close at 4 pm on Saturdays and it was 5:30 pm. Ugh. I googled vape shops in Dallas and found one that didn't close until 7 pm leaving me plenty of time to get across town fighting the traffic.
Upon arrival, it was apparent the shop was new. There wasn't a large array of flavors and it had an empty, newish feel about the place. The proprietors were ecstatic to see customers walk in the door, grinning from ear-to-ear and exuberantly welcoming us. As a small business owner myself, I felt good about helping out an obvious startup.
I was told several falsities, but wrote it off as new people to the vaping community that simply didn't know any better. The guy sold me a vmax v1 telling me there was no difference in the v1, v2/ZMax, provari, other than the led light color. They only carry the VMax; although I could see that his pv was a ZMax. I could tell by looking at the vmax that it was no provari, but it might prove to be just fine, and if not, would make a good backup for the provari I could order online. It had a cheap look and feel to it, but not horribly so. If it worked like the provari, I didn't care that much about the esthetics. It was $50 cheaper and in today's economy, saving $50 is a good thing.
They only had one 18650 battery left that "fit" the single VMax they had in stock. Disappointed that I couldn't purchase a spare, I watched him insert it into the VMax. The VMax wouldn't turn on and I could hear the battery rattling around inside. This wasn't an AW battery, but an after-market with no ascertainable markings on it. When I asked about the mAh, he responded "18650". I thought he didn't know the difference between amperages, voltages, and model numbers and realized I was going to have to order 2 batteries online (In my business I tried importing after-market Chinese batteries and know the mAh is much lower than stated... sometimes less than a third.) He inserted the "18650" into his Zmax and it powered up. He ended up giving me a "new" AW look-alike that was in his charger that he said had been charging all day, then changed his story to it had just been put in the charger after my VMax went dead after a few seconds.. I assumed it was going to be an old battery, not new as he stated, but my son has a spare he said he would loan me until my new batteries arrived that I intended to order. I let it go. It's all good as long as I got a working ecig again.
Unlike other vape stores, the guy didn't automatically show me how to use it. When I asked him how to set the voltage, he looked at it, punched the button several times, then said, "It should be like my Zmax, but it would be better for you to watch an online video at home so that you can learn the menu yourself." I asked if there are any instructions in the box and he showed me the instructions. In total, I spent over $380 in the store, buying tanks, liquids, single battery, an ego twist for my husband who doesn't like the idea of vaping with such a large device as the provari, etc... The prices were a bit on the highish side, but I remembered what it was like when I started my business and felt good about "helping" as opposed to grumbling about prices. I conveniently got what I wanted and was willing to pay more for that convenience.
When we got out to the car, my husband drove and my son handed over his spare battery. I inserted it into the VMax and it powered up, but I could not change the voltage. It was stuck on 3.0V.
After getting home and reading the instructions online and watching the vids, I was indeed working the menu correctly in the car. The VMax is supposed to default to 5.0V not 3.0 and should change in .1V increments. It does not. It won't even vape. It's dead.
Now I'm aggravated. I suspect he knew it was broken when he sold it to me. I hope I am wrong, but all the "wrong" stories he told me, the changed stories AFTER I paid (such as bragging that his ZMax will go up to 7 Volts after telling me the only difference was the LED color), just doesn't feel right. He gave my son the receipt. When I got the receipt from my son so I can return all this junk, it is stamped, "ALL SALES ARE FINAL. EXCHANGES ONLY." in red letters. As this was the last VMax he had, I assume I'll be in for a long wait. Not only did it say all sales were final, but there were lots of cross outs and changed (upped) prices on the hand-written receipt. The total price was miscalculated as well and the tax (miscalculated) charge was not stated that it was a tax (illegal in TX)... just a total that included something that I assume to be tax... something I would have never noticed if the VMax would have worked as stated. There were no signs posted in the store that all sales were final.
