Vandy Vape Kylin Mini RTA Review by KingPin! (inc. wicking guide)

[zamnell88]

Haha that it does but then all the top flavoured tanks tend to...If you don’t make your own juice hit our forum DIY section mate we have some gifted creators here and I’m sure you’ll be able to fill your boots in no time ...say goodbye to daylight robbery prices and hello gallon juice bottles

Yeah I used to make my own now I couldn't be bothered. What cotton do you reccomend to use?

 

[KingPin!]

Yeah I used to make my own now I couldn't be bothered. What cotton do you reccomend to use?

On this tank I was using Flash Wicks 100% Pima Cotton, bought it by accident but found it useful on tanks that tend to be a pain

Normally on RTAs & RDTAs I use cotton bacon V2 but this flash wicks stuff wicks faster and has even less break in time. I want to try Cotton Bacon prime next see if that’s as good (I’ve heard good things)

On RDAs I like to use Koh Gen Doh - break in take a little longer, wicks slower but I like it’s ability to keep saturated and not burn as easily when drying out (it’s a bit like Muji cotton but a bigger pad)

 

[ColdDayInHell]

I got fed up with this tedious RTA and got another Kylin, in SS. I know its’ tricks and how to wick it perfectly.

The KM will be my 3rd RTA and I’ll use it whenever I feel like being a glutton for punishment. It’s not a bad RTA. But damn , is it ever difficult to get right. To those who use it regularly , I applaud you.

Thanks again OP and VapeFan for getting the techniques down.


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[ColdDayInHell]

Haha that it does but then all the top flavoured tanks tend to...If you don’t make your own juice hit our forum DIY section mate we have some gifted creators here and I’m sure you’ll be able to fill your boots in no time ...say goodbye to daylight robbery prices and hello gallon juice bottles

Fill me in too , wise one


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[KingPin!]

Fill me in too , wise one


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There’s far more gifted members than I ...was referring to this section mate

http://vapingunderground.com/forums/diy-e-liquid-recipes.50/

 

[zamnell88]

On this tank I was using Flash Wicks 100% Pima Cotton, bought it by accident but found it useful on tanks that tend to be a pain

Normally on RTAs & RDTAs I use cotton bacon V2 but this flash wicks stuff wicks faster and has even less break in time. I want to try Cotton Bacon prime next see if that’s as good (I’ve heard good things)

On RDAs I like to use Koh Gen Doh - break in take a little longer, wicks slower but I like it’s ability to keep saturated and not burn as easily when drying out (it’s a bit like Muji cotton but a bigger pad)

I just got some Cloud Cotton by Pilot Vape (they were sold out of the Cotton Bacon). The difference between this and the old square sheets is amazing. I can thin the ends out so much and it still holds the liquid without leaking, the juice flow is quick and there's definitely no problem with dry hits. I wanted to get Cotton Bacon but yeah, no luck.

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[KingPin!]

I just got some Cloud Cotton by Pilot Vape (they were sold out of the Cotton Bacon). The difference between this and the old square sheets is amazing. I can thin the ends out so much and it still holds the liquid without leaking, the juice flow is quick and there's definitely no problem with dry hits. I wanted to get Cotton Bacon but yeah, no luck.

Sent from my LG-H870DS using Tapatalk

Sounds interesting I’ll give it a go when I next need to buy some

 

[ziadtorkey]

Building and Wicking

You’ll have approx. 9mm of build space which is ample for a decent set up. Bear in mind the airflow is only going to hit the middle 6mm of the coil so watch out for running parallels or coils that heat out to the edges quickly to avoid burnt hits.

View attachment 103935

The deck is postless with nice big screws. I have absolutely no issue with the quality of these screws. You get both Philips and Allen key if you prefer one or the other. My screws were in really tight to begin with, I could only undo them with a long screwdriver.

I feel parts of the Kylin Mini’s design conflict with each other. Your coil legs will always be twisted, and the screws will always stick out slightly choking the wicking channel. In my opinion they should have placed the mounting screws in the side of the deck which would have allowed them to open up those wicking channels more.

I preferred using a single 3mm coil for this RTA positioned so roughly half the coil sits over the top of the deck. There’s nothing to stop you going 0.5mm higher or lower. Here’s a couple of the photo worthy coils I built for the Kylin Mini

View attachment 103938 View attachment 103937

Wicking is a giant pain in the ass for the Kylin Mini. Much like its predecessor there is no middle ground you either get it right or you are punished. It took me multiple attempts to figure how to wick this thing. In the end I settled for the following

I should mention this approach is using 75% VG. I mention this because it’ll make a difference later at step 6.

