New and excited UK vaping member! Guidance needed please

[fruees]

Good morning!  I recently started using e-cigarettes and had my first night out at the pub in which i happily turned down cigarettes all night, thanks to e-cigarettes!  I am both pround of myself and excited about this new alternative.

Initial purchase:

I bought a disposable E-Lite in Sainsburys and was happily surprised by how well it works.  I immediately went on and purchased the "starter kit" which is another battery and a pre-filled cartomizer.  I also purchased a USB charger and 2 pre-filled cartomizers.  total outlay was about £30.

Now, i like E-lites because they are small enough to take out and use discreetly.  I don't, however like the idea of buying their pre-filled, weaker cartomizers so i wanted this community's advice as to how best to proceed.  I also fine that E-Lites can have a slightly "grating" feeling on the back of your throat, depending on how slowly you toke them.

The options that i have thought about:

1. continue using my E-lites but buy some E-Liquid and start refilling them myself (have read that it is reasonably easy to do).
2. Buy some new kit, which is actually designed to be re-filled.  I would prefer something that looks like an E-Lite (looks like a cigarette, small and convenient).
3. Perhaps i can keep the E Lite batteries and buy some different refillable catromizers?


I ideally want to get to a position where i have an E-cigarette that looks like a cigarette, is of the highest quality ( i dont mind paying a bit more for a nice clean, safe option), and finally gives a better smoke than the E-Lites (whose E liquid is probably quite low quality).

Sorry to be asking the same questions as countless others, the wealth of options out there are so overwhelming!

Many thanks for taking the time to help!

Kind regards

[markm]

Sadly you are never going to get "the highest quality" vape from something in the cigalike
form factor. They are just too small to make the most of the liquid.
If you can make the leap to the next step then an ego style battery with a clearomiser will
give you a far superior experience.

[markm]

Sorry, I should have added - welcome and congrats on joining the club

[chuck]

Hello and fruees.

[chykensa]

Hi fruees, and welcome to the forum.
I can only agree with markm, you are fighting a losing battle with a cig-a-like, down to the underpowered battery and small amounts of juice in the cartomisers.
Treat yourself to something a bit bigger and you will have a much better vaping experience. I'm sure someone will be along soon to supply you with links to some great bargains.
The thing to remember is that the bigger the battery, the longer it will stay charged and with Variable Voltage (VV) and/or Variable Wattage (VW), you have much more control over the power which reaches the coil of your atomiser (atty).
This, coupled with better quality juice, will give you the vape you are looking for.
I was very self-conscious at first using something larger, but have now realised that most people either don't notice you puffing on something larger, or if they do, they are just curious and want to know more about what you are using. You will soon get used to it, and won't give it a second thought.
Best of luck, and well done on a fag-free pub session - it's hugely satisfying, isn't it!?
Andy

[djs]

Sadly, I cannot recommend the e-lites in any way. They are one of the worst look a like e-cigs on the market. The batteries are pathetic (I had 4 or 5 and it still wasn't enough) and the claims of 300 puffs is just a joke. None of my elite stuff worked after even 4 months. No power, no vapour. Not to mention that one e-tip (cartomiser) gives the user less than half a pack of ultra light cigarette nicotine. I'm afraid most people are simply wasting their money on a product which is twice as expensive as the other brands. Please don't waste any more on them.

PS. I did get 377 puffs out of one, after e-lites kindly advised me I wasn't using the product correctly. 3 second puffs are not the way to go. You need to puff like a machine very gently for 1.5 seconds. Then nothing comes out. No vapour, no nicotine, no point.

They are simply the most expensive and nearly pointless e-cig on the market. I smoked 15 or less per day.

[djs]

PS. I refilled mine and after a few fills they turn to mush. Even the filler in the carto is cheap and nasty.

Please don't do what I did and stubbornly try to make them work. They are next to useless.

