I put a small piece of tubing into my drip tip to decrease the diameter of the hole. It made the draw feel less airy to me.
Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk 2
The ZAP Rebuildable atomizer (RBA)
- Thread starter MonsterKenny
- Start date
- th_trl_thread_readers 0
- Status
I put a small piece of tubing into my drip tip to decrease the diameter of the hole. It made the draw feel less airy to me.
Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk 2
You can do that or some vendors carry the drip tips that gove you a stiffer draw, but imo you dont want to mess w/ the size of the airhole, all that is going to do is give you less vapor production, mike made it that size for a reason, and he stopped making the stiff draw caps for a reason imo its a perfect compromise, not too stiff, not too airy, but thats me and i loved it since the first hit i took off a zen, it was my first genny and it was exactly what i was looking for as everything else before that felt like sucking a golfball through a gardenhose. you cant expect it to be like a carto or a silica wick device, it works more efficiently and gennys need more air on the coil or your not taking advantage of your device properly, also a more open draw gives you much more control over the draw and allows you to take lung inhales which is how i vape, which you can only do on gennys. afaik i think mike also said 99% of people who bought the stiff draw caps tried to return them or have him drill them out to normal 1/16th size, which is why he stopped carrying them.
sent from a janky iphone 5
sent from a janky iphone 5
Last edited:
I'm getting more and more used to it and loving it more and more! Thanks for the replies!
So I've been reading everywhere in regards to whether or not to leave the insulator in. I can definitely put more wick in there without it.
If I do not use the insulator am I guaranteed to get a short? I have read so many posts about leaving it in and others who say they don't use it. Would really appreciate some veteran input on this and recommendations.
If I do not use the insulator am I guaranteed to get a short? I have read so many posts about leaving it in and others who say they don't use it. Would really appreciate some veteran input on this and recommendations.
If you oxidize your wick, there's no need for it. Some say that if you use the Peter K method to wrap, you don't have to oxidize or insulate, but that kinda scares me and I've never tried.
Yea I have been using the Petar K method for wrapping the coil, but still do oxidize the mesh.
I spent countless hours last night trying to get a good wick going. Got some new 500 ss mesh wick and it hasn't been bad. I read so much on how it wicks fantastically, but I honestly cannot see a difference between 325, 400, or 500 at this point. 325 did wick faster, but I still get dry hits on them all if left upright and not tilted for a while.
Does anyone have good recommendations on the specific mesh size to use? I cut some mesh about 35 mm wide. I've been reading where people are stuffing about 100 mm wide mesh in there?! Does a thicker rolled wick really help that much?
Also do any of you vets use 28 g kanthal vs 32 g?
I'm still a beginner, but the whole process of getting good flavor and good vapor production is becoming a complete headache. My fingers are raw from trying to get the coil properly wrapped and the center post last night came undone to. Sorry for the rant, still loving this thing.
Last edited:
Everyone seems to be different about their wicks; some swear by 325, 400, 500, while some say ceramic, etc. All depends on what works for you.
I'm by no means an expert, but what works for me is the burrito method- I use 2 oxidized wicks of 400, about 1/2 inch width each, and roll one around the other. I've had no wicking issues in my iHys, which is pretty much the same as a the Zen atty. I prefer having a hole down the center of my interior wick, approximately 20 gauge based on how an 18 gauge fill needle fits down it, and I don't have any wicking issues. I don't hold the pv horizontal, but it's usually canted towards my wick when I take a draw.
In both of my iHys, I have 30 ga 3/4 wraps, in my Orion I have a 28 ga 3/4 wrap, and in my Stratus atty, I had a 3/4 30ga, until I went to dual wick, and then changed it to 32 ga 6/7s to get the ohms up above 1. The Stratus coils take the longest to heat up and produce, the iHys are pretty quick, and the Orion is steaming if you even look at it sideways (3/4 is probably too low for that one, need to play with it and get it on my meter to be safe, but 28 ga @ 3/4 is the only wire it seems to want to play with).
My trick: don't use anything except genesis for a few days or a week; you'll see pretty quick what's working and what isn't. Also, about your note on making your hands raw; did the same thing with my first wick I tried to roll, never could get a solid wick without a big center hole, so I gave up and am doing fine without it. My hands and fingers thank me. PM me if you want anymore info.
