Subtank RBA builds? show em!

[Darryl Licht]

Aren't most hobbies expensive?

Challenging? No. Irritating? Yes. I just want to reach for a mod and vape.

Reminds me of a joke...

Old bull and a young bull are grazing on a hilltop overlooking a field filled with grazing cows,
Young bull says to the old bull: "lets run down there and f#%@ one of those cows"
Old bull says: "No, lets walk down there and f#%@ them all!"

You must be a young bull...?

 

[jefx]

My Grandpa tells that same joke. lol

 

[jaxgator]

Reminds me of a joke...

Old bull and a young bull are grazing on a hilltop overlooking a field filled with grazing cows,
Young bull says to the old bull: "lets run down there and f#%@ one of those cows"
Old bull says: "No, lets walk down there and f#%@ them all!"

You must be a young bull...?

I've been on this earth for 53 years but my mind still thinks it's only been 24.

 

[Darryl Licht]

I've been on this earth for 53 years but my mind still thinks it's only been 24.

52 here and DITTO THAT!!!!!

However, no matter what my brain says lately, my body says... "Hey, who you kidding?"

 

[Bgibbons123]

Has anyone built any dual coils that come in at .6

 

[USMCotaku]

Has anyone built any dual coils that come in at .6

That would be two 1.2 ohm coils

 

[USMCotaku]

Just rebuilt my ST mini rba today.
Clapton coil 28/32 gauge kanthal. 5 wraps on 2.5mm. 1.1 ohm wicked with Japanese organic cotton. I'm using 90/10 vg/pg and it's wicking nicely, flavor is great.

Sent with one hand, the other is busy vaping.

 

[tehmidcap]

Just curious, I'm getting my Mini either tomorrow or Friday (come on tomorrow, USPS!) and I'm new to rebuilding (spent most of the day today reading and watching youtube videos, definitely get the basics of it):

What is the best kind of build for higher VG/thicker juices? More spaced apart coil?

I ordered 28gauge kanthal and Japanese cotton just to start with and see what I think, and I'll be sticking to single coils at least for the first few attempts.

 

[USMCotaku]

Just curious, I'm getting my Mini either tomorrow or Friday (come on tomorrow, USPS!) and I'm new to rebuilding (spent most of the day today reading and watching youtube videos, definitely get the basics of it):

What is the best kind of build for higher VG/thicker juices? More spaced apart coil?

I ordered 28gauge kanthal and Japanese cotton just to start with and see what I think, and I'll be sticking to single coils at least for the first few attempts.

I prefer non spaced. I've found that for standard coils in the sub tank rba, 26 gauge has been the best for me.
One thing to keep in mind, you will often read that less is more when wicking with cotton, but we have found that not to be true on these tanks, wick tight in the coil, but thin out the "tails"

 

[Shawn Hoefer]

Just curious, I'm getting my Mini either tomorrow or Friday (come on tomorrow, USPS!) and I'm new to rebuilding (spent most of the day today reading and watching youtube videos, definitely get the basics of it):

What is the best kind of build for higher VG/thicker juices? More spaced apart coil?

I ordered 28gauge kanthal and Japanese cotton just to start with and see what I think, and I'll be sticking to single coils at least for the first few attempts.

I keep 28, 30, and 32 ga on hand. Most times, I reach for the 28. The 30 and 32 are for rebuilding coil heads. Although I have thrown a couple doubles on the mini using smaller gauges, I prefer the macro coil over the nano coils.

​

 

[tehmidcap]

I keep 28, 30, and 32 ga on hand. Most times, I reach for the 28. The 30 and 32 are for rebuilding coil heads. Although I have thrown a couple doubles on the mini using smaller gauges, I prefer the macro coil over the nano coils.

​

Well I finally started to try to rebuild, got everything I needed to at least start. Not really having issues making the actual coil, that's simple enough and hard to screw up. Using 28 gauge kanthal and japanese cotton.

My main issue that I am having was the wicking. I spent about 6 hours of wasting Japanese cotton trying to get my wicking right yesterday... It would work well for a couple of hits then start having this horrible taste.

I watched Super X's video about wicking (just in general not with the Subtank Mini) and saw that he was putting way less thick wick than I was trying to do. I think my problem was I was starting out too thick and then having to roll the entire wick up too tight and it didn't have enough flow. The one that I have in there now might be too thin, however, because I start getting dry hits if I take long drags or take hits too quickly back-to-back.

With these, should I follow the rule that Super X used in that you should be able to pull the wick through easily without much/any resistance (he was saying if the mod you were building on started to move beyond a rock then your wick was too thick)? Or should I get it pretty thick through the coil and thin out each tail?

