Those who used both HH357s and ERAs...

[rc10mike]

On my Grand, Ive used 1.5 short 357s and I recently made a 1.7 coil for my ERA. Both produce huge vapor, that is not an issue. The issue is flavor....Ive read a lot of great things about RBAs lately, but my ERA doesnt seem to give the flavor of my 357. In fact, the flavor is barely there at all, yet vapor is still good if not better than the 357...Im pretty confused here. Even my cartos produce flavor better than my ERA. I made the coil just like I read here on a tutorial, and made sure the air hole was in front of it.

So, I would like to discuss this in more technical detail. What is it that makes the flavor and what is it that makes the vapor? How do they relate to each other? Each of my setups produce great vapor, but one lacks severely in flavor. (same juice used in both)

 

[Mudflap]

What are you using for wicking material? I've tried both silica and fiberglass. The fiberglass wicks have a small edge on the silica for flavor, IMO. Are you torching your wick & coil before installing it on you ERA? Have you experimented with placement of the airhole? Also, you might want to try a more gentle draw compared to using the HH 357. Flavor drops off for me, too, on a regular basis, but I bathe my tongue with scalding hot coffee every morning, so I just vape thru it.

 

[Emris]

There are a lot more variables for the RBA than a standard atty. Wire, wick, how it is wound, how many coils, how tight the coils are around the wick, placement of the air hole, what voltage and what ohms. Every juice that I have vaped through any of my RBA's has been far better than any standard atty that I have used. Although there have been times that I have rebuilt my ERA and thought I placed the air hole directly over the coil area. I checked it and noticed that I was about 90 deg off of where I wanted it to be. Pop the cap off and play with the position of the air hole as opposed to the coil.

As far as what does what, the number of coils, how hot those coils get and the amount of juice that the wick can provide to the coils produce the vapor. That in combination with how much air and how the air passes over the coil aid in both production and flavor. I have found that my 357 allow much more air through the atty than most of my standard type attys. How is the draw on the ERA compared to the 357? You might want to consider opening up your air hole just a bit on the ERA.

 

[rc10mike]

After a few more coils with the ERA, I still cant reproduce what Ive had with a HH357.

Im still on the edge of selling it at this point. Sure, coils and wicks are cheap to make, but my current 357 has lasted 2 months so far, and Im having a hard time convincing myself that a ERA is the ultimate answer for performance/convenience.

 

[Sterno]

After a few more coils with the ERA, I still cant reproduce what Ive had with a HH357.

Im still on the edge of selling it at this point. Sure, coils and wicks are cheap to make, but my current 357 has lasted 2 months so far, and Im having a hard time convincing myself that a ERA is the ultimate answer for performance/convenience.

i did not like the flavor and the taste of the wick

 

[Emris]

I am getting the total opposite results. I have tried every atty and carto that I could get my hands on and none of them compair to the ERA or any of my RBA's that I have. Might want to make your air hole a little bit larger to allow more air in.

Some of the wick I had gave off a strange taste, but after I tourched it every thing was great.

 

[urquidezj]

Era reo grand - YouTube
No hh357 I've used did this

 

[TennDave]

I used the hh367 for only a week then it died- unfortunately there was no refund for me so I did not pursue buying another one. While it was working it was an awesome vape, but the ERA beats it hands down both in longevity as well as in vapor production and throat hit. The only thing negative I can say about the ERA is the breather hole needs to be opened up a bit- I'm thinking 1/16 of an inch or 3/32...something I'll try to do today.

 

[doots]

I think it is the wick you use. I find my best flavor through using silica braided wick. IMO

The 357 is no match in flavor or vapor to the RBAs I build.

Try some different wick..

I use this stuff
Rebuildable Atomizer Coil Wick - Avid Vaper

 

[karmakatie]

I vote the ERA over the HH357 (long or short barrel)for flavor and vapor anyday.....and no hot spitting!

 

[MXBNW]

BF-RBA for the win here. After 2+ years of vaping this is by fare the best production of flavor and vapor production I have ever.

