Post pictures of your working wick and coil setup

[bsoplinger]

Curious: what is the benefit of stuffing the chamber like that?

The idea behind the nest when wicking is just to provide more juice to the coil. Just like the replacement coils for the Kanger clearomizer has a flavor wick, an additional wick that lies over the coil to provide more liquid in addition to that provided by the wick that goes through the coil.

I tried that style just once. Didn't feel it did anything to make it taste better or more vapor, etc, compared to just the traditional wick through the coil builds I was doing.

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[TheKiwi]

Lol but in this case, the surround cotton doesn't really contribute any juice to the coil, no?


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[DeadbeatJeff]

Yeah... in a Kayfun seems to be completely superfluous, likely counterproductive

 

[AndriaD]

Curious: what is the benefit of stuffing the chamber like that?

...have never seen nor thought of doing that...

have been doing it like this for forever:
View attachment 340916

Hmm... well I found it helpful at first, because with so many people telling me that with cotton, "less is more," I was actually having a hard time getting *enough* wicking. But practice does make, if not perfect, at least better; I was getting a slightly burnt taste yesterday from time to time, so I thought I should go on and replace the wick, and when I looked at the old one, sure enough, burnt, pretty badly. So I decided to try it again without the nest, just with a regular wick, and whaddyaknow, it worked just fine.

I was talking to some folks in a diff thread about wicking issues, and Crxess suggested the cotton nest, which was in this blog, and I found it very helpful. At least it seemed better than the "pull it upward in the chimney and cut then stuff it back down" technique I got from the Busardo video, but now I wonder if the real benefit wasn't the nest itself, but in placing the wick *just so* on those little ledges, pre-juiced, rather than stuffing them down willy-nilly into the chamber after the bottom of the chimney is on. I never did like that stuff-it-down technique, it seemed so sloppy to me, the wick going just every-which-way. I guess it offends my sense of order.

Andria

 

[AndriaD]

Nice, good! I think part of the reason why the wraps won't stay together is that the terminals are farther apart than the legs of the coil. Put a couple bends in those legs so that the wire capture process doesn't pull it apart. The coil is one thing, the legs are another. Shape them.



(I don't have any "K" atties)

another thing, is the direction that the screw turns when you capture your legs. the clockwise motion pulls your coil open. Try reversing the direction of wrap on your coil (and/or which side of the screw it lands on)

You know, I had asked about which direction would be best for the wire to go around the screw, thinking it might be something like this, but whoever it was I asked, didn't seem to know, but that does make a great deal of sense. When I'm mounting the coil, the end which is on the screw at the "bottom" (closest to me) I think I have it right, I pull the wire around the screw on the right and pull/bend it to my left; but the one on "top" (furthest from me), it goes around the screw on the left and gets pulled/bent to my right, and I think that's the one that's pulling it apart.

Also about shaping the wire; I had wondered why I could *mostly* get the wraps touching, except the ones on the ends of the coil -- now I know! Thx very much, I think that will help a great deal -- along with those ceramic-tip tweezers I ordered yesterday.

Thx!
Andria

 

[bsoplinger]

If you look at a screw from the top, if you wrap the wire around the screw clockwise, then as you tighten the screw the wire will get pulled into the screw and towards the center of the screw, thus keeping it under the screw. If you wrap counter clockwise the act of tightening the screw will make the wire want to creep out away from the screw.

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[DeadbeatJeff]

Hmm... well I found it helpful at first, because with so many people telling me that with cotton, "less is more," I was actually having a hard time getting *enough* wicking. But practice does make, if not perfect, at least better; I was getting a slightly burnt taste yesterday from time to time, so I thought I should go on and replace the wick, and when I looked at the old one, sure enough, burnt, pretty badly. So I decided to try it again without the nest, just with a regular wick, and whaddyaknow, it worked just fine.

