E-cigarettes: What's your setup?

In My Humble Opinion
1

My brother-in-law is a e-cigarette hobbyist, buying the newest, latest-and-greatest equipment. As a result, I get a lot of hand-me-down stuff along with some interesting new stuff that he thinks I will like. My equipment has evolved from very basic stuff to some gee-whiz stuff far removed from where I started.

Before I get into this, some preliminaries.

Background: I was a pack-a-day smoker for about 13 years, and when I decided it was time to stop I did so as much for health reasons as any financial reasons. I was tired of waking up, coughing up a lung, suffering three or more bouts of bronchitis a year, and smelling like ass. The cost was certainly a consideration, and I have saved a small fortune since I stopped smoking. It might cost me $100 a year total. If I had to buy my own stuff it might bring me up to $300 in 2 years, a far cry from the $1750-1800 per year cigarettes cost me. Also, I can breathe, I don’t have smoker’s cough, no more bronchitis issues, and I don’t smell like an ashtray.

Second, I’d like to keep this free of pro/con arguments. Good, bad, or indifferent, it doesn’t matter to me. If that’s the way you want to go, please start your own thread. This is about what people use and about how much the stuff costs. Thank you in advance.

Right now I am using a few different things. My primary setup is a DOVPO E-LVT topped with a rebuildable Taifun GT tank. The E-LVT goes up to 30 watts, though I never run it that hot, has a replaceable 18650 battery that gets charged through a mini-USB connection, has a built-in flashlight, and can charge a cellphone through the USB-out jack. It’s a substantial piece, very weighty, covered by rubber and water-resistant, though dunking it will still ruin it. The Taifun GT tank, once you learn how to build the coil, gives off good vapor and has excellent performance. It’s also cheap, a bit of kanthal wire and some Japanese cotton and you’re all set. $10 will get you everything you need for a year or more. Total cost on that setup I’d estimate to be about $100, more or less depending upon where you buy it, whether or not you use clones, etc.

I also use a Vamo V6, with a 20W max output, topped with a CE-5 tank using a dual coil. The coils are a bit pricey unless you shop around, but they typically last a while as long as you don’t go too hot and burn them up. The Vamo has a built-in resistance tester and uses an 18650 battery (or two 18350s) which lasts a good while for me at about 4.5V output. Total cost up to $75 for the Vamo, a CE5 tank, and some coils.

The juice I use is 50/50 VG/PG with flavoring. I buy them from a local shop at a decent price, though the brother-in-law has been a good hookup for those, too. I’m lucky to have a hookup, it keeps it relatively cheap on my end. I go at about 6mg nicotine nowadays. Sometimes I’ll go with some premixed stuff from some other local shops for something different, but mostly it’s what I mix. Total cost there is about $75-100 a year, tops.

Those are light-years more advanced than my first variable voltage piece, a twist-bezel VariVolt (which still works nicely, though it malfunctions on occasion), and completely blows away my first E-Go/tank combination. Like every e-cigarette hobbyist, I have a small box full of juice and older but still serviceable equipment, and I occasionally hook up my smoker friends with a setup if they’re interested in giving up the burning cigarettes, starting simple and going from there.

For those of you that already use e-cigarettes, I recommend you get your stuff from Fasttech. It takes forever to get to you, they slow-boat it, but you can’t beat the prices. That Vamo V6 I have is a little over $20 on Fasttech, but around $60 for the local markup. If you can wait and don’t need the immediate gratification, that’s a steal. Just avoid getting batteries, it takes even longer to ship. Get your batteries closer to home.

So, for those of you that use e-cigarettes, what’s your setup? Where do you get your stuff? What’s your budget?

2

Really looking forward to the responses, thanks for starting the thread. I’m an e-cig newbie (started to cut down on cigars), and got a starter kit with a Christmas gift certificate. I can tell you it’s Onni only because it’s labelled that way (and I can’t find anything with a quick Google). Couldn’t tell you a thing about its specs. I am GREATLY interested in upgrading and don’t know how to start, so hoping this thread will make me smarter about it, especially if it explains what makes the set-up good (ease of use, volume of “smoke,” etc.)…Airman, as an example, what does the wattage do, the hotter it runs? Affect the taste?

3

I have two Innokin iTaste box mods - they look bulky but fit my hand well and are comfortable. Paired with Kanger glass tanks, I can go three days before charging and re-filling.

I had a Vamo, like the OP’s, but those larger batteries don’t feel that comfortable to me, plus it reminds me of a marital device. :stuck_out_tongue:

I also have a dozen or so KGO/eGo type batteries, some variable voltage, some not. I buy the pretty colored ones. Plus I like to have several flavours going, and they are compact enough to carry around while I work. Usually pair those with Vision long wick low resistance clearomizers.

