Back in the day, I can recall several 'moments' in my vaping 'career' that changed my perception of this fluffy chucking obsession. As was the case with a lot of smokers back then, 'stalling' was almost compulsory - you knew you needed to get off the coffin nails, mainly because you were sick and tired of being...well....sick and tired....but when the energy required for getting off the couch to go for a piss makes you feel like an 80 year old man with one lung who's just spent an hour on a running machine....
you know it's time to pick up your skirt....and kick the stinkies ass.
But it's hard, especially at first, you buy a CE4 clearomizer.....but then you go out drinking - hardly anyone vaped back then, you were probably the only one stood outside with all the 'cool' smokers smelling of strawberries, and when you wake up the next morning and the loud mouth soup has worn off......you question things....
'Stall'
Back on the cowboy killers you go.
Then once more, some months down the line...you find a new sense of self preservation as you decide to give it another go, only this time you're gonna go in armed to the teeth. You buy yourself something that could well pass as a small rechargeable lightsaber, and on this Jedi weapon you mount a different tank that takes something called 'coils' .....There's no fucking around this time, this shit is powerful enough to kick any addictions ass.....except nicotine...obv.......It even has 3 settings! Like I said.....I was super serious...
But then you go on holidayto Turkey.....and if you haven't been to Turkey......you should know...that even the animals smoke...
'Stall'
Back on the cancer sticks....once again.
Not everyone goes down this path you understand. Some are strong enough to nail it first time, others will play this game of stinky tennis for quite some years before they finally 'click' with some gear and liquid that they really dig. For me personally...the first time I clicked was with a Kangertech Sub Ohm tank and a bottle of Mothers Milk....I was literally blown away. Although the following years contained more memorable moments, like mixing my own liquid, buying my first dripper, building my own coils, as well as a few more 'stalls'....one moment in particular....has a lot to do with what I am reviewing today - I went to an Expo and bought myself the Wotofo Serpent Mini RTA. This was true love, it was everything I wanted in a tank AT LAST - this....was just the kind of Serpent to stop me from stepping off the edge and falling back into old habits....
And I haven't stalled since.
I loved the look, the performance, but most of all.....the flavour - and at the time, I wasn't on my own.....so....big boots to fill. The Serpent range has been relatively consistent over the years, so does this new rendition carry on the family lineage?.....Does it have the same bite as it's older snake siblings? Or will this new snake just turn out to be another worm digging through the sludge in today's over-saturated RTA market.......(well...if you stopped warbling on we just might actually find that out)
Good point, well made...
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Welcome back my slithering little steam suckers, back again with more literal nonsense about something else that's making a few waves in the communal pool of Vapingdom. Once again...it's another collaboration, of course it is, why wouldn't it be? ‘tis the season of the team-up after all. This time we return to the mind of one Mr Matt Culley, AKA Suck My Mod, the man behind the Serpent....hmm...the man behind the serpent?..lNot sure that's the best way to describe him...maybe it is? I'm sure he wouldn't have a problem with that nickname but who am I to judge, maybe I should ask his Mrs.....regardless of his appendage, you can't deny the man has sprinkled more than a little magic on his catalogue of vape devices over the years...
I think that's quite enough of the willy anecdotes, we're detracting from what is important here, Matt's Serpent, more specifically, his latest model. Courtesy of Wotofo, I present the Wotofo & SMM Serpent Elevate RTA
May I suggest designing the box after you decide to put a window in it.....it is not called a 'Pent'....just sayin...
Blue...why does everyone send me fucking blue? I'm a die hard Manchester United fan (which used to be a good thing).....so blue just fucks with me. Regardless, I shall overcome this imperfection and strive to look past it, mainly due to the fact that, being a Serpent, I was genuinely excited to suck on it (?) Now....I like Matt Culley - I don't know him personally, but he has been kind enough to comment on past reviews I’ve done on his work, and I follow in the same circles on social media as he does. He seems like a really decent chap; unlike some 'vape celebrities', he makes his presence known, answers questions, gives advice to the vaping community etc., which speaks volumes to me. He also has a very 'different' approach to designing vape gear - he tends to shy away from OTT flamboyance in favour of minimalistic styling, yet the internals of his devices always tend to offer more in the way of clever engineering and innovation. Function over form has been my experience with any SMM designed device I have tried, gotta love that....so did we get more of the same this time around?......
The Low Down
The Serpent Elevate RTA is a 24mm single coil RTA with a postless deck and top airflow. Not a new idea obviously, it's been done more than once this last year alone, and it's also not without its flaws....but we'll come to that. Also in this snakes belly, amongst several dead rodents and the occasional small human, you can fit 3.5ml of your finest liquid, or 4.5ml with the included bubble glass.
Starting at the (ahem) tip...of the Serpent, we have the usual swirly resin 810 drip tip...
Also in the package comes the option of a frosted Ultem tip and a 510 adapter for anyone that wants to go down that route. It wouldn't really make any difference to the vape if you did, as the chamber hole underneath the tip is actually much smaller. This was expected as it's a single coil RTA - keeping it more restricted like this concentrates the vapour coming through and increases the flavour, less air...more flavour..
One slight thing I did notice here was that second lip around the rim (look.....I'm reviewing something called a Serpent, from Suck My Mod, which will include words like 'tip', 'rim', 'hole', 'mouth', & 'warm liquid'....you're just gonna have to get your mind out of the gutter on this one okay?..). Now....this rim, my first thoughts were 'cooool'....because I assumed it was for the tip to sit in the rim (sigh) ....I, for one, am always knocking my tip off (ffs) ....so creating a little rim for your tip to sit in (unbelievable) would prevent this - but actually...the tip doesn't quite penetrate the rim due to its girth (stop it).....So to reiterate, Matt's Serpent has a tip that's too girthy for the rim around the hole, meaning it's still possible to knock your tip off.....now there's a sentence I never thought I'd write...
Obviously...it's for the 510 adapter...but I just thought it worth mentioning (of course you did)
The top fill is dealt with in the usual way, simply unscrew the cap and you are presented with two kidney shaped holes in a beautifully recessed fill chamber...
Plenty of space inside the rim to catch any of your liquid which doesn't go down the hole, stopping it from going all over your hand....okay...I'll stop now...
Just underneath the top-cap you will find the top adjustable airflow...
For an SMM designed device, I was quite surprised to see some pattern detail on the outside; although it does carry on the theme with it's snake-skin appearance. Not only does this look kinda cool, it also offers excellent grip on the AFC ring.
With the straight glass in place you can also check out the excellent..and HUGE..Serpent motif engraving on the chamber itself...
lol, thank you!!
