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Choder's thoughts on the OBS Crius RDA

choderfett

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Member For 4 Years
THIS IS NOT A REVIEW, JUST MY EXPERIENCE.
There have been a lot of other professional reviews of this product and while I am not here to agree or rebut any of those opinions, I am just here to share with you my experience. I'm still learning and haven't been around the vape block so thanks for your support; this is my first RDA experience.

Full Disclosure: I was award the OBS Crius RDA in a contest drawing on VU by HeavenGifts and providing my experience voluntarily.


Shipment was shipped via DHL on February 9, 2018 and delivered to me on February 15.
It arrived in a package that had its contents heavily bubble wrapped and secured with packing tape. It was hard to rip open with my bare hands but glad to know Heavengifts ships its products well protected.
01. OBS Zesthia w Vap X.jpg

I was a bit saddened when I saw that I had received the stainless steel (SS) version as I tend to favor black but none the less, excited to check out my first Dripper tank!
02. OBS Crius.jpg

It comes with a minimum standard equipment to get started.
03. unboxing.jpg
NOTE: OBS only included two (2) black O-rings for the deck and gear for the initial setup. Could not tell what kind of Clapton coils they were and enough cotton, in my mind, for a one time re-wick.

It looks pretty nice on my revenger (even though it is SS)
04. on the Venger.jpg

Compared it in size to my RTA’s I had close by.
  • OBS Crius RDA on Vaporesso Revenger X
  • Serpent SMM (3.7 mL)
  • Asmodus Zesthia (4.5 mL) <= this one had juice in it.
  • Vaporesso NRG (5.0 mL) <= this one had juice in it.
05. other tanks.jpg

It basically comes apart in 3 main pieces – build deck, air sleeve, and drip cap.
06. taking it apart.jpg

Drip Cap
The amber 810 Ultem drip tip is pretty tightly secured by a black rubber tubing attached to the drip cap. There is also another black O-ring around the top cap to secure it to the Air sleeve.
07. drip tip.jpg
NOTE: The O-ring around the top cap is real similar in size to the two O-rings used for the deck but it is slightly less thick. Although interchangeable, the two spare O-rings are meant for the deck replacement.

Air Sleeve
There are four air holes evenly located at each quadrant, at the top of the sleeve. These four outer air slots basically feed into a thin cylindrical chamber that opens up into two interior vents that always provides a flow pattern across the coils, which is accomplished by a notched system when the sleeve is mounted onto the deck, more on this later. The interior vents are located about half the height of the sleeve. The two inner intake holes are pretty inline to two opposing outer openings but are slightly vertically offset.
08. air sleeve.jpg 08a. air flow.jpg
Notice the chamfering of the bottom of the narrow circulation chamber.
 

choderfett

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Gold Contributor
Member For 4 Years
The Build Deck
The build deck is beautifully gold plated with a single screw post that incorporated a short cantilevered clamping system. Separating the currents is a piece of zirconia, which is basically a type of ceramic. Loosening the Phillips screw releases the top bar and ceramic piece which is separated by a spring but held in place. Unscrewing it more will provide separation from the deck piece.
09. deck.jpg 10. deck connection.jpg 11. Squonk hole deck.jpg 12. squonk deck pin.jpg
There are two holes on each side of the internal thread post and they are for squonking. Unfortunately I don’t have a Squonk mod but this RDA can adapt by removing the bottom feed pin located at the center of the 510 connection.

13. 510 to squonk.jpg

The squonk pin can be removed by using the included little black Hex screw driver.

14. squonk pin.jpg
Note: Don’t lose the squonk screw, there is no included replacement!


I threw on a pair of 0.36 Ω Stainless Steel Quad Coils - not the coils that came in the box
15. quad coils.jpg


My Vaporesso Revenger X smart mode reads the build at 0.24 Ω and suggests vaping at 50 Watts.
I turned it down to 45 Watts as I glowed the coils red - nice and even.
16. pulsing.jpg 17. getting it hot.jpg


For my wicks I stretched out about 2-3 cm of Japanese cotton, after skinning it, into a sheet before rolling it up - It’s a personal thing.
18. wicking time.jpg
 

choderfett

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Gold Contributor
Member For 4 Years
Inserting a sprig into each coil, and then snipping it long, since I knew that there should be adequate material as I tucked it into the juice wells to soak the drippings.
19. cotton.jpg 20. tucked.jpg

I continued to prime with the use of some HomeTownHero Sun Drops – Passion tea flavor
(I will never buy from these guys again - long story but bad experience)
21. HTH-SD.jpg 22. primed - home.jpg

But then decided to use a touch of Seven Seas Forbidden Fruit ejuice for some color and flavor. I like to mix it up.
23. primed -sevensea.jpg

Putting the cap back onto the build, you will need to spin it so these notches align, securing it to the deck plate, placing the air vents directly behind each of the coils, per design.
24. capping.jpg 24a. capping.jpg 24b. capping.jpg 25. airflow coiled.jpg

Placing the drip cap completes the build and I’m ready for a VAPE!
26. capping.jpg
 
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choderfett

VU Donator
Gold Contributor
Member For 4 Years
Took a couple puffs and decided to add a little more drip in the tank. Honestly I’m not sure when to do this but I assume I should be checking to see and make sure the wicks are damp.
27. filling.jpg

Random photos showing the condensates, around the tank, as I put my final thoughts together.
28. drip tip cap.jpg 29. inside.jpg 30. cap dew.jpg 31. inside dew.jpg

After a week of using the RDA, it leaves me wanting a Squonk mod! I find it real annoying to have a bottle of juice handy to "drip" before each session I have.

I find that the quality and design of the Crius to be decent, nothing really to complain nor compare it to. The built deck was okay with securing all four legs at once however I rather tighten each coil leg individually . It has great airflow when vaping as I always left it wide open. I don't really see a factor nor any 360 cyclone action with the setup. Yes, I did a blow test - wrapping some foil around the body section allowing air to enter each of the four openings only to see the vapor go straight up. There is nothing inside the dome to create any turbulence. Flavor and the vapor production was not too intense coming from a single coil RTA's perspective. Some of these factors might have to do with the coils used but overall my vape experience has been good on the usage of the atomizer but negative on the dripping experience.


Key Observations:

  • The BF pin uses an Allen Hex H1.0 bit. I would not recommend using a T5 Torx screwdriver but that seems to also work
  • The legs of the coils, I used fit, nicely in the shoulder and pit area of the ceramic piece. Longer, stretched, or flat coils can be accommodated in the arms of the zirconia.
  • I find it easier to clamp down the coils, adjust it, then clipping the excess.
  • Cleaning up the RDA, noticed that the ceramic piece was stained on both sides probably from the proximity to the heated coils – its semi noticeable.
32. Black stain.jpg 32a. Black stain.jpg




Thank you again HeavenGifts.com for the contest and generous prize!!
~World No. 1 E-Cig B2B Supplier since 2007!
33. thank you.jpg
For the Crius at HeavenGifts : https://www.heavengifts.com/product/OBS-Crius-RDA.html

Get 30% off site wide use coupon code AHG30, valid till February 24, 2018 (it was for Chinese New Year’s)
 
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