1) I use the Scottish roll method (google this) I was using Flash Wicks Pima Cotton (I imagine it’s a lot like native wicks)

2) Pull the cotton through the coil, you want it snug but not so much it’s really moving the coil

3) Cut your wicks at the edge of the deck

View attachment 103939

4) Thin them out a bit (this is Pain in the Ass part 1) how much you thin them out depends on thickness of your juice. The way I’d describe this bit is do it until you feel the cotton is combing through nicely in the same direction

5) Now fluff them up and pancake the end

View attachment 103941

6) (PITA part 2) Now the trick here is to think about the end of the cotton as two parts the bottom half is going into the channel and the top half is going to plug up the deck, like so.

View attachment 103940

Important Note: Remember I mentioned earlier this wicking method is for 75% VG - that centre line moves up the thinner the juice is. In fact you might find you need to move it up or down depending on the wicking material as well.

7) Prime everything …try to prime at the ends as well, and not just along the top to maintain that pancake as much as possible. If you cut it right you will be able to mould the cotton so that it fills this sort of shape. If you end up below that screw you didn’t cut away enough.

View attachment 103942

8) Carefully screw the top on (reverse it first a bit then remove it in order to check you haven’t disturbed anything)

9) Screw the base down (if you feel its scratchy you have likely caught some cotton in the threads and you should go back and check). Also remember I mentioned having that bubble glass orientated the right way earlier in my review (the longer bit goes up top).

10) Fill up the tank only a quarter of the way because this is going to be trial an error until you nail it as to the ratios you put into the wicking channel.

If it worked welcome to flavour heaven, if not you’re probably getting vapour lock and having to undo the top cap…..step away try not to throw it at a wall like I almost did

Oh one more thing close the AFC when refilling, there is a pressure effect on this tank and it will cause leaking if you have those thinner wicks in the channel. To be honest from time to time I even experience seeping after a refill but as soon as I wipe it off and start vaping it stops.

How’s the Vape

Out and out this thing belts out massive flavour which is even more intense with a 510 drip tip and restricted draw at half way, it’s moist and vapour production is plentiful, as with any tank in this category it drinks fairly quickly though especially for a single coil.

It’s not the smoothest draw considering they are using the honeycombed design. It probably has something to do with the template base I mentioned earlier rather than machining the airflow properly.

Pro’s

• Very impressive Flavour - more so than the original Kylin that’s for sure!
• Good capacity tank with the bubble glass
• Decent build deck space
• Plenty of spares

Cons

• Unforgiving with the best of them
• Poor threading
• Dirty on arrival
• O-Rings were lose and stuck to the glass tank
• Uses same base template with all of the same flaws I’ve seen before
• Deck layout means you get twisted coil legs – should have been positioned at the side
• Should have come with a 510 drip tip extra instead of a shorty 810

Final Conclusion

In case you can’t tell in my review I very much have a love/hate relationship with the Kylin Mini, but hey I had the same exact feelings with the original Kylin so why change the habit of a lifetime.

It’s such a nice vape when you get it right, it really is one of the best flavour RTA’s I’ve ever used but it’s such a pain in the arse at the same time that I’ve often wanted to just walk away. I’m glad I pushed through it and figured it all out though. If they ever tweak this design or follow it up in an alternative product I really hope they are listening to some of the critical feedback out there to improve it.

View attachment 103936

Thankyou for reading my review, I hope this information serves you well .....until next time KingPin!

You are the HERO KingPin

I wicked it totally different on my first time. It was spitting, leaking but the flavor was WOW. So i kept trying and trying till i found your review and got it right

Now I'm able to chain vape it without any dry hits and no leaking during vaping (couple of drops while refilling). I'm using 3.5 id Clapton ss316L coil with scotch roll japans cotton and it work very good.

Earlier i was using bacon cotton (v2) the flavor was better but i was not able to overcome the leaking and the spitting using the bacon cotton. does anyone succeed using bacon cotton? and how did you do it?

 

[KingPin!]

