Wick and Coil Tips and Tricks.

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Cyrus Vap

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I always use fat wicks, but to slightly restate what emonty said

Dense wick (tiny center hole) no dry hits even when I try

Open wick more flavor, not sure about the dry hits yet because I've had mixed results and stand very confused

So to answer the previous question, I'm not sure which one works better :)
 

CASEACE79

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Quick question for the vets on here. I just got my 1st genesis mod today (iHybrid) and I finally built a coil but can't really get all three coils to glow red but I am getting vapor just not lots of it. Very whispy. I'm running a fat wick and the wick is oxidized really well. 3 wraps on the coil. And just so you know the atty is in the same orientation as the zen just for reference.
 

MickeyRat

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Quick question for the vets on here. I just got my 1st genesis mod today (iHybrid) and I finally built a coil but can't really get all three coils to glow red but I am getting vapor just not lots of it. Very whispy. I'm running a fat wick and the wick is oxidized really well. 3 wraps on the coil. And just so you know the atty is in the same orientation as the zen just for reference.

I can't lay claim to a LOT of experience but, I do have some. It sounds like you have some coils touching each other.
 

CASEACE79

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@ CASEACE79: do you glow the wire before coil it? a good glow with a normal gas lighter makes it smoother ...

I hit the wire with a torch before wrapping. Still getting hot spots, light vapor and can't get all four coils to glow. Spent almost 3 hrs yesterday wrapping new coils and making new wicks. Still no dice.
 

CASEACE79

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Just to add to the tips. I've noticed when wrapping a coil that leaving the paperclip in the mesh while coiling makes it easier to wrap and provides a lot of stability and makes it easier to keep the wick from touching the bottom of the tank. When you are done coiling and tightening around the positive post use your other hand to lightly pinch the wick and coil while removing the paperclip so it doesn't pull up. I saw this method on YouTube. Forgive me for not remembering who posted it but it works really well.
 

emonty

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Zen TI without insulator: 3/4 wrap 28 AWG with 30 mm width 400# mesh (large hole in the wick) it reads 0.8 ohm running at 4 Volts (20 Watts!!!!) and it is pretty good I am amazed!!
Very short pulls and much better flavor already then with the insulator. It is just a PITA to wrap that thick wire but practice does wonders. So it is possible...will run it for a few days to see how she goes.


not the prettiest but it works without any shorts or hotspots.

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Andy Thatcher

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Interest got the better of me after briefly owning The Vaper and the PetarK method.

So week before last bit the bullet and set up my HellFire Mini with it. The only difference I guess is that I use a 2mm screw to wrap the coil using the threads to evenly gap the coils. Position the coil with the screw in the wick hole. Attach the coil. Remove the screw and fired on the ProVari set at 2.9 or 3 volts.

Now I couldn't quite face using a completely unoxydised wick so I took one of my oxydised wicks and cut a 4 x 4 mm section and wrapped it around a piece of plain mesh then using a lighter just tempered the unoxydised section as per his instructions.

Then just placed the wick in situ and away you go.

So far behaving very well. As the NGP doesn't have a metal tank think next time I have to recoil that I will follow Petar's style exactly. Have some 28 AWG Kanthal coming and will give that a try at the same time.
 

pmoraldo

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Interest got the better of me after briefly owning The Vaper and the PetarK method.

So week before last bit the bullet and set up my HellFire Mini with it. The only difference I guess is that I use a 2mm screw to wrap the coil using the threads to evenly gap the coils. Position the coil with the screw in the wick hole. Attach the coil. Remove the screw and fired on the ProVari set at 2.9 or 3 volts.

Now I couldn't quite face using a completely unoxydised wick so I took one of my oxydised wicks and cut a 4 x 4 mm section and wrapped it around a piece of plain mesh then using a lighter just tempered the unoxydised section as per his instructions.

Then just placed the wick in situ and away you go.

