Clearomiser Question

[DaveJ]

Mar 5, 2017 21:52:45 GMT Alexia said:

That's great advice, thank you charliehorse !  Of course I hadn't heard of using vodka or distilled water to dilute.  I think you're right in that the liquids that aren't working are a bit too gloopy for the specific clearomisers I'm using.  I will try that.
...

As charliehorse says above. those clearomisers you pictured certainly seem to be similar to ones I tried when I first started.  They had silica wicks (the dangly string bits inside). The ones I tried way back then were not very good even with very runny, high PG juices. They would really struggle with modern thick, high VG juices.

Certainly, cutting/thinning your juice with DW (distilled water, at up to about 10 percent or so) would help. But there are more modern style clearomisers that perform far better than those old style units (whilst keeping that similar tight draw vaping style). Are you up for buying something somewhat newer for a far more reliable vape?

[Alexia]

Mar 6, 2017 5:50:40 GMT DaveJ said:

... Are you up for buying something somewhat newer for a far more reliable vape?

Thanks, DaveJ . That was actually going to be my next question to you all, if you had any suggestions for an upgrade!

I suppose, as my clearomisers have been somewhat interchangeable, I haven't really wanted to upgrade, to make use of everything I've got and not have to buy a whole new type of clearomiser. But seeing that I'm spending money on clearomisers that fail, it would be a better investment to buy a kit that works! So yes, please, I'm up for suggestions.

(And thank you, jevans . But I can't quite get the ALT key to work, but no worries!)

[DaveJ]

Ah! Alexia, now we might open things up for discussion and input from those who know better.

Unfortunately I have not used any clearomisers for a good long while, so I'm very out of touch with current products (in my day, it's be either an Evod or Protank I'd recomend). For a good long while I believe the Aspire Nautalis was well regarded, however my knowledge is very dated.

What I'd suggest, though, is some more modern clearomiser that has replacement coil heads. Periodically, as performance of your setup drops off due to the coils getting "clagged up" you can open the unit, remove the old coil head and pop in a fresh new head. Rejuice and go again. Most/all will fit onto a "standard 510" connector, so you may well be able to continue using your current mod/battery.


Please - a little help from those familiar with the current crop of simple but reliable clearos... now would be a good time to chime in!

[Tykess]

Hi Alexia, let me add my welcome to all the others . Good question you've posed - I, too, am still using a variety of cheap clearomisers and wondering about upgrades so I'll be very interested to see recommendations from the more experienced members.  You've come to a great place, the members of this forum have been so friendly, helpful and supportive to me as a newbie, I'm sure you'll get loads of good advice.

[charliehorse]

Alexia (and Tykess as well)

The most recommended mouth to lung tanks with a stock replacable coil in recent memory seem to be the Aspire Nautilis and Nautilis Mini.
I'm probably in the minority in that I've never had either but they seem to get mentioned time and time again.

I believe there is also a new version out now as well - Nautilis 2 - but again I have'nt tried it.

Hopefully others will chip in with opinions and recommendations.

[goneforagasper]

Mar 6, 2017 12:18:31 GMT charliehorse said:

Alexia (and Tykess as well)

The most recommended mouth to lung tanks with a stock replacable coil in recent memory seem to be the Aspire Nautilis and Nautilis Mini.
I'm probably in the minority in that I've never had either but they seem to get mentioned time and time again.

I believe there is also a new version out now as well - Nautilis 2 - but again I have'nt tried it.

Hopefully others will chip in with opinions and recommendations.

the Nautilus standard or mini would be ideal for Alexia and Tykess (not the Nautilus X which is sub ohm)

[snow]

Well having been a Kanger girl most of my vaping life and not getting on with the Nautilus at all I would instead suggest the good old Mini Protank which is not too big a leap from the clearomisers Alexia is currently using moreover they are considerably cheaper both for the clearo's themselves and the ongoing costs of coils which also have the benefit of being easily rewickable even for a novice and eventually with a bit of practice making DIY coils.