I'm also thinking maybe I need to build around something with a larger diameter. I've been using either the included little blue screwdriver or a mini screwdriver I have that's barely thicker and it does make for quite a tiny hole to try to wick through.

 

[MacTechVpr]

Well I finally started to try to rebuild, got everything I needed to at least start. Not really having issues making the actual coil, that's simple enough and hard to screw up. Using 28 gauge kanthal and japanese cotton.

My main issue that I am having was the wicking. I spent about 6 hours of wasting Japanese cotton trying to get my wicking right yesterday... It would work well for a couple of hits then start having this horrible taste.

I watched Super X's video about wicking (just in general not with the Subtank Mini) and saw that he was putting way less thick wick than I was trying to do. I think my problem was I was starting out too thick and then having to roll the entire wick up too tight and it didn't have enough flow. The one that I have in there now might be too thin, however, because I start getting dry hits if I take long drags or take hits too quickly back-to-back.

With these, should I follow the rule that Super X used in that you should be able to pull the wick through easily without much/any resistance (he was saying if the mod you were building on started to move beyond a rock then your wick was too thick)? Or should I get it pretty thick through the coil and thin out each tail?

I'm also thinking maybe I need to build around something with a larger diameter. I've been using either the included little blue screwdriver or a mini screwdriver I have that's barely thicker and it does make for quite a tiny hole to try to wick through.

If you're winding a tensioned micro as supe does you'll need more wick rather than less. Almost twice your coil dia. or near 1/4" with one side of the backing removed. Remove a few fibers if still too tight. Don't roll it (rope or twine it) as some suggest by rolling it between the hands or on top of something). These overlaps tend to interrupt flow. Try to keep the cotton in as natural a state as possible. So try not to twist it in. Rather compress a small tip to start the feed. Then gently stretch the cotton taught. It should be stretched enough that it presents considerable resistance but just enough to allow it to feed into the dia. of your wind. Too tight to get through or if it starts to bunch, remove a couple'a fibers. You can still gently tuck a small bit that's bunched up and continue. Should that work you're good.

Much talk about thinning and pruning and fiddly with KGD wicks. Don't truck with me and I've done more than a few of them. You must make contact with the deck (or cap walls) otherwise juice won't touch the wick. Pancakes that don't reach where the juice is can look great but won't wick anything. Once wick touches juice it will totally saturate. Period. Thin or thick don't matter. But if the leads are thinner than the flow you're presenting at the coil, you will dry out. Folks trying thin wicks generally discover this with time. Read their following posts and you'll see. Wick legs on diets thin your vape.

Bottom line, you can have a great lawn sprayer but if you don't give it enough hose it ain't gonna do the job. Wick must match wire for the power you are givin' it.

Good luck there T. See us on the Protank MicroCoil Discussion!! for everything you wanna know on perfecting tensioned micro's and rock solid installation.

 

[Shawn Hoefer]

Well I finally started to try to rebuild, got everything I needed to at least start. Not really having issues making the actual coil, that's simple enough and hard to screw up. Using 28 gauge kanthal and japanese cotton.

My main issue that I am having was the wicking. I spent about 6 hours of wasting Japanese cotton trying to get my wicking right yesterday... It would work well for a couple of hits then start having this horrible taste.

I watched Super X's video about wicking (just in general not with the Subtank Mini) and saw that he was putting way less thick wick than I was trying to do. I think my problem was I was starting out too thick and then having to roll the entire wick up too tight and it didn't have enough flow. The one that I have in there now might be too thin, however, because I start getting dry hits if I take long drags or take hits too quickly back-to-back.

With these, should I follow the rule that Super X used in that you should be able to pull the wick through easily without much/any resistance (he was saying if the mod you were building on started to move beyond a rock then your wick was too thick)? Or should I get it pretty thick through the coil and thin out each tail?

I'm also thinking maybe I need to build around something with a larger diameter. I've been using either the included little blue screwdriver or a mini screwdriver I have that's barely thicker and it does make for quite a tiny hole to try to wick through.

The magic blue screwdriver is fine. The cotton is too thick. It will vary dorm device to device, but the Subtank Mini seems to like the wick to be snug, not tight. For the size coil you're describing, you can cut a piece of kgd about an eighth in wide, and split that to wick it. Make sure you cut with the grain... the cotton is brushed so all the fibers run in one direction and cutting across the grain will leave you with useless bits if fluff. When using cotton balls instead of kgd, unroll them, and you'll see, again, how the fibers are all running the same direction. The cotton balls are better separated by hand into little strips rather than cutting them. Once you have your cotton ready, roll one end really tight between 2 fingers. Snip a little off the tip, and thread it through. You can use a needle threader, a short piece if kanthal crooked at one end or a small crochet hook (I stole mine from my wife... shhhhh...) to assist in the process. A gentle twist to tighten up the fiber enough to get through the coil without distorting the coil is sometimes needed. If your coil starts to bend, back it out and strip a little out. Once in, cut the cotton at a 45 degree angle to the base where the bottom of the cut is even with the top of the chimney threads and the top of the cut is about the same width ad the inner ring on the seal. Drop some juice on it, and tuck it down enough to keep ig out of the way as you attach your chimney. Drop some more juice on it to ensure that the coil is thoroughly primed before reassembly and filling. Wait a couple minute watching all the pretty air bubbles float up (means you wick is wickingl. Vape.

