The ProTank..... my thoughts

[Dvx67]

I have seen numerous threads complaining about the ProTank "airy draw". And I must say that my initial impression was the same.... too much air and not enough vapor, not enough flavor.

After I thought about it a little more, I decided to put some effort into it. My thought was.... I just need enough vapor production to match the "airy draw" and this thing could be really good. It just needs a little "fiddling". Well, as it turns out I am right.

As shipped, the ProTank is OK, but not great. For me, the trick all comes down to the wick and coil, in addition to the liquid. I first tried removing one of the flavor wicks. That was an improvement, but still not quite there. My next step was to try rebuilding the factory coils with silicon wick and 32 ag kanthal. Better... but still not there. Next was square braid cotton wick and 32 kanthal.... and *poof*; I hit a sweet spot. Massive vapor and flavor...

I then tried cotton balls for the wick as an experiment. Good but they didn't last long and seemed to clog up pretty quick. So I went back to my square braid wick and life is good. Massive amounts of flavor and vapor.

The next thing is liquid. I am into DIY juice. I honestly haven't tried a store bought juice in this device. Some may be great. I'm sure some aren't. But to get the best vaping experience, it takes the right combo of liquid, liquid delivery method, and battery voltage/wattage. My current favorite liquids produce huge amounts of vapor with the ProTank, as well as with my second favorite device, the Evod (for less conspicuous vaping).

So when I think back on this, I realize now why so many people don't like the ProTank. As it comes from the factory, it is decent. But nowhere near the potential that it has. This is truly an awesome device... but not so well suited for a beginner or for someone that isn't willing to experiment a little to get the most out of it. If you are willing to put a little work into it, it has great potential and you will not be disappointed.

Vape On!!

Dave

 

[BmoreDoug]

I got no complaints straight out the box. Peace.

 

[vang0gh]

I used to love my protanks. Now I'm starting to get that metallic taste that some people have complained about. I don't have the issue with my eVods. I've tried using the eVod coils in the protank to isolate the problem. But, unfortunately, it didn't help. So, it seems to be the tank itself. At some point, I'm going to try rebuilding some coils with cotton wicks to see if I can salvage them. But, if the tank = metallic taste, it's not going to resolve the problem.

 

[supermarket]

Honestly, I think the *only* reason people call the pro-tank to "airy"......is because they are used to a tight draw.


If people started with a pro tank, then everything else would be "too tight, far too tight".

The reason I say this....is because little things like the pressure of a draw from an e-cig are not only relative....but they are imprinted in our actual muscle/reflex memory. Our brains, bodies, and neurons actually take whatever we use on a regular basis....and turn that into a reference point. This is true.


Having said that.....I found when I vaped my evod exclusively....and then would switch to pro tank, it felt airy. However, when I vaped my pro tank exclusively, and then switched to my evods.....they felt WAYYY too tight. Uncomfortable tight.

I vape both daily now....2 Evods and 1 pro tank in my daily rotation. Keeps a good balance...and both are perfect in their own right.

 

[supermarket]

The good thing about the pro tank.....is it is COMPLETELY adjustable. If it REALLY is too "airy" for you, and you can't get used to it.....you have 4 air holes. Plug them one by one, until you reach desired "tightness".

 

[Discord]

Honestly, I think the *only* reason people call the pro-tank to "airy"......is because they are used to a tight draw.


If people started with a pro tank, then everything else would be "too tight, far too tight".

...

I totally agree. I started with other things, then when I switched to the ProTank I also thought it was too airy. I like the other features enough to have stuck with it, also did some of the things the OP mentioned, got into rebuilding them quite a bit (I use some .1 x .5 ribbon Kanthal). After I decided to try out some RDAs I found their draw super tight in comparison and drilled out their holes much bigger to get what I was used to.

 

[Equus5O]

I don't understand the "airy" description. When I screwed together the ProTank and started using it, it was like trying to draw on something that had a cork stuck in it. The insides of my cheeks were practically touching! The first night, I gave up on fiddling with it. The next day, I changed the head to an evod and somehow came up with a combination of tightening and loosening the beauty ring to the battery and the tank to the beauty ring. It worked great! I loved it! Then I topped off the juice and wasn't able to find the sweet spot again. Who has time for that crap? I'm using a Vivi Nova that I just got, and while that wasn't "screw it on and use it ready" either, it was a heck of a lot easier to get it going than the ProTank.

 

[rheicide]

What size of square braid cotton are you using? I'm gonna give it a try.

Sent from my GT-N7100 using Tapatalk 2

 

[Dvx67]

Honestly, I think the *only* reason people call the pro-tank to "airy"......is because they are used to a tight draw.


If people started with a pro tank, then everything else would be "too tight, far too tight".

Probably true. I have drilled out the air holes on my Evods to get a looser draw.

 

[Dvx67]

What size of square braid cotton are you using? I'm gonna give it a try.