I was talking to some folks in a diff thread about wicking issues, and Crxess suggested the cotton nest, which was in this blog, and I found it very helpful. At least it seemed better than the "pull it upward in the chimney and cut then stuff it back down" technique I got from the Busardo video, but now I wonder if the real benefit wasn't the nest itself, but in placing the wick *just so* on those little ledges, pre-juiced, rather than stuffing them down willy-nilly into the chamber after the bottom of the chimney is on. I never did like that stuff-it-down technique, it seemed so sloppy to me, the wick going just every-which-way. I guess it offends my sense of order.

Andria

I used to push it down like that, but now I juice it and place it like in that picture, just to the side of the channel. No dry hits once the negative pressure sets in (takes a good 10 min to really get a Kayfun going IMO).

One thing I have learned is that you can help the pressure problem by covering the air-intake and pulling, and then taking your finger off the air intake while still pulling, which will draw some juice through the channels and help establish the vacuum. As for "less is more" I think it's more like "just right is just right" lol. Not too tight, not too loose. Not too long. Slide easily yet still have some resistance, and just enough to reach the deck.

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I know you kinda brushed it off in that one thread, but try NOT torching your kanthal before you wrap the coil. Just keep TIGHT tension on it when you're wrapping, and do a smaller-diameter coil (I wrap around a larger wire brad). The smaller the diameter, the better it holds it's shape. Also, leave the drill bit/needle/nail in the coil when you screw down your leads, and then after you screw em use the bit to pull/stretch the coil up into position.

 

[AndriaD]

I used to push it down like that, but now I juice it and place it like in that picture, just to the side of the channel. No dry hits once the negative pressure sets in (takes a good 10 min to really get a Kayfun going IMO).

One thing I have learned is that you can help the pressure problem by covering the air-intake and pulling, and then taking your finger off the air intake while still pulling, which will draw some juice through the channels and help establish the vacuum. As for "less is more" I think it's more like "just right is just right" lol. Not too tight, not too loose. Not too long. Slide easily yet still have some resistance, and just enough to reach the deck.

-------------------

I know you kinda brushed it off in that one thread, but try NOT torching your kanthal before you wrap the coil. Just keep TIGHT tension on it when you're wrapping, and do a smaller-diameter coil (I wrap around a larger wire brad). The smaller the diameter, the better it holds it's shape. Also, leave the drill bit/needle/nail in the coil when you screw down your leads, and then after you screw em use the bit to pull/stretch the coil up into position.

Hmm... well the first time I ever gave wrapping a coil a try, I didn't flame the wire first, and the coil ended up about 3/4 of an inch wide, and just refused to get smaller and stay that way -- just SPROING! every time you let go of it. I'm not sure I'm physically capable of the kind of tight tension I think you must be talking about, and I really can't see it very well to know if I'm overlapping, if I try to wrap it too closely together right off the get-go. I can't figure out why you wouldn't want to flame it first, since it makes it *so* much easier to deal with, and tends to stay where you put it. Also, I always find that the smaller diameters are a) *much* harder to get a wick thru, and b) the wick I do manage to get threaded burns very fast, which is why I like the larger diameters, 3/32 at the *very* least; I used 5/64 when I did coils for the T3Ss, but I found those difficult to *see* nevermind do anything with. I have one of the Helping Hands magnifiers from Harbor Freight, but I'm going to also get one of their magnification visors, and see if that is more helpful for such fine work; my up-close vision is really awful.

I don't really find that much of a problem with a "break-in" period; I do find that sometimes the first hit from a new wick is a bit harsh, rough TH, but after that, not that bad, and within about 3-4 hits, tastes wonderful. That's the thing; my coils *look* pitiful, but they generally vape just fine; I've been in vape nirvana since I got this kayfun, and I have another one coming tomorrow.

Andria

 

[johni]

Andria, these helped me a lot when first wrapping coils: http://www.harborfreight.com/magnifier-head-strap-with-lights-38896.html

 

[AndriaD]

Yeah that's the visor I was talking about. Guess we'll be heading over there Sunday; gotta go visit my mom in the hospital tomorrow.

Andria

 

[johni]

Yeah that's the visor I was talking about. Guess we'll be heading over there Sunday; gotta go visit my mom in the hospital tomorrow.

