Clapton coil questions

[MTLian]

So I recently bought a little spool of pre made kanthal Clapton wire and wow, the flavour is just awesome. It's reading at 0.5 ohms and for some reason I can vape at 25 watts no problem whereas with the included RBA coils for my subtank mini, I couldn't push it much past 18 watts without getting dry hits. Also, the vape is 10 times smoother with less crackling and popping. Right now I'm vaping my DIY strawberries and cream and it is like a fresh bowl of strawberries in my mouth on every hit! However I'm burning through Ejuice like crazy but I don't mind it because the vape is so flavourful.

I'm gonna keep vaping on this for a while but on my next attempt, I'm thinking of attempting a vertical Clapton on my subtank mini. Here are some questions: (by the way, I'm only interested in flavour, not really in search of big clouds)

1) when I cut the leads, I can't get them flush and they end up touching the metal cover. Is this cause for concern?

2) I only did 3 wraps on my first try and it looks like there's space for probably 4. I guess more wraps equals more Ejuice being burned so even more flavour?

3) if I attempt a vertical coil, how many wraps should I try? I saw one guy on YouTube tuck his cotton in between the coil and posts and wrap it around the coil like a blanket. I was thinking of simply packing cotton on either side of the coil. Any tips for wicking a vertical Clapton? Since the Clapton is bigger gauge than plain kanthal, I'm not sure I'll be able to tuck it.

 

[lordmage]

So I recently bought a little spool of pre made kanthal Clapton wire and wow, the flavour is just awesome. It's reading at 0.5 ohms and for some reason I can vape at 25 watts no problem whereas with the included RBA coils for my subtank mini, I couldn't push it much past 18 watts without getting dry hits. Also, the vape is 10 times smoother with less crackling and popping. Right now I'm vaping my DIY strawberries and cream and it is like a fresh bowl of strawberries in my mouth on every hit! However I'm burning through Ejuice like crazy but I don't mind it because the vape is so flavourful.

I'm gonna keep vaping on this for a while but on my next attempt, I'm thinking of attempting a vertical Clapton on my subtank mini. Here are some questions: (by the way, I'm only interested in flavour, not really in search of big clouds)

1) when I cut the leads, I can't get them flush and they end up touching the metal cover. Is this cause for concern?
yes metal touching metal equal shorts.. need to not have it touch anything

2) I only did 3 wraps on my first try and it looks like there's space for probably 4. I guess more wraps equals more Ejuice being burned so even more flavour? more wraps equals more road and more flavor more resistance overall. more surface area more heat and flavor

3) if I attempt a vertical coil, how many wraps should I try? I saw one guy on YouTube tuck his cotton in between the coil and posts and wrap it around the coil like a blanket. I was thinking of simply packing cotton on either side of the coil. Any tips for wicking a vertical Clapton? Since the Clapton is bigger gauge than plain kanthal, I'm not sure I'll be able to tuck it.
each build requires different wicking

 

[midknight420]

1. Well first less wraps means lower ohms, more power and more juice consumption.

2. Leads touching the wall of the rba will create a short and fry your coil. Be very careful of this.

3. .5Ω is a good place for that tank, I would try tightening up your coil to fit more wraps.

4. Wicking in this rba needs to block both airflow holes. I would try to find a way to do this tip prevent leaking.

I hope that was some help. I would love to hear and see a pic of the outcome.

I'm not crazy, my mother had me tested.

 

[nightshard]

1) the coil(s) should only touch the post holes and nothing else.
2) since you're advancing to bigger builds and build your own you should should consider advancing to an RTA with a proper build deck that would provide better build options and better performance.
3) vertical coil is used in cases of limited build space, to prevent spitback in some cases and to improve flavor is some cases, but it's usually harder to install and provides lesser wicking, so it's better to stick with horizontal in most cases.

 

[MTLian]

Thanks for the tips everyone! I might still attempt a vertical but I'm very happy with my current build so maybe I'll just try and improve it a little. I noticed that when I'm working on the coil (straitening it and getting it in place, there are little spots that seem to glow hotter. Like little bits of the thin wrapped kanthal. Why is this? Is it because I'm too rough wth the coil and I'm damaging it slightly while straightening it out?

 

[midknight420]

And are you working out your hot spots? Just use your tweezers or screwdriver and strum the coil then fire again. If still now burning evenly repeat the process.

I'm not crazy, my mother had me tested.

 

[MTLian]

"Strum the coil"? Like lightly scrape the tweezers across the loops? I'm somewhat afraid of loosening or separating the windings. Please elaborate on a technique for working out hot spots.

 

[robot zombie]

"Strum the coil"? Like lightly scrape the tweezers across the loops? I'm somewhat afraid of loosening or separating the windings. Please elaborate on a technique for working out hot spots.

It's totally fine to do. You can skip it with standard coils, but strumming is often vital with claptons.

The wraps won't pull apart... ...not in a way that isn't reversible by heating and clamping, at least. All that you're trying to do is shift the outer wire ever so slightly and foul it up so you get a thicker, more cohesive, and stronger layer of oxidized metal. When the metal is hot, it doesn't take a lot of force to shift and mar the surface. Just be very gentle. Very little pressure. Just drag the tweezers across the surface. It's one of the most effective ways to get shorts out of claptons.

Just make sure you pulse and squeeze a few times before you start raking. Get the coils positioned to where you want them first. Make sure you let the coils really cool down before you pulse and strum. After being heated and cooled a few times, the structure in the metal becomes rearranged and the coil "remembers" it's shape. And once claptons are set, they can be very, very rigid... ...much more so than standard coils. When you rake, you may see the wraps separate very slightly, but they should spring right back into position. If not, you're either using too much force or too much heat.

And on the performance thing... ...yeah, claptons are very cool like that. All of those little pockets keep juice circulating throughout the coil, which not only means better contact, but better temperature regulation. It becomes more linear and consistent because of how it holds onto juice. A standard coil functions like a hot pan. Just big, smooth heating surfaces. When the juice hits those surfaces, it scatters from the hottest points, which thus get hotter, whereas with the sponge-like surface of the clapton, it simply gets pushed through the rest of the coil. So juice is continually getting pushed back onto those hot-spots until they equalize a bit. Or at least, that's my theory.

On top of this, you have all of this inert mass gathering and distributing the heat from the core. It makes them less power efficient, but also less prone to rapid overheating at relatively higher power. All of this works together to reduce wicking demands. The juice collecting inside of the coil ensures that juice doesn't have to travel as quickly in order to keep everything under control. There's always a reserve - a little delay between when the coil starts vaporizing juice and when juice gets drawn-up from the wick. So you wind up up with these big, productive, juice-sucking coils that don't fall prey to the same pitfalls as standard coils.

 

[MTLian]

^^^ one of the most interesting and informative posts I've read in a while thank you. What do you think about a vertical Clapton then? Might there not be more potential for juice to accumulate in between the ridges of the surface of the coil if it was vertical? Theoretically there would be more coil surface area facing the juice holes. Perhaps an increase in the diameter of the coil might also get the wire closer the juice holes...