Top Coil Suggestions?

[ThaHealer]

Hello all, recently I've switched to 100% RDA's, literally they are all I own at this point (except for a lone T3). Last week I got a few things from Gotvapes and Bad had thrown in said T3 (filled w/ a very tasty juice I might add, not sure what it was...). I still don't like the vape from the T3 personally, but it reminded me of the convenience that a clearo provides. I've tried the bottom coils and find that half the time they work great for me, the other half I'm getting dry hits or gurgling. I also like a warmer vape. At one point I was convinced top coils would never perform like I wanted due to wicking, but after messing with rebuildables for quite a while I've learned that juice can climb a good piece of silica just fine and that dry hits are more related to the quality of the coil, thickness of wick, whether the juice is choked at any point getting to the coil, etc. I didn't care for the Vivi Nova because I always found the taste a little off. The iClear30 was okay, but I found the draw WAY too tight, especially after using RDA's with enlarged airflow. I'm curious now about the Gemini, the Vision Vistory VT, and the Kamry X6. A few questions, hopefully for some folks who may have tried them all and some rebuildables as well. Which has the most airy draw and how would you compare it to a Nova or iClear? Which can handle the highest voltage/wattage and what range? Which has given the least amount of dry/burnt hits? For any rebuildable users, I know these are not going to give the same type of vape, but which do you think might be the most satisfying?

Thanks in advance for any advice.

 

[FloydianSlip]

Well I'll jump in here as I do use and love the Vision Victory VT tank. It is a great tank and vapes very well on both my joyetech Ego 1000mAh and 650mAh batteries (non VV batts). The flavors are good, the vapor thick and warm (not too warm) and no leaks at all. I do give 'em a twirl so to speak when the tank is down to 1/4 or less to keep the wicks wet or I will get a slightly dry hit but by then I am usually topping off the tank. I love the solid feel of these tanks and the ego thread skirt looks really sleek. I know I am a newb and have little experience but I can tell you my set up just plain works and works nice. I also love how easy these are to fill as well. The draw is not too tight and not as airy as a Protank which I have also used. I hope this helps somewhat.

Keep on Vapin'

 

[ThaHealer]

It does help, thank you! Some people found the Protank too airy, but it was just about perfect for me, when I could get a good, full hit from it. I can do a slightly tighter draw, but not by much. I'm also interested in hearing from folks who have used any of these on vv/vw mods, at what point they start tasting burnt.

Thank you

 

[Adrena]

Hay Healer,I just want to throw the Search Results : GotVapes.com, E-cigarette Supplies - Atomizers Cartomizers Mods Juice and more at you tried just about every TC out there and this is my fave for hit and flavor. Can rebuilt it too if you want...

But you can never go wrong with the true Vision line...

 

[FloydianSlip]

It does help, thank you! Some people found the Protank too airy, but it was just about perfect for me, when I could get a good, full hit from it. I can do a slightly tighter draw, but not by much. I'm also interested in hearing from folks who have used any of these on vv/vw mods, at what point they start tasting burnt.

Thank you

Glad to be of help Healer

 

[bassmonster]

I haven't used the victory, but I've been using a Gemini for a few weeks now, and it is phenomenal! The only downside is the tank size. It is pretty small, but works like a champ. Great flavor and vapor, nice warm vape, and rarely a dry hit.

 

[yiddleboge6]

It does help, thank you! Some people found the Protank too airy, but it was just about perfect for me, when I could get a good, full hit from it. I can do a slightly tighter draw, but not by much. I'm also interested in hearing from folks who have used any of these on vv/vw mods, at what point they start tasting burnt.

Thank you

Just thought that I's mention that the burnt taste factor is also dependent on what juice you are using. I use vv/vw and have to adjust according to the juice.....

 

[ThaHealer]

Thanks everyone for the impressions! I'm still looking to know which of these has the airiest draw and can handle the most power. You are right Yiddles! I have juices on my rda's that I use around 12 watts and others that I can crank up to the 14-15 watt range. Adrena, I've seen a lot of reviews on the Splitfire or similar tanks that say it gets really dry above around 3.7v, has that been your experience? What voltage/resistance combination do you run? Same to you bassmonster, what voltage/resistance are you using on the Gemini (although as a dual coil it's kind of comparing apples to oranges)?

Thank you again everyone for all the input!

