REO with a kick

[Zealous]

I'm trying to decide if I want to get a REO grand and use a kick with it so I can have a regulated device.

Can someone please tell me, which kick is the one that works properly with the REO and/or is this even a good idea?

I thought I read that Rob was going to maybe make some metal REOs specifically to be used with a kick in the future, but I'm not sure I want to wait that long.

Thanks for the info.

 

[Raynman]

Why use a Kick when you can adjust you vape by your coil. Safety is built in via the collapsible spring. A Kick would mean you would need to use a 18500 battery. Any Kick would do the job but why do it? Just seems like a bad idea to me.

 

[mackman]

Check out this thread http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/reos-mods/238603-kicked-reo-grand-18490-a.html

 

[supertrunker]

In any event you need to make a ground connection for the Kick, whether using a wire or a copper strip on wood Reos. On a metal Reo, the easiest way is to sand some paint off the inside.

I think Rob now remodels the old VV Grands to take a Kick, and you can just run it as a straight mechanical with an optional spacer if you go Kickless.

Of the Kicks you want the latest, which the last time i bothered to research them was a v2. The v1 had a single pin and a wire hanging from it and the v2 had only 2 prongs exiting it.

Evolv LLC - Shop Now

T

 

[Rat2chat2]

Sorry, I don't know anything about using kicks but the others guys already posting are who I would listen to. As far as the decision to buy a reo. . . all I can say is I have never been happier with my vaping. Been using reos exclusively for 11 months and have stopped looking for what I will purchase next because I am that satisfied. It is wonderful that there are so many mods and options for us and I hope whatever you decide, you will find what makes you happy. That's a nice way of saying you should get a reo.

Here is a great thread to read to see some of the comments that people who love reo's have to say. . .

http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/general-vaping-discussion/635010-help-why-reo.html

 

[Rickajho]

You can do it, but you are only getting a very low wattage device if you do it. A real Kick is 15 watts max, the Smok clones are only 12 watts, the Crown - although having some innovative options to change the settings with fire button presses - is only 10 watts.

 

[ed101z]

Why use a Kick when you can adjust you vape by your coil. Safety is built in via the collapsible spring. A Kick would mean you would need to use a 18500 battery. Any Kick would do the job but why do it? Just seems like a bad idea to me.

^^What he said.

Started out using Vamo's and Joyetech ego-C Twist, and know what you mean about VV. I asked the very same question when first getting my Reo Grand. As Raynman said, you adjust your vape by the coils. Meaning... build a coil at 1.7 ohms and vape for a day. If that doesn't suit you, then build a coil at 1.5 ohms and vape another day. You can keep going on down until you find a good temperature that works.

1.2ohms is generally a good area to start because as the battery dies... you have plenty of power to get to the range of 3.75 (which is the ideal range that you want to change the battery). The single 18650 will hold more volts than two 18500's combined as well.

After getting used to the Reo Grand, there is no need for VV. It's more about building coils, and you'll get plenty of help here in Reoville.

 

[SteamStack]

I've owned 2 Reo VV grands in the past. One of them the chip died and I had to send it in for a new chip. Then months later the chip died on the other one. Sent it in.. but this time I bought a regular Reo Grand with the idea to use a kick with it and use that while the one was being repaired.

At the time everyone was just making there coils to suit them and not using a kick or VV chip with there Reo.. After rob talked me some about just making a 1ohm coil and that would be good enough to say bye bye to a voltage regulated device I did just that.

Sold both VV grands off and just used the new regular reo with a RBA at 8-1ohm and all is just great since!

Longer battery life without the kick and I can crank the wattage up as high as I want with my coil build. Some sub ohm to like.2ohms hehe.. No way.

Anyways, nothing to break! No electronic chip to go belly up on me at the perfect time while out and about. Its all mechanical and way better then its every been with all the upgrades in the reo in the past year.

Best time to buy the Reo! Built to last and vape till ya cant vape no more!


P.S. With voltage regulated vaping.. you tune it where ya want it and never touch to the adjustment again.. You can just do the same with your coil.

Try a 1ohm coil on a Reo with a AW 1600/2200 MAH 18650 and see how that is for ya!

P.P.S You can use a kick with a Grand in the mean time while you also figure out what coil build you like without the kick

Best bet whould be to get a LP Reo Grand Raw tumbled version so there no paint in the way of your ground pin connection on the kick 2. Just make sure its not a super light version grand (SL). The ones with the hole cutouts as it make make it tough or impossible for the ground pin to make contact with the grand body.

