Talk RBA with me?

[LKnives]

Just looking for some information about RBAs. Kind of like just the pros/cons, what works the best, what all needs to be done rebuilding 'em (I've seen Grimmgreen do a video on the wire mesh rba), and what all is needed to for doing up RBAs?

TLR version: Any and all input welcome.

 

[rogergendron1]

Well first you dont have to use ss mesh for your wick, you can and should try silica first

Silica wicks in a genny are a good way for beginers to learn proper setup amd get the same flavor you are used to. I had a hard time setting up my first genny with ss kept getting hot spots and shorts so i thought why not just slide a single 3mm silica wick in it instead. Boom instant vape no hot spots and the same silica flavor i am used to. I made so many silica genny wicks that i can now make an ss wick a lot easyer it was good practice.

Now i use bolth if i have a rich or creamy flavor like mood juice or buterscotch i make a silica wick as ss mesh sems to mute thhe creamyNess but for all my fruit and sweets i make the standars ss mesh wick 400 seems to wick just right and silica mutes fruit flavors and sweets but ss brings it out more so bolth have the advantage and draw backs keep that in mind and try bolth wick types silica and ss in your genny find what works for you

also you may want to drill out your air hole i like 2mm or .075 inch hole and if my wick hole is smaller than 1/8 i drill other out alowing me to fit all types of wick materials. 1/8 is .1250 so i drill out to .1350 just over 3mm this lets me use any type of wick i want even steel cable and large ceramic or larger Nextel

also a great beginers rba is the smoktech rsst it has a large 3.2 mm wick hole that is insulated and a spring post witch make for a fool proof setup the air hole is 1mm so a litle small for me and the tank is plastic so those are the only 2 drawbacks

the agi is great if you want to mod it with some drilling. Ie : wick hole and airhole
the did is also a great device just as it is
the aga t2 is awsome but a little dificult to use due to the thumb screws on the posts but it can be verry versitile
the zen is overpriced but well built air hloe needs no moding and wick hole is huge. . . Top cap is verry loose

 

[rogergendron1]

I muself love the agi. it looks great with polished ss and square edges and its cheap. With only a few minutes of drilling it becomes a fantastic genny with multiple posts and holes for any kind of setup also it has a lip on the inside base plate as it was meant to be change able to a dripper wich is awsome because it wont leak out the top cap in genny mode

if you drill the wick hole and the fill hole out to .1350 you now have a genny that can go dual coil or u wick or anything you can think of and looks great. At 22mm it fits all standard mods

 

[Kanj.nguyen]

My AGI in Genesis mode is my favorite as well. But it should be mentioned that the center post must be replaced first. The spring makes the the conductivity absolute crap. I replaced it with a brass tube and now its vaping beautiful. Much better than the other ones in its price range like say and AGA-T2 or RSST (i own all 3)

As for the original question, its a little too broad for me to cover right now... But that reminds me i gotta do an RBA intro video.

 

[Baditude]

Not really a tutorial, but a vast accumulation of important information resources as they relate to RBA's for a beginner.

Advice and Tips for Vapors Looking to Try Their First RBA: http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/blogs/baditude/4454-7-advice-tips-vapors-looking-try-their-first-rba.html

 

[LKnives]

Yeah, here is something I forgot to mention but I am at work and my breaks are short. I'm looking for a cheap beginner experience, I don't want to spend 50+ dollars on something and during my initial phase find my self scratching my head going, "Maybe this was a bad idea for me" and putting it in my graveyard of old eCig equipment.

Not that any information on the higher price RBAs are unwelcome, if I find that this path is for me than I will be yelling at one of the RBA provider's website to take my money.

I tossed out my comment about the SS mesh because so far that is all I have seen someone work with, so if Silica wicks are better for newbies than that is definitely the route I will go.

As far as actually RBA's I saw Myvaporstore has AGTs, AGIs, and the smoketech RSST with the most expensive being the AGT Titanium at 44 bucks. This is kind of the price range I feel comfortable with as for experimenting goes. Like I said, I still welcome the input on higher priced RBAs but I will be harder to sell on those because it feels too pricey for a trial.

 

[Kanj.nguyen]

AGI like i said will require some modding. As far as an absolute beginner item, the AGA-T2 is hands down the best. You can find it for a little over $20 (sometimes under, there are a couple of deals that go for like $18, check vaporjoes blog archive)

 

[LKnives]

Okay, so say this AGA-T2. When I first get it does it need any thing done to it out of the box or is it good to roll?

 

[LKnives]

Oh, I need a multimeter?

Sweet, just going through some of the information Baditude linked up and I've already confirmed I have some of the nicer 18650's (I just got 4 Panasonic CGRs in the mail today from Fasttech.), my roomie owns a nice digital multimeter that just needs a new 9volt battery, and I own plenty of APVs (Lavatube, AnyVape CVI, and VAMO). Just gotta learn me up on all the other bits.

 

[lmp9002002]

Many people prefer to use mechanical mods with RBA's, since APV's like the ones you have will only fire a coil above 1.3 ohm or so. Not to say that they can't be used with digital APV's, you'd just need to use your multimeter and make sure that your coil is above 1.3 ohm. I've found that sometimes, when i first build a coil it may meter 1.4 ohm, but after breaking in it's down to 1.2 or 1.1, and the digital device will not fire it. If you plan on using those mods, i recommend 30 or 32 gauge kanthal, 4-6 wraps if you go for 32 gauge, 5-7 if you go for 30 gauge. That *should* put you somewhere in the 1.3- 2 ohm range. The lower the resistance, the quicker the coil heats up and gets to optimum vaping temperature- less "warm up" time each time you press the fire button.
Starting with silica instead of mesh is a very good idea. Took me awhile to get the hang of making a wick/coil setup with mesh that didnt taste burnt with a nasty throat hit that made me cough with every puff. There are a lot of videos with a lot of good tips on oxidizing and rolling mesh, as well as tips for winding the coil.
Panasonic CGR's and a multimeter are a great start! Good luck!

