Optimal mesh dimensions, wire size and wraps for specific devices

[Currynoah]

orion V2.1

Wick: 50mm x 35mm of #500 mesh (torched thoroughly, drip juice then torched till cherry red x1 time).

Wire: 5/5 coils of 29awg Kanthal A.

Wick size: 2.2mm solid wick.

Wick hole size: 2.5mm

Air Intake hole: 1/16"

Negative post: Raised by 2x M2 nuts.

This setup proves to be the best for me (Except if I ever lay my hands on the #635!!). Massive vapor and yummy, delicious flavor (despite the fact that the air intake hole is opened to 1/16")!!​

 

[gdeal]

Well I cant speak for others but this thread is really informative me. Fantastic information, so thanks to all for sharing. It usually takes a long ECF/google search to see what is working for people in general and having a mesh/wick/wire focus brings all the set ups into one place regardless of the atty/device.

Its the ob thread, (so pardon the sharp elbow) but for those relatively new to gennys (like me), the additional details for what is really different about their setup they are sharing is a key thing for me. For example that short opinion on your optimal experience and why or, highlighting that aha incremental tweak that brought it to the next level. You probably don't realize how many of the 500+ views to date on this thread are from people pulling their hair out.

I know most of the guys/gals who are reading/responding can roll, oxidize, "wire and fire" with their eyes close. For me, I have to up my nic, and carve out a couple hours to get one good/great set-up.

BTW, I wouldn't trade that pay-off for anything...

 

[studiovap]

Well seeing as I was feeling like I'm on a roll with my setup method coiling, mesh etc,(plus I dropped my No.1 DID and got a short) I pulled a few of my gennies apart this evening and rebuilt the setups, I did both my DID stds 2 and my Mini DID, All are now sweet as after minial setup time and fiddling. I didn't have to use new mesh on any of them as the wicks were servicable , but a couple got new coils and most had the wick tension/mass reduced.
the main reason I'm mention it is because the Mini DId are now fashionably sporting it's fillhole screw & still wicking like crazy, and definitely absolutely not leaking at all, not even a tiny bit of weeping!!!! This is a big deal to me
so here's the Mini DIDs setup

Semi solid wick #500 mesh 37.5 x 42.5mm no center hole rolled tight to 1.6mm then reverse rolled between fingers, loosened up to a final size of 2.0mm.
Made 5wrap 30g Kanthal A1 coil loosely on tooth pick inserted into wick hole attached top and bottom leaving tails, checked resistance at 1.3-1.4 Ohms, inserted 2.0mm wick into coil halfway, tightened coil by pulling on bottom tail and tightened ground screw. You know the rest.
Result; Great vape loads of vapor & flavor ,no dry hits as hard as I try,(felt sick trying) will run great on ego and mechanical mod, quite happy at 4-5 watts on the Zmax, although also great with more power and FILLSCREW IN FILLHOLE.

 

[gdeal]

Well seeing as I was feeling like I'm on a roll with my setup method coiling, mesh etc,(plus I dropped my No.1 DID and got a short) I pulled a few of my gennies apart this evening and rebuilt the setups, I did both my DID stds 2 and my Mini DID, All are now sweet as after minial setup time and fiddling. I didn't have to use new mesh on any of them as the wicks were servicable , but a couple got new coils and most had the wick tension/mass reduced.
the main reason I'm mention it is because the Mini DId are now fashionably sporting it's fillhole screw & still wicking like crazy, and definitely absolutely not leaking at all, not even a tiny bit of weeping!!!! This is a big deal to me
so here's the Mini DIDs setup

Semi solid wick #500 mesh 37.5 x 42.5mm no center hole rolled tight to 1.6mm then reverse rolled between fingers, loosened up to a final size of 2.0mm.
Made 5wrap 30g Kanthal A1 coil loosely on tooth pick inserted into wick hole attached top and bottom leaving tails, checked resistance at 1.3-1.4 Ohms, inserted 2.0mm wick into coil halfway, tightened coil by pulling on bottom tail and tightened ground screw. You know the rest.
Result; Great vape loads of vapor & flavor ,no dry hits as hard as I try,(felt sick trying) will run great on ego and mechanical mod, quite happy at 4-5 watts on the Zmax, although also great with more power and FILLSCREW IN FILLHOLE

Very nice!

