purchasing kr8

[Henry ∇ George]

i plan on purchasing the following from health cabin. the $20 shipping fee is high and delivery long, but the price savings are worth it, especially since most items are in stock. i don't care for a lot of the branded stuff either though some of them do have nice simple acronym logos.

silver manual kr8 usb passthrough
silver auto kr8 battery
black auto kr8 battery
25 silver blank cartomizers
25 black blank cartomizers
black kr8 pcc
black kr8 case
corded usb recharger
usb car adapter
usb or corded wall adapter

health cabin is out of the black autos. i also would like the usb wall adapter that folds down or have the corded one with it's own recharger that i see around. i might pick up those things at east mall or someone local who carries unbranded items at reasonable prices.

i plan on purchasing the follow liquids separately

tasty vapor pina colada
tasty vapor cafe mocha
tasty vapor german chocolate cake
ecopure

the above should give me 95-120 ml, depending if i want to try a small size of ecopure or not. i also plan on buying more smaller samples of flavors, but i'm not sure where and what, and no more than 25-50 ml.

i would like to try a tobacco flavor. i actually do like the smell and taste of fresh smoke. the one time i quit smoking, i started back because i walked through of cloud of fresh tobacco smoke. i figure the ecopure would at minimum give me an ultra-light-like smoke, but not sure if this is the case.

i like the idea of smelling and tasting these things: whiskey, tequila, gin, amaretto (though not with lemonade), kahula (white russian), sweet tea, cola, chocolate, key lime, cherry (though not really mixed), pumpkin, baked cinnamon stuff (but not hot cinnamon), and vanilla ice cream. some of the fruits, especially melon and peach, might be attractive too. grape, champagne, and micro-brewery smells (the smell of high quantities of fresh hallertau and saaz hops, infused with fresh yeast and malted barley is much better than the taste of most beers) also round out my taste range.

any suggestion of the cheapest place to get some sample eliquids of some of these items. or other suggestions which are very popular which aren't hot cinnamon or cloves. i don't want to do too many vendors. just 2-3 vendors at most.

EDIT (i earned the priviledge of editing):

i estimate my monthly cost to be $15/week plus the cost of shipping and replacing batteries and other purchases (adding another $5/week). my weekly analog cost is $35-40 (depending on how much i'm smoking. my break even point i calculated to be 1.5 months on initial investment when i start saving about $15/week.

i would also need to invest in an syringe for refilling cartomizers and perhaps 3 portable 6 ml plastic bottles and keychange carrying case that juicy liquid sells. the shipping costs keep adding up. i could just get their cola, amaretto, and gin (!) flavors... but that is another $60 for 30 ml sizes.

 

[quasimod]

I would also recommend a manual battery, just to try it out. Most people find they like them better, and an extra battery is always a good idea.

Unless your PT has an in-line battery, the wall adapter must put out at least 1 full Amp (or 1,000 mA) to power a carto. I haven't had much luck with the "in-line battery" models... a wall to USB adapter from an iPhone works well enough (it puts out 5V @ 1 Amp).

My favorite Tasty Vapor flavor is TV Butter Rum!

ECOpure comes in Fresh, Rich, Krystal, etc. The Rich makes me gag, the Fresh and Krystal have very little flavor and are very nice. Big vapor, even more than TV, and I think that's because TV has so much more flavor.

As to the tobacco flavors:

(Almost) everyone likes RY4! Rich, smooth tobacco flavor with just the right amount of caramel... it's great.

DK-TAB is an awesome, rich, tobacco flavor.

Hilton is pretty darn good, with an undefinable sweet taste.

Geoff at Tasty Vapor makes his own tobacco flavor that I have only tried mixed with menthol, but I mean to get some in my next order.

Most tobacco flavors don't taste like burning tobacco, they taste like tobacco smells (much better, in my opinion).

EDIT FOR YOUR EDIT: You probably won't need to carry juice bottles around on a keychain for refilling, that's the whole point of using cartos. Just keep a couple of extra cartos handy.

 

[Henry ∇ George]

would it work to go out to the bar with naked juice and add 80% juice to 20% of the drink you're drinking to a 6ml bottle and fill a carto on the spot? i could just order like a brandy alexander, martini, and white russian. perhaps a shot of whiskey, gin, and kahula would work out nice too.

