Wire Rope for Wick?

[thatick]

MY first attempt with ss rope didnt go so good. I had 5 wraps of 28g around the rope and mesh and the ohm reading were all over the place. It was up to 5 ohms at one point. The reading just would not settle. I looked at my tank and looked like rope may have been barely touching center post so i took it out and bent it a little. Poped it back in and this got my ohms down but then it was all the way down to .4 ohm (usually 5 wraps of 28g is around .8 ohm.) I tried it anyways but it wouldnt really fire up good. I just set it aside and will revist when i have more time. Could use some pointers though

 

[mikepetro]

I have had mixed results with the SS rope.

I have successfully done two builds using 7X7 SS rope with a single layer of mesh above the top deck and 33g Kanthal. One in an RSST and one in a AGA-T+. What I have found is a mixed bag for me personally.

PROs:

• Wicks FANTASTIC, almost too good
• Can leave the fill screw in on my AGA,
• Dont have to tilt until the tank is damn near empty.
• Good flavor
• Lots of vapor (after a primer puff)
• Much less sputtering
• Minimal oxidizing ritual
• Simpler construction

CONs:

• Slower response, i.e. more of a heatsink than mesh, more mass to heat up before vapor gets good
• The rba top deck and cap heat up a good bit more
• Requires higher wattage than mesh
• Less efficient on battery life

And... even more of a juice hog than mesh, which is both a pro and a con.

For me the SS rope has been great for my home vape, where I dont care about battery life and I can put it down and use a different mod if it gets too hot. For work and travel, I think I still prefer the mesh.

I have some Kanthal ribbon on the way from the UK, I suspect it will perform better.

Can any of you seasoned tinkerers offer any suggestions?

Not sure if it is cool to reply to my own post or not but I decided to try something different and made a discovery.

In my previous AGA T+ build I used 3/32 rope as it fit the wick hole nicely, I then put a single layer of mesh around the wick exposed above the deck. That yielded the results above.

This time in an effort to reduce the heatsink effect I used 1/16 rope instead. I then wrapped the top half of the cable with enough mesh to make it fit the hole. Basically I used a piece of mesh half the width and half the height that I normally would use for a mesh only wick. The mesh covers the top portion of the wick just down far enough to penetrate through the bottom of the wick hole, you dont even see the mesh inside the tank, all you see is rope. Wound up being about three layers of mesh or so.

The results are fantastic! I am getting very good capillary action from the smaller rope (more than enough), a quick response similar to a mesh only wick, and I am able to use the lower 9w range that I used to use with even better vapor than I used to get with mesh only.
With the lower wattage I am not having nearly as much of a heat buildup on the RBA deck and cover either.

This hybrid Rope/Mesh style wick is working great, the best of both worlds. The only negative is the sputtering came back.


EDIT: Got similar improvements on the RSST as well. Used 3/32 rope instead of 1/8 rope and made up the thickness in mesh.

 

[-MikeR-]

Nice. I may have to try something like that. I'm not sure I like the cotton string I am still using on mine but I still havent tried the smaller thread yet. I dont like that it could burn so a super thin fishwick tube could be the ticket. Though I am courious too about using the glass quartz tube also - I never got a chance to read the last half of dan's thread about that....

Ive read where people are using unbleached cheese cloth. Im not sure if thats better or worse than cotton string, hell it might even be made of cotton. I just wanted to throw it out there.

BTW ordered rope from McMaster-Karr last night as i was reading through the pages. Good stuff guys, cant wait to give it a shot. I keep breaking my ceramic wicks and mesh hates me (shorts for days). So im hoping i can find a balance.

 

[XfooYen]

3/32 with a double wrap of 500 mesh above the deck is working great. 4-3 wrap, 28AWG Kanthal, mech mod, 0.8ohms

Using this on the AGA-T2 and the RSST with zero problems. The cable does act like a heatsink more than mesh. With ultra-low resistance at 25 watts it's not an issue, but I can see it being more challenging on vv mods and low wattage. I'm loving how easy it is to build. Drinks juice fast but my builds vape it very efficiently. Almost got nic sick.

 

[bluegrasslover]

Update on using a machine screw as a quick. .. the thing is still hitting and tasting great but i had a slight metallic taste I'm my mouth yesterday so i had to ditch it for now.

 

[silentnights]

Just a quick FYI before any of you go somewhere other than McMaster Carr for threaded rods. Bought a 6-32 304 SS rod from Fastenal and it does not fit in my aga. It should fit in the RSST, but didn't give it a try yet. I may need to get M3 or 4-32 in the future.

 

[XfooYen]

Update on using a machine screw as a quick. .. the thing is still hitting and tasting great but i had a slight metallic taste I'm my mouth yesterday so i had to ditch it for now.

Make sure no metal is touching the top cap. I leave a bit of positive wire hanging out of the post. If I don't bend it over the top of the positive nut, It can touch the top cap and metal taste galore. Also check the height of the screw/wick. Just checking.

