Nautilus 2 wicking and VG/PG recommendations

[wmcdannell]

I have some V2 eliquid (1.8%, batch shows 63.5%PG with no mention of VG on the report) that wicks wonderfully in my primary Nautilus 2 (w/ 1.8 claptons) whereas some of my other eliquids in 70VG/30PG 12mg do not wick well enough for my taste.

I've been thinking about getting some 50/50 mixes at my preferred 12mg but before I do so I would like to read any recommendations from this insightful community.

I could not find much in the way of how much VG V2 uses in their eliquids (none if I read the batch report correctly, which I am not sure about). I am hoping that by switching to a 50/50 12mg mix that it will enable me use the same eliquid in both my primary and secondary (Atlantis EVO w/ CCELL 0.9 @ 20-25w) tanks but I don't know how much lowering the VG to 50% will impact the throat hit. 6mg is far too low for my needs and 9mg is a possibility if the nicotine has too high of an impact on the throat hit when combined with more PG.

For reference, I'm coming from 1.5ppd full flavor/unfiltered and while I don't necessarily prefer throat hit, I don't mind it and can handle a bit.

For you, does the VG have a high impact on throat hit relative to the nicotine or vice versa? If lowering the VG to 50 won't have a significant impact on the throat hit then I believe 50/50 12mg might be my perfect mix. While I will be technically sub-ohm-ing (0.9), I won't be going any lower and the Nautilus 2 is my primary ADV setup. My goal is to reduce the amount of the variety of eliquid mix types that I usually get and instead use one mix type in both of my tanks and order more in bulk.

<Insert standard subjective taste warning here>
I won't hold your opinion against you. I know that what I am asking is subjective but I still want your opinion if you have the experience to do so.

Thank you in advance for any constructive insight that you can provide and happy vaping!

 

[IMFire3605]

The Orginal V1 Nautilus coils, and in relation being made the same way, the Triton Mini and Newer Nautilus V2, 70VG being more viscous, takes longer to wick with a Nautilus due to the size of the juice holes in the coil heads, so max a 60 to 65% PG/ 35 to 40%VG ratio is about the max the Nautilus heads can handle for chain vaping, though they can handle a 70VG if given time to rest and wick, i.e. about 1 minute between vapes. You could also try thinning you high VG liquids down with about 10drops of distilled water or plain grain alcohol (vodka or everclear, note alcohol will add a higher throat hit) per tank. However the optimal ratios for the Nautilus are 40PG/60VG to 70PG/30VG, and the higher the PG ratio the higher the throat hit, along with Nicotine contributes to throat hit as well, actually the primary throat hit factor is Nic %. I use a 50/50 12mg most of the day, have for almost going on 5yrs now in my rebuildable Kayfun tanks, similar class to the Nautilus what we term a Mouth To Lung (MTL) tank, though I do have more higher and advanced devices in the sub-ohm range, in those I am at a 6mg at a 70 to 80VG to help compensate for the throat hit. Be forewarned, if you settle on a single flavor/type of liquid you run higher risk of getting what is called Vapor's Tongue, which is you become taste deaf to that particular flavor or type of flavors (example - bakery style vapes like a blueberry or strawberry muffin flavors), so having different types of flavors helps keep taste buds vitalized, so don't be surprised if you do develop VT and need to switch to a fruity or tobacco or coffee style vape for a while, I have settled on about 5 various liquid flavors I rotate through, buying in bulk all of them, juice if kept in a cool, dark place can have a shelf life of close to 12 to 18months, after which the nic in the liquid has become oxidized and worthless.

An even cheaper route, is to get the recipes of your favorite liquids, and start to DIY make your own juice at home, that way you can control your PG/VG ratios, nic strength, and flavoring ratios to stay consistent for pennies compared to pre-made liquids, the flavorings being the most expensive, but the money saver is in the Nic Bases, Bulk PG and VG are cheap as heck, and unlike already made flavored juice, the bases can be stored in a freezer to prolong their life, just FYI.

 

[wmcdannell]

I did successfully dilute some of the more flavorful 70/30 mixes using a seemingly conservative 1 or 2 drops / 2ml with distilled water and after two seperate sessions of warming up and thorough mixing they now seem to wick better with my particular setup and style while still maintaining the flavor I expect. Thank you!

Some of the less flavorful mixes I currently have no choice but to vape them in one of my sub-ohm tanks. That will take a long time because of how little I vape sub-ohm. DIY is the most likely option to occur sooner for me which would include some ingredients I could use to alter the viscosity of those troublesome mixes without muting the flavor too much. An RDA may be in my future, especially if I choose to DIY eliquid. I would end up experimenting a lot with my flavors and it seems to me that the best option for quickly swapping and taste testing would be an RDA.

I forgot to mention my style of vaping. Sorry about that! The majority of the time, I prefer to chain several or more MTL vapes together in groups with a short interval between groups, exhaling through my mouth and nose. For this style, which I've found to be an excellent way to both experience flavor profiles and get the nicotine I want in short order, sub-ohm has failed to satisfy me (I also tried 70/30 6mg sub-ohm for a short time and found the juice consumption to be far too high and more importantly the frequency I felt the need to vape for more nicotine was also far too high). I have no plans in the near future to reduce my nicotine intake. There is a mantra where I grew up: "Caffeine, nicotine, and Josephine. That's all I need."

Unfortunately, I prefer the shorter designed atomizers (22mm-45mm) and the Kayfun mini V3 at 58mm wouldn't work well for my use-cases. I would have to swap to a side-by-side such as the Knight V2 or similar with more features. Currently, I solely use a Lost Vape Therion 166 because it can easily handle my variety of atomizers and even custom/prototype and future setups. Until I can find a side-by-side, short tube mod, or similarly "compact" mod that can handle custom TCR curves as precise or better and user-friendly as the DNA250/Escribe I am sort of "stuck" with the Therion. Simply put, I would have chosen the Kayfun mini V3 over the Nautilus 2 if it wasn't so tall. I see that Svoe-Mesto also offers various other tank styles for the Kayfun mini V3, do they happen to make one that shortens the chimney? I suspect that the longer chimney is there purposely by design and contributes to the flavor delivery and anti-spit-back. If not, perhaps they could alter the design and offer a Kayfun micro.

Thanks for the tip on nicotine and throat-hit. I was very curious to read a long-time users opinion on the matter. Much appreciated!

"Vapers tongue." Now, that's a concept I did not consider. It may also explain why some of my ADVs have to be switched periodically sans the normal coil/tank swap. I also keep some fruit and tobacco mixes for backup but I hadn't considered rotating them in to enhance the others. I will try it! It makes sense because the same thing will occur if you attempt to eat the same food in succession for too long.

Thanks again for your thorough, thoughtful response!