The links above is where I buy most of my supplies - Hoosier has good prices, very fast shipping and a rewards program. Although more and more I am seeing smoke and vape shops with good inventories and better juices than was available even a year ago locally.

Juice, almost exclusively Backwoods Brew, because their juices are complex, adult and very tasty. And made with domestically sourced ingredients. I’ve tried many online stores, though - Ms T’s has some crazy flavours!

I started with disposable e-cigs in March 2012, shortly thereafter bought a KGO kit online with some decent juice and haven’t smoked since April 2012. Which I never thought would happen; I was a fairly heavy smoker and serial quitter for decades.

Budget: Well, this is significantly cheaper than my nasty smoking habit, even though I buy the pricier non-Chinese made juices and disposable instead of rebuildable clearos. About every two-three months, I make a BWB juice order plus a Hoosier equipment order. Just did that last Thursday for a total of $118.00, plus bought a Kanger tank at a vape shop yesterday for $15.00. With what I have on hand now, I’m good for another three months easy. Actually, I probably have enough batteries to last me years but I always buy at least one more every time I make an order. I have a $25 discount right now with Hoosier that I forgot to use, so I may orderthis little beauty just for fun. :slight_smile:

4

I have a handful of generic 808 auto batteries ($10/ea) and a handful of Esmart 808-compatible clearomizers ($2/ea). I find that the size of the setup and automatic draw work best for replicating the whole experience of smoking for me, which is the only reason I’m engaging in this exercise.

I’ve knocked a 20-year pack/day American Spirit habit down to one or two smokes per day in over the last month and a half. Once I ditch the last couple of smokes, I plan on stepping down from 24mg to 18mg liquid, then 12, etc. I’m not planning on “upgrading” to a bigger contraption - I hate having to press the button to turn things on.

5

Airman Doors and chiroptera have covered a lot of territory. I’ve used most of the stuff and the providers they mention. Fasttech is positively notorious for slow shipping but they are cheap. Hoosierecig is ok although they have made some attempts to lock in customers by selling their own brand of items with non-standard fittings; I sometimes buy from them but stick with items I know to be the market standard.

I have tried dozens and dozens of different eliquids and some of them are pretty good. Taste is subjective; what I like may not suit others at all. For years I preferred the cheap Chinese liquids over all the fancy gourmet boutiquey juices. Now I just buy unflavored nicotine eliquid ($20.99 for 500ml). I buy 24mg strength and mix it with PG to cut it down to between 8mg and 12mg. Sometimes I add a few of drops of flavoring but usually I just use it unflavored – tastes good to me. For $21 plus $11 for 500ml of PG, I get a full liter of eliquid, compared to $20some for 20 to 30ml of commercially prepared stuff.

My favorite setup these days and what I would recommend to those looking to start or to upgrade from convenience store ecigs is the Eleaf iStick mentioned by chiroptera. For a topper, I have been using the Aspire Nautilus Tank, the mini version looks nice on the iStick but I prefer the full size version which lasts me a full day without refilliing – the replacement heads seem pricey but they last a month or more (less if you use very sweet or very dark eliquids). Both the iStick and the Nautilus are widely available online and in local vape shops.

6

I started off with EGO batteries, and direct dripping, in February 2011. After a year or so I bought my first VV mod, a Zmax v3, which was a piece of junk. I struggled with it for about six months before getting a ProVari 2, which I’ve used ever since and been quite happy with. I keep the Zmax around, in case of emergency; I also still have a bunch of the EGO batteries for the same purpose.

I stuck with dripping up until about eight months ago. With dripping, I’d finish the few drops and put the unit down for a while. I was resistant to the idea of getting a tank because I was afraid I would suck away on the thing nonstop. But I kept burning out atomizers way too quickly, so I finally took the plunge. I first tried a Vivi-Nova tank, but that thing sucked; I then bought a Kanger Protank II and have been quite happy with it. My fears were unfounded. I’ve found that I do tend to never put the thing down, but I don’t think I’m vaping any more than I was - I might sit there for five minutes, take a hit, sit for another five minutes, etc. I also didn’t realize how much juice I was wasting with dripping. Overall, I’ve been going through less juice since making the switch.

I prefer 2.8 ohm coils for my tank. A higher resistance/voltage combination seems to give a more consistent, strong throat hit.

As for juice, I’ve gone from vendor to vendor over the years, but I’ve been loyal to ECBlend for over a year now. I can’t be bothered to mix up my own juice, but ECBlend does it cheaply enough (for me) at $9 for a 30 mL bottle. I prefer 70/30 PG/VG, 18 mg nicotine.