Is that space ~.5mm? (2.5mm hole, 2mm wick)

 

[Cyrus Vap]

saying hello

 

[MikeE3]

Z atty pro
Tossed out the insulator
500 mesh
40 x 80mm
Solid wick
4/3 32awg
1.7 ohms vaped at 4.2 volts

Are you using this setup in the ZAP w/ or w/o the insulator? I'm using 100mm w/o the insulator and could fit more, but I've heard beyond 100mm wicking doesn't really improve.

 

[the ob]

I still cannot even roll the dimensions that people list. And I am not that weak

 

[tmcase]

I still cannot even roll the dimensions that people list. And I am not that weak

Have you tried rolling your wick on a board? I'm not quite 5' 2" and I don't have any trouble rolling a tight wick rolling between 2 pieces of wood. But then again, I'm not rolling a cigar size wick.

 

[studiovap]

Very nice!

Is that space ~.5mm? (2.5mm hole, 2mm wick)



View attachment 150403

It's a 2.8mm wick hole so a 0.8mm gap. I'm amazed a 2mm wick can be so efficient not only in juice delivery to the coil but also it's very quick to heat up, but there it is

 

[studiovap]

I still cannot even roll the dimensions that people list. And I am not that weak

The secret for me is not massive pressure, but to start real small with that first part of the roll, get that first fidly bit super tight and then roll in the one direction until the end and you can't go wrong. A quick torch first does help by taking some springiness out of the mesh though.

 

[jun0felix]

i roll it between thumb and forefinger without help except a bit liquid. try to start really as tiny as i can, not caring about the center hole at all. while rolling, the difficult thing is to keep up the tension - i do that by drawing my thumbs versus the outside of the roll but trying not to wrapping it. then often roll back and forth, back and forth, back and forth with a bit of patience. to finish always is a bit tricky, because the roll tends to loosen when i give up tension.

for me it does not really make a difference if i oxidize the mesh before or after i roll it. usually i do the finished roll and since i read about oxidixing directly with the coil, i probably will shorten this procedure.

don't talk about time when it comes to fiddling - but what i miss with my tank rba's is a dryburn. have to drain the next one ...

 

[the ob]

Have you tried rolling your wick on a board? I'm not quite 5' 2" and I don't have any trouble rolling a tight wick rolling between 2 pieces of wood. But then again, I'm not rolling a cigar size wick.

I've tried that, but it does not work for me for some reason. It always loosens in like I'm rolling it in the wrong direction. I actually wish someone would do a video of that /)

 

[tmcase]

I've tried that, but it does not work for me for some reason. It always loosens in like I'm rolling it in the wrong direction. I actually wish someone would do a video of that /)

Turn the wick around and roll the other direction. When I do it this way I get a solid wick and it doesn't loosen or unwind when I take pressure off. I torch the mesh before I roll it. I think that helps a lot.

 

[vapspaz]

here's the Mini DIDs setup

Semi solid wick #500 mesh 37.5 x 42.5mm no center hole rolled tight to 1.6mm then reverse rolled between fingers, loosened up to a final size of 2.0mm.
Made 5wrap 30g Kanthal A1 coil loosely on tooth pick inserted into wick hole attached top and bottom leaving tails, checked resistance at 1.3-1.4 Ohms, inserted 2.0mm wick into coil halfway, tightened coil by pulling on bottom tail and tightened ground screw. You know the rest.
Result; Great vape loads of vapor & flavor ,no dry hits as hard as I try,(felt sick trying) will run great on ego and mechanical mod, quite happy at 4-5 watts on the Zmax, although also great with more power and FILLSCREW IN FILLHOLE.

Excellent info studio! Thank you!
I've been fighting with my Mini DID for a month now off and on and just can't get it 100% I think I'll give your size and process a shot tonight. Right now I have a super tight wick that started out at 90 mm then I trimmed it down to about 70 mm but it's still not 100%. So maybe your 42.5 mm will work better.
I recently discovered this reverse roll trick on my Mini set-up and it worked perfectly to get the wick to match the size of my coil that I made with a drill bit. Kinda in reverse of what everyone else does. They make their coil match the wick where as with this reverse roll method I make the wick match the coil. Seems to work better for me.

