Lost in the world of regulated mods - In need of help

[Bommer]

Hi guys,

I have been vaping for more than a year now. I however started to exclusively vape (read, managed to throw those damn cancer sticks away) for two months now.

First some background info:
I got few starter vaping batteries: one small ego pen, one eGo spinner, one Aspire CF VV+, and one Kanger Mow.

I got a few clearos: one Aspire Nautilis, one Nautilus mini, several eLead mini bcc's, and one Aspire BDC (just the regular coils running from 1.8 to 2.4)

I have never dripped (and really wish I could start since I do like switching flavours all the time) and have never build any atty (looking forward to that too, but a bit afraid of starting studying ohm laws).

I do not cloudchase (not interested in this at all) and I have never sub-ohmed (not excluding that I would try it one day).

What I am looking for:
An AVP that has:

1. security/protection mechanisms (since I have no experience with mods or specific ohm-knowledged);
2. replaceable batteries (don't wanna pay a lot of money just to see the device die along with its battery);
3. allowing me to drip and use coils that I would build (and maybe sub-ohming);
4. nicely buildt device (preferably not a box, though I have never tried any of those);
5. price will not be my principal criteria, but let's be honest it will definitely have an impact on my decision

The Question:
After having read/watched numerous posts/reviews/vids, I came to the following conclusion: I do not know what I should purchase...

Provari P3 seems overpriced (but it is a very nice device), Vamo V7 (V8?V9? ...V203? I do not understand all those versions [and even the brand - is there even an official company producing those?]), I heard good things about the Vapor Flask, Vapor Shark DNA 30, CoolFire 2, Evic Supreme, etc. Anyway, I guess you got the point, I don't what to do.

The Subsidiary Questions:
What would you recommend for (i) dripping and (ii) rebuildables?

Many thanks in advance for your help, fellow vapers (and sorry for this very long post - hope it is at least clear)!

 

[tnumbers]

Youre not going to get all of these things in any form of tube device. My recommendation to you is to learn about ohms law anyways, as its important in coil building. You dont have to have it memorized or anything, just get the general concept down. I also recommend going for an AUTHENTIC dna 40 device if youre looking for reliability and safety. Evolv has a really good track record with that. We can talk more about atomizers, coil builds, and other such things after youve picked out a device.

IPV's and Cloupor boxes all have mixed reviews as far as reliability is concerned. And the provari p3 (IMHO) doesnt put out enough power to drip with. Unless youre dripping with a high nicotine level. In which case, 20 watts is fine.

 

[MKPM]

I disagree with most of the above.
Authentics are nice, but there are no significant issues with the likes of the cloned DNA 30 boxes, or the IPV2 or IPV3's. As for variable voltage tube format mods, you can find some good deals on the first and second generation Provaris and Z-Max mods out there. Evolv does make a good chip, but not any better than the YIHI SX chips. As for power for dripping....ask ANY cloud chaser and they will tell you that a fully charged 20 amp 18650 battery does the job just fine....THAT being said, any regulated mod that has an output of 20amps or better will produce AMPLE flavour and vapour regardless of the atomiser and build. You can sub ohm just FINE on a mechanical, and with the new Atlantis clearo...just FINE on as little as the iStick.
The money spent on authentics is your choice, but NOT money well spent if you are just beginning with rebuildables.
These are my opinions, but I've been around long enough to know this all to be very true....and you will see by the "likes" that this post gets, that I am in very common company.

 

[tnumbers]

Ive heard a lot of mixed reviews about the IPV's and their build quality. And ive had a couple cloupor chips catch fire in my hand. I never said anything under 20 amps was bad. I never said anything about them being better or worse than mechanical mods, thats not what he asked about. I never said an istick wasnt a good option, but i know nothing of their quality as i havent looked into them and am only speaking from what i know/have read.

Also please note the "in my honest opinion" on my statement that 20 watts isnt enough for drippers. Meaning that's a preference.