Price comparison : Authentic Nautilus mini from Fasttech are around £16.11 each; a clone is around £6-£8 each and 5 coils are £6.90 (approx)
Mini Protank (clone) are around £ 1.90 - £2.70 and a 5 pack of authentic organic cotton coils are £3.26

[djs]

Is it worth mentioning the news about aldehyde levels in older clearomisers?

The BVC and AIO Coils (Cubis, AIO) and even Subtank coils came out very well in comparison.

It's not something I worry about (I use 99p CE4s sometimes) but it seems newer is better.

[keepitgoin]

I have seen quite a few reviews on the New Natilus. The main (only) complaint is it Vapes no different to the original Nautilus, no bad thing as that means it was good and popular in the first place and is expected to appeal to the same segment of the Market, newer Vapers, or those who used the original and wish to keep Vaping and have a similar experience.
I'd recommend Todd's reviews and Vaping V1ck (both on youtube) for a review of the new Nautilus. There are LOADS of reviews for the original Nautilus, and as the New one uses the exact same coils as the original I wouldn't expect the Vape experience to be any different.

[charliehorse]

Mar 6, 2017 16:08:24 GMT snow said:

Well having been a Kanger girl most of my vaping life and not getting on with the Nautilus at all I would instead suggest the good old Mini Protank which is not too big a leap from the clearomisers Alexia is currently using moreover they are considerably cheaper both for the clearo's themselves and the ongoing costs of coils which also have the benefit of being easily rewickable even for a novice and eventually with a bit of practice making DIY coils.

Price comparison : Authentic Nautilus mini from Fasttech are around £16.11 each; a clone is around £6-£8 each and 5 coils are £6.90 (approx)
Mini Protank (clone) are around £ 1.90 - £2.70 and a 5 pack of authentic organic cotton coils are £3.26

I started off on the protank mini's and then the full size protank II with the optional air flow base and would have suggested them along with the Nauti's but are they not getting phased out now ?

I still have a couple in the vape box for using on holiday with an istick when I don't want to worry about breaking or losing anything, and they are still a good MTL vape, and as you say the coils are cheap and easy to rework with a little practice.

[Alexia]

What a lovely treat to come back after work and see all these responses, thanks everyone.  As keepitgoin mentioned very early in this thread, I think it will apply now - there's a lot of information to digest!  I'm glad I'm not the only newbie to have this problem with cheap clearomisers, so perhaps the responses will benefit Tykess as well.

DaveJ , when you say "replaceable coils", do you mean the actual tiny little coils themselves, or - it is called - the atomiser?  I've been purchasing replaceable coils for my Socialites atomisers for a while now, and it's a little piece you screw in.  Super easy, so perhaps some of my new clearomiser purchases have replaceable atomisers that I haven't yet discovered.

snow , the price sounds great for a Nautilus, and especially its clone.  Would you recommend a clone?  And then you said something about "rewickable".  Sorry to sound stupid, but does that mean you take apart the wicked clearomiser and replace the wick itself?  That sounds complicated, and messy, ha ha.   But I trust it's easy enough for a novice!

[snow]

Mar 6, 2017 21:37:54 GMT Alexia said:

What a lovely treat to come back after work and see all these responses, thanks everyone.  As keepitgoin mentioned very early in this thread, I think it will apply now - there's a lot of information to digest!  I'm glad I'm not the only newbie to have this problem with cheap clearomisers, so perhaps the responses will benefit Tykess as well.

DaveJ , when you say "replaceable coils", do you mean the actual tiny little coils themselves, or - it is called - the atomiser?  I've been purchasing replaceable coils for my Socialites atomisers for a while now, and it's a little piece you screw in.  Super easy, so perhaps some of my new clearomiser purchases have replaceable atomisers that I haven't yet discovered.

snow , the price sounds great for a Nautilus, and especially its clone.  Would you recommend a clone?  And then you said something about "rewickable".  Sorry to sound stupid, but does that mean you take apart the wicked clearomiser and replace the wick itself?  That sounds complicated, and messy, ha ha.   But I trust it's easy enough for a novice!