 

[Darryl Licht]

If you're winding a tensioned micro as supe does you'll need more wick rather than less. Almost twice your coil dia. or near 1/4" with one side of the backing removed. Remove a few fibers if still too tight. Don't roll it (rope or twine it) as some suggest by rolling it between the hands or on top of something). These overlaps tend to interrupt flow. Try to keep the cotton in as natural a state as possible. So try not to twist it in. Rather compress a small tip to start the feed. Then gently stretch the cotton taught. It should be stretched enough that it presents considerable resistance but just enough to allow it to feed into the dia. of your wind. Too tight to get through or if it starts to bunch, remove a couple'a fibers. You can still gently tuck a small bit that's bunched up and continue. Should that work you're good.

Much talk about thinning and pruning and fiddly with KGD wicks. Don't truck with me and I've done more than a few of them. You must make contact with the deck (or cap walls) otherwise juice won't touch the wick. Pancakes that don't reach where the juice is can look great but won't wick anything. Once wick touches juice it will totally saturate. Period. Thin or thick don't matter. But if the leads are thinner than the flow you're presenting at the coil, you will dry out. Folks trying thin wicks generally discover this with time. Read their following posts and you'll see. Wick legs on diets thin your vape.

Bottom line, you can have a great lawn sprayer but if you don't give it enough hose it ain't gonna do the job. Wick must match wire for the power you are givin' it.

Good luck there T. See us on the Protank MicroCoil Discussion!! for everything you wanna know on perfecting tensioned micro's and rock solid installation.

I agree that more seems to work better in the stm. I put enough so I must pull in opposite directions just to get the kgd to fit through the coil. Although I keep switching between skiining one vs both sides.

 

[RaptorD.Meezus]

So I just got my STM today. Tried my first build of any kind on it.
24AWG Kanthal A1 wrapped six times using the 3mm rod on my Coil Master (because I'm a n00b and have shaky hands). Registered at .59ohms
Glowing nicely from the inside out, even though my wraps aren't completely gap-free.
Wicked using Japanese organic cotton.
Chimney attached.
Juiced up.

Whoops! 5 image limit reached! To be continued!

 

[RaptorD.Meezus]

Test fire! Looking good!

Now, at this point, I went ahead and filled up the tank, but I had forgotten to screw the top cap onto the RBA deck. Sooooo I had a bit of a spill. I cleaned everything up, dried my parts out, then put it back together.
Awww yeah! Time to test this bad boy out!
Hoooweee! I think I did something wrong! It's crackling and it's hot and it hurts. I'm actually a little bit nauseous from it. I think the juice I used has way too much nic in it; 12mg is probably not good for this setup. Plus I don't think the juice has steeped long enough. Ergh. I'll have to come back to this later and figure out what I did wrong.

 

[EverPresentNoob]

yea, Ive thrown mine together with out the top cap on the darn thing too... pretty embarrassing especially when you do it at the local Vape shop.

 

[USMCotaku]

View attachment 425609 Test fire! Looking good!

Now, at this point, I went ahead and filled up the tank, but I had forgotten to screw the top cap onto the RBA deck. Sooooo I had a bit of a spill. I cleaned everything up, dried my parts out, then put it back together.
View attachment 425617 Awww yeah! Time to test this bad boy out!
View attachment 425618 Hoooweee! I think I did something wrong! It's crackling and it's hot and it hurts. I'm actually a little bit nauseous from it. I think the juice I used has way too much nic in it; 12mg is probably not good for this setup. Plus I don't think the juice has steeped long enough. Ergh. I'll have to come back to this later and figure out what I did wrong.

12mg.... Definitely too high for most people in these tanks. I dropped from 24mg in my aerotank to 6mg

 

[Shawn Hoefer]

12mg.... Definitely too high for most people in these tanks. I dropped from 24mg in my aerotank to 6mg

Same here. I had 24 in my Davide - in fact 24 was all I had - and filled up my subtank with it. Like to knock me out...

 

[RaptorD.Meezus]

Same here. I had 24 in my Davide - in fact 24 was all I had - and filled up my subtank with it. Like to knock me out...

Other than my screw-up, how did my build look for a first timer?