 

[1truk]

If i have learned anything about vaping over the years it's that everyone is different, in that, what works for me may not for you. As you can see by the debate going on above, people can get pretty passionate about these topics as well. You are posing a rather hard set of questions that are nearly impossible to answer as there are just too many options available and know that due to the fact that your questions are somewhat widespread with regard to what you want to do and not want to do it makes things more complex. My suggestion to you is to realize that according to your tastes, there may not be ONE device that suits all of your needs/wants, and this very thing is why most advanced vapers have multiple devices and even more opinions about which are better than others. You say you have never built a coil yet you want a device that will work with rebuildables. You say you do not understand Ohms Law but you want to build and use dippers .. Do yourself a favor and take the time to learn a little about Ohm's Law and how Resistance affects Voltage and Current. And how Power Regulation works, etc. These concepts can get very detailed but a basic understanding can get you far with regard to finding the device and equipment that works best for you. I can take 10 people and put them in a room filled with vaping equipment and after an hour every one of them will be sporting something different and each pledging that what they chose was the best.

 

[Bommer]

Many thanks for your answers and sorry for having induced heated debates

I understand that my questions were very broad and do appreciate the feedback received. In the meantime, my girlfriend made a choice for me (she was probably desperate (or, read, fed up) of seeing me reading every night about which battery I should get): I will be the lucky owner of a P3 in the coming days ))

@1truk: I actualy did a lot of readings already (incl. ohm laws) - this is probably why my questions were widespread and a (tiny) bit confusing, but thanks a lot for your very frank opinion.

May I just ask one last question: what dripper model would you guys recommend (knowing that i'll have the P3 around)?

In any case, let me thank again everyone who have read through my initial post!

 

[tnumbers]

I love my zenith v2 clone. Cost me $10 and is really simple to use. If you are more into authentics, a mutation X v1 or v2 will cover pretty much all of your needs.

 

[UncleRJ]

Do you have a good set of batteries for your P3 as well as a great charger?

 

[Iamme]

I'm not to in tune with them, but there are tube mods out there that hit 30+ watt. There are some vamo styles and cloupor makes a tube mod that is higher wattage. If you're stuck on that style. I have to say, I thought my box mod would be annoying. I wasn't sure I would like it. Now that I've used them for a while, I couldn't go back to tube mods. My mech mods annoy the heck out of me when I use them now. Think I may need a box mech down the road. I have the ipv2 and I love it. My only complaint is the screws, but I think I figured out a way to mod it to use magnets.

 

[Bommer]

Do you have a good set of batteries for your P3 as well as a great charger?

I purchased 2x AW IMR 18350 - 700, 2x AW IMR 18650 - 2000 mah and a Nitecore D2 charger

ps: for those who live in the UK, you should def try to purchase the P3 from one of the French website that often offer 10% off your first purchase. My gf paid EUR 206.91 (ca. USD 257.57) which is cheaper than provape's online shop

 

[VH fan]

Many thanks for your answers and sorry for having induced heated debates

I understand that my questions were very broad and do appreciate the feedback received. In the meantime, my girlfriend made a choice for me (she was probably desperate (or, read, fed up) of seeing me reading every night about which battery I should get): I will be the lucky owner of a P3 in the coming days ))

@1truk: I actualy did a lot of readings already (incl. ohm laws) - this is probably why my questions were widespread and a (tiny) bit confusing, but thanks a lot for your very frank opinion.

May I just ask one last question: what dripper model would you guys recommend (knowing that i'll have the P3 around)?

In any case, let me thank again everyone who have read through my initial post!

Wow, thats some gift , lucky you lol. Imo, if you just want the purity of taste that dripper's can provide and don't care about multiple coil setups and cloud chasing the P3 is more than adequate .

As a matter of fact , i prefer dripper's like the Magma and Veritas because they both provide outstanding flavor and both work fantastic with single or dual coil builds. They also hold a ton of juice , work well at wattages below 20 watts and also considerably higher if preferred .

If you want great taste in a tank and will attempt rebuilding i would highly recommend the Orchid V4

Here are some links for you , look at all the outstanding reviews and the price is excellent . Of course you don't have to buy stuff at FT so if your girlfriend doesn't mind spending more buy where ever you feel comfortable.