Honestly, now I'm leery of using the juice they mixed. Considering the ineptitude (Asian wife did the mixing and made a lot of mistakes calculating the bill), how do I know what she mixed or that she mixed it correctly? Thinking back on it, I didn't see a sign anywhere that said the PG or VG was of US origin. I stupidly didn't ask. I just assumed. If simple addition is too much for them, I'm concerned about calculating nicotine percentages. I'd like to take back everything they sold me and get a refund other than the ego twist that seems to be working fine for my husband.
As today is Sunday, they are closed. I have to leave for San Antonio on a business trip today (I told them this before I purchased so they would know I need a good, working ecig.) I won't be back for at least a week. Hopefully my bad feelings about this store, smoktech, and transaction are misguided. I am refraining from posting the store name until I see how they handle the return.
My recommendation to any newbies that are still reading this long post is to purchase a quality vaporizer from a reputable online seller. Read the reviews like crazy prior to purchasing. Research for the best prices. Made in the USA is key, imo. Quality is paramount when considering one puts one's pv into one's mouth all day every day. If it looks and feels like cheap junk, it probably is. Also after this experience, if you are math capable, I suggest buying your own nicotine, PG, VG, and flavors and do the mixing yourself. I will now forever be nervous about premixed juices from a brick and mortar store mixed by possibly incompetent employees. Not only will you know what you are getting, but you'll save quite a bit of money to boot. Also, if our intrusive government ever bans the liquids, you'll have a stash.
If you are math challenged or don't want to fool with self mixing, purchase from a well-known AMERICAN ejuice manufacturer. If you utilize a brick and mortar, ensure it has been in business a while and has lots of happy customers. I have always had to wait in a long line to purchase anything when in Vaporessence. Empty store might be for a reason.
My son purchased a provari. He went back to analogs after a few days and gave the provari to me. OMG. What a difference! After two days, I had no desire for an analog. All I can say is the provari is one sweet personal vaporizer. If you are a newbie and smoke a few packs a day of analogs, I highly recommend getting a variable voltage ecig. Wasting money on anything less is just that. I do not understand the reason all the vape stores push off the cheapo kits onto newbies. Possibly because they know they won't be satisfied and will come back and purchase again?
After several months of pure vaping pleasure, my son noticed how much I enjoyed his provari and wanted it back to try again. I cringed inside, but handed it over and headed to the local convenience store for a pack of analogs after finding my old inferno was dead. The analogs tasted like licking a dirty ashtray nor did they satisfy me. They didn't have the lovely throat hit of the provari. I had to smoke an entire pack before I got used to them again. It was a nasty experience.
Yesterday, I went to the local Vaporessence to purchase a new provari. They close at 4 pm on Saturdays and it was 5:30 pm. Ugh. I googled vape shops in Dallas and found one that didn't close until 7 pm leaving me plenty of time to get across town fighting the traffic.
Upon arrival, it was apparent the shop was new. There wasn't a large array of flavors and it had an empty, newish feel about the place. The proprietors were ecstatic to see customers walk in the door, grinning from ear-to-ear and exuberantly welcoming us. As a small business owner myself, I felt good about helping out an obvious startup.
I was told several falsities, but wrote it off as new people to the vaping community that simply didn't know any better. The guy sold me a vmax v1 telling me there was no difference in the v1, v2/ZMax, provari, other than the led light color. They only carry the VMax; although I could see that his pv was a ZMax. I could tell by looking at the vmax that it was no provari, but it might prove to be just fine, and if not, would make a good backup for the provari I could order online. It had a cheap look and feel to it, but not horribly so. If it worked like the provari, I didn't care that much about the esthetics. It was $50 cheaper and in today's economy, saving $50 is a good thing.
They only had one 18650 battery left that "fit" the single VMax they had in stock. Disappointed that I couldn't purchase a spare, I watched him insert it into the VMax. The VMax wouldn't turn on and I could hear the battery rattling around inside. This wasn't an AW battery, but an after-market with no ascertainable markings on it. When I asked about the mAh, he responded "18650". I thought he didn't know the difference between amperages, voltages, and model numbers and realized I was going to have to order 2 batteries online (In my business I tried importing after-market Chinese batteries and know the mAh is much lower than stated... sometimes less than a third.) He inserted the "18650" into his Zmax and it powered up. He ended up giving me a "new" AW look-alike that was in his charger that he said had been charging all day, then changed his story to it had just been put in the charger after my VMax went dead after a few seconds.. I assumed it was going to be an old battery, not new as he stated, but my son has a spare he said he would loan me until my new batteries arrived that I intended to order. I let it go. It's all good as long as I got a working ecig again.