Edit: oh... and great thread OB. Thank you!

 

[ormandj]

I still cannot even roll the dimensions that people list. And I am not that weak

I have calluses on my fingers which prevent any feeling (including 2nd degree burns.. not fun) from my hobbies (metal working, wood working, soldering like an idiot, and so forth). Don't feel badly, just figure out a better way of doing things that doesn't involve tearing up your fingers. The suggestion re: boards is worth a shot!

If you decide to keep rolling the mesh by hand, pull apart (one hand away from the other) as you're doing so. It makes a big difference.

 

[Errol]

I have calluses on my fingers which prevent any feeling (including 2nd degree burns.. not fun) from my hobbies (metal working, wood working, soldering like an idiot, and so forth). Don't feel badly, just figure out a better way of doing things that doesn't involve tearing up your fingers. The suggestion re: boards is worth a shot!

I guarantee you rolling between two pieces of wood beats the H*** out of rolling with fingers. I just found a couple of pieces of scrap 2"X4"s about 7"s long and did in ten minutes what I had been working on several times until my fingers gave out. Just be sure to roll in the correct direction, you'll know in a jiffy if it's the wrong direction. Once I got a feel for it I could exert a lot of pressure to get it rolled tighter. Once I craft a couple of pieces of wood designed for this purpose it should be a breeze. My biggest problem is just getting the roll started.

Errol

 

[tmcase]

I guarantee you rolling between two pieces of wood beats the H*** out of rolling with fingers. I just found a couple of pieces of scrap 2"X4"s about 7"s long and did in ten minutes what I had been working on several times until my fingers gave out. Just be sure to roll in the correct direction, you'll know in a jiffy if it's the wrong direction. Once I got a feel for it I could exert a lot of pressure to get it rolled tighter. Once I craft a couple of pieces of wood designed for this purpose it should be a breeze. My biggest problem is just getting the roll started.

Errol

I roll my mesh the same way. Works like a charm. To get it started I fold over the starting edge twice then start to roll, rounding it out as I go. This leaves no hole in the wick at all if that is your goal.

 

[ormandj]

DID-clone update:

635 mesh (cut to 65mm x 50mm), rolled tightly with the 50mm being the height of the wick, the 65mm the width (I later snip the extra height off, even with top post). Same process as my previous post, same wire, but this time 5 wraps instead of 8. This puts me at 1.6ohms, which is great for my 3.3v regulated mod (6.8W @ 2A). On the 325 it was getting harsh sometimes running a 1.8ohm coil @ 3.2v, so the mesh made a huge difference. Definitely wicking a lot better. You can definitely do 3s draws spaced a few seconds apart for as long as your lungs can handle it.

Word of warning on 635 mesh - rolling it in your fingers can easily tear it, if you use the roll/pull method. The outer layer of my wick split in the middle slightly before I realized this. The mesh is almost like silk, it's that fine.

 

[barqs]

Try folding mesh in half 1st then roll seemed easier to roll tighter. something I picked up from BJ also a friend of mine oxidizes his wick before rolling and he gets them more compact. I'll post later what I have going here as I got all my RBAs working great but dont have values.

I even got my 5ml Cobra working great with a 50mm H X 60mm wide#500 mesh Kanthal A1 30 AWG 6/7 wrap @ 1.9 ohms

I still cannot even roll the dimensions that people list. And I am not that weak

 

[Errol]

I roll my mesh the same way. Works like a charm. To get it started I fold over the starting edge twice then start to roll, rounding it out as I go. This leaves no hole in the wick at all if that is your goal.

In as much as you are the one who gave me the idea to use wood to roll the mesh I should have thanked you for the idea in my other post. Not too late, I thank you now, what a time and finger saver idea.

I suspect your idea will be common place as more people hear about it. When you see a video of someone rolling mesh wicks between two pieces of wood you can have the satisfaction of knowing it all started with you.

Errol