RDA Problem

[Dontknowmuch]

My friend recently got a new mod and gave me his old chi you style of mojo 2014 (or something like that) with an igo w15. the only problem i have with it though, is i cant seem to get multiple coils to work! Im wrapping 4/5 coils with 24 awg kanthal a1 wire And getting .4 Ohms with one coil. When i put one coil in, it fires great, but when i put a second coil on niether of the coils will fire, no matter how i wrap the coil. I was really excited to get a rda with 6 posts in it, but i cant use them. Any ideas how i can fix it? (also my battery is an aw protected 18650 3.7v 2600 mah)

 

[Dontknowmuch]

this is them

 

[Spencer87]

well if one coil is 0.4 then 2 would be 0.2.
Cutting it close to the battery amperage limit right there.
as for not firing.... are you sure you have legs in positive? and that the screws are down, and that the atomizer connects to the pin in the mod?

 

[Susan~S]

Hello and welcome to the forum. Glad to have you here!

You should not be using a protected battery in your mod. Only IMR (Li-Mn) or IMR/Hybrid "safe chemistry", "high-drain" batteries should be used. What you need to look for is a battery with a high enough CDR (continuous discharge rating/Amps) for your builds.

How high? I'll quote @tj99959 as this is the practice I follow with regards to headroom.

Everyone is free to set their own parameters, and I can only say what mine are.

I try to never exceed 50% of the CDR of a battery. So with a 20A battery, that would be 10A.
This Ohm's Law Calculator tells me that a .4 ohm build is as low as I would want to use.

The reason that I place a 50% limit is because as a battery ages the mAh of the battery degrades, as the mAh degrades ... so does the batteries c rating. (amp limit) So down the road, your 20A battery may only be a 10A battery.

If you are new to mech mods and/or rebuildables I highly recommend you spend some time with Baditude (one of our resident battery experts) and visit his blogs. You are now 100% in control of your own safety (and others around you). Make sure you purchase an ohm reader and a voltmeter or DMM so you can measure your builds, check for shorts and measure the remaining charge on your batteries.

Baditudes Blogs. The blogs that address battery safety, Ohm's Law, CDR (continuous discharge rating/Amps) and how they all work together are detailed below:

BATTERIES

Battery Basics for Mods: IMR or Protected ICR?
* Another essential read to understand which batteries are safe to use in mechanical and regulated mods. Includes a frequently updated list of recommended safe-chemistry, high-drain batteries with their specifications.

Purple Efest Batteries not as Advertised
* A cautionary blog that reveals that the purple Efest batteries may not have the specifications advertised. Also includes a commentary on "continuous discharge ratings" vs "pulse discharge ratings" of battery specs.

OHM'S LAW

Ohm's Law for Dummies (Vapers)
* My attempt at explaining Ohm's Law in layman terms and how it relates to vaping.

Explain it to the Dumb Noob: Ohm's Law Calculations
* As simple as it is to use, some people have a tough time grasping the concept. Warning: Includes graphic photos of mod explosions.

BATTERIES - WHERE TO BUY

Only buy batteries from a reputable supplier (not ebay or Amazon) as there are many counterfeit batteries being sold. Here are several reputable battery suppliers in the US.

* RTD Vapor
* Illumination Supply
* Lighthound
* Orbtronics

 

[Dontknowmuch]

they're all in the right pins, and the screws are as tight as i could safely make them. I plan on getting a high drain XTAR 18650 2900mAh 10 amp Battery in the next few days, but as far as the coils go, im a super virgin to mods and RDAs, so how would you suggest i wrap the coils for a 3 coil build with a resistance of .55? Or .6?

 

[john333]

YouTube is a great source for reviews on vape gear. Do a YouTube search of the RDA and look for the ones with the most views. You will probably find several. Watch as many as it takes until you thoroughly understand it. Good luck

 

[Susan~S]

how would you suggest i wrap the coils for a 3 coil build with a resistance of .55? Or .6?

You won't be able to. The coils would be too big to fit into your RDA.

A 3-coil build would require you to build 3 identical 1.8Ω coils (for a 0.6Ω build). Using 24 gauge wire (around a 2mm tool) would require each coil have 26 wraps.

 

[Dontknowmuch]

Thanks a ton guys, yall cleared up so many questions i had, im gonna go to my local drip shop tomorrow and have them give me the whole complete mod/rda rundown and have them show me the builds i can do with my equipment. (and get proper tools to wrap my coils? I honestly didnt even know there were specific tools needed other than an ohm reader and cutters)

 

[Rickajho]

they're all in the right pins, and the screws are as tight as i could safely make them. I plan on getting a high drain XTAR 18650 2900mAh 10 amp Battery in the next few days, but as far as the coils go, im a super virgin to mods and RDAs, so how would you suggest i wrap the coils for a 3 coil build with a resistance of .55? Or .6?

You don't seem to understand - you can't do that with a protected battery. You are blowing way past the battery overcurrent protection and it's shutting itself down. Your protected AW is not a battery to use with sub ohm coil builds.

Neither is the Xtar battery because a build at 0.4 ohm is maxxing out the 10 amp capacity of the battery - assuming 10 amps is even correct since Xtar doesn't provide a C rating for that battery.

In either case you have a battery made for flashlights and are choosing a battery made for flashlights - bad idea.

 

[Dontknowmuch]

Yeah, im slowly figuring this out as im reading up on them, definitely not going to use it until i get a battery specifically made for mods in my hands (or else i might not have hands very much longer )

 

[Terraphon]

YouTube is a great source for reviews on vape gear. Do a YouTube search of the RDA and look for the ones with the most views. You will probably find several. Watch as many as it takes until you thoroughly understand it. Good luck

NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO!!!

Sending a new guy to youtube for advice on how to NOT blow himself to kingdom come? This is ridiculous. I'd no sooner suggest this than I would a parent using their TV as a babysitter. This is lazy, and nothing more! If we're going to teach people to be safe, youtube is NOT the place to send them...we all know some of the worst vaping advice IN THE WORLD is on youtube and most of that really bad advice is the stuff with the most views.

Listen, Dontknowmuch...Here's the thing. If you do this wrong, you could die and no, I'm not just being dramatic. Lithium batteries are no joke.

Your friend should NEVER have given you that gear without giving you a very long and very serious talk about battery safety and how violently batteries explode when they are mishandled. This is not your fault and I'm not blaming you because you don't know any better but please take me at my word when I say that this could be a very dangerous undertaking for you.

Basically your friend has handed you a stick of dynamite and never told you not to smack it against things. I'm asking you as a long time vaper to please put down the mod and don't build another coil until you understand all of this backward and forward. Please...

 

[cinetrope]

Head over to About | Steam Engine | free vaping calculators to get the information you need to be safe with batteries and building. It may seem like a lot of info to process at first but in the long run it will save you time, money, and potentially enable you to avert disaster.

 

[Baditude]

As others have alluded to, you were given a stick of dynamite without proper instruction on how to use it safely. You've dived off the deep end of the pool before learning how to swim. The results could have been disasterous. Count yourself among the lucky noobs.

Susan has given you links to my blogs. Please pay particular attention to the Battery Basics for Mods: IMR vs ICR protected?, Explain It To the Dumb Noob: Ohm's Law Calculations, and Information Resources for Your First RBA.

There's a lot of critical information in those blogs. Please read them and understand them before using your first homemade coil build. Know what batteries are safe. Know if your batteries have enough continuous discharge amps for the resistance (ohm) of your build. Have an Ohm meter and know how to use it. If unsure about ANYTHING, please ask here first and a vet will assist you.

Vape safely.