I'm by no means an expert, but what works for me is the burrito method- I use 2 oxidized wicks of 400, about 1/2 inch width each, and roll one around the other. I've had no wicking issues in my iHys, which is pretty much the same as a the Zen atty. I prefer having a hole down the center of my interior wick, approximately 20 gauge based on how an 18 gauge fill needle fits down it, and I don't have any wicking issues. I don't hold the pv horizontal, but it's usually canted towards my wick when I take a draw.
In both of my iHys, I have 30 ga 3/4 wraps, in my Orion I have a 28 ga 3/4 wrap, and in my Stratus atty, I had a 3/4 30ga, until I went to dual wick, and then changed it to 32 ga 6/7s to get the ohms up above 1. The Stratus coils take the longest to heat up and produce, the iHys are pretty quick, and the Orion is steaming if you even look at it sideways (3/4 is probably too low for that one, need to play with it and get it on my meter to be safe, but 28 ga @ 3/4 is the only wire it seems to want to play with).
My trick: don't use anything except genesis for a few days or a week; you'll see pretty quick what's working and what isn't. Also, about your note on making your hands raw; did the same thing with my first wick I tried to roll, never could get a solid wick without a big center hole, so I gave up and am doing fine without it. My hands and fingers thank me. PM me if you want anymore info.
For the insulator, i use them in about half my pv's now, and in those setups im using a completely unoxidised wick.... In the other half i use a fat oxidised wick w/ no insulator. imo the unoxidised setups w/ the thinner wicks and insulators produce more vapor, but its close so its hard to tell, the unoxidised wicks definitely do give much better flavor. Always roll as thick a wick as you can so that it just barely goes in, it will wick better and give you better vapor and theres no reason not to use as big a wick as you can.
sent from a janky iphone 5
sent from a janky iphone 5
The insulator is a 'safety' feature. If your wick is not oxidized thoroughly / properly it will help protect from shorts and/or current drain. is it needed - no. Is it a good idea to use while you're learning - probably. Most RbA's don't come with an insulator and folks make out just fine.
For the insulator, i use them in about half my pv's now, and in those setups im using a completely unoxidised wick.... In the other half i use a fat oxidised wick w/ no insulator. imo the unoxidised setups w/ the thinner wicks and insulators produce more vapor, but its close so its hard to tell, the unoxidised wicks definitely do give much better flavor. Always roll as thick a wick as you can so that it just barely goes in, it will wick better and give you better vapor and theres no reason not to use as big a wick as you can.
• sent from a janky iphone 5
In theory that's likely true. But in practice there's a couple things to consider. Tests by BJ43 over in the 500 mesh thread show diminishing returns over about 80mm of wick. The other consideration is the 'heat sink' effect of real fat wicks. The coil comes up to vaporizing temperature slower and it takes a higher voltage setting to run an effective setup with a real fat wick. You might do just fine at 4-4.2 volts an a 2Ω coil on a wick ~60mm put a 2Ω coil on a 100mm wick and you'll likely need to run about 5 volts to get comparable start-up time and vapor production.
Thanks for the input mike. I actually subscribed to a thread you posted in with zap mesh sizes. It has been very helpful. I did notice you used 100mm rolled wick w/o the insulator. I will give that a shot down the road. Still so much to learn.
I have been using a burrito wick (25 to 30 mm of 500 mesh wrapped around a 3 mm piece of silica), with 30 ga kanthal, 1.7 ohms, and use the Peter-K method to make the coil.
I am not getting any hot spots/legs. It reads the same with the wick out or with the wick in(1.7 ohms) so basically that tells me there is not a short.
I use this in two Lavagens and I have not oxidized the wick in anyway at all before I put the SS wick in the Lavagen. This is with no insulator.
Keep in mind the more SS mesh you use the more it acts as a heat shrink.
More chance it will turn your liquid dark.
I have not tried it in the ZAP as I have no need to change the coil or wick yet. I see no reason it would not work. I do plan on keeping the insulator in the ZAP as I like the wick to heat up faster and really don't want any more heat shrink than I have to have. Insulator=less SS mesh.
I have gone thru 4 tanks combine and not had a problem..........YET.
