A bit of a crisis and need help!

[Lilac]

I do remember someone saying about hitting a wall soon, when vaping was going well...

was it Raggy?

it happens...thats the best way tho, give up and start afresh in the morning...

im gonna put the kettle on, anyone wanna cuppa?

wish i had a biccy, but i don't

[jimmybat]

After my USA visit I am gonna have a tighter foam to offer yall which I have been assured will rectify your issues
James

[jimmybat]

the Blue foam that is here right now just need to be compacted as it is inserted into the cart and that way work wonderfully
Jmaes

[knawes]

All those that don't like swearing miss out the second sentence please.
Bu**er, sh*t, ffs....

NOTHING I do tonight gives me a good hit? I've swapped atties, carts, blue filler, white filler tried not filling as much, fill to overflowing. I just don't know what I am doing wrong when it was all going so well.

I have a Riva. I have new carts (empty). I have new atties. I have juice. I have white or blue filler. PLEASE tell me what to do.

I was amazed when I started, and on the whole have had some really good days and evenings. But last night and tonight it's trying my patience.

I am getting a sort of greasy feel and taste on my lips. No tobacco/nicotine taste.

Are the atties supposed to get really hot? Are you supposed to let them cool down between drags? If I do that and wait ages, I suffer nicotine withdrawal symptoms! Although I am coping, I haven't reached for the ciggies as often as I thought I would, but only in desperation. 35 normals smoked since last Sunday.

I am on the verge of ordering a whole new kit of something else. Recommendations? Simple to use please.

Kath

[buckowski]

I feel your pain Kath

I'd say it's one of 2 things, or a combo of both.

The atomisers. First port of call for all my E-cig woes. Everyone gets them from time to time, its unavoidable. Gotta have spares to swap in/out, in times of woe.
I've just flung 2 out this week, only 3 days old. They just would not get going despite the sizzling and glowing, which are both normally a good sign.
The normal 510 atomisers with Rivas usually give a decent throat hit, but maybe try the LR type?
Atties do get hot, but if they go red hot, give it a minute or so, then try again.
Once an atty is working properly, you should be able to chain vape with no problem.

E-liquid. Took me ages to find my preference. 11mg too weak - up to 14mg still too weak. 18mg just right. anything above, nicotine headaches.
In your case I'd try a higher nicotine E-liquid to what you're on now.

I'd be amazed if your problems were down to the Riva battery. 99% sure it won't be that.

You could also try direct dripping. 3 drops straight inside the atomiser, clip an empty cart on and puff away. Bit more effort required this way but you should get a coupla 'fags' worth of vaping.

Anyway, my moneys on it being the atomisers. Overall i'd say 75% of mine have been gooduns, the other 25% duffers. Luck of the draw with them really. Spares lol. Yer batteries (Rivas) are good.

[buckowski]

Just to add, from scratch, blow your new atties out. Then add 3 drops E-liquid. Attach empty cart, then vape. If you get a harsh taste, add another drop.
The cart way...drop 5 drops into the empty cart. Add the blue foam. Push it down a bit into the cart with tweezers, then add liquid a drop at a time till soaked. Usually around 12-14 drops in total is about right. Re-attach, then vape.
The greasy strong taste on lips means the cart is overfilled, so you need to unattach cart, unscrew atty, blow through atty once onto some tissue, then re-atttach and try again. If persists, repeat process.
good luck

[lolli]

Yes, & direct dripping will tell you for sure if it's the attie, as Buck says. You won't be wondering about the filler, or if you have flooded etc.
Hope you get your Riva going again quickly

[knawes]

OK, I've calmed down a bit! Since I last posted, I "borrowed" my partners LR which he had never used, dripped in six drops, put a single slice of Jakis blue in and dripped another couple of drops and I now have something that is passable. It p's me off that I bought 5 new atties and the first 2 I tried have been hopeless. I didn't open another one from it's packet yet.

I did take one of them off and blow it, lots of juice came out, so I guess it was flooded. Trouble is, I think I'm not getting anything, and so I drip more in....I guess I'll get used to it all with practice

I can't go to higher juice, I'm using 36mg as it is!

The two new atties I did try were getting really hot, more hot than I remember from the last few days, with ones that came with the Riva.

I'll have a go at dripping when I open a new attie.

Thanks for your suggestions both of you. It's all these little things that newbies don't know, the hints and tips that more experienced vapers can tell me, that I really appreciate.

Kath
-x-

[lolli]

I wonder if you've got some dodgy atties It does sometimes happen Hope not. Try all the above with a new attie maybe, then clean the others out, reprime 'n have another go with them?
If I vape "hard" my atties sometimes get pretty hot too, but I have not encountered a prob when they do this.
Fingers crossed babe x

[Lilac]

Kath, if the atties are new, it could be the taste/feel of the primer they put on them in the factory that you're getting on your lips...

also, some atties take a day or two to get going, they may seem pretty feeble at first, then work fine once they're broken in...

