When does the cheaper than cigarette part start ^_^

[guruguhan]

Smoked for 19 years (was coincidence I quit before hitting 20) - most recently two packs a day (20cigs per pack).

Quit two months ago, from two packs (of regular strength) to 2ml of 18mg @ 4v, 1.8ohm (initially ego twists with protanks). I LOVED SMOKING. Hated what it was doing to me, but loved the feeling and act. I'm stunned I haven't looked back. I am a gadget guy, so the hobby aspect of vaping has definitely helped. I have frequently been around smokers. Having gotten into this well after this regulation discussion has gotten underway (and being sooooooo happy of being free of the tobacco companies......those ......!)...I've been going a little nuts on toys. I can't see ever coming close spending in a year on ecigware what I did on smokes, even if I was back to a pack a day:

Average price of a pack of smokes - $9 (my brand was $10.50/day)
365*10.5 = $3832/year

What could you buy with $3832?
4L 100mg nic - $4-500
VG and PG - 15L - $300
flavor (5L) - $500
therefore 24L of 18mg juice - $1300
My current usage per year would amount to 720mL....so that's enough juice for a quarter century for me (I'm just using this as an example, of course I don't buy in these amounts - its unfortunate you can't store nic for that long, but I do DIY).

If under some inhuman circumstance I could consume 24L of juice in a year, I'd still have $2500 to spend on goodies before I broke even with a one-pack a day habit. I smoked two. It's not even a debate whether I'm saving money.

 

[HauntedMyst]

Any tips on how to not want a new toy each week?

Yes, just don't buy any. Put yourselve on a reward/punishment system. If you go the whole day without buying anything, then you can vape your best juice. If you buy something, you have to hit yourself in the junk with a meat tenderizer (It won't feel tender). If after 3 months you haven't tenderized yourself, then you can buy one item.

 

[CrimsonJack]

Yes, just don't buy any. Put yourselve on a reward/punishment system. If you go the whole day without buying anything, then you can vape your best juice. If you buy something, you have to hit yourself in the junk with a meat tenderizer (It won't feel tender). If after 3 months you haven't tenderized yourself, then you can buy one item.

Wow. Just.....wow. Had to check that I hadn't wandered into the wrong forum. ECS&M or something.

 

[moishesmom]

Hi, I'm Mike.. and I'm a vaper... but's it's been 10 days since I've spent over 100.00 on a new mod or atty. (well.. that RM2 was under 50.00)... eventually you will have 1 of every type, and 2 of what you like, and you will feel OK... after that, it's just about what might catch your eye, but you will no longer NEED to get it. The juice is trickier, but hopefully you will find one or two that you really like, and the rest are just there on the buffet for when you feel like something different. It does slow down... eventually....

You speak from pure LOGIC & that's good. However, logic doesn't cut it when you consider the FDA & armeggedon, especially the FDA!

 

[vernhall]

When do the savings start? As soon as we each can overcome our addictive personalities... Translated that means no time soon...

 

[GypsySyx]

I look at it this way....

After the initial investment for equipment (about twice what I spent per month on cigs and lighters and mainly because there was a lot of trial and error trying to find what I liked and would stick to), my spending tapered down to about one fourth of my old monthly per month spending on cigs.

Then, I figure I've just kind of switched what I spend my disposable income on. If I want to try a new juice or tank, one fewer dinner out a month buys about 5 new juices. One fewer pairs of boots, a few batteries. Less food for the baby, buys me a nice drip tip (I kid I kid!!!)

Now if only I could figure out how to vape Starbucks, I'd save a fortune

 

[skoony]

having been a 2 pack a day smoker,and the average price of a pack is now about $7.50
all this stuff could be gold plated and i'd still come out ahead.
regards
mike

 

[WattWick]

Cheaper than cigarettes start... when you move to Norway and pay $17 for a pack. Gives you a lot of room to play around with various gear and still save quite a lot.

I decided to spend as much on finding something that worked for me as I did on smoking for the first couple of months. Once I got there, I have hardly spent anything on vaping except nic base. Last couple of weeks I've spent a bit on new gear just for the heck of it. Still I'm probably $1000+ ahead since February.... and can't think of any gear I want to spend money on in the foreseeable future.

 

[Amnesia1187]

So I've read through all the comments and there is definitely a great deal of advice. I agree with what most everyone, but there was one thing that stood out to me that I totally disagree with:

If vaping is a HOBBY for you, as it sounds like, since you spent so much on a provari, then vaping will NEVER be as cheap as smoking cigarettes.....cigarettes weren't a hobby.

First, at least for me, smoking was somewhat of a hobby, I only ever really smoked socially/at work. I quite literally wouldn't smoke at all on my weekends. I also was able to enjoy higher quality/more unique types of cigarettes like Nat Shermans, Camel Reds, Lucky Strike Filterless (so bad for you but soooo good). Admittedly, I also used it as a form of stress relief.

