Stuck on my noob research, suggestions?

[musekill]

I've been thinking about getting an e-cig for a while now, but I've gotten stuck with some of my research. I understand that there are models out there (510, ect) and that most sites are just re-sellers. I've gotten stuck in figuring out what re-sellers sell what models.

What I'm looking for...
An e-cig in comparable size to an analog (doesn't have to be exact, just not one of the larger models)
Preferably a two-piece
Wouldn't mind getting into dripping, eventually
Not looking to do mods
Something that I can get a PCC for would also be awesome

Then the key thing...
Something that is largely compatible, so I can shop around for re-fill cartomizers, juice, ect.

I'm essentially stuck in figuring out which model to get and where I can get hardware from (what re-sellers). I do plan to learn more and get into things, so I'm not looking for some easy answer. I just know that where I'm stuck now has had me put off buying an e-cig for about a year now, and I'd rather not put it off any longer.

I'm also stuck in that I don't know what info out there is outdated. I read suggestions that fit my reqs and then realize it's a few years old.

Any help is greatly appreciated.

 

[Dieseler]

Im not saying go out and buy it . Many here have started with an ego and the Pcc is available for it.
It helped me quit after nearly 40 years.

 

[Vapoor eyes er]

Hi and welcome to ECF. There is a vendors list here at ECF. They operate under a strict code of ethics and members will call them out if they do not provide quality products and good service.
Here's a reputable vendor with quality products. They also have a 20% discount.
E-Liquid and Electronic Cigarette Shop - Category Listings
And here's a review forum
Standard E-Cigarette Reviews
Good Luck, Vapoor.

Edit: eGo and Riva are both fairly priced and good PVs. Prolly best to get a 510 thread as that's very popular and it's easy to get accessories for it.

 

[markfm]

Items 1, 2, 4, and 5 are consistent with a KR808D-1 (808) PV. Item 4 (possible dripping) would mean go for a manual instead of an automatic.

I've had good luck with vapor4life (v4l). All of their products are KR808D-1. They constantly run sales, check the PIF Deals and Steals thread (link to PIF in my signature) and/or the Christmas Specials thread. V4L sells many prefilled cartomizers (as do other places).

SmokelessImage's Volt, and Bloog's MaxFusion, are a couple of second generation KR808D-1 models. Beats me on if they are actually better in any particular way, I haven't used them, but they are popular; I believe Volt is normally a lower price point.

I've also done well with some individual 808 batteries I've gotten from vaporsetc.

A 2 battery manual kit with PCC is readily available from v4l, and I suspect Volt also has one. This would normally limit you to standard batteries, not the XLs/megas (which run longer between charges), as for some reason I haven't yet seen an XL PCC. (possibly because 3 XLs would likely last anyone a long time)

Just go for it. There's always something new coming out, the important thing is the first step. Basic 808 gear is solid, does the job.

Good luck!

 

[wv2win]

Probably the Volt or Bloog are the best of the "mini" models. You will need to buy a ton of batteries as they only last around an hour unless you are just a 3 -5 a day cig smoker, although the PCC will help a little.

The E-Power 510, Riva 510 or Kgo are only the size of a slim cigar or sharpie and will give you 5 times more battery life and save money in the long run.

DON'T get auto batteries if you plan on dripping. You will eventually just kill them dripping.

Rule of Thumb: the more it looks like the real thing, the worse the performance.

Good Luck

 

[swedishfish]

How long have you smoked? How much do you smoke?

 

[Boodle]

+1 for V4L or the Volt for what's on your wish list. Don't stress too much over which kit to buy. When you realize how amazing vaping can be, you'll grab a backup kit, or something with more power and a longer lasting battery and your first kit will become the backup. Congrats on your decision.

 

[musekill]

To wv2win and swedishfish, luckily I've only been smoking for 6 years. I started with cloves, so the flavor selection with e-cigs is appealing. I've been a pack a day smoker of regular cigs (not cloves) for about 4 years.

Also, I forgot to mention, I picked up a cheapy 21st Century disposable/starter kit on a whim the other day when I saw it at a convenience store. Still trying to figure out the model for that, cause both the battery and cartomizer have lasted longer than expected. Charge maybe once-twice per day? And the first cartomizer is still producing vapor, and it's been about the equivilant of about a pack and a half.