 

[Henry ∇ George]

Geoff at Tasty Vapor makes his own tobacco flavor that I have only tried mixed with menthol, but I mean to get some in my next order.

the tasty vapor tastes like cigarette tobacco, like eating a cigarette or what people describe as smoking hay, from what i can tell from reviews. i'd imagine you would want a chewing tobacco smell with a more intense sweetness. hard to emulate the smell of a fresh cloud of tobacco smoke. i would think you would want a high voltage to get the more authentic smell by burning the tasty vapor liquid.

i'm trying to come to terms that you're vaping for the nicotine in a more healthy and less messy way, and that the goal is to get your nicotine fix while losing the taste for tobacco and while losing smoking tobacco. replacing it with other scents one likes would be a good way to get the fix from vapor rather than smoke.

i could use the keychain for extra carts or perhaps for mixing my own juice at a bar, if that would work.

as far as power, i just would like a separate battery charger to charge more than one battery at once. i could plug one in the computer with the usb and plug the other in the a/c wall adapter. i won't really need a wall adapter, however, just being able to plug the usb charger in a portable collapseable wall adapter would be nice if i'm not around a computer.

one issue i ran into with my digital camera is that the high speed charger required carrying around a huge ac/dc converter in the camera bag. the prongs made it take up a lot of room. being able to collapse the prongs makes for nice portability. carrying around a lot of disposable aa batteries was more efficient use of space though you would be buying a lot of batteries though my digital camera even ate through even the high-rated mah batteries... which i think is due in part since i would heat them up charging them in 15 minutes with a high speed charger. i learned to use a cheaper and smaller slow speed charger and the cheaper lower rated mah batteries.

 

[quasimod]

Hah, I never thought of that. Here's a couple of problems I see with the plan:

1) Adding 20% non-vapor-producing liquid to your juice is dicey, and may turn it into something that won't produce any vapor. Start with a smaller percentage and work up... This type of experiment is best done in small quantities when you're sober. DIY juice-making can be tricky, and if you haven't already done so, I suggest reading some of the DIY e-liquid sub-forum. My first couple of "experiments" were disasters. Don't risk your only juice supply by experimenting with it: make sure you have enough to last until your next shipment, then play around with the "extra".

2) Mixed drinks can have a lot of stuff in them that is harmful to your atomizer, like sugar, oils, etc.


I'm not saying don't do it, just be aware of the pitfalls and give yourself room for error.

 

[Henry ∇ George]

also, as far as manual vs. auto, i chose a manual usb since i won't be carrying it around. the auto is more for being able to carry it in a pocket without it going off. i'm guessing the health cabin kr8s are the ones with the 9 sec cut-off and the vacuum sensor.

i'd imagine i wouldn't carry around the pcc unless i'm out away from the truck at extended periods. i would mostly just carry the regular case with the 4 carts and extra battery or two. i'd carry the battery with cart i'm using in the pocket though i'd need to remember to keep it separate from the keys so the keys won't damage it. i'll need to train myself to keep the smoke in the left pocket and keys and change in right pocket. i've been trying to train myself to do that now without much luck.

i will need to get use to the idea of having to open a case and assembling a cart rather than grabbing it out of a cardboard box for my next smoke. that is one thing attractive about the L88 system of having the recharger, spare battery/cart, and 5 carts all in one box.

the ideal solution would be just to have about 4 battery/carts ready to go in a long narrow aluminum [graphite or durable plastic polymer]/faux leather [or real leather] flip-top box and have a separate 4 battery charger, but that solution doesn't seem to be out there. if it was, my concerns would be answered.

i have seen a 4 battery charger, a leather belt holder for 2 batteries, and of course the velveteen bags. the velveteen bag with 4 batteries might be the way to go to protect the batteries from keys and use the 4 battery charger. the velvet wouldn't protect the batteries from each other unless one is made with separators. i could look for a slim container and make a foam insert. i forgot where i saw the 4 battery charger.