You are the HERO KingPin

I wicked it totally different on my first time. It was spitting, leaking but the flavor was WOW. So i kept trying and trying till i found your review and got it right

Now I'm able to chain vape it without any dry hits and no leaking during vaping (couple of drops while refilling). I'm using 3.5 id Clapton ss316L coil with scotch roll japans cotton and it work very good.

Earlier i was using bacon cotton (v2) the flavor was better but i was not able to overcome the leaking and the spitting using the bacon cotton. does anyone succeed using bacon cotton? and how did you do it?

....Glad it worked for you mate

I’d say for the bacon to alleviate spitting leave it a bit tighter in the centre of the coil, and to stop leaking don’t rake too much away from the ends (it’s going to be one of those things practise makes perfect)

Alternatively you could also try a 3.5mm coil which will afford you a little extra cotton to play with

Either way take a couple of pics every time you wick it until you nail it ...that way you can see exactly what you did for next time

 

[ziadtorkey]

....Glad it worked for you mate

I’d say for the bacon to alleviate spitting leave it a bit tighter in the centre of the coil, and to stop leaking don’t rake too much away from the ends (it’s going to be one of those things practise makes perfect)

Alternatively you could also try a 3.5mm coil which will afford you a little extra cotton to play with

Either way take a couple of pics every time you wick it until you nail it ...that way you can see exactly what you did for next time

I have another subjective issue, when i take a drag i feel that the first one sec is full of vapor and flavor but the rest of the drag is just air. what could be the problem!

I have this problem using any kind of cotton. May be i stuff too much cotton so there is no place for juice under the coil?

I wish this has a fix

 

[KingPin!]

I have another subjective issue, when i take a drag i feel that the first one sec is full of vapor and flavor but the rest of the drag is just air. what could be the problem!

I have this problem using any kind of cotton. May be i stuff too much cotton so there is no place for juice under the coil?

I wish this has a fix

What coil, wattage, airflow setting do you use?

 

[ziadtorkey]

What coil, wattage, airflow setting do you use?

I have SS Fused Clapton ( 26ga*2 + 30ga) from geek vape , 6 wraps spaced ( or touching it is the same), i tried from 40 watts to 60 watts, airflow almost full opened.

I tried in wattage mod and tc all the same, whatever the settings i get same results.

the difference in wattage/tc affect the first sec only. it seems that the airflow is cooling the coil too much, i don't know!

 

[KingPin!]

I have SS Fused Clapton ( 26ga*2 + 30ga) from geek vape , 6 wraps spaced ( or touching it is the same), i tried from 40 watts to 60 watts, airflow almost full opened.

I tried in wattage mod and tc all the same, whatever the settings i get same results.

the difference in wattage/tc affect the first sec only. it seems that the airflow is cooling the coil too much, i don't know!

for a fused clapton to have airflow wide open is going to mute the flavour for you.... try a framed staple coil/tri or quad core Clapton/ alien those will all fare better with wide open airflow

 

[ziadtorkey]

for a fused clapton to have airflow wide open is going to mute the flavour for you.... try a framed staple coil/tri or quad core Clapton/ alien those will all fare better with wide open airflow

What is the idea behind that? if it is all about the surface i can build parallel or twisted at home. can you explain why?

 

[KingPin!]

What is the idea behind that? if it is all about the surface i can build parallel or twisted at home. can you explain why?

There’s a lot of air holes surrounding the coil on this deck so coils with higher mass/ surface area keep cooler easier especially wide open airflow like you described

More surface area = more juice bubbling on top

Try a parralel clapton build though you are limited by deck mounting distance so you might have to run a single clapton between a fused to fit it in (ran something similar in my review)

 

[ziadtorkey]

There’s a lot of air holes surrounding the coil on this deck so coils with higher mass/ surface area keep cooler easier especially wide open airflow like you described

More surface area = more juice bubbling on top

Try a parralel clapton build though you are limited by deck mounting distance so you might have to run a single clapton between a fused to fit it in (ran something similar in my review)

Thank you so much for your support. You are very helpful If you need anything related to Software development i'm here for you

 

[UncleRJ]

Well done as always!

 

[KingPin!]

Well done as always!

Thank you very much Unc

 

[Just Frank]

Do a lot of you guys still use these often? I was looking at single coil RTAs and was wondering what's popular now a days. I have the Ehpro Bachelor X but have no other single coil RTAs to compare it to. Comparing it to my Themis it seems cheaper or not as solid I guess.