 

[Adrena]

Thanks everyone for the impressions! I'm still looking to know which of these has the airiest draw and can handle the most power. You are right Yiddles! I have juices on my rda's that I use around 12 watts and others that I can crank up to the 14-15 watt range. Adrena, I've seen a lot of reviews on the Splitfire or similar tanks that say it gets really dry above around 3.7v, has that been your experience? What voltage/resistance combination do you run? Same to you bassmonster, what voltage/resistance are you using on the Gemini (although as a dual coil it's kind of comparing apples to oranges)?

Thank you again everyone for all the input!

I run mine 2.4-2.8 to around 4.5 -5 watts, not a prob for me it this range. (my juice is 70p/30v for the most part)

 

[rdsok]

ThaHealer...

Most commercial vaporizers are not made for that type of power... One example, Kanger recommends on their 3 ohm coils only up to 4.7v which would only give you just over 7.3w of power. Another side of this is that it's as much the e-liquid which will limit power ( on conventional coils ) because it will start to burn at high powers.

This is a lot of why most high power vapor's will build their own coils... they can build them so the power is spread over a larger area which helps keep the juice from burning. They do this by using larger gauge wire so the heat is spread out more, provides more area to make vapor with and then use longer wire so they can keep the ohms in the range they are building for.

 

[rdsok]

I select the power setting based on the flavor I get on the particular juice I'm vaping... each juice is different. Most of mine I'll vape in the 6w-9w range... with the majority being 6w-7w. I have a few juices that can take up to 11w without burning ( on a conventional coil ) but the flavor changes or in some cases even seems weaker... so I adjust according to my own taste.

 

[ThaHealer]

ThaHealer...

Most commercial vaporizers are not made for that type of power... One example, Kanger recommends on their 3 ohm coils only up to 4.7v which would only give you just over 7.3w of power. Another side of this is that it's as much the e-liquid which will limit power ( on conventional coils ) because it will start to burn at high powers.

This is a lot of why most high power vapor's will build their own coils... they can build them so the power is spread over a larger area which helps keep the juice from burning. They do this by using larger gauge wire so the heat is spread out more, provides more area to make vapor with and then use longer wire so they can keep the ohms in the range they are building for.

rdsok, I'm aware that most clearos won't handle the wattage of an rda, that is why I said I knew it would be a different type of vape than my rda's and asked which of those I mentioned could handle the most power...

Either I like burnt juice or your theory is only partially accurate. A 3/2 wrap of 34 gauge, 2.2 ohms, is sitting on my Provari right now running at 14 watts. Of course, you did say "conventional coils" so my build may be outside the realm of your reference.

To simplify my original question, are any of these newer top coils able to comfortably hit the 8.5 watt range, one with a draw similar to or not much tighter than a Protank?

 

[ThaHealer]

I select the power setting based on the flavor I get on the particular juice I'm vaping... each juice is different. Most of mine I'll vape in the 6w-9w range... with the majority being 6w-7w. I have a few juices that can take up to 11w without burning ( on a conventional coil ) but the flavor changes or in some cases even seems weaker... so I adjust according to my own taste.

Assuming the juice can handle it, what device were you using that could take the 9-11 watts that you mention rdsok?

 

[rdsok]

I quit using top coils but have used Vision Vivi Nova's up to around 9w if I recall, but I think you mentioned not caring for those.... The bottom coils work better for my own needs, I prefer the Kangers at the moment but I recently have been using a couple of SmokTech's that are using coils that are clones of the Kangers so work very similar. When I was vaping at over 9w... was on my own RBA or RDA. It wasn't relevant to conventional commercially available coils but to make a point about the juices themselves. The comments about surface area and the heat applied are not "theory" as you called it, it is a fact. Other things that also apply has to do with how fast you feed a coil... more juice will cool down a coil quicker and also allow a higher power... but the number that are recommended by the manufacturers aren't going to be affected much by those since they are already taking into account things like the available surface area of their coils as well as the expected juice flow to be expected with their wicks.