Sent from my GT-N7100 using Tapatalk 2

I am using "Cotton Square Brain Candle Wick #1/0" that I found on Amazon, along with Kanthal 32 AWG wire, also found on Amazon. I oxidize the wire with a regular lighter before wrapping the coil, and I'm wrapping with 5 wraps. Vaping at 3.7 or so volts. Works great!

 

[New2vaps]

supermarket - I totally agree with your statement. I started off vaping with EVODs. I got used to the tight air draw. When I purchased my Protank it was so airy ( still is ) that I didn't like it. I then purchased a carto tank and started using it. When I went back to my EVOD it was so tight. Tried going back to the Protank but still more airy than I like.

Just curious, you mentioned you plugged one of the holes in the protank. What did you plug it with ?

Thanks

 

[rheicide]

I am using "Cotton Square Brain Candle Wick #1/0" that I found on Amazon, along with Kanthal 32 AWG wire, also found on Amazon. I oxidize the wire with a regular lighter before wrapping the coil, and I'm wrapping with 5 wraps. Vaping at 3.7 or so volts. Works great!

Thanks a lot for your instructions, buddy! Btw, I'm new to rebuilding heads, so could you tell me what is the purpose of oxidizing the wire? And how long should I torch it?

Sent from my GT-N7100 using Tapatalk 2

 

[funkyZero]

I believe I have found that sweet spot for myself.
I am making wicks out of hemp twine that I bought. Then, you can tweek the airflow by getting some cotton balls and instead of a "flavor" wick like they come from the mfg, use cotton as batting to gradually cover the top of the coil with more and more cotton until you get the draw just like you want it. The more cotton you pack on top of the coil, the tighter it gets. It doesn't take a lot of work to do it and you could use the same method with store bought replacement heads.. just pop off the stem, remove the extra "flavor wick" and start replacing with cotton until you get it where you want it.
I've read a lot of threads telling people to completely remove those extra top wicks, but the minute I do that, the damn thing starts gurgling, leaking and sputtering and i absolutely cannot stand that, it drives me crazy.

 

[vapo jam]

fwiw, i hated my protank when i first got it (only had an ego twist at the time). i didn't particularly like the airy draw, but it wouldn't put much vapor out either. once i got a mod, though, i loved it. turned out my head was pretty high-resistance (2.7 ohm), and needed the extra power to make it fire decently.

I'm new to rebuilding heads, so could you tell me what is the purpose of oxidizing the wire?

i've never rebuilt a protank head, but i don't think you'd need to oxidize the wire. typically, you oxidize when you're using a SS mesh wick, you oxidize the wick and wire so that it's not one giant short (the mesh and the wire are conductive, but the oxidized layer is not). as long as your coil doesn't touch itself or any metallic part of the tank or device, you should be fine without oxidizing.

 

[BennyBlanco]

i like PBusardo as much as the next guy but i feel like his opinions just get parroted too much in the e-cig scene, go look at the user reviews for juices on his favorites list and see what i mean

the protank is boss and i'm glad it exists, it's not "airy" at all to me, it's adjustable

not accusing the OP of this btw, it was a good writeup

 

[Dvx67]

Thanks a lot for your instructions, buddy! Btw, I'm new to rebuilding heads, so could you tell me what is the purpose of oxidizing the wire? And how long should I torch it?

Sent from my GT-N7100 using Tapatalk 2

I think there are a few reasons for oxidizing the wire. The only reason I do it is to remove any contaminants that might be on it so I'm not inhaling them when I first fire it up. I notice that a new coil/wick tastes much better at first when I do this. All I do is use lighter and slowly run the wire through it a few times. The wire glows red almost immediately so it doesn't take much.

 

[BusterTheDog]

If you want to make the draw less airy, plug one of the air holes with a very tiny amount of dental wax

 

[Myk]

I'm not impressed with the loose draw but can live with it, just draw slower rather than as fast as it will allow.

Other than that I don't mind it with stock heads, but I looked at the coil in one and can't wait to try some Kanthal ribbon. Looks like plenty of room to get the ohms I like for a standard eGo-C battery.
I really like that I haven't gotten any liquid in my mouth, unlike my Vivi Nova (which I also like).

 

[StillMaticc]

Glad you got your pro tank working for you. I had one for a few weeks, tried everything including what you mentioned. Worked ok for a while but it was not up to par with the descriptions other users gave it.
Traded mine away for better delivery devices. To each his own right?

 

[Mad Scientist]

I think there are a few reasons for oxidizing the wire. The only reason I do it is to remove any contaminants that might be on it so I'm not inhaling them when I first fire it up. I notice that a new coil/wick tastes much better at first when I do this. All I do is use lighter and slowly run the wire through it a few times. The wire glows red almost immediately so it doesn't take much.

Heating wire to cherry red and letting it just cool also anneals it so it can be easier to get a good wrap (the wire will lose any "springiness" it had).

Your description of getting the wicking and vapor production just right to tighten the draw is spot on.