Anyway, regardless, I wish I had just sucked it up and bought Provari from the start. I probably went through 5-6 ego type batteries over the last year, and would invariably end up smoking cigarettes again as either the battery would become less satisfying as it drained, or more likely, yet another battery fell apart and became of no use. At $10-15 each, that's probably like $70-80 spent with nothing to show for it when it's all said and done. Yes, the Provari would have cost more upfront, but I'm confident that 2 years... 3 years from now, my Provari will till be going strong.

Now don't get me wrong, ego type batteries can give a good experience, definitely more so than cigalikes, but the big problem with the egos is consistency. They just degrade to fast, both in each individual use, and over time. I think it would have been much easier for me to stick with vaping from the start if I had just gotten high quality gear from the start and had a consistent vape all the time.

As to everything else, I was half being serious and half being ironic. I most definitely feel like while I did have a very high cost of entry (I think in the last month I've spent like $800, though most of that was covered by selling my nice headphones that I never used anymore) that I will still end up more than breaking even in the long run.

Between my Provari (2yrs of warranty) and my Futura (1yr warranty, hopefully it will be as high quality as I'm hoping), I can't really see the need for any more mods save maybe a cheap SID or Vamo or something as an emergency backup. I have no interested in Mechs or Box Mods, and I really can't imagine a situation where either the Provari or the Futura (DNA-20 Tube) wouldn't be able to provide me a good experience.

As for RBAs/Attomizers/Cartomizers, I really hope the Kayfun Lite meets my expectations, but if it doesn't I can always recoup some of my money by selling it. I got the AL-1 just to try a Genesis style (I know RSST is cheaper, but meh), though I kinda think I will end up selling it just due to the high level of care needed to travel around with it. If nothing else, IkenVape cartos and IBTanked tanks give a great experience that will be more than adequate for me should I decide RBAs are not worth the effort.

Beyond all that, all that's really left is liquid, and while I'm sure I will end up buying more before I use up what I have, $100 bought me enough eLiquid from MtBaker to more than last me a year, no matter how heavily I vape. It's going to take me around 6 months to break even on what I was spending on cigarettes, but once I hit that line, I'm fairly confident that I will be hard pressed to spend like that again, I can't imagine ever needing to spend $100 a month on eLiquid.

My whole point is just that even buying nice enthusiast gear, once you get your core kit, regardless of how high end it may be, you will invariably break even unless you are a true collector/enthusiast who MUST have the ProVari in every color and MUST have a Kayfun or Ithaka for all 12 liquids you are vaping each week.

Honestly, I think the only real expense I may have from here on out is just going to be buying up smaller kits for some of my friends and coworkers to try and turn them on to vaping.


PS. Just got my first bottle of Mad Murdock's Radiator Pluid. GOOD GOD IT'S SO DELICIOUS. So much flavor. I'm also amazed at how well it wicks in a carto tank despite how thick it looks. I honestly hate anise, but this stuff is delicious, the vapor is so thick and wonderful, what it kinda reminds me of strangely is those root beer candies, or maybe the darker colored hard candies they sometimes have at Italian restaurants. Despite what it costs, I would highly recommend giving it a try at least once.

 

[dchest02]

My transition from hobby to "finally have everything I want" is happening now. For the first year I was getting something in the mail EVERY day. (My mailman has to hate me) Lately though, I browse my usual vendors from time to time, and can't justify spending money on the "new big thing." I have enough cartos/tanks, RBAs/supplies, juice, DIY supplies, batteries, and devices to last me for the next year or two. But that first year to 18 months was a big drain on my bank account for sure. Every now and then I do buy something new to test, but completely for testing purposes as I have my fair share of people asking my opinion about what they should buy.

The other exception is juice. I like to try all the "popular" juices everyone talks about. Thankfully most juice is relatively inexpensive. I don't mind dropping $20-$30 a month to try something new. Especially when I went from spending at least $100 a week (usually more), to maybe $100 a month. I'd say in another 6 months to a year I will start actually saving money.

 

[Fizzpop]

My wife and I started seeing serious saving when we started re-building everything. I'm sure DIY juices would add even more, but don't have an interest in going down that path. I'd say we are spending half (or less) of what we did on analogs.

 

[Mrs C]

Did You Say DIY?!?!? Rebuilding Coils?!?!?

sure why not This old gal is pretty handy. Already have and know how to use a multi meter. My own not DH's. Mixing juice mixing cake batter only difference is no one gets to lick the spoon

 

[shroom]

It doesn't really have to be cheaper.

 

[VV_James]

Did You Say DIY?!?!? Rebuilding Coils?!?!?

sure why not This old gal is pretty handy. Already have and know how to use a multi meter. My own not DH's. Mixing juice mixing cake batter only difference is no one gets to lick the spoon

Don't get me wrong... I wasn't questioning your ability to do it!
Just whether or not it's going to save you money

As for licking the spoon, you can do that too! Up to a point!
When I diy... Specially with more complex flavor blends, I start with small plastic medicine cups, and an eyedropper...
Instead of PG/VG/Nic I use water...