 

[rogergendron1]

Smokteck natural and rsst combo you can't go wrong it is the best of the best for beginers to get into modeling in mechanicals without spending that much money at all and yes setting up a Genesis with the silica wick is very easy to do a lot easier than stainless steel mesh but by all means you should try both I am very experienced with Genesis style and I still use silica depending on what juice I want to run I find a lot of creamy flavors just taste better with a simple silica wick .

If you're a beginner and you do not want to mod anything the rsst its fine just the way it is and the natural is also fine just the way it is and does not have very much voltage drop at all

As a matter of fact I have the natural and it is my all day device with n AGI on top of course the AGI is modded to hell lol

 

[rogergendron1]

I have seen the natural and RSST combo for around $80 that's a mechanical device and Jenny style addy you really can't beat that Genesis atomizer in a full mechanical mod for 80 bucks I forget what site but there were a few of them selling that combo in thatvprice range

Plus the 2 are made for each other and look great together

 

[rogergendron1]

Sorry about the repeat ppsting jist trying to help you get into this inexpensively lol

here you go the natural and rsst combo for 79$ at exhale vapor
The Natural Mechanical Mod by SMOKtech & RSST Kit- Stainless Steel

also here is mycurrent setup dont let the single strand of 3mm silica fool you its a friggin steam train



80$ and looks like a hybrid how can you go wrong ?

 

[LKnives]

I've seen the Natural at DV for 54 bucks and the AGA-T2 for 23 bucks at another site. Not a good route? Also, I saw that... What was it called? 2 cents for safety or something, is that a thing I should look at?

 

[Baditude]

Also, I saw that... What was it called? 2 cents for safety or something, is that a thing I should look at?

I think it's a good idea to use one, or the Vape Safe Mod Fuse - Batteries : Vape Safe Mod Fuse 2

Mechanical or unregulated PVs have little to none safety features other than a collapsable hot spring and vent holes, and those don't kick in until after a battery decides to become a firecracker. A 2 Cent Fuse or Vape Safe Mod Fuse adds a layer of protection against a catastrophic battery event.

If you think about it, the batteries that we use in our PV's weren't really designed for what we sometimes apply them to. When these Li Ion and Li Mn rechargeable batteries become stressed, they tend to go haywire and do bad things.

http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/fo...-battery-failure-imr-18650-a.html#post3265928

 

[LKnives]

So, what are the differences between a 2 Cent fuse and Vape Safe Fuse? With something like the Natural, would either of these things work with 18650 batteries or would I be looking for a smaller battery?

Well, I feel like I've come to like the idea of the Aga-T2 and I've actually been looking for an excuse to need a Smoketech Natural. Although what's it like going from buttons around the top of the mod to suddenly having a button on the bottom of the mod? Seems weird to me but I have never tried it.

I know this would mean a different battery but I am now curious as to how something like the Kick or Crown would come into play in regards to RBAs and Mechanical mods.

 

[Baditude]

So, what are the differences between a 2 Cent fuse and Vape Safe Fuse? With something like the Natural, would either of these things work with 18650 batteries or would I be looking for a smaller battery?

The 2 Cent Fuse is a less expensive ($6 - $9) single use fuse. Once it has been tripped by a hard-short battery, it will need to be replaced.

The Vape Safe Mod Fuse is more expensive ($15) but it is a multiple use fuse. Once it has been tripped you can continue to use it, much like a circuit breaker in use.

Both fuses should be thin enough to not require a shorter battery. To use, you place the magnet side of the fuse to the negative side of the battery. Then insert the battery into your mod with the fuse between the battery and the hot spring. If either fuse detects a hard-short in the battery, it will interupt the electrical circuit of the mod and the mod will then refuse to fire.
____

The Kick or Crown can used in a mechanical mod/RBA combo to have the option to adjust the power output to the atomizer, similar to how a regulated mod works. They do have an amperage limit and might not fire a sub ohm coil. They do require removal to adjust the wattage with a screwdriver or other tool.

They also should afford some short circuit protection similar to the above fuses, but I'm not aware if either the Kick or Crown can survive a hard short once tripped. As it is thicker in build than the fuses, a shorter battery will be required, or, should the particular mod have an extension sleeve or battery extension cap available the original battery can still be used.

 

[Thrasher]

the crown does not need to be removed for adjustment. it uses button presses and "beeps" to let you know where you are in the menu. - pretty cool idea i think.

in a mech one of the best things to use is the panny protected batteries if not buying a fuse. they have overdischarge and overcharge protection chips in them.

as the batteries grow in size - (2000mah or higher) they also get longer and there may not be enough room for a big battery with a kick or crown AND a fuse. you may end up having to go down one size to use all that stuff. ( i see bad said that oops lol)
this is also why some have gone to the protected batteries

 

[jdg]

I have a noobish question that seems to fit here. I have a Vamo that can read an atty's resistance. Any reason I'd have to test with a meter, or could I just use the Vamo?

 

[Thrasher]

I have a noobish question that seems to fit here. I have a Vamo that can read an atty's resistance. Any reason I'd have to test with a meter, or could I just use the Vamo?

as long as its within range the vamo will work fine.