 

[-MikeR-]

Got my mcmaster-carr order today, gotta love overnight standard shipping.

1/8 is to big for my ZAP but the 3/32 7x7 is a good fit, Its a little small but I made my #500 mesh a little long so it goes down the hole (like some others have mentioned, i think=) Its a fog machine, Ill run it through its paces tomorrow and get some pics. But im running 28g kanthal @ 1.1ish Ohms.

BTW defiantly getting the heatsink effect, as bad or worse than mesh. Ill have a better idea tomorrow ... err later today, should have went to sleep hours ago.

 

[pdib]

So, I don't know how much the kids in "wire rope for wick" class roam the halls. That in mind, I thought I'd drop by with a little show and tell. This is where I got to with the wire rope idea. Its a seven stranded 500 ss mesh tube rope. I'm super happy with how its wicking; even more happy, tho, with the high degree of capillary action I'm getting out of it. Best genisis wick I've made to date.

 

[ethebull]

gonna have to try that one meself

 

[pdib]

gonna have to try that one meself

Cool! Don't wanna hijack the thread (again). Feedback, ideas, improvements or spec.s/techniques thread @ http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/rebuildable-atomizer-systems/398282-victory-over-aga-t.html

 

[mikepetro]

So, I don't know how much the kids in "wire rope for wick" class roam the halls. That in mind, I thought I'd drop by with a little show and tell. This is where I got to with the wire rope idea. Its a seven stranded 500 ss mesh tube rope. I'm super happy with how its wicking; even more happy, tho, with the high degree of capillary action I'm getting out of it. Best genisis wick I've made to date.

View attachment 193738View attachment 193739View attachment 193740View attachment 193741

Way way cool, how long did it take you to build it?

 

[ukeman]

what is the material in the middle pic ? ; i assume you wrap those with the pieces of mesh... and then twist the wick together?

So, I don't know how much the kids in "wire rope for wick" class roam the halls. That in mind, I thought I'd drop by with a little show and tell. This is where I got to with the wire rope idea. Its a seven stranded 500 ss mesh tube rope. I'm super happy with how its wicking; even more happy, tho, with the high degree of capillary action I'm getting out of it. Best genisis wick I've made to date.

View attachment 193738View attachment 193739View attachment 193740View attachment 193741

 

[XfooYen]

what is the material in the middle pic ? ; i assume you wrap those with the pieces of mesh... and then twist the wick together?

That's the 7 unoxidized wicks before they're twisted into one. He makes the coil using the drill bit method and keeps the coil on during torching and twisting. I assume it aids in keeping the bunch together.

 

[pdib]

That's the 7 unoxidized wicks before they're twisted into one. He makes the coil using the drill bit method and keeps the coil on during torching and twisting. I assume it aids in keeping the bunch together.

Yes sir, also, when twisting and torching the bundle, I can establish a good "coil filling" tension/twist (push or pull while twisting = fatter skinnier bundle) and balance that against not losing tube stucture (flattening/overtwisting) as well as getting as much twist in it as I can.
Obviously, torching sets the shape permanently (if you don't manhandle it)

 

[ukeman]

thanks! I've been lurking the thread but missed that item... wow they look like wooden twigs; must be the lighting..what a great idea.

That's the 7 unoxidized wicks before they're twisted into one. He makes the coil using the drill bit method and keeps the coil on during torching and twisting. I assume it aids in keeping the bunch together.

 

[pdib]

thanks! I've been lurking the thread but missed that item... .

don't miss the item where I say that info is on another thread; where I'd also like to see feedback, new ideas and improvements. Thanks

http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/rebuildable-atomizer-systems/398282-victory-over-aga-t.html

 

[millertime660]

So, I don't know how much the kids in "wire rope for wick" class roam the halls. That in mind, I thought I'd drop by with a little show and tell. This is where I got to with the wire rope idea. Its a seven stranded 500 ss mesh tube rope. I'm super happy with how its wicking; even more happy, tho, with the high degree of capillary action I'm getting out of it. Best genisis wick I've made to date.

View attachment 193738View attachment 193739View attachment 193740View attachment 193741

Really cool! Vids or it didnt happen?!?

 

[ukeman]

I'll be trying this asap... do you oxidize under the coil at all? while you're pushing and pulling / twisting? I guess so...

Yes sir, also, when twisting and torching the bundle, I can establish a good "coil filling" tension/twist (push or pull while twisting = fatter skinnier bundle) and balance that against not losing tube stucture (flattening/overtwisting) as well as getting as much twist in it as I can.
Obviously, torching sets the shape permanently (if you don't manhandle it)

 

[pdib]

I'll be trying this asap... do you oxidize under the coil at all? while you're pushing and pulling / twisting? I guess so...

Yeah, I did. I wanted that wire rope shape consistent throughout. so I made the wicks long (like 3" to net 1.5) so I could hold the ends and twist over the torch, and so I could cut out the best section.

Its hard to twist enough, (my wrists don't go that far) so I would twist and torch maybe 3/4" length at a time. 3 hands would be good.