7

I make my own juices, most of the commercial juice is way overflavored and cartomizers usually taste burnt after a day or two with the commercial juice.

I use so little flavoring that I usually make 500 ml of juice I use about 10 drops of commercial juice to flavor the whole lot and my cartomizers last about 2 weeks without tasting burnt.

I mostly use 18650 battery VV mods.

8

The goal is to increase the amount of vapor. The average starter-level e-cigarette provides a decent amount of vapor, but to get more you must increase the power going across the coil. However, within the coil there is a wick, and if you burn it you’ll have that burned taste until you replace it. What variable voltage/wattage equipment does is give you the flexibility that a fixed-output battery cannot.

When you increase the power you are putting more power across the coil. Think of it as a light bulb on a circuit with a dimmer switch. If you turn the knob down the coil glows less brightly. It also consumes less power. But the main thing it does is reduce the amount of vapor created, in the same manner that a slow boil creates less vapor than a rolling boil. A cool coil produces less vapor but is less likely to burn anything, burn out, or stress the battery. A hotter coil gives you more vapor for the same period but things start to burn. What you want to do is find a resistance/wattage/voltage sweet spot and keep it there. That’s fairly easy with coils of known resistance, but making your own introduces a ton of variability. For instance, some people can make coils with as little as .4 ohms of resistance. My first try at building a coil came in at 5.9 ohms, a very, very high resistance. I simply altered the power to suit the coil I had made. That’s the benefit of VV/W to the user. You can make what you have work for you.

That said, two things: if you go with a mechanical mod (a straight circuit without any protection) you can explosively discharge the battery. That is less likely with a protection circuit, but even with that you probably ought not go full bore all the time. It’s a waste of juice and battery anyway at the higher power levels.

The other thing to keep in mind is that the only people who like cloud chasers are other cloud chasers. Don’t be that guy. It’s for your enjoyment, not to piss everybody off. It is possible to overdo it. My brother-in-law has a 100W output mod, and at that high level it is a genuine cloud machine. He filled a room with vapor in 10 seconds. It’s pointless except as a novelty, and even then it’s only neat once.

9

Everything Airman says, except, for me, it’s all about the throat hit (that feeling similar to a cigarette when you inhale). I don’t care how much vapor I exhale. I just want that feeling.

The 2.8 ohm coils I use usually read as 3.0 or 3.1 ohms on my ProVari. My sweet spot is to set it at 5.1 or 5.2 volts, respectively. Any higher and the hit is too harsh; any lower, and I can’t feel it as strongly, and makes me feel like I’m not getting anything from it (which I’m sure is purely psychological ;)).

YMMV, of course. You have to experiment to find what works best for you.

10

This exactly and what Airman said.

The vapor cloud thing is IMHO a bit fetishistic, with competitions and photo ops. I personally couldn’t care less about the vapor - throat hit first, flavour second. From what I understand, VG (vegetable glycerine) provides massive vapor, PG (propylene glycol) provides better taste. A 60:40 PG:VG seems to work well.

I personally hate the hip cloud chasing (and generally hip) culture of vaping. I think it takes away from the most important benefit: an aid for people to quit smoking.

11

On the volume of vapor, it also depends on whether your juice is PG, VG or a combination of both. In my experience you can make a pg juice that barely has any visible vapor and a VG juice that will rival or even put to shame even the biggest drag off of an analog. Even 50/50 PG/VG juice is pretty ‘smokey’.

Didn’t see the last post…^^^

12

Vegetable glycerin does indeed provide the “cloud” aspect of the vapor. It is very smooth and surprisingly sweet all by itself. Propylene glycol is very acrid and gives you the “throat hit”, that burning sensation that emulates what you’re used to with a regular cigarette. It’s up to you to determine the appropriate proportions to suit your taste. I go 50/50 and it works well for me.

It is aggravating. It’s those guys that ruin it for everyone else by making a scene and then being jerks about how they have the right to be cool guys.

13

Anyone notice how the Vamo looks like the neuralizer from Men In Black?

14

Ya’ll are way over my ecig head. I’m still using the EGO batteries and Kanger plastic or glass tanks. I’ve been vaping for over a year and am down to 4mg nicotine. I prefer a 40/60 PG/VG and enjoy trying new custom flavors. My shop sells only custom blends. My friend’s shop sells only commercially pre-blended juices.

