Which has a higher coil gunk factor - creams or sweetener?

[dannyv45]

I'm 62 with bad eye sight, arthritis as well as carpel tunnel in both hands. It was difficult when I first started expecially getting the coil ends wrapped around those tiny screws on the rba binding post. The more I did it the easier it got. Now it takes me 2 - 3 minutes to coil the wire and mount it. I use a cheap $8.00 winder tool (Link below) which makes perfect coils every time. In fact I don't even use the table base anymore I just use the winder rod and wind it by hand around it. It's not as hard as it seems.

Amazon.com: Artistic Wire Coiling Gizmo(R) Deluxe Winder for Jewelry Making

 

[Mr.Mann]

Thanks guys - I should have been more clear (but I'm always reluctant to give personal details) - rheumatoid arthritis pretty much makes that kind of tiny work impossible. Now the prewound coils look interesting, because I have wondered if I might be able to just do the wick part, but I'm still skeptical.

I guess if I get frustrated enough with these stock coils I will have to give the rebuilding a try -- worse case I waste a few bucks and a little time, but I bet I have a better appreciation for those who make them and I might even learn something.

Not to get off topic, but depending on where you live, I am sure if you have a vape shop near you (a good one) they would set you up with a good build whenever you need it (especially if it is psychically difficult for you).

 

[Nomoreash]

There are other variables as well but I've found the main culprits to be sweet and/or dark flavorings and/or nets. I no longer add sweetners and many times now find the sweetness VG adds is to much for me and I've found plenty of light colored flavorings I mix with now.

Also the amount of total flavorings in the mix, if you diy try going as low of a percentage as you can to get what your looking for. I've been practicing this for years now and still get surprised by how less is more to often be the case. As a personal rule I never go above 10 percent total flavorings and usually much less.

 

[Rin13]

In my experience sweetener and certain flavors (most of which contain Ethyl Maltol which is a major coil gunker) gunk up coils. I don't really think creams do but I use creams at low percentages (1-2%) and try to stick with Flavour Art as they vape cleaner than TFA. (at least for me) But it really varies from flavor to flavor/ company to company.

 

[KattMamma]

I know sweeteners and EM are coil gunkers, and I've heard dark juices are coil gunkers so it must be certain flavors, but unless they're dark I wouldn't know which ones.

I wonder if we can start a list? I am trying to make my recipes "less gunky".

 

[westhc]

I, like KattMama, am looking to make my Dragons Blood recipe "less gunky" so I can get a longer life out of a stock coil. I mixed the DB with another strawberry mix that had less creams and no sweetener. That did seem to solve the liquid darkening and gunking problem on my stock coils but of course the flavor is different. I will need to play with the DB recipe, lower the creams, eliminate the sweetener,and hope I like the revised flavor or find another non gunky favorite flavor for that tank.

I have been rebuilding coils for over a year now and it does become easier and second nature with practice for those of us vision and hand coordination/flexibility challenged. Like Andria, I started out with a magnifier but the muscle memory built up and I no longer use one but still need good lighting. For me though, rebuilding and rewicking is no longer fun but a chore and I hate chores - but chores do have to be done. I have a pile right now waiting to be redone. I have yet to find an elf to take over my chores - know any?

 

[AndriaD]

I'm 62 with bad eye sight, arthritis as well as carpel tunnel in both hands. It was difficult when I first started expecially getting the coil ends wrapped around those tiny screws on the RBA binding post. The more I did it the easier it got. Now it takes me 2 - 3 minutes to coil the wire and mount it. I use a cheap $8.00 winder tool (Link below) which makes perfect coils every time. In fact I don't even use the table base anymore I just use the winder rod and wind it by hand around it. It's not as hard as it seems.

I agree; getting the coil mounted is more of a challenge than actually making the coil, especially on a Kayfun, but as long as I keep doing it, the better I get at it. I'm not currently experiencing any major arthritis in my hands, but it runs in my family, and I have in the past suffered major inflammation of the joint just at the base of my right thumb (and it's still very enlarged), so I know it's probably in my future; at some point I'll get one of those coil-winding jigs, and hope my hands will still function well enough to get the coil mounted.

And I agree that it's not nearly as hard as it may seem, with something so tiny; I couldn't even imagine how I could do something like this, but I found that if I just tried, it really wasn't rocket surgery.

Andria

ETA: last night I came up with a recipe for my strawberry & cream, using 5% less flavor; I'll mix that up today, and see how it tastes. My aim is to try and get to about 2/3 of my initial recipe's flavoring, 20% instead of 30-31%, but it might be easier if I go in small steps, to get my tastebuds used to less flavor. I'm hoping it will help the gunking problem.