 

[Heartsdelight]

Do a lot of you guys still use these often? I was looking at single coil RTAs and was wondering what's popular now a days. I have the Ehpro Bachelor X but have no other single coil RTAs to compare it to. Comparing it to my Themis it seems cheaper or not as solid I guess.

I still use mine. I just today received the Augvape Intake haven’t built it yet.

 

[Vape Fan]

Still use mine. It's usually my day at work vape.

 

[eStorm]

My husband and I still use these on a daily basis, I also use the recurve on my squonk, but I'm interested in getting the intake and revolver. I just don't think anything out there right now, beats the flavor of the KM and I wish it would, because that wicking is still the shittiest thing, even tho I'm used to it lol.

 

[KingPin!]

Do a lot of you guys still use these often? I was looking at single coil RTAs and was wondering what's popular now a days. I have the Ehpro Bachelor X but have no other single coil RTAs to compare it to. Comparing it to my Themis it seems cheaper or not as solid I guess.

Really enjoying the Zesthia I bought recently after hearts recommendation ...I’d say I personally prefer it to the KM although it is tighter in the draw range if that bothers you?, but it has comparable flavour without the wicking hassle and is much better quality.

....Intake is a great top airflow single coil (can look about it in my other review for it)

And the recurve of course takes the best features of the KM and addresses some of it’s flaws working on that review soon

 

[Heartsdelight]

Really enjoying the Zesthia I bought recently after hearts recommendation ...I’d say I personally prefer it to the KM although it is tighter in the draw range if that bothers you?, but it has comparable flavour without the wicking hassle and is much better quality.

....Intake is a great top airflow single coil (can look about it in my other review for it)

And the recurve of course takes the best features of the KM and addresses some of it’s flaws working on that review soon

Thank goodness you are enjoying the Zesthia as I would feel badly if you didn’t

 

[KingPin!]

Thank goodness you are enjoying the Zesthia as I would feel badly if you didn’t

Vaping on it now hearts! love it

 

[Heartsdelight]

Vaping on it now hearts! love it

 

[zamnell88]

Brah, tbh, the Kylin mini is a piece of shit. It is literally the hardest to wick (thanks by the way for the tutorial, it really helped). You have no room for error. The wotofo bravo is 10 times better than that gay shit. To be honest, I don't know why this thread is still going... Its the gayest rta I've seen. Peace.

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[KingPin!]

It is literally the hardest to wick (thanks by the way for the tutorial, it really helped).

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For this reason I imagine Zamnell and no problem glad it helped, it’s enfuriating to say the least I agree

 

[MannyScoot]

Rewicked over and over.... And over..... Man I gave up on the full size Kylin..... I couldn't imagine the mini.... My work partner threw his away..... It's a shame a nice looking Atty.......

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[KingPin!]

Rewicked over and over.... And over..... Man I gave up on the full size Kylin..... I couldn't imagine the mini.... My work partner threw his away..... It's a shame a nice looking Atty.......

Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk

Hiya Manny long time no see mate

 

[MannyScoot]

Hiya Manny long time no see mate

Thanks brother.... I on the big tank section.... Any thread with big stuff... I'm there....ha

 

[Heartsdelight]

Thanks brother.... I on the big tank section.... Any thread with big stuff... I'm there....ha

 

[mark.williams363]

Hi all, after months of trying to wick the kylin mini correctly I am still getting some seeping. I must have watched every video and read every wicking guide available.
I have notice today that the metal ring above the afc moves? (see photo) at a guess I'm thinking that this shouldn't move. Can anyone confirm this, and is it possible to tighten it up?
Thanks in advance.

Sent from my Redmi 4X using Tapatalk

 

[KingPin!]

Hi all, after months of trying to wick the kylin mini correctly I am still getting some seeping. I must have watched every video and read every wicking guide available.
I have notice today that the metal ring above the afc moves? (see photo) at a guess I'm thinking that this shouldn't move. Can anyone confirm this, and is it possible to tighten it up?
Thanks in advance.

Sent from my Redmi 4X using Tapatalk

Nope that bit shouldn’t be moving, underneath is the positive pin. You can remove the first little adjustable one then tighten then one underneath it

I stress caution here: don’t go too hard on overtightening this or you will either snap the screw or the plastic piece sitting inside the base

 

[mark.williams363]

I will give that a try now. Thanks

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