 

[drjitterbomb]

I haven't kicked a Reo but I have kicked tube mods. I used to run a nemi clone + kayfun clone in my pre-reo days and I kept it set at 12w. This application worked fine but the kick units themselves are not very efficient. My batteries did not last as long and the positioning of the kick was fiddly. Your best best is to do the computation of your optimal wattage at 3.7 volts and build your coil to provide that (since your battery hangs out at that nominal voltage the longest).

 

[CMD-Ky]

I haven't kicked a Reo but I have kicked tube mods. I used to run a nemi clone + kayfun clone in my pre-reo days and I kept it set at 12w. This application worked fine but the kick units themselves are not very efficient. My batteries did not last as long and the positioning of the kick was fiddly. Your best best is to do the computation of your optimal wattage at 3.7 volts and build your coil to provide that (since your battery hangs out at that nominal voltage the longest).

Interesting, thank you. That information (3.7 volts) helps me, Steam Engine Ohm calculator has become more useful to me.

Thanks again.

 

[supertrunker]

I've always regarded mechanical mods as 'variable resistance' devices, because it makes it very clear that with a fixed capacity battery, varying coils is the only option left open, without electronics.

Luckily too, coil building, apart from being easy, is predictable - so half the wraps (or dual coils if you prefer) always gives half the resistance for any gauge of wire.
This helps too Coil wrapping | Steam Engine | free vaping calculators

As Rick mentioned, Kicks were limited to 15W which is not a lot today, but it really depends on how you vape and what you want from it. With a 0.3Ωcoil i'm asking my batteries for 14A and about 58W.

T

 

[drjitterbomb]

Just a bit of math to back it up:

I have 1000 mah 15c 18500's that I use in combination with new 1200 mah AW 18490's. I am running a .8 ohm single coil.

At 4.2 volts:

Voltage 4.2 V
Current 5.25 A
Power 22.05 W

At nominal voltage:

Voltage 3.7 V
Current 4.63 A
Power 17.11 W

I can expect a total variance of roughly 5 watts over the course of my vaping battery lifetime. This to me is acceptable variance as the dropoff after 3.7 is quite noticeable and a clear sign to pull the battery for charging. Since the kick wattage is so low and they are not very efficient, you are just adding another point of failure in a system that is easy enough to read.

Just my 2 pence.

 

[CMD-Ky]

Just a bit of math to back it up:

I have 1000 mah 15c 18500's that I use in combination with new 1200 mah AW 18490's. I am running a .8 ohm single coil.

At 4.2 volts:

Voltage 4.2 V
Current 5.25 A
Power 22.05 W

At nominal voltage:

Voltage 3.7 V
Current 4.63 A
Power 17.11 W

I can expect a total variance of roughly 5 watts over the course of my vaping battery lifetime. This to me is acceptable variance as the dropoff after 3.7 is quite noticeable and a clear sign to pull the battery for charging. Since the kick wattage is so low and they are not very efficient, you are just adding another point of failure in a system that is easy enough to read.

Just my 2 pence.

I always hate to appear stupid (being stupid doesn't bother me so long as I don't appear that way). When I used Steam Engine, I never knew what value to uses for the battery voltage because voltage changed with use. Now I do. Do you have a source for the meaning of "nominal" voltage?

 

[drjitterbomb]

I always hate to appear stupid (being stupid doesn't bother me so long as I don't appear that way). When I used Steam Engine, I never knew what value to uses for the battery voltage because voltage changed with use. Now I do. Do you have a source for the meaning of "nominal" voltage?

This thread should explain it pretty well Nominal Voltage on ECF

Essentially, it is the output voltage that your battery will spend the most time at. It will charge fully to 4.2v but quickly drop to 3.7v. There are other factors involved such as voltage drop across the transmission medium. This voltage drop is caused by a lot of factors (transmission material, grit and grim, loose connections) and plays into the actual voltage utilized. Rob designed the Reo to be bulletproof and they sure are - The negative transmission happens through the screw holding the negative spring in place and the positive through the gold leaf spring that attaches to the 510 pin. There is not a whole lot in the way so voltage drop is minimal.

Edit: also keep in mind its difficult to gauge battery lifetime since the 1000mah is spent on different voltages. This varies from battery to battery.

If you want a good idea of what kind of voltage drop you see, purchase a 510 voltmeter and fire your Reo off. With this number, you can properly gauge your actual voltage drop. With that drop in mind, build your coil to your desired resistance and reach your actual wattage.

 

[supertrunker]

All our batteries are 'nominally' or named 3.7v. In practice they will charge to a higher level, typically 4.2v - and the reason that it's better to use 4.2v in all your calculations is because it's a worst case scenario and will build a little headroom in for you.

If you are close to the Amp limits of your battery with your builds, you will want to assume it is freshly charged and putting out full power. Because it's the reality and to do so is the safest assumption to make.

