Xc-116 vs ekowool

[curt9733]

Stay tuned, darkzero, there may well be some Nextel for sale cheap, before too long.


Maybe not tho, its early in the game, here at pdib labs.

Hey, I have been gone a while. Nice to be back reading the info and experimentation. Any progress on the cheap Nextel? I am running out of the 10 ft. I bought last year from that unnamed big seller of XC-116 who stopped selling to us. Sure would be nice to pick up another large quantity at a cheap price. I don't want to pay more for it because it has been kiln treated. My step-mom gave me a kiln last month (for high-fire ceramics). It's good to know that the Nextel is still regarded as one of the best wicking materials out there. I hate to miss out on new stuff. I haven't tried the ekowool, but I probably won't since I am still using an AGA-t2 with a u-wick, and I need a stiffer material to wrap my coils on. Incidentally, the next time I get $30, I'm getting the AGA-TN which is specifically designed for dual coils. I know everyone here is talking about dripping and squonking, but I am still stuck on gennys. Hey, I was thinking, since I had to resign from my job because of epilepsy and for safety reasons I am confined to the house, I need to get something going from here. Has anyone written a definitive book or ebook about the history, development and techniques of ecigs? That might be a cool project I can do at the house to combat this cabin fever. These past 2 years have sucked for me health-wise. I need something positive. I hate to vent but damn I'm bored. My job sucked, but this is much, much worse.

 

[pdib]

Hiya Curt! Glad to see you 'round these parts! Since I'm full-on REO now, I'm all cotton. Nextel is better at wicking, but cotton is better at holding. For squeezeboxing, it's all about the "here, hold on to this juice for me". I think I have some 116 still. Lemme know if you can't find any elsewhere. (sorry, bro, but it is kiln treated)

 

[curt9733]

Incidentally, the next time I get $30, I'm getting the AGA-TN which is specifically designed for dual coils. I know everyone here is talking about dripping and squonking, but I am still stuck on gennys.

Sorry I meant to write AGA-TD not TN Sorry for the typo.

 

[Hectus]

Intresting thread.

Are you guys still liking the ekowool? Reason i ask is i have a bunch of it myself, but not using it cause for me it was wicking too slow, and silica actually wicked faster.

That leads me to think i squeezed the wick too much when wrapping the coil, i guess i need to jamm something in there from the inside and get a good tight wrapp.

Is ur conclusing ekowool def wicks faster than standard silica? if so, i have to try my ekowool again.

 

[pdib]

this thread is like a bajillion yrs old, so I don't even know if I mentioned it here . . . . I braided some silica, and that wicked pretty durn good. Almost as good as the Nextel; but not quite. Tight braid.

 

[IcyX]

Intresting thread.

Are you guys still liking the ekowool? Reason i ask is i have a bunch of it myself, but not using it cause for me it was wicking too slow, and silica actually wicked faster.

That leads me to think i squeezed the wick too much when wrapping the coil, i guess i need to jamm something in there from the inside and get a good tight wrapp.

Is ur conclusing ekowool def wicks faster than standard silica? if so, i have to try my ekowool again.

I still haven't made a significant effort to obtain and try the nextel xc-* wick material yet. In my term I've been using 2mm ecowool stuffed with silica and a micro like 28ga coil. It has been working very well for me. I wind my coil in a drill bit and thread the wick into it. I also use various size ekowool for my drippers from time to time but mostly favor cotton now. In my ithaka I've been using the gg wick that came with it and ordered more from cov. I'm pretty sure it's German silica but I'm. Creature of habit when I find something I like so figured I'd just order some more from them when I preordered the JGG. I tried using 1.5mm eko wool in the ithaka but it muted the flavor from what I believe was non sufficient wicking or filling the channels too tight. Imho the ekowool is slightly better at wicking but handles abuse so much better than silica. If you want the best wicking ability cotton is the winner but has the drawback of not be it able to dry burn. It's a small price to pay as it's usually easy to just slide the cotton out if a coil and slide a replacement back in. I would still love to try some nextel if anyone could spare a few inches.

Vape on guys

 

[Moodyfisherman]

This thread and another one on Nextel XC-116 led me to a site called RBA Supplies where they have some interesting information on the "correct" curing method prior to using this product. Some retailers are only heat treating their xc-116 to 750 degrees and these guys are kiln heating to much higher temperature and length of time......They have an interesting video on their site which you all might find entertaining, and it gives me a better feel for it's overall properties. Look at this video 2-pages down the site home page RBA Supplies Special Promotion!

 

[Phone Guy]

what i am unclear about, is xc116 safe or not? reading up on it appears its really not a safe wick? is that true?

and now I'm kind of gathering that maybe ekowool works just as good if not better?

I've been using cotton yarn in my attys, and when I taste burn, just replace it. Its like $1.50 for a spool of the yarn from wally world.

 

[minimalsaint]

I think the safety concerns come from the material not being treated properly before use (kiln treating).
I got mine yesterday and didn't have much time to play around with it yet, but I threw a piece in a dripper and noticed straight away that it didn't have a funky flavor like ekowool. It seems to wick and hold liquid better than silica, and there is really no bad flavor even with a dry hit.... At least not in comparison to cotton or silica.
So far I like it, but not enough to continue paying the price.

 

[Phone Guy]

so you got kiln treated one? my guess would be from rba.... so its not worth the price?

 

[minimalsaint]

Yep from RBA Supplies. I got it during the sale so I was OK with the price.... Still not thrilled though.
I stuck a piece in one of my gennies last night with a vertical coil and it was okay- I noticed that as long as I kept it tilted on the wick side it wouldn't dry out.... I did about a 30 second burn and the coil never glowed and it kept kicking out vapor, but vertical it would dry out like any other wick I have tried. Flavor was about the same as cotton, maybe a tad better, but vapor seemed to be less than cotton at the same resistance. I still haven't used it enough to say one way or the other, but the 3 feet I got should last me quite some time if the wick holds up to cleaning like they claim.

Overall it is good, but I have been picking up my micro + cotton builds still for the most part.

 

[Phone Guy]

I've got some untreated xc116 coming.... and now I'm afraid to use it. Unless I find a pottery or ceramic place to kiln it for me.
I should have read more about it before pulling the trigger.... OH WELL!