15

Funny, I arrived at a practically identical setup. Kanger Protank II on a ProVari 2 (Classic) with a high-res atomizer. I use 2.5Ω (my vendor doesn’t carry 2.8Ω but I’m happy with 2.5Ω at 4.0-4.3V) atomizers and also use a 70/30 PG/VG juice with a bit more nicotine (24mg). My preferred source is Highbrow Vapor where I pay $15 for 30ml, which I’m fine with. (Coupon code HIGHBROW for 10% and free shipping on orders over I think $50.)

I started with a Volcano Magma setup (cigarette form factor) and never got happy with that arrangement. I went to a Volcano LavaTube mod after that, which was okay. Then I got the ProVari that I love and after a few tank trials, found the Protank II that I also love. I tried low-res atomizers but like you I find the high-res atomizers more satisfying. I tried the dual-coil Protank 3, but didn’t find it any better, especially considering the increase in atomizer cost. I don’t hang on to atomizers very long. I notice a significant decrease in draw after 2-3 tanks but at a buck apiece, I buy them by the 50-pack and don’t worry about it much as it’s not a significant cost.

I’m completely happy with my kit and won’t change anything until I’m forced to.

16

Following is an e-cig primer I sent to a friend a couple months ago. I did my best to keep it as entry-level as possible. Hope it helps.

17

Just realized I mixed this sentence up severely. It should read:

PG is much thinner and less sweet than VG, but it gives a throat hit closer to real tobacco smoke than VG.

18

Could I ask something here? And please don’t get insulted or think I’m an uncultured ecig hick :stuck_out_tongue:

I currently use random cheap clearomizers and EVOD knockoffs, I’m happy with them with high nic juice as a couple vapes gets me fine and I like how easily and cheaply coils can be rebuilt using kanthal wire and cotton.

I’ve been considering upgrading but I’m unsure exactly what the advantages are besides longer battery life and batteries lasting longer over the lifetime, I’m happy with the amount of vapor now and don’t care about cloud chasing. Are there any other obvious advantages or is it just kind of like having a luxury car?

Can anyone suggest a cheaper upgrade that is still good?

19

The Innokin iTaste is about $40.00, add a Kanger or equivalent tank (optional; the Innokin comes with a tank) and I think you will find much fuller, richer flavour. I linked to both in my first post above. You could also experiment with a cheaper variable voltage battery so you can fool around with the voltage and taste.

I was going to ask a similar question about the Provari, or the Darwin - for those of you who use them, are they really all that and do they give a much better vape? The $250-300 price tag scares me a little! Like grude, I’m pretty happy with what I’m using now, so what would I gain from an upgrade?

20

@Jake Jones: Mod is derived from “modified” The original mods were modified flashlights. That’s basically what an ecig is – a battery holding tube with a pushbutton switch to deliver current to a tiny electric coil.

Adding the ability to vary voltage or wattage makes it an APV (Advanced Personal Vaporizer).

The original Provari 2 is variable voltage. It has long had a well deserved reputation as being very well (American) made and very reliable – expect one to last for years – which is a good thing because those who own them tend to really like them. The new P3 also does variable wattage. The only reason I do not use a Provari is because I hate having to use a separate battery charger and swap batteries in and out; I strongly prefer devices that charge the battery in the device using a USB cable. I was very disappointed the new P3 does not have onboard charging.

If you like what you are using there is no real reason to change. If you want bigger, longer lasting batteries or higher voltage or the ability to more finely tune the wattage, or a different color or a cylinder rather than a box, or something that better fits your pocket or purse or feels better in your hand, those are some reasons to change, as is seeking novelty and/or style.

Budget is actually a pretty small factor since you’re saving so much money by not buying cigarettes. While a $5 head may seem expensive in relation to winding your own coil from a few pennies worth of wire and a bit of a cotton ball, if it lasts a month (or even just a week), it is still much less expensive than smoking.

It is “whatever works for you”. I have a couple dozen different devices. The three that are in my current rotation are an eVic Supreme ($160) that pretty much lives on my desk because it so heavy. It has a multitude of features and adjustments I have never even explored. I generally use it with an old-fashioned cartomizer tank. Second is an iTaste MVP V2 ($40); very long lasting battery, good for heading out for a long day. I might screw on any number of different tanks on this one, anything from a full size Nautilus to a cheap clearomizer to a Russian 91%. And my newest is an Eleaf iStick ($40 but can be found for less) with an Aspire Nautilus tank – this one has become my number one choice for going out because it so small and easy to carry while still having decent battery life.

I’ll say again to anyone looking to explore ecigs or to upgrade from eGo or convenience store ecigs, try the Eleaf iStick with an Aspire Nautilus tank. Inexpensive, good vapor production, easy to use with no fiddling, no separate batteries or charger, feels good in the hand, nice looking, and no leaks (a huge plus to me).