(Summary at bottom in bold, I felt I've written a tad too much >.<) I have only owned 2 RDA's (About to order a third). All clones. I've read many reviews and it seems like some clones you can't tell the difference from the original, while others are just not up to par of the original.
For me personally, It took alot of time (and perhaps slight frustration, but I dont regret it one bit) of learning how to wrap coils. You can always buy already built coils and save alot of time/frustrainion from the learning curve, but also lose money a little in the process if your trying to be thrifty. The one thing that sticks out to me about RDA's is their price after the inital purchase. You can pretty much get a life-time supply of coils and wicks/cotton for near nothing if you look around and do your research, and even without much researching it's only a tad bit more expensive.
If you decide to build your own just buy some bit of coil (I started with 100ft of 32 gauge trichrome wire which is quite a bit, I only have made a small dent in the amount of wire in the past two months or so) and some cotton and/or string. Personally, I had to dedicate a bit of time to learning the art of coil building, well more than a bit. Videos were my best friend, can't emphasise that enough
. Getting some major vaping action out of them now tho.
It was quite frustraiting at first, but now i'm in RDA love and cant imagine what will surpass its love.
The one thing I regret about buying my second clone (A Igo-w clone), was that the center connector (The buttom piece of the atomizer that sticks out just a bit in the center) won't screw down/up, just rotates the center post. My first clone (EH-Pro Trident) has a copper positive connector where you can adjust it vertically for proper connection when needed. The Igo-w just lead to minor troubles of having to modify/pry my connectors of my mod a little up to adjust and I just end up dedicating one connector/mod to this RDA since if I screw in my other, it has a chance of pushing it's pin down. Also, the threading is starting to wear out on the Igo-w Clone.
If I could go back and tell myself two things when I started with RDA's is dont loose the screws, and dont loose the top piece if the washer/rubber piece gets loose. I always build them over a box/cointainer and in a well lit room with much space, because shag-carpet can be quite the neuisance if your in my shoes. I found a Bendable LED light from the various dollar stores to be a great asset.
I guess to sum it up, I would start with a clone with good reviews and on the cheap side to see if your into them. For me, I love my eh-pro RDA trident clone except it the top cap had adjustable air-holes that got stuck somehow or another, luckily the Igo-w clone top-part fits perfect. If you have a local vapor shop around, it would be a great opportunity to try one out. So far, it seems to me the concerns with buying a RDA are its durability, juice-well depth plus size for easier building, and if the connector will screw up and down for compatability issues. Hope this helps a little!