I can personally vouch for the quality of the below links , all turned out to be excellent.

https://www.fasttech.com/products/0/10008103/1718100-magma-style-rebuildable-dripping-atomizer

https://www.fasttech.com/products/0/10008562/1816700-veritas-style-rebuildable-dripping-atomizer

https://www.fasttech.com/products/0/10009514/1904601-orchid-v4-styled-rebuildable-tank-atomizer

 

[madmonkey]

Congrats on making the switch and on your P3!

Provape makes a very durable and dependable product. I remember when I got my Provari 2.5 and it was my first "real" mod and how special I thought it was and they're built like tanks....remember, you're just starting out. 20w of power should keep you more than happy for awhile at least. I rebuild and drip but even still after a year and a half my all day vape is a Kayfun with a 1.2-1.4 ohm coil set to 12-14 watts. One really nice thing about the new P3 is it can use flat top batteries (the older ones had to be button top AW's or Provape wouldn't honor your warranty.) So if you can find yourself some batteries like the Samsung 25R's I would buy a couple. Since VTC batteries are no longer being made, Samsung, Pannasonic, and LG's are more and more looking like your better option at the moment....There is always Efest but if you read threw the forum they've got mixed reviews threw out the years....but like the answer to all your other questions, it comes down to preference and safety. If you wanna rebuild you have to learn ohm's law...or at least learn to use an ohm's law calculator. You can download them onto your smartphone as well as google them online both for free. Knowing the amp limit if your batteries (and your device if it is regulated,) is important and you don't want to do anything to push past that limit. A regulated device like a P3 has safeties built in to prevent you from going over your amp limit of the device but a mech mod only has the battery. If you build a coil that needs 10 amps on a fully charged battery than you want at least a 15 amp battery for safety margin. Some people say that you only need a ten amp battery for a ten amp coil but I believe in leaving an extra margin of safety and constantly pushing your battery to the limit ins't good for the battery either. You learn all this in time. Safety is a must...but what you like to vape on is your opinion alone....here is a few of my opinions I recommend to beginners.

Rebuilding takes time, study, and patience. There is a wealth of knowledge on this forum as well as other forums and youtube and the best advice I can give is carefully sponge the good advice up. Don't buy your first dripper and try and build a .2 super low build.....just find a clearo tank you like to vape on first like the Aspire Nautilus or the Nautilus mini with the new BVC coils and enjoy that while you learn about drippers. There are several different kinds of RDA's now....for your first I'd recommend going for a flavor dripper like a Magma. You can get them everywhere for 20 bucks or less and they are a simple 2 post atty with decent airflow that is fairly easy to build on and learn. An Igo-5 is a good three post starter atty if you want to go that way instead in my opinion, It takes time to get the hang of wrapping coils but a simple micro coil is fairly easy with a little practice. Start with a 28-30 gauge wire....it's thick enough that it's easy to work with and the ohm's are high enough that it gives you a better safety margin and 28 gauge wire will still give a decently think vape. I'd start with higher ohm'ed single coils and work your way two duals and lower resistance. A 24 gauge super low ohm builds may give huge clouds, but without the right airflow it's going to feel like inhaling fire if you're not used to it and you'll lose some of the flavor in the trade off for that cloud and go threw juice super fast. Plus a P3 with a 20 watt max isn't going to push a coil that low. I think it only wire fire a coil down to .8? (I can't remember off the top of my head.)

As for rebuildable Tanks, Kayfuns and Orchids are good starting points....and then research and branch out into Squapes, Aquas, etc...I say those two because you can get highly decent clones of those two at reasonable prices. The Kayfun is the old single coil "tried and true" standard and the Orchid is a pretty good starting point for dual coils when you're ready.

Yeah I am long winded, but I spent a ton of money going threw everything when I first started and now I don't really have the cash to buy every new thing that comes out....the truth is you're either going to be happy with your clearo tanks and ego's like many are and stay there or you're going to get into RDA's and it becomes not just a way to help keep off smoking, but a fun hobby on top of it and want to try everything so I suggested what I did to try and save a few steps but keep it simple and safe. I hope my long winded rant helped. Happy Vaping and cheers!