Andria

I look like a dork with it on but these old eyes appreciate the help! Won't be long til you're a coil master!

 

[DeadbeatJeff]

Hmm... well the first time I ever gave wrapping a coil a try, I didn't flame the wire first, and the coil ended up about 3/4 of an inch wide, and just refused to get smaller and stay that way -- just SPROING! every time you let go of it. I'm not sure I'm physically capable of the kind of tight tension I think you must be talking about, and I really can't see it very well to know if I'm overlapping, if I try to wrap it too closely together right off the get-go. I can't figure out why you wouldn't want to flame it first, since it makes it *so* much easier to deal with, and tends to stay where you put it. Also, I always find that the smaller diameters are a) *much* harder to get a wick thru, and b) the wick I do manage to get threaded burns very fast, which is why I like the larger diameters, 3/32 at the *very* least; I used 5/64 when I did coils for the T3Ss, but I found those difficult to *see* nevermind do anything with.

hmmm

I've never really had a wick burn in my 'Fun. Only a couple times, slightly enough that the taste went away after a while, 'cause I was chain vaping faster than it could wick.

I don't torch the wire 'cause I never noticed a benefit from doing so; you don't have to pull too tightly, just with tension. Maybe try a twisted coil - they tend to shape more easily.

I've had that coil from that pic in the 'Fun for 3 weeks now - don't know what diameter, cause the nail is whatever it is, but it's relatively small. Hidden in here presently

I don't really find that much of a problem with a "break-in" period; I do find that sometimes the first hit from a new wick is a bit harsh, rough TH, but after that, not that bad, and within about 3-4 hits, tastes wonderful. That's the thing; my coils *look* pitiful, but they generally vape just fine; I've been in vape nirvana since I got this kayfun, and I have another one coming tomorrow.

Andria

yeah; I haven't used a clearo in months.

 

[TommyG]

Not really a new build per-say, but something I've been using that I don't see anyone else doing. With 20pg/80vg I can chain vape on a genny, even as far as a puff every 5-10 seconds at that viscosity. Killer flavor, clouds of vapor, just a fantastic all day build...it does eat juice for breakfast though, so refilling does happen if you vape much.









So an 11/12 wrap 24 guage micro coil (3/32) on a good old DID, checks out at .87 ohms.

 

[AndriaD]

I think I've figured out the problem with my coils -- I think it's because I was using the finer gauge wire, 30ga. Last night and this morning I did a couple coils using 28ga, and even though the diameter is pretty large, 7/64, they stay together marvelously!

Last night I was making one that I was going to try and use in a Kayfun Nano, because I've been having issues with the nano giving me a burnt taste, so I made it pretty high-resistance, I think it came out about about 2.2 ohms, about 11 wraps of 28ga on 7/64. Well, it still gave me the burnt taste, so I took it back apart and just used the full-sized kayfun 3-ring tank, and although it was pretty slow, it wasn't a bad coil at all; I was using a fruit flavor, so kept the wattage turned down fairly low, and even with that slow a coil at that low a wattage, it was still a decent vape.

This morning I thought, hmm, 28ga eh? so I made a new one for use with my regular Virginia, and it's 1.8 ohm; 9/10 wraps on 7/64, and it's really good, AND when I did the fire-release-press thing, those wraps stay together so nicely it's almost like someone who actually knows what they're doing made the coil.

Not sure I'll ever like the kind of small diameters that make it a "true" microcoil, they're so hard to wick properly, but as far as the wraps being compressed, it seems all I really need to do is use some wire that's not so flimsy.

As for what I have to do to get the nano to work right, still clueless. Think it's just a cheapie sub-par clone, just not machined very well.

Andria

 

[TommyG]

Always nice when you get something figured out. I don't think all coils are for everyone, I personally don't care for the nano/super nano coils. I usually deal with wrap diameters between 3/32-1/8, usually 24 gauge kanthal, and most of what I have is clones. I'd just try new things every so often, but you'll probably always have a favorite. I've found that with thicker juices, you sometimes need to give the kayfun a few primer puffs, to get the juice wicking well.

