Woe is my carto tank! (a request for help)

[DuffTime]

So, long story short, I'm very much a noob on punching cartos and their use in tanks. All I know is where to punch and a general rule that more holes = more wicking from the tank.

My problem is that the carto does very little self replenishing, resulting in me having to do 10+ primer pulls after every 2 or 3 vapes. Is this normal?

Now, be warned, the juice I am using is fairly thick (El Kamino from Good Life Vapor, which is advertised as a 40PG/60VG Blend). But I see all these people with 50/50 and thicker juice with no issues.

What am I doing wrong? Carto hole size/number? Draw intensity/frequency? Do I just have to life with the fact that I'll be priming it more than I am vaping it?

Thanks for reading, and hopefully someone with more experience than I can chime in.

Thanks! (BTW, current setup: Ion Design Pyrex carto tank, Boge 2.2ohm carto triple punched with bullet valve, El Kamino 40PG/60VG)

 

[Baditude]

How are you priming your cartomizer? Please describe your method in detail.

Also describe your method of filling the tank.

 

[Proetus]

Ya definitely need more info. I generally run 50/50, use one hole in my cartons w/ no issues.

 

[DuffTime]

I've tried various pre filling methods, from condom fill to syringe fill to plain drip fill. I fill with the general goal of adding liquid and avoiding the center tube until the filler remains full, accepts no more liquid and it drips out the bottom.

Then I punch. I use a bullet valve, similar to the QT1. Anywhere from 1 to 3 holes.

Filling the tank depends on what tank I use. If its my AGR, I just use the full screw, ensuring air gets out as juice goes in. If there is no fill hole, I use my tank fill tool, push it down and then fill until a small air pocket remains in the tank, then push the carto up and re-establish a seal.

 

[Baditude]

Hmmm, your fill techniques appear sound for the cartomizer and the tank. You sound like you know how to punch the cartos correctly.

Maybe you have a bad batch of Boges? Does the polyfiller material seem to be hard and non-absorbant? Boges tend to be less absorbable than the other brands to begin with, but last summer Boge had issues with a large batch of bad cartos.

 

[T1lVl]

I hate carto punches and has always gave me bad cartos.

I slot my cartos well did now use genesis atomizera.

Usually do one slot on the side for all my juice and never a wicking problems.

Use pg/VG ratios that consisted of
50/50
40/60
30/70
Max cut with distilled and 100vg

Punches have to me deformed the carto or just didn't wick well to me.

Cartos I liked are boge. Hated smoktech.

Resurrecters to me sucked. Leaked a lot for some reason.

Sent from my SGH-T999 using Tapatalk 2

 

[DuffTime]

The carto filler does make a scratchy sound when prodded with a syringe needle, and is pretty firm. When drip filling, when I put the first 5-6 drops in it just sits on top of the filler and does not wick down very well for some time. Should I try another brand of cartos?

Also, is there a break in time related to cartos, similar to attys?

 

[Baditude]

The carto filler does make a scratchy sound when prodded with a syringe needle, and is pretty firm. When drip filling, when I put the first 5-6 drops in it just sits on top of the filler and does not wick down very well for some time. Should I try another brand of cartos?

Also, is there a break in time related to cartos, similar to attys?

If you can find ever find the Ikenvape carto's in stock, most definitely get some of those. Best premium carto made.

It could just be that batch of Boges that are bad. Either purchase from a different vendor, or try some Smoktech, you may like them. They typically have a less dense filler material when compared to Boges and are faster to wick or fill. If you click on the link under my avatar (by "blog entries") you can find my blog articles. The second article is a huge list of online vendors that sell pre-punched cartomizers.