[dragon]

Have you considered something like this? myepack.co.uk/kits/evod-starter-kit.html That price is amazing for what you get. I have the purple version bought from another vendor, and it is very stylish very reliable and much more discreet than many of the options out there

[giles]

 fruees

The best cartomisers are generally reckoned to be Boge www.vapeescape.co.uk/Deluxe-Vaping-Kits/VE-Riva-1100-Deluxe-Kit/Boge-510-Standard-Resistance-5.html They will NOT work with your elite batteries. Anybody who wants to know what will work with 510 cartos might like to read allaboute-cigarettes.proboards.com/thread/10511

If you decide to continue with cigarette-sized batteries you may find that you can get them cheaper than the E-lites. Any "510" battery will work. But just about everybody here will tell you that you are better off with a bigger battery and a clearomiser. I'd get an Evod kit like www.vapeescape.co.uk/Deluxe-Vaping-Kits/EVOD-650/EVOD-650-Kit.html Lots of people sell them, so it is worth seeing which is cheapest. Check the discounts page here before buying anything.

There are lots of marvellous juices to try. Get some samples, see what you like.

[ripple27]

I was just like you once - very self concious about what the ecig was going to look like to others but came on here before buying anything and best decision l made as a couple of the members befriended me big time (They know who they are)

I bought the Riva 1100 and use the Clearomisers (dont like other to fiddly) and have been using it since dec 12 and have never looked back!! Treat yourself, go to vapescape.co.uk and use code ALLABOUT and that will give you 10% off every time you order remember to use code and keep asking for advice we have all done this and still do, hense the name Forum.

[moonraker]

Welcome I thought these looked good
Mini Protank Starter Kit.The latest bottom coil pyrex glass tank kit on the market.This is a real bargain at this price don't miss out !!
RRP £29.99 sale price £19.99 grab yourself a bargain while stocks last.

Kit Contents.
1 x Mini Protank pyrex glass 1.8ml capacity
ego threading
1 x stainless steel 650 mah evod battery
5 x spare coil heads
1 x USB charger
1 x user manual
1 x gift box
www.myepack.co.uk

[fruees]

Wow thank you so much for all the fantastic replies! Really appreciate it! It looks to me like I definitely need to at least change the cartomizers that I use.

Giles, I like the idea of those replacement cartomizers that work with the e-lite batteries.

I have to pop out now, but I will be back this afternoon to consult you more, before pulling the trigger on a few new purchases this evening.

Many thanks for the help and have a nice day - I will have to use my e-lite for the remainder of the day but excited about having a better smoking experience soon!

[phiant101]

Hello & Fruees. I'm a newbie of two months and have moved on from the cig-a-likes and I'm seeing huge benefits in terms of cost and flavour. There are a lot of small kits out there, my own recommendation would be Mini protank and a small ego battery if you want to keep it discrete. Congrats on starting Vaping and enjoy the ride

[chykensa]

Further to my last post, PLEASE don't consider continuing with your E-Lite batteries - they are SO underpowered and will not deliver enough woomph to power anything of any significance.
The Mini Protank is a great bit of kit (I use the full size Protanks) - they are the most recent technology and coupled with the batteries will revolutionise your vaping life.
If you can afford to, get a couple of kits. That way you will have 2 MPTs to alternate juices, plenty of spare atomiser heads, 2 batteries so that one can be charging while you enjoy the other, and most importantly, 2 chargers in case one fails. Or you can keep one in the car/at work to top off batteries when you need to.
There are numerous newbies to this forum who have successfully got off the stinkies like you using cig-a-likes, and I don't think you will find any of them who still use them now, having upgraded and who are getting much more pleasure.
If the price of 2 kits scares you, just tot up how much you would have spent on cigarettes in a week, and offset that against your initial expenditure - you will see that within 2 or 3 weeks you will be in credit.
With the number of spare atty head you get with these kits, they should last you at least 6 weeks if not longer, and all you will have to buy is juice - now that's another thread all by itself!!
Andy

[raid2506]

Hello and welcome,

Don't worry about what it looks like, nothing looks as stupid as somebody setting fire to paper and tobacco and then inhaling the toxic fumes!

Go with a starter kit from Vape Escape

Like many others I wasted a lot of money on cig-alike's when I started vaping last year and no amount of expensive entry level e-cigs could replace my 30 a day habit.

I have been using a Riva 1100 since November and I haven't looked back (I now vape for about £0.40p a day not including hardware).