 

[AndriaD]

Always nice when you get something figured out. I don't think all coils are for everyone, I personally don't care for the nano/super nano coils. I usually deal with wrap diameters between 3/32-1/8, usually 24 gauge kanthal, and most of what I have is clones. I'd just try new things every so often, but you'll probably always have a favorite. I've found that with thicker juices, you sometimes need to give the kayfun a few primer puffs, to get the juice wicking well.

Yeah, I think so; I'm using a little more Vg than at first, trying to get my body accustomed to it, and I plan to keep going in that direction, away from the PG, till I get to maybe 50/50 or at least 60/40 PG/VG, so yeah, I think I'll have to keep my priming-puff habit I learned with the small T3S tanks. At the 85/15 PG/VG I used at first, no priming was needed with the kayfun, but the throat hit just about killed me, so I had to ease down to 67/33 PG/VG, which I'm using now; the TH is a lot easier to handle but still got a lot of flavor.

Since I do prefer a higher resistance, between 1.5-2 ohms, I think 28ga may be the thickest wire that makes sense for me, but who knows, that may change too, as I get more accustomed to the kayfun. It's so much more vape than the small kanger tanks I was used to; even a great thing can take some getting used to!

Andria

 

[Tbev]

Thicker wire is easier to work with.

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[DeadbeatJeff]

I think I've figured out the problem with my coils -- I think it's because I was using the finer gauge wire, 30ga. Last night and this morning I did a couple coils using 28ga, and even though the diameter is pretty large, 7/64, they stay together marvelously!

Last night I was making one that I was going to try and use in a Kayfun Nano, because I've been having issues with the nano giving me a burnt taste, so I made it pretty high-resistance, I think it came out about about 2.2 ohms, about 11 wraps of 28ga on 7/64. Well, it still gave me the burnt taste, so I took it back apart and just used the full-sized kayfun 3-ring tank, and although it was pretty slow, it wasn't a bad coil at all; I was using a fruit flavor, so kept the wattage turned down fairly low, and even with that slow a coil at that low a wattage, it was still a decent vape.

This morning I thought, hmm, 28ga eh? so I made a new one for use with my regular Virginia, and it's 1.8 ohm; 9/10 wraps on 7/64, and it's really good, AND when I did the fire-release-press thing, those wraps stay together so nicely it's almost like someone who actually knows what they're doing made the coil.

Not sure I'll ever like the kind of small diameters that make it a "true" microcoil, they're so hard to wick properly, but as far as the wraps being compressed, it seems all I really need to do is use some wire that's not so flimsy.

As for what I have to do to get the nano to work right, still clueless. Think it's just a cheapie sub-par clone, just not machined very well.

Andria

try twisting 2 or 3 strands of the 30g

 

[AndriaD]

try twisting 2 or 3 strands of the 30g

How would I go about that? I have no real idea. All this electrical stuff is pretty much greek to me, at least it was until recently, but I still can't claim any significant understanding, just a beginning of mechanical ability. Electricity has always seemed magical to me, and still does, really. "Technology, sufficiently advanced, is indistinguishable from magic." Think that was either Clark or Asimov, not sure. Maybe even Heinlein?

Andria

 

[DeadbeatJeff]

How would I go about that? I have no real idea. All this electrical stuff is pretty much greek to me, at least it was until recently, but I still can't claim any significant understanding, just a beginning of mechanical ability. Electricity has always seemed magical to me, and still does, really. "Technology, sufficiently advanced, is indistinguishable from magic." Think that was either Clark or Asimov, not sure. Maybe even Heinlein?

Andria

A lot of people use an electric hand-drill. I just grip the ends of the strands with a scissor-clamps, if you know what those are, and just twist it until it's twisted enough.

I also like to braid my 32g and 36g, and also do twists with the braids sometimes. Have found that texturized wires like you get with a twist give more flavor and better vapor than straight wire.