edit: the velveeteen isn't attractive. it tends to bunch, reminds one of paper rpg where one carries their dice in a crown royal bag, and perhaps a little light in the loafers. black leather case with a foam insert would work. it would be a good project for an enterprising person. i don't know anything about working with leather or cutting/drilling holes in foam though i'd imagine it isn't difficult. you would need to custom cut the hole sizes and the length of the foam and leather for different models.

i'm tempted to just not buy the $3 case from health cabin and buy 2 more batteries and carry them in my pocket until i come up with a solution. the pcc is still useful and could add two extra cartos to it, giving me 6 carts on the go. if i'm out where i'm expected to encounter people who want to try it, i could get the juicey liquids solution to carry an extra 3 carts on the key chain. however, i do need to shop for a 47 magnum ammo case for storing cartos.

one thing i was doing is getting the steel and black so i could carry around two flavors ready to go and know what they are. 4 batts ready to go would mean the need for more memory. i could make 1 solid black, 1 solid steel, 1 steel/black, 1 black/steel or have the flavors doubled up. the advantage of 4 would be that i'd still have two flavors while one is recharging.

i still need to think about it all to come up with a system that is the most portable and easy. it all isn't critical, so just 4 batts and a pcc would work for me. the extra case is only $3 and the juicey liquids case is $7, which is the cost of another battery. i may abandon the idea of buying the juicey liquids key chain case to hold liquids/carts and the case from health cabin to hold 2 batts/4 cartos. i'm still waiting for my paypal account to finish connecting to the bank account.

 

[Henry ∇ George]

wouldn't it work with just straight alcohol? i'm not sure of the ratios of pg eliquid, vg, and flavor. 80% eliquid, 15% vg, 5% flavor. there may be concerns with the actual mixed-drinks excepts perhaps a straight gin and tonic. the others probably would work best with an extract in water, vg, or alcohol. probably best for this discussion on the diy e-liquid forum. i'll take it there.

Hah, I never thought of that. Here's a couple of problems I see with the plan:

1) Adding 20% non-vapor-producing liquid to your juice is dicey, and may turn it into something that won't produce any vapor. Start with a smaller percentage and work up... This type of experiment is best done in small quantities when you're sober. DIY juice-making can be tricky, and if you haven't already done so, I suggest reading some of the DIY e-liquid sub-forum. My first couple of "experiments" were disasters. Don't risk your only juice supply by experimenting with it: make sure you have enough to last until your next shipment, then play around with the "extra".

2) Mixed drinks can have a lot of stuff in them that is harmful to your atomizer, like sugar, oils, etc.


I'm not saying don't do it, just be aware of the pitfalls and give yourself room for error.

 

[quasimod]

wouldn't it work with just straight alcohol? [...]

Yes, I've successfully used rum @ about 8% of total volume.

[...] probably best for this discussion on the diy e-liquid forum. i'll take it there.

That's probably going to be your best bet, since there are people there (unlike myself) that actually know what they're talking about.

 

[Henry ∇ George]

i might not buy from china. i don't like the idea of it going through customs. i'm going to try to decide between the local major brands.

i also realized there are different models of the kr8. from what i can tell, the newer one is longer (83mm?) with a 5 sec cutoff. the older one was shorter (78mm) with a 10 sec cutoff.

i'm tempted to do the v4l though i don't like their gold logo. the kits are good prices and comes with the usb pass, corded usb charger, and corded wall charger. they also have the short version of the kr8 though i'm not sure if it has the same battery life or not. i'd skip on their pcc and case since i wouldn't want the logo. i would just get the cheap ones direct from the health cabin.

pure smoke has a nicer logo in white but they're out of carts and don't carry autos.

also looking at the juices more. tasty vapor, liquidxpress, and juicey liquid. also looked at several others.

analogs are so much easier. they only require an investment in a lighter. and if a vendor is out of your favorite, you go down the street.

 

[bornagainst]

a small gold logo looks a lot better than an analog hanging from your lips.

You'll get over style vs substance soon enough.

 

[Eighttrucktires]

Good Lord, George. It aint that big of a deal! Get a KR8 and vape!

 

[Henry ∇ George]

it's just frustrating because everyone is out of stock locally.

 

[sheep]

I just recieved notice my two KR8 kits from Health Cabin have cleared customs are on their way to me today. Only six business days from order to delivery, that's not too bad.