Vivi Nova Rebuild tutorial

[DrewGrimey]

Thanks for the help everyone, I'll take everything into consideration. Probably will get the 32awg, I was just trying to avoid getting the 100 ft roll. I'm really determined on using the ss mesh so there's no turning back now, otherwise I don't think I would bother with rebuilding the heads since healthcabin sells them for like $1.39 each

 

[xMackx]

Thanks for the help everyone, I'll take everything into consideration. Probably will get the 32awg, I was just trying to avoid getting the 100 ft roll. I'm really determined on using the ss mesh so there's no turning back now, otherwise I don't think I would bother with rebuilding the heads since healthcabin sells them for like $1.39 each

It adds up fast, with buying kanthal in 100 ft. spool and a pack of cheese cloth it cost about 3 cents to rebuild rewick/coil each atty.

 

[DrewGrimey]

I agree, I just feel like if I'm gonna do it, I gotta go big and use the ss mesh.

You use cheese cloth as your wick? How does that work out for you, better than a regular wick?

 

[xMackx]

I agree, I just feel like if I'm gonna do it, I gotta go big and use the ss mesh.

You use cheese cloth as your wick? How does that work out for you, better than a regular wick?

I've tried every type of wick out there, cotton is my favorite for vapor production and flavor. Since you are going with ss mesh make sure you test it on something with short circuit protection otherwise you can easily burn your battery because you will have shorts while learning ss mesh.

 

[MISTer E]

My new ceramic vivi head tutorial was put on a temporary hold, due to my scattered nature Soon...

I do luv me sum ceramic. I can get my coils wall touching wide along with the coolness properties.

No ceramic tut, so i consulted a Pharaoh on ancient grommet making techniques!

So sit back & learn how to recycle some stuff [you may have] in this High Temp! Vivi Nova silicone grommet recycle replacement reel.
best seen full screen HD

I like some old skool Cottons, hemps ,[need to try bamboo] & some machine age meshes with my modern A1 Kanthal. It's nice to have choices & variety.

 

[xMackx]

Neat idea Mister-e. No matter what system there is there is usually still silicone/rubber/plastic components. I would like to see an all glass and ceramic atomizer with only poistive/negetive leads metal someday. I intend on trying to build one eventually.

 

[Nuuze]

Thanks to this thread I rebuilt my first Vivi Nova head this week!

To help prevent burning the wick from over burn and the wick taste you sometimes encounter I wrapped a small piece of 500 mesh before wrapping the coil.

6 wraps of 32g

vape on!

 

[DrewGrimey]

^What kind of wick? cotton, fiber glass, silica, etc....

 

[Nuuze]

It's the wick that comes with the Vivi Nova. The existing coil was shot on it so I decided to rebuild.

 

[xMackx]

I rebuilt both my vivi mini novas last night using my same method, except I was anxious and tried to vape it right after filling with liquid. Even though I know cotton needs at least an hour to absorb/expand so it wicks properly and I ended up with grommet burn. After letting the cotton soak it stays wet enough so the legs don't burn.

Even though it was my own fault for not following my own advice, I'm still thinking I want to replace the silicone grommet with something better. I would like to see any methods you guys have used to do so like Mister-E did.

 

[Nuuze]

I vape right after filling tank. Just make sure you do some dry hits before actual firing to prime the entire wick.

 

[xMackx]

I vape right after filling tank. Just make sure you do some dry hits before actual firing to prime the entire wick.

You can't dry burn cotton, silica and ss mesh are opposite apposed to cotton. With silica and ss mesh they can handle serious heat, cotton burns easy but is so absorbent it brings coil/wick temperature down.

 

[xMackx]

Went shopping at my favorite store, the dollar tree and found 100% cotton twine 420 feet for 1 dollar. I just boiled and dried 20 feet of it, wrapped a coil.

I wanted to try different types of cotton as they are different. It is easier to work with than cheese cloth, but I'll report back on how it works.

 

[xMackx]

Yeah after doing a burn test I'm not sure my cotton twine is 100% cotton. I did the burn test and it felt crispy when burnt, which may be a polyester mix. It says 100% cotton on the label but I have my concern with it.

On another note I tried cotton batting in my vivi mini nova and it works very well. I used the install the coil first and thread wick through method on my nova and my did and it seems fool proof now I got it down. It's amazing how different cottons preform completely different. I did notice the cotton batting seemed to mute the flavor a little but I just put a stronger juice in the tank and walla.

I'll do some more pics and maybe a tutorial on the new cotton type/method later.

 

[xMackx]

Here is a way you can go cotton without having to mod the slots on your vivi nova. Basically I have different sized sewing needles for different sized coils. Wrap the coil, install into the vivi head with the needle still in the coil. Then take cotton batting and roll it until it will fit easily through the coil. Let soak for 10-15 minutes to absorb and expand and vape. Tastes great right from the first hit.

Something I noticed about cotton batting is it's more absorbent than other cotton types so less time needed to soak. It's also much more forgiving to how far apart the coil wraps are.

For someone new to cotton, cotton batting is probably the easiest to use

Specs:

1. 33 AWG Kanthal 4 wraps around medium size sewing needle 1.7omh's
2. Cotton batting (same stuff as gauze, balls, Q-tips)

 

[xMackx]

Just noticed I didn't get all the pics in with my tutorial so here are the rest.

 

[Thompson]

Just finished my 3rd attempt, er, first one I finished with liking the results. First came in at .9Ω on the provari and second was 1.4Ω but didn't really like my building of them.

SS #400 & Kanthal A 30 awg is what I'm using

This one comes in at 1.6Ω, I forget the amount of wraps at the moment, but its vaping & wicking very nicely. Definitely increased flavor & vapor over the stock parts.

Just received my bamboo yarn too so will have to try that out. Have some silver NR in the mail should be here this week. Thinking about getting some 32awg kanthal. Believe I've got sterile cotton balls around somewhere too.

Busy week ahead I believe

I have noticed a definite increase in juice, but my rate of use has gone up quite a bit too...the increase in enjoyment just encourages it. But I just loaded up about a ml of A+ to sample it before steeping and I'm halfway or more through it in around an hour.

 

[Thompson]

I'm noticing some vapor sneaking into the tank, does anybody know what causes this/what the fix is?

 

[Sigaro]

I'm noticing some vapor sneaking into the tank, does anybody know what causes this/what the fix is?

Make sure you put the little silicon cap back on and that it is seated correctly. Otherwise, the tank fills with vapor.

 

[monuoha]

Are people still rebuilding these?

They sell a blister pack of heads for less than $7.

Buy 2 of those & your good for months. Why spend hours fiddling around with this stuff?