So far behaving very well. As the NGP doesn't have a metal tank think next time I have to recoil that I will follow Petar's style exactly. Have some 28 AWG Kanthal coming and will give that a try at the same time.

wow love the screw idea for making the coils why didn't I think of that:facepalm::laugh:
 

CASEACE79

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My question with the screw method is wouldn't you have to find a screw that is just a hair thicker than the wick you are using otherwise you wont make contact all the way around the mesh resulting in hot spots and poor vapor production. seems like finding exact screw would be more work than just twisting a coil. I've only been vaping genesis attys for like 2 and a half weeks and can change a coil in less than 2 min now. Watch Zen's coil making basics video. I use that method only with a paperclip in the wick to make it more stable.

Remember when troubleshooting there are only a handful of things that could be wrong.
1. Poor vapor production=
a.Flooding the wick. Take off the top cap and fire. If it's boiling instead of vaporizing lower your vaping angle and pinch the wick closed.
b. Not making good contact with the wick all the way around. Take off the top cap and look for gaps between the wick and coil. If so it's time to build a new coil. Remember to rotate the device around the wire and not wrapping the wire around the wick.
c. Gunk build up on the coil. You can try cleaning with distilled water then dry burning but I just wrap a new coil. Takes less time.
d. Wick is too tight. The wire should be touching the wick all the way around but not digging into the wick.

2. Burnt dry hit or metal taste.
a. Dry wick. Open up the wick with a pin if it's pinched closed and increase vaping angle to 2-3 o'clock.
b. Hot spot. Take off the top cap and pulse fire to get the wick pretty dry. If you notice that no matter how many times you pulse only the top coil glows red try using a pin to move around the coils. If it doesn't work wrap a new coil making sure to have very little distance from the ground screw to the wick on the 1st wrap and very little room on your last coil to the positive post. When you end tightening to the positive post you want the wick to almost be touching the positive post.
c. A short. One of the most common problems. Take off to cap and pulse fire. If you see just a small area on the top coil that is glowing you have a short. Keep in mind that this is not the only indicator of a short. A short can happen 1 of 4 ways. To the top cap. You will not notice when taking the top cap off to fire because it is no longer shorting to the top cap. Make sure your wick does not extend above your screw even a little bit. To the bottom of the tank. Make sure the wick isn't touching the bottom of the tank at all. Try pulling the wick up a bit. To the positive post. You want the wick to be close but not close enough it's touching the positive post. Try loosening the positive screw and pulling the wick a bit away. To the side of the hole.(if you don't have an insulator) Don't pull the wick so tight towards the positive post that you bite into through oxidized part of the wick. If you aren't biting into the hole your wick isn't oxidized enough to begin with. Take it out and retorch.

Popping coils. I can't stress this enough! If you are popping coils 99% of the time it is a short. If you know that you're not touching the top cap or the bottom of the tank your wick is not oxidized enough. Rewrapping the coil will more than likely end with the same result.


About oxidizing a wick. I oxidize using the jack frost method. Torch both sides of the mesh a lot before beginning to roll. Fold down the cut edge and roll around a paperclip from the opposite side of the fold. Roll all the way up to the top of the folded edge and keep rolling in between your fingers. Now take it out your torch and oxidize the rolled wick a lot. I do not quench. In my opinion quenching does nothing. Put juice on your wick and light. Let it burn out. Do this 3-5 times.

Hope this helps. This is just my experience. Take it for what it's worth.
 
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2GLR

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After reading all 120 posts in this thread I rolled a 2" wide by 2 1/4" long wick around a paperclip to fit into the 1/8" hole on my scubagen.
Using my gas range, heated the wick to red hot for 1 minute and then quenched in tap water. X4
Burned some crappy blueberry tonic soaked into the wick. X5
Wrapped a 1/4" wide by 3/4" rolling paper around the coil.
Wrapped the coil with a 5/4 wrap of 32 ga Kanthal with NR pigtails.
Resistance 2.7ohms.
At 3.7 volts and a little tap of the button, I was getting perfectly round smoke rings out of the center hole.
I vape about 7-8ml a day, and this thing is keeping up.
 
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