Joshua Parnell
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Anybody have any experience with one
http://www.alluringvapors.com/products/hcigar-black-mega-v2-rda
Saw one at a B&M today and was so intrigued I almost bought on the spot with no prior research. Last time I did that, it was a waste of money.
Can't find any info online on em. I see reviews for the original (5 post) everywhere, but nothing for the V2 (4 post, 3 neg 1pos).
---EDIT---
So I took the leap and bought it. Here's my review.
Building on this thing can't be described any other way except fun. This thing is huge (30mm) and stupid easy to maneuver the coils. I thought I was going to have a problem with the post holes, but that was surprisingly simple.
The well isn't deep (as is evident by the pictures) but the huge amount of open surface area almost makes up for the lack in depth.
The air holes... OK here's where the negatives start coming in. You have 3 different air hole configurations: single bar hole (about 1mm x 3mm, unconfirmed as I didn't measure), double 1mm holes or single 3mm hole. Only one of your coils can get proper air it needs. Consequently, this makes the vapor hotter. Fortunately, the air holes are adjusted by using a copper sleeve. By removing the sleeve, you open up all 7 air holes, and can get almost enough air. Almost. Unfortunately, the sleeve also works to dissipate heat, so removing it makes the RDA and drip tip hotter (but not the vapor).
Let's talk heat. The top of the RDA tapers off in a heat sink style, much like the tobh but gradually getting smaller towards the top. Unfortunately, this isn't the case internally, it's purely cylindrical and each heat sink layer is much too thick, so the heat sink doesn't work as efficiently as it should. The supplied drip tip also has the heat sink style (which I've wished for since I bought my first tobh, may throw it on there and see how it works), but it's made from a single piece, so doesn't dissipate heat well. I think a copper sleeve here would work wonders on helping cool the RDA down.
Vapor production. I tried 3 different setups, all were wrapped on a 1.5mm bit. First was 22ga. I did 6/5 wraps on all 3 coils. It had phenomenal vapor and flavor. However, the drip tip was getting so hot that after 2 hits, I had to put it down for a few minutes. Then I did 10/9 wraps of 28ga. The heat was perfect, flavor was good, but vapor production was sub par (no better than my wife's Nimbus). My only happy medium was 7/6 of 24ga. The heat still gets a little hot when chaining, and it's not producing huge clouds, but it's acceptable. About on par with the Omega.
Here's what I would change, Hcigar:
I'm going to try to take it to a machine shop and thin out the walls by the fins and get more air holes drilled to see if that improves it. We'll see.
http://www.alluringvapors.com/products/hcigar-black-mega-v2-rda
Saw one at a B&M today and was so intrigued I almost bought on the spot with no prior research. Last time I did that, it was a waste of money.
Can't find any info online on em. I see reviews for the original (5 post) everywhere, but nothing for the V2 (4 post, 3 neg 1pos).
---EDIT---
So I took the leap and bought it. Here's my review.
Building on this thing can't be described any other way except fun. This thing is huge (30mm) and stupid easy to maneuver the coils. I thought I was going to have a problem with the post holes, but that was surprisingly simple.
The well isn't deep (as is evident by the pictures) but the huge amount of open surface area almost makes up for the lack in depth.
The air holes... OK here's where the negatives start coming in. You have 3 different air hole configurations: single bar hole (about 1mm x 3mm, unconfirmed as I didn't measure), double 1mm holes or single 3mm hole. Only one of your coils can get proper air it needs. Consequently, this makes the vapor hotter. Fortunately, the air holes are adjusted by using a copper sleeve. By removing the sleeve, you open up all 7 air holes, and can get almost enough air. Almost. Unfortunately, the sleeve also works to dissipate heat, so removing it makes the RDA and drip tip hotter (but not the vapor).
Let's talk heat. The top of the RDA tapers off in a heat sink style, much like the tobh but gradually getting smaller towards the top. Unfortunately, this isn't the case internally, it's purely cylindrical and each heat sink layer is much too thick, so the heat sink doesn't work as efficiently as it should. The supplied drip tip also has the heat sink style (which I've wished for since I bought my first tobh, may throw it on there and see how it works), but it's made from a single piece, so doesn't dissipate heat well. I think a copper sleeve here would work wonders on helping cool the RDA down.
Vapor production. I tried 3 different setups, all were wrapped on a 1.5mm bit. First was 22ga. I did 6/5 wraps on all 3 coils. It had phenomenal vapor and flavor. However, the drip tip was getting so hot that after 2 hits, I had to put it down for a few minutes. Then I did 10/9 wraps of 28ga. The heat was perfect, flavor was good, but vapor production was sub par (no better than my wife's Nimbus). My only happy medium was 7/6 of 24ga. The heat still gets a little hot when chaining, and it's not producing huge clouds, but it's acceptable. About on par with the Omega.
Here's what I would change, Hcigar:
- More Air. We need more air, that simple. Take your single bar, and add 2 more, one for each coil.
- Better heat dissipation. You're on the right track, but thinner fins and less solid metal between where the vapor shoots up and the fins. If you want to make it conical (which I love) make the internal conical as well. Consider making your top cap 2 pieces instead of one, one piece for the walls, one for the fins
- Deeper wells. Seriously, only 2mm increase in well wall size will make all the difference.
- Put a sleeve on your drip tip. This will help dissipate heat on the drip tip and prevent burnt lips.
I'm going to try to take it to a machine shop and thin out the walls by the fins and get more air holes drilled to see if that improves it. We'll see.
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