This thread is meant to raise awareness, nothing more.
When I started vaping, clones were on the rise. There were clones for all the most popular tube mods, such as the Nemesis, the King, or the Ba Gua. With a genuine Nemesis selling for almost $300, why would any casual vaper not want to get an almost identical mod for a fraction of the price? It only makes sense.
With the success of clones came literal clones of clones. Specific companies were developed that specialized in fabricating fabrications. Generally speaking, everyone wins. The high-grade mod producers get their money from dedicated enthusiasts, and clone creators get their money from everyone else. Unfortunately, a desire to replicate such blazing success comes with many problems.
APV's have a wide range of parts, accessories, and necessities that make the hobby whole. Each individual factor has the potential to be replicated, and third parties have and will continue to jump on that opportunity. E-juice flavors have been replicated and cloned. Tanks, atomizers, and the wire we use to build our coils have been replicated and cloned. Many stores, both online and B&M, sell their "fake" products as genuine. But there is one integral part of any APV that should never be cloned. There is one part of any APV that, if replicated improperly, could cause the end of the hobby as we know it. That part, of course, is the battery.
I understand the desire to make money. I truly do. But yesterday I walked into a B&M in St. Louis, MO, and noticed they had a supply of Sony VTC4's. They were cheap, and I figured, "Hey, I could use a couple new batteries." As soon as I took a close look at the battery, though, it was highly apparent that this was no Sony VTC4. It looked like one, sure. But it wasn't. It was missing certain numbers, codes, and prints that every VTC4 I'd ever seen had had printed on its wrapper. Thus, herein lies a detrimental and potentially very dangerous problem for vaping hobbyists.
I run a 0.20Ω coil. That is the absolute limit that should be pushed by my battery. It is improbable, nigh, impossible, that marketers who clone batteries take the same care and dedication that established manufacturers have taken to make sure their batteries are safe and capable of doing what they are supposed to do. My point is, if I require, for the sake of keeping my fingers and teeth in tact, a 30A battery in my mod, and I unknowingly purchase a clone of said battery of which the amp limit is 20A, I may very well do serious damage to my body, start a fire in my car or house, or injure an unlucky bystander. The fact that battery clones have gone into production is abhorrent and poses a threat to our already politically delicate hobby.
I'm not sure what can be done. I just want to spread the word.
Be careful. We are scrutinized enough as it is.
When I started vaping, clones were on the rise. There were clones for all the most popular tube mods, such as the Nemesis, the King, or the Ba Gua. With a genuine Nemesis selling for almost $300, why would any casual vaper not want to get an almost identical mod for a fraction of the price? It only makes sense.
With the success of clones came literal clones of clones. Specific companies were developed that specialized in fabricating fabrications. Generally speaking, everyone wins. The high-grade mod producers get their money from dedicated enthusiasts, and clone creators get their money from everyone else. Unfortunately, a desire to replicate such blazing success comes with many problems.
APV's have a wide range of parts, accessories, and necessities that make the hobby whole. Each individual factor has the potential to be replicated, and third parties have and will continue to jump on that opportunity. E-juice flavors have been replicated and cloned. Tanks, atomizers, and the wire we use to build our coils have been replicated and cloned. Many stores, both online and B&M, sell their "fake" products as genuine. But there is one integral part of any APV that should never be cloned. There is one part of any APV that, if replicated improperly, could cause the end of the hobby as we know it. That part, of course, is the battery.
I understand the desire to make money. I truly do. But yesterday I walked into a B&M in St. Louis, MO, and noticed they had a supply of Sony VTC4's. They were cheap, and I figured, "Hey, I could use a couple new batteries." As soon as I took a close look at the battery, though, it was highly apparent that this was no Sony VTC4. It looked like one, sure. But it wasn't. It was missing certain numbers, codes, and prints that every VTC4 I'd ever seen had had printed on its wrapper. Thus, herein lies a detrimental and potentially very dangerous problem for vaping hobbyists.
I run a 0.20Ω coil. That is the absolute limit that should be pushed by my battery. It is improbable, nigh, impossible, that marketers who clone batteries take the same care and dedication that established manufacturers have taken to make sure their batteries are safe and capable of doing what they are supposed to do. My point is, if I require, for the sake of keeping my fingers and teeth in tact, a 30A battery in my mod, and I unknowingly purchase a clone of said battery of which the amp limit is 20A, I may very well do serious damage to my body, start a fire in my car or house, or injure an unlucky bystander. The fact that battery clones have gone into production is abhorrent and poses a threat to our already politically delicate hobby.
I'm not sure what can be done. I just want to spread the word.
Be careful. We are scrutinized enough as it is.
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