 

[JC Okie]

I used 357s exclusively for about 7 months, and now I'm using the Chalice and the ERA exclusively.....hands down prefer the RBAs over the 357s....and I was a HUGE 357 fan. I'm using cotton or bamboo wicks in both the ERA and the Chalice and love, love, love them. I haven't (probably won't...they're working just the way I want them to work) drilled out the air holes at all in either, and I have been wrapping 1.5-1.7 ohm wicks....which seem perfect to me. I'm trying to figure out how to get a 2.3-2.5 ohm wick wrapped out of the supplies I have, but so far I haven't been able to pull it off. I'm in my rut. But I don't mind it.....a rut is a groove if you enjoy being in it. Anyway, that's my vote....ERA over 357 for flavor, vapor, and convenience.

Jan

EDIT: Of the Chalice and the ERA, I prefer the Chalice a tiny bit more. Because of the drain hole right in the middle of the floor, it is more "forgiving" if I over-squonk. I can flood the ERA because the juice doesn't drain back into the bottle; it does with the Chalice, so I just can't seem to flood it (yay....not that I want to.) But the price of the ERA makes it a very, VERY close second. If they were both the same price, I'd own several Chalices....

 

[rc10mike]

Ive been doing a ton of research on wick setups for the ERA. Just recently I ordered the stuff to start making SS wicks. So far nothing Ive tried has come close to the HH357.

One important thing Id like to mention is the juice. Ive been using the same exact juice since day 1. So I can tell immediately when things arent working as I like. Ive used this same juice with cartos, attys, LR, HR, VV and everything in between. So far the only thing I cant get good performance in is my ERA.

 

[rc10mike]

Ive been using bamboo wick for the last few days. Initially it was working great with my ERA. For the first few days I thought I found the answer, but sadly, the bamboo wick only seems to last a few days at a time before it needs changing. Pretty much as long as a carto. In this case a carto is simply easier to swap out than making my own coil.

I still need to try out the SS wick idea...

At this point, I really dont know how I feel about RBAs. If the only way to get good performance out of them is to build a new coil every few days then Ill probably pass...

Its like changing out cartos every few days, but with a RBA you have to build it every time...no thanks, Id rather just fill my carto and go rather then mess with winding, wick and small hex screws.

Im really starting to believe my juice is the issue though. I guess I am one of the few that use the same juice all the time. Ive used the same stuff for 5 months. I consider it my "control" in my experiment to find the best vape. Out of everything Ive tried, the only thing that stayed the same is the juice, which is JC Tennessee Cured 100% VG.

 

[kabonk]

I have a DIY like that it's one of my favorites been making it and vaping it everyday for about a year, it taste great in a carto tank or a vivi nova but looses something in a genesis or ERA

 

[Ratman]

Well Mike, I hope you find a setup that works for you, I really do. If you don't tho, I will be glad to liberate your ERA for appropriate ransom. I have been borrowing one and am sold. It is true tho, some juices work a lot better than others. The first one I tried had a very muted flavor that I attributed to needing to break in the wick. It didn't get any better so I rinsed it, dried and loaded up another and it was fantastic. Same wick, same coil, same REO and voltage but totally different results.

 

[rc10mike]

Well Mike, I hope you find a setup that works for you, I really do. If you don't tho, I will be glad to liberate your ERA for appropriate ransom. I have been borrowing one and am sold. It is true tho, some juices work a lot better than others. The first one I tried had a very muted flavor that I attributed to needing to break in the wick. It didn't get any better so I rinsed it, dried and loaded up another and it was fantastic. Same wick, same coil, same REO and voltage but totally different results.

Hmm, what kind of wick and juice were you using?

 

[Ratman]

DNC Cotton Pearl embroidery thread with Boba's Bounty. then switch to BMV Smooth

 

[rc10mike]

So I decided to try opening the air hole on the ERA to 3/64. Not much of a difference IMO. For some reason, I still cant get ANY flavor from this thing. Vapor is great, but flavor sucks. To make things clear again, Im using the same juice Ive used for 5 months straight now. I can tell when it tastes its best. So far, the ERA has never been able to produce a flavorful vape.

EDIT: An odd side effect Ive noticed when using the ERA is that after a few hours of vaping it, my mouth feels extremely dry, as if I have a ball of cotten in it..Ive never had this with any atty or carto.

 

[Ratman]

Man I hate that it's not working well for you. Have you tried any other juices in it? I know you just use that primary juice but for testing purposes to see if it is something with that particular combination of juice with the ERA. (If you already stated you did, I missed it...still too early and not enough coffee yet)