I still sometimes get times when i feel it's not quite hitting the spot...usually, i find, when i've had a couple of wines...

i just keep sucking away and it eventually passes... ???

[knawes]

Hi Lilac,

I think you've hit the nail on the head! I've a feeling it's also to do with the carts that came with them, they were already attached to the atties. They looked empty....no filler anyway...but who knows what they do after manufacture?

All is well this morning, after leaving overnight....maybe the juice soaked in better with leaving it overnight? Who knows?

Feeling happier in any case.

Kath

[Hanow]

Knawes - am also have a bit of a weak moment - albeit I think my issue is slightly different.

My Riva is working fine (and how I know it all is, I shall explain in a mo.) But.......... having been a vaper now for circa 12 days - it has enabled me to analyse what I NEED from a 'smoke', and that is the throat hit followed by the exhalation.

I am finding that the only guaranteed way of achieving that is to use one of James's tobacco juices. I now have a supply of L and B, which does the trick. (James, did I tell you I loved you? )

However, with my Riva fully operational, I am having probs with other juices. I purchased some from e-juice, and they are gorgeous flavour-wise. But.........and this is my current issue, I am struggling to get a definite 'throat hit' from them. I have a variety of flavours from them now - but I am finding that to achieve my throat-hit goal, I am having to play around a lot, refill, clean out, ensure charged battery etc. etc. in order to finally get a 'good fix', and then find often discover that I don't/can't! I can't work out why it isn't happening, because if I use the same battery, attie, cartridge filler etc. and put in L and B from paradise (James), it all works and satisfies. ???

I am puzzled, and would appreciate any advice.

I have thought back to my real smoking habit, and now realise that I smoked more in a morning - as if needing to stoke up for the day. I could then taper off somewhat. Thus, with my vaping, I have used James's L and B for morning use, whilst attempting to move on to other flavours PM. That is what I tried yesterday - not to have my L and B in afternoon/evening, but to vape others. I struggled and played and re-charged and cleaned etc. with minimal satisfaction. Thus, by mid-evening, I got back on to the L and B from James.

Therefore I am currently assuming that the L and B mixture/composition is of a nature that doesn't match my en-juice flavours. Could that be the answer? If it is correct, James, can you give any info (without revealing your trade secrets of course) as to what is in L and B (other than the taste) that is providing and meeting my needs when these others are not?

James has, on a thread, asked us all to suggest favourite flavours. Having vaped flavours other than tobacco - I can now say that I would love to eliminate tobacco ones in preference for others - coffee, fruit, etc. if only I could get the same 'throat hit' and full satisfaction of inhaling and exhaling (as I get with L and B).

Any suggestions will be gratefully received. Sorry that it is a bit lengthy. :-[

And Knawes, hope you are still going strong hunnie.

[Chrissie]

Kath, all atomisers come with completely blank carts attached - ie no filling. But you can of course, fill them yourself with fluval, blue foam etc.

Lilac is right, some atties take a while to get going & break in.

Hanow, James' L&B is also my favourite. In the past I've bought cheap Dekang juices (The majority of juice on the market is made by Dekang). It's more than vapable but... Before James came along, I bought the better quality juices from Totally Wicked. But they are nearly twice the price & I think James' are even better than TW's, plus of course the extra added bonus with his lovely friendly customer service

[knawes]

Hanow, thanks for the input and good to know it's not just me!

I've been OK this morning, whether leaving it overnight did some good, or the attie just had time to dry out/soak more in, I have no idea but all was well. I am using the LR that Alex (my OH) had never used, which I tried last night. I used it all morning and didn't need to refill after 9.30am

I will have another go with the new normal atties later.

Yes, the taste wasn't the same as you get with the juice, a weird kind of vegetable oil taste and feel.

My original juice orders, when I started were one from James and one from another place. I originally ordered LnB from James, and as he does, he popped two samples in. One of which was Benson Fences, which I found I adored. So as soon as I got back from my hols, I ordered 60ml from him and have stuck to that ever since. Alex likes the LnB, so we're both suited.

I'll keep the other stuff I ordered and the other samples for emergencies!

Chrissie, the carts that were included in the Riva kit came with white filler already in, and had little caps on the top, so you could fill and take as spares?

The carts attached to the new atties were completely empty, which is fine. Because they were attached, they are also a good fit, unlike some of the Riva ones, which are loose. (I know to melt a bit of the plastic to make them tight.)

It's all a learning curve. And as I keep saying, I didn't immediately reach for normal cigs as I would have done if trying to give up smoking/using patches etc.

Kath

[Chrissie]

Yes Kath, carts that come with starter kits are prefilled, some with just the white fluffy stuff, & most are also loaded with juice. When I started vaping, you couldn't buy juice (well not in the UK) so I had to buy prefilled carts (& you can still buy them) that where a lot more expensive back then.

However, all atties come with just a blank mouthpiece (cartridge) attached.