Unlike other vape stores, the guy didn't automatically show me how to use it. When I asked him how to set the voltage, he looked at it, punched the button several times, then said, "It should be like my Zmax, but it would be better for you to watch an online video at home so that you can learn the menu yourself." I asked if there are any instructions in the box and he showed me the instructions. In total, I spent over $380 in the store, buying tanks, liquids, single battery, an ego twist for my husband who doesn't like the idea of vaping with such a large device as the provari, etc... The prices were a bit on the highish side, but I remembered what it was like when I started my business and felt good about "helping" as opposed to grumbling about prices. I conveniently got what I wanted and was willing to pay more for that convenience.
When we got out to the car, my husband drove and my son handed over his spare battery. I inserted it into the VMax and it powered up, but I could not change the voltage. It was stuck on 3.0V.
After getting home and reading the instructions online and watching the vids, I was indeed working the menu correctly in the car. The VMax is supposed to default to 5.0V not 3.0 and should change in .1V increments. It does not. It won't even vape. It's dead.
Now I'm aggravated. I suspect he knew it was broken when he sold it to me. I hope I am wrong, but all the "wrong" stories he told me, the changed stories AFTER I paid (such as bragging that his ZMax will go up to 7 Volts after telling me the only difference was the LED color), just doesn't feel right. He gave my son the receipt. When I got the receipt from my son so I can return all this junk, it is stamped, "ALL SALES ARE FINAL. EXCHANGES ONLY." in red letters. As this was the last VMax he had, I assume I'll be in for a long wait. Not only did it say all sales were final, but there were lots of cross outs and changed (upped) prices on the hand-written receipt. The total price was miscalculated as well and the tax (miscalculated) charge was not stated that it was a tax (illegal in TX)... just a total that included something that I assume to be tax... something I would have never noticed if the VMax would have worked as stated. There were no signs posted in the store that all sales were final.
Honestly, now I'm leery of using the juice they mixed. Considering the ineptitude (Asian wife did the mixing and made a lot of mistakes calculating the bill), how do I know what she mixed or that she mixed it correctly? Thinking back on it, I didn't see a sign anywhere that said the PG or VG was of US origin. I stupidly didn't ask. I just assumed. If simple addition is too much for them, I'm concerned about calculating nicotine percentages. I'd like to take back everything they sold me and get a refund other than the ego twist that seems to be working fine for my husband.
As today is Sunday, they are closed. I have to leave for San Antonio on a business trip today (I told them this before I purchased so they would know I need a good, working ecig.) I won't be back for at least a week. Hopefully my bad feelings about this store, smoktech, and transaction are misguided. I am refraining from posting the store name until I see how they handle the return.
My recommendation to any newbies that are still reading this long post is to purchase a quality vaporizer from a reputable online seller. Read the reviews like crazy prior to purchasing. Research for the best prices. Made in the USA is key, imo. Quality is paramount when considering one puts one's pv into one's mouth all day every day. If it looks and feels like cheap junk, it probably is. Also after this experience, if you are math capable, I suggest buying your own nicotine, PG, VG, and flavors and do the mixing yourself. I will now forever be nervous about premixed juices from a brick and mortar store mixed by possibly incompetent employees. Not only will you know what you are getting, but you'll save quite a bit of money to boot. Also, if our intrusive government ever bans the liquids, you'll have a stash.
If you are math challenged or don't want to fool with self mixing, purchase from a well-known AMERICAN ejuice manufacturer. If you utilize a brick and mortar, ensure it has been in business a while and has lots of happy customers. I have always had to wait in a long line to purchase anything when in Vaporessence. Empty store might be for a reason.