T

 

[daveinleics]

When I first got a Reo it was with the intention of running a kick in it, so I got the tumbled version. You can just stick a kick in them without having to sand anything off. It worked fine, although you do have to adjust them occasionally to make sure the spring stays in contact with the body, or there are various ways you can wedge them in. I'd have to say though that pretty soon I stopped bothering and just lowered the resistance of my coil a bit and found I was perfectly happy running them unregulated. I just change the battery when it gets down to about 3.7 volts and this gives me a range of power I am comfortable with - roughly 9 - 11 Watts with a 1.3 ohm coil.

Of course it you like a higher powered vape you cannot use a kick, but I've found that even if you like to vape within the power range of the kick you can tune things so that you don't really need to use one.

 

[Zealous]

Ok, I was going to respond to everything in each post I wanted to comment on. But now it's @ page 2 & my ADHD won't let me manage that task so I'm just going to post back to everyone (lol).

As far as why I wanted to try a kick, I want another REO. But I also want something regulated. And my thinking was that if I got a kick with it then I'd have a regulated 18490 regulated device or an 18650 unregulated.

I did forget to ask though (and this might be the determining factor) will the kick drop down to the voltage I want (is it a volt or watt device; still same question though) or @ 4.2 is it 4.2? If it doesn't drop down then I guess the whole thread is moot because I'd like a constant wattage from beginning of battery until time to recharge.



TY to whomever mentioned that the 2nd kick was the one I wanted. I knew there was some issue/reason for one of the versions not working as easily or at all with the REO.

yes, I understand that I can just change the coil if I want to change the watts/volts. But some liquids like a different wattage and I would like a device where I don't have to build a new coil for a different eliquid. I have 2 REOs already & use them mainly with the same eliquid all the time. So this next one will be used as a bottom feeder and as a dripping device. so having it regulated would make it easier to get the wattage set to the eliquid I'm using.

I just don't feel like buying one of the cheaper regulated devices with chips & such that can fail. I understand that the kick could fail too but I could always buy another one if that happened and/or I would always have the 18650 REO to use, and I'd be perfectly happy with that.

anyway, thanks for all the responses. Most appreciated.

 

[SteamStack]

Cheaper or same price as kick to just buy another atty with a coil made up to give you that same hit as you would set it on a kick.. but yeah you can do it to with a kick just saying.

Swap atty swap bottle with other juice.. done.

 

[Rickajho]

A Kick is a variable wattage device.

 

[Big Hitter]

I fully understand why one would want a regulated REO.

I vape a lot of non REO devices as well and they are all regulated. I often change them a bit through out the day. Most certainly depending on juice and having the exact wattage I set throughout the batter life is nearly a necessity for me now days.

I also understand why the REO is not regulated. Its bullet proof, last forever kinda thing.

But how many bullet proof devices does one need ?? I have a desk of REOs that will last for ever.

What I would love to add to the desk is a half dozen regulated bottom fed devices that will suit my needs fully knowing that I will have to toss them in the trash one day. I have a house full of electronic devices that I love .... None of them will last very long.

Regulating with your coil build is barbaric and its not really "regulating" anything its just setting your wattage to a particular voltage which is constantly changing each hit ..... the point of regulation .... is not adjustment .....its regulating the power to be a constant output until the batter can no longer support that output. The adjustable part is just a sweet bonus and don't get me wrong I want adjustment and regulation

I build my coils to suite me in the 4.0 volt range but with certain juice flavors I have to pulse the button a bit on a fresh batt. I usually am swapping out batts by 3.8 because the vape is too weak. I can get buy if I'm not near a fresh batt lower but dam I'd much rather have a chip in there performing magic! Even if the chip only lasts a year.

But to the OP ....... The kicked REO is just not a viable option IMO, sorry it does not work well its very finicky and just more frustration than its worth. Its OK to play around with but not ready for prime time as they say.

You would want the Kick 2 (hint) I have two like new that I never use (me and 20K other people)
You would want a solid body REO, not the super light (SL) aka cheese grater
You would need the contact point of the kick to meet bare aluminum to make electrical contact.
So either a tumbled raw aluminum (TRA) REO or do a little sanding on the inside of a colored REO body.

Most importantly and the problem I never solved is you need a way to keep the darn kick from moving around. The kick was designed for tube mods but even with the tube the fitment was finicky and things did not always work right. Compounding the problem is the REO has a top firing pin where as most tubes have bottom firing pins. So in the tube mod no moving parts were contacting the kick but with the REO the firing pin makes contact with the kick each time you vape and tends to move the kick slightly each hit. Bottom line not an elegant solution if even a viable solution. Sorry.