 

[VH fan]

Congrats on making the switch and on your P3!

Provape makes a very durable and dependable product. I remember when I got my Provari 2.5 and it was my first "real" mod and how special I thought it was and they're built like tanks....remember, you're just starting out. 20w of power should keep you more than happy for awhile at least. I rebuild and drip but even still after a year and a half my all day vape is a Kayfun with a 1.2-1.4 ohm coil set to 12-14 watts. One really nice thing about the new P3 is it can use flat top batteries (the older ones had to be button top AW's or Provape wouldn't honor your warranty.) So if you can find yourself some batteries like the Samsung 25R's I would buy a couple. Since VTC batteries are no longer being made, Samsung, Pannasonic, and LG's are more and more looking like your better option at the moment....There is always Efest but if you read threw the forum they've got mixed reviews threw out the years....but like the answer to all your other questions, it comes down to preference and safety. If you wanna rebuild you have to learn ohm's law...or at least learn to use an ohm's law calculator. You can download them onto your smartphone as well as google them online both for free. Knowing the amp limit if your batteries (and your device if it is regulated,) is important and you don't want to do anything to push past that limit. A regulated device like a P3 has safeties built in to prevent you from going over your amp limit of the device but a mech mod only has the battery. If you build a coil that needs 10 amps on a fully charged battery than you want at least a 15 amp battery for safety margin. Some people say that you only need a ten amp battery for a ten amp coil but I believe in leaving an extra margin of safety and constantly pushing your battery to the limit ins't good for the battery either. You learn all this in time. Safety is a must...but what you like to vape on is your opinion alone....here is a few of my opinions I recommend to beginners.

Rebuilding takes time, study, and patience. There is a wealth of knowledge on this forum as well as other forums and youtube and the best advice I can give is carefully sponge the good advice up. Don't buy your first dripper and try and build a .2 super low build.....just find a clearo tank you like to vape on first like the Aspire Nautilus or the Nautilus mini with the new BVC coils and enjoy that while you learn about drippers. There are several different kinds of RDA's now....for your first I'd recommend going for a flavor dripper like a Magma. You can get them everywhere for 20 bucks or less and they are a simple 2 post atty with decent airflow that is fairly easy to build on and learn. An Igo-5 is a good three post starter atty if you want to go that way instead in my opinion, It takes time to get the hang of wrapping coils but a simple micro coil is fairly easy with a little practice. Start with a 28-30 gauge wire....it's thick enough that it's easy to work with and the ohm's are high enough that it gives you a better safety margin and 28 gauge wire will still give a decently think vape. I'd start with higher ohm'ed single coils and work your way two duals and lower resistance. A 24 gauge super low ohm builds may give huge clouds, but without the right airflow it's going to feel like inhaling fire if you're not used to it and you'll lose some of the flavor in the trade off for that cloud and go threw juice super fast. Plus a P3 with a 20 watt max isn't going to push a coil that low. I think it only wire fire a coil down to .8? (I can't remember off the top of my head.)

As for rebuildable Tanks, Kayfuns and Orchids are good starting points....and then research and branch out into Squapes, Aquas, etc...I say those two because you can get highly decent clones of those two at reasonable prices. The Kayfun is the old single coil "tried and true" standard and the Orchid is a pretty good starting point for dual coils when you're ready.

Yeah I am long winded, but I spent a ton of money going threw everything when I first started and now I don't really have the cash to buy every new thing that comes out....the truth is you're either going to be happy with your clearo tanks and ego's like many are and stay there or you're going to get into RDA's and it becomes not just a way to help keep off smoking, but a fun hobby on top of it and want to try everything so I suggested what I did to try and save a few steps but keep it simple and safe. I hope my long winded rant helped. Happy Vaping and cheers!

I agree about the wire sizes , with a P3 there is zero need for 24 and even 26 gauge wire , it would take forever to heat up . 28 gauge is the overwhelming choice by most people , survey after survey confirms this. It's thick enough for easy handling and works great on a huge variety of builds .