Really do not think I will
I am not getting any hot spots/legs. It reads the same with the wick out or with the wick in(1.7 ohms) so basically that tells me there is not a short.
I use this in two Lavagens and I have not oxidized the wick in anyway at all before I put the SS wick in the Lavagen. This is with no insulator.
Keep in mind the more SS mesh you use the more it acts as a heat shrink.
More chance it will turn your liquid dark.
I have not tried it in the ZAP as I have no need to change the coil or wick yet. I see no reason it would not work. I do plan on keeping the insulator in the ZAP as I like the wick to heat up faster and really don't want any more heat shrink than I have to have. Insulator=less SS mesh.
I have gone thru 4 tanks combine and not had a problem..........YET.
Really do not think I will
I bought a ProVari w/ ZAP for Christmas, and I loved it! But I didn't know what it was supposed to hit like because I had nothing to compare it to.
I liked it so much, I bought a second ProVari w/ ZAP as a back up. I opened up the new one this week and WOW, it is awesome! The problem is, I don't like vaping my old one now.
The issue is the air hole on the cap. Both air holes are supposed to be the same spec, but aren't. The first one's is blocked slightly, as though the drill press didn't pass all the way through. So it has a really hard draw. On the new one, the hole is cleanly drilled through, and the hit is really easy.
I've found out that Zen designed some hard draw caps at one time, but I didn't order one of these, as I'd have no idea what one was at the time of my first order. And I don't think they are available any longer.
There's another secondary issue with the first cap. Because I don't really completely clear the cap of the vapor when hitting, there's a lot of condensation that drains back into the tank. So, I'm re-vaping a lot of juice and that juice really darkens the juice in the tank.
I love this easy hit! So the question is, which is correct for the spec? Is my original ZAP's cap defective?
I liked it so much, I bought a second ProVari w/ ZAP as a back up. I opened up the new one this week and WOW, it is awesome! The problem is, I don't like vaping my old one now.
The issue is the air hole on the cap. Both air holes are supposed to be the same spec, but aren't. The first one's is blocked slightly, as though the drill press didn't pass all the way through. So it has a really hard draw. On the new one, the hole is cleanly drilled through, and the hit is really easy.
I've found out that Zen designed some hard draw caps at one time, but I didn't order one of these, as I'd have no idea what one was at the time of my first order. And I don't think they are available any longer.
There's another secondary issue with the first cap. Because I don't really completely clear the cap of the vapor when hitting, there's a lot of condensation that drains back into the tank. So, I'm re-vaping a lot of juice and that juice really darkens the juice in the tank.
I love this easy hit! So the question is, which is correct for the spec? Is my original ZAP's cap defective?
I dont know if their is a problem with your first cap or not but a replacement cap only costs around $20. Dont remember exactly but somewhere in that area. They you can like both the same. You could also easily take a drill bit to it and drill the hole out to spec.
EDIT: Dont quote me but I think spec is 1.5mm.
the good thing about the pro/zap is that you can pretty much even that all out by just bumping up the voltage a bit. if the coil is still slow to heat up, just drop a wrap.
Last edited:
I'd say your 2nd cap is 'to specs'. You should be able to slip a 1/16" drill bit through the air hole. The Zen atty's have about the biggest air hole of all the RBA's.
Totally agree. Someday I may go "full Zen~" but I think the Provari + ZAP is an awesome combo. It's so versatile and flexible.
its hard to saw which I prefer more, the zap is actually pretty high on my list, though my prozaps (minis) are too big to take out w/ me so i mostly take the SW or ggstealth/zag. the prozaps dont give you that hybrid hit though like my mechanical stuff does, they have their pluses and minuses... some days the prozaps are my favorite, some days theyre not 
i will say though, my gf's got me jelly as she got herself a foggatti mini w/ a vari base, and its the only thing ive seen so far that looks cooler on a 'vari than a zap.
heres a pic of emonty's
not putting down the zap but that is smexy
i will say though, my gf's got me jelly as she got herself a foggatti mini w/ a vari base, and its the only thing ive seen so far that looks cooler on a 'vari than a zap.
heres a pic of emonty's
not putting down the zap but that is smexy
Last edited:
- Status
Similar threads
- Locked