You need to figure out what power you are going to vape at... the post I responded to mentioned 12w-15w... now you are altering those values it seems.... I was only speaking on the technical aspects that affect how high you can take a coil/wick etc... I am not going to recommend any particular top coil simply because I'm not currently using them any longer. Take the info given and use it however you find useful... but most of it just applies to how things work in general ( top or bottom coil is irrelevant )

 

[ThaHealer]

I quit using top coils but have used Vision Vivi Nova's up to around 9w if I recall, but I think you mentioned not caring for those.... The bottom coils work better for my own needs, I prefer the Kangers at the moment but I recently have been using a couple of SmokTech's that are using coils that are clones of the Kangers so work very similar. When I was vaping at over 9w... was on my own RBA or RDA. It wasn't relevant to conventional commercially available coils but to make a point about the juices themselves. The comments about surface area and the heat applied are not "theory" as you called it, it is a fact. Other things that also apply has to do with how fast you feed a coil... more juice will cool down a coil quicker and also allow a higher power... but the number that are recommended by the manufacturers aren't going to be affected much by those since they are already taking into account things like the available surface area of their coils as well as the expected juice flow to be expected with their wicks.

You need to figure out what power you are going to vape at... the post I responded to mentioned 12w-15w... now you are altering those values it seems.... I was only speaking on the technical aspects that affect how high you can take a coil/wick etc... I am not going to recommend any particular top coil simply because I'm not currently using them any longer. Take the info given and use it however you find useful... but most of it just applies to how things work in general ( top or bottom coil is irrelevant )

If your point was that a longer coil of thicker wire at the same resistance can handle greater power and, at a given power level, operate at a lower temperature over a given length thus resulting in more even overall heating, then yes, I agree and your point is noted. As you added later, how the coil is fed (in my case with multiple, thick wicks) plays a great role as well, as does airflow and a variety of other factors...

Of course, given that information, one doesn't "need to figure out what power (they) are going to vape at" because it could vary based on the device and all these associated factors you mentioned. I stated that I vape my RDA's at 12-14 watts in response to Yiddles' point that different juices have different sweet spots. I also stated that I realize the vape from an RDA and a clearomizer aren't generally comparable. I asked which top coil folks have been able to run at the highest power level and which had the airiest draw. I genuinely appreciate your effort to educate me on the intricacies of the varied heating properties of resistance wire and really enjoy that sort of chit chat In this case I was looking for something a little more straightforward and practical which I believe I have gotten from the fine folks here.

At this point, I'm leaning towards the Gemini, I believe it is my best bet. Can anyone describe it's draw? If you could compare to a Raven, Protank, Vivi Nova, or iClear it would be most helpful since those are devices that are familiar to me. If needed I can transfer that specific question to the Gemini thread.

Thanks again everyone for all the help!

 

[rdsok]

Yeah... wasn't really wanting to go into all of that "laws of thermal dynamics" stuff as much as try to explain why the commercial coils aren't usually being pushed as high of a power as the custom ones we build ourselves...


Generally in a forum... if the post/question is about a single product ( or subject may be a more universal way to say it )... it's a good idea to post in a thread about that product... Your question is about several and how they compare... I see no reason to not keep it in its own thread that you already have going. You also wouldn't need to repeat yourself again that way as much.

 

[ThaHealer]

Thank you sir. If the time should arise when we can chit chat more about coil building, I would enjoy that. I've wrapped (no pun intended) my head around some of it, but have much to learn. I've become obsessed with my rda's and am generally happy with my builds, but always looking to make them better.

 

[bassmonster]

As far as power, I adjust pretty regularly, depending on how I feel at the time, but I am currently running 7.9 W on my evic with 18 mg crushed caramel apple. The Gemini is reading 2.0 ohms, and I typically range from 7.9 - 8.8 W. The draw is not extremely loose or tight, a good mid range draw, I've not used the pro tank, so I can't compare. Hope that helps.

 

[orbach]

The best top coil clearo I've tried is the Titan tank, closely followed by the SplitFire. Unfortunately, the Titan has been out of stock now for ages, although I understand it has not been discontinued. I guess it just doesn't sell that well :-(, which I can't understand at all.

 

[ThaHealer]

As far as power, I adjust pretty regularly, depending on how I feel at the time, but I am currently running 7.9 W on my evic with 18 mg crushed caramel apple. The Gemini is reading 2.0 ohms, and I typically range from 7.9 - 8.8 W. The draw is not extremely loose or tight, a good mid range draw, I've not used the pro tank, so I can't compare. Hope that helps.

Thank you bassmonster! That is what I was looking for. 7.9-8.8 watts on a dual coil sounds like a good bet for me (similar to the iclear). As long as the draw isn't overly tight I think I'll enjoy it. The Gemini it is. Thanks again Gotvapers for helping me with my decision!