Mix in small quantities, keeping track of how many drops of which flavors you use then add enough water to reach 1 mil, and taste, adjust as necessary.

This helps me get the flavor combinations to a close balance before I start using up my more expensive liquids.

Yes the taste will change with the addition of the Nic, and be muted by the vg, but you'll already bave the basic flavor ratios down...

You will have to adjust the amount of flavor mix you add to overcome the taste change caused by your base mix, but that art is easy.

I usually bottle my flavorless base mix, and then bottle my flavor mixes separately once I've found one I like...

But be prepared to adjust again because the flavors WILL change over time with steeping (age)...

After all that it's a simple matter of measuring the base into a bottle and adding the appropriate amount of whatever pre-bottled flavor blend for what you want to vape... Shake, steep, and enjoy

 

[thompsondd]

HA! I thought the same thing. At least when it came to cigarettes vs vaping.

But I haven't stopped buying juices yet (not to mention buying a couple (yes, a couple) of Vamos and tanks, tanks and more tanks). I'm still searching for juices that I like so I'm buying like a madman.

So, I'm probably spending MORE per day on vaping compared to smoking. At least for now.

Until it normalizes, the savings comes in from Dr co-pays and Rx prescriptions you aren't buying from getting sick of cigarettes.

 

[Robino1]

Since this is a joke, I won't tell you how I've saved over $1,300.00 so far.




















Oh what the hell, spreadsheets are your friend.

 

[Wraith]

Interesting question. I know I am a bit late into this post so there's likely to be a lot of repeating things that have already been said. So let me begin with a quote ... "this above all to thine own self be true". Ecigs are unarguably a more affordable nicotine delivery system than analogs. If one is simply looking for a way to get nicotine while replacing the associated behaviors as well then something as simple as a ego kit may well suffice. OK to be totally fair even something like a Blu might work, can't see it myself but hey it works for some.

Then comes the hobbyist phase. You know those folks who like to be able to play with power settings and different delivery systems to find that perfect combo that takes them to their happy place hit after hit after hit. This can include the whole DIY spectrum from rebuilding to sub-ohm to mixing your own juices. I envy them, lucky so and so's eventually get to wher all they need is kanthal, some wicking material and their juice supplies. Now you're saving too, just had a higher initial investment stage.

Then you get to my category. The collectors. We see a beautiful new mod, an irresistable RDA or genesis and as our hearts are still skipping a beat our hands are reaching for the wallet and that marvelous little plastic card it contains. I tell myself if I stay to really well made clones rather than 200+ dollar mods and focus on developing my juice mixing skills it'll all even out. This is self delusion. As I sat, poised to jump my mail man for two new mods I found myself ordering a third. As I type I am seriously contemplating a 30 dollar drip tip. Yes I said drip tip, but you have to understand, it's over 3 inches of hourglass curved painstakingly machined stainless steel. It's not an indulgence, it's an investment ... it'll last forever and I will never need another again. Some of you will now be laughing, others will have a mildly horrified expression on their faces because they caught themselves nodding. To the former I say congratulations. This habit of ours will eventually, if it is not already, save you money. To the latter I say ... welcome to my glorious nightmare brothers and sisters. At the end of the day I can climb stairs with no issue, my blinds stay white and my dog doesn't suffer bouts of unsightly localized shedding. So as long as there is food in the cupboard and my utilities stay on I'm good.

Did that really answer anything, no probably not. If it pleases you and you're meeting your other obligations in life while adding years to it by staying off analogs just kick back and enjoy the ride. If the outlay is truly stressing someone I humbly submit that their attention to only their vaping expenses is rather like the captain of the Titanic thinking the tip was the entire iceberg. Want is not need as many of us, myself included, must remind ourselves at times. I have arrived at the point where mods are viewed as something to bear in mind for gifts to myself at yule and my birthday, atomizers and such ... well hey at least I got the mod thing somewhat under control.

And so for now I bid you adieu as I pick up my Chi-you with it's humble RSST attached and have a vape. Ahhhh, vape on friends, vape on.

 

[shroom]

I made another picture of my stash of atomizers.

 

[Amnesia1187]

I made another picture of my stash of atomizers.

I R Jealous. I see 5 Kayfuns, 4 KFLs, 2 what I think are Ithakas and then several things I don't recognize. What are the other ones? Why so many of the same thing? Just easier changing of flavors/devices?

 

[VV_James]

In point of fact, I feel compelled to state that whether you're totally satisfied with your current gear, or an uncontrollable collector (like a lot of us, myself included) the MAIN point here is:

Regardless of what you're spending...
You are NOT spending it on Cigarettes!!!!!