 

[markfm]

Most standard cartomizers hold about 1 ml of eliquid, I think of them as typically equivalent to maybe a half pack of cigs, but people's mileage varies and some shops do fill their cartos a bit more. There are some mega/XL cartos that hold 2ml, and I believe a couple of gigundos that may be up in the 2.5 - 3ml zone.

Myself, I use what's called a cartomizer tank, a clear tube that a normal cartomizer with a hole cut in the side goes through. This setup holds multiple ml of eliquid, and I can choose to use whatever cartomizer I really like.

 

[nordoe]

I would just go with a standard 510 starter kit and a pcc. 510 are very reliable and what most people start with. They are the size of an analog. Probably simialr to the one you purchased locally but parts are easy to come by.

 

[swedishfish]

To wv2win and swedishfish, luckily I've only been smoking for 6 years. I started with cloves, so the flavor selection with e-cigs is appealing. I've been a pack a day smoker of regular cigs (not cloves) for about 4 years.

Also, I forgot to mention, I picked up a cheapy 21st Century disposable/starter kit on a whim the other day when I saw it at a convenience store. Still trying to figure out the model for that, cause both the battery and cartomizer have lasted longer than expected. Charge maybe once-twice per day? And the first cartomizer is still producing vapor, and it's been about the equivilant of about a pack and a half.

In that case a Volt or a V4L kit should work for you. I'd get manual batteries and empty cartomizers and fill with juice from a juice vendor.

The downside of a KR808 carto kit is that you can't really test juice. Once you fill a cartomizer with juice you're pretty committed to that flavor.

 

[swedishfish]

I would just go with a standard 510 starter kit and a pcc. 510 are very reliable and what most people start with. They are the size of an analog. Probably simialr to the one you purchased locally but parts are easy to come by.

I really like the 510 better myself.

 

[markfm]

808 offers more prefilled than 510, last I knew (though 510 has more becoming available). The higher voltage on a normal 808, and larger battery mAh, is generally preferable.

(A standard 808 battery is 280 mAh, vs. a standard 510 battery at 180 mAh. The 510 mega/XL battery size is 280 mAh. The 8008 XL or mega is 380 mAh.)

 

[swedishfish]

I never used the prefilled cartos with my 510. I think I threw them away when I opened my kit. Tried the prefilleds before and that wasn't going to happen.

There are more prefilled options with the KR808. My mom started with a KR808 and liked some of the prefilled cartos from V4L. They don't last long though. But its a good way to start out.

 

[musekill]

Thanks for everyone so far for their replies.

Markfm - How does mAh translate? Does it mean longer batt life?

 

[musekill]

And Swedishfish, thanks. Definitely checking out Volt and V4L.

 

[swedishfish]

It's about an hour per 100 mah of continous vaping.

What Mark is saying makes sense and you can't argue with physics. It just seems like the 510 hits better to me. Maybe if I was blindfolded I wouldn't know the difference but other people that tried it said the same thing.

Batteries don't last a long time with these mini's that's the truth. And the older they get (as with any battery) the battery life gets shorter and shorter. And it stands to reason they'll die sooner than the big battery pvs, they're charged more often.

 

[markfm]

With me I had to go 2 ohm on a Riva to get equivalent to an 808 with standard resistance. The underlying reason was the power -- I used older 3.2 - 3.4V Rivas, and v-squared-over-R for a Riva/2 ohm was about the same as for an 808 with standard resistance cartos.

The difficulty is that the standard 510 battery is just too small to really take a 2 ohm cleanly, likely to have an early failure and/or just have to change batteries too frequently due to the low mAh.

 

[musekill]

...confused...

mAh - milliampere-hour - thus, we're talking how powerful the battery is per hour? Or, from Swedishfish's explaination, how long with continuous vaping (ie. 280 mAh = 2.8 hours of continuous vaping, 180 = 1.8 hours, 380 = 3.8 hours)?

ohm = electrical resistance

V = voltage, obviously...

breakdown on how these interact within an e-cig?

 

[wv2win]

From my experience, 100 mAh last 45 - 60 minutes of light to moderate vaping. There is a further problem, however. As with any unregulated battery, as it drains, it's performance suffers. So when you get to that last 50% of usage time, the performance of the battery is degraded and the "vape" is not nearly as good as when freshly charged. This is another limitation of the "mini" batteries that people forget. It's not JUST about length of time on a charge, but also about the quality of the vape. Larger batteries stay at or near full charge much longer than mini batteries. That's why many of us do not recommend anything smaller than an E-Power, Riva or Kgo for a beginner.