I personally used a mixture of authentic and cloned clearomisers, clones are often indistinguishable from their authentic counterpart however its best to read the reviews on Fasttech to make sure that you are getting a good one as some are better than others, I have to say with protanks I never had a bad clone and probably couldn't even tell mine apart. I still have a protank in daily use with a very strong pure menthol eliquid in it for days when I get a bit of vapers tongue lol  

The little piece you screw in is probably what is called a "coil head" which is essentially a chimney with a coil and wick inside it that screws into the bottom of your clearomiser. If you have a look at this thread: allaboute-cigarettes.proboards.com/thread/28309/pics-vids-get-started-abbreviations?page=1&scrollTo=513677  That should help explain the differences between various types of "tank" (clearomisers, atomisers etc.) and the coils etc. 

Rewicking is exactly as you think - the protank coil heads do actually come apart and you can just pull out the manky old wick and pop a fresh bit in and reuse the coil (theres a wee bit more to it than that but theres loads of tutorials around if you want to go down that route). Yes it is a tiny bit messy but honestly nothing a bit of tissue won't wipe off. 

[phtumshk]

The coil heads in the socialites are similar to the aspire heads.
I have found these marginally better than the old Ce4 heads as they are less prone to flooding if left for any length of time with out use.
The down side being with the extra layer of 'stuff' around the head they arent as good at wicking as the old Ce4s with a thicker jiuce.
A few air pulls (taking a draw with out firing) every now and then will stop them from getting dry hits.

[DaveJ]

Mar 6, 2017 21:37:54 GMT Alexia said:

DaveJ , when you say "replaceable coils", do you mean the actual tiny little coils themselves, or - it is called - the atomiser?  I've been purchasing replaceable coils for my Socialites atomisers for a while now, and it's a little piece you screw in.  Super easy, so perhaps some of my new clearomiser purchases have replaceable atomisers that I haven't yet discovered.
.

It can be confusing can't it, Alexia ?

If it has not already been made clear with other comments, what I mean about "replaceable coils" isn't just the little wound coil of metal heating wire. Rather I mean the "Coil Assembly". Many clearomisers can be easily disassembled into their main parts: the main tank, a base and a "coil assembly". That coil assembly includes the metal wire heating coil you referred to, the wick and a mounting "shroud" all in one simple replaceable, consumable unit. It would normally be a screw-in arrangement into the base assembly of the clearomiser. Users would normally need to replace the coil head/assembly periodically when needed (when vape or flavour goes off as the coil gunks up). That replacement period would vary between every few days to few weeks depending on a number of factors including your juice and how you vape. So don't forget to order a few replacement coils of the right type when you order your clearomiser.

Note too, that "clearomisers" is just one class of "topper". Another is the "rebuildable" style where users are required to wind and mount their own metal heating coils and then install their own wicks into those devices. These are quite different to the traditional clearomiser and present another, err, learning opportunity! It is often possible to rebuild "consumable" replacement coil assemblies for clearomisers but that can also present challenges too.

Whilst I've not used one, quite a few talk about the decent quality of the Aspire Nautilis. I've therefore linked to that brand/model of clearomiser in my following comments.

One page with some fairy decent pictures of a clearomiser and it's main parts is here: Aspire Nautilis. Scroll down... They refer to the replaceable "coil assembly" as the "replacement atomiser" - same thing. Coil assemblies vary from model to model, brand to brand (and are often not interchangeable) but the concept is similar over many brands and types of clearomisers.

You might also check out various Youtube videos. I found Youtube a great resource when learning about vaping hardware. I found many relating to the Aspire Nautilis - one that seemed fairy decent without the hysterics often included is: Youtube Aspire Nautilis This gives a good simple general overview of the main parts, how they go together, refilling and general use.

Note that many of us "seasoned" vapers have tried a number of various types of "toppers" (clearomisers, tanks and such) before we found what works best for us. You may well find the same thing.

Good luck in your hunt for the right device for you. Don't be scared to ask your questions

[Tykess]

DaveJ thanks for your very clear explanation and for the links.  All the different terminology is confusing for us newbies but we'll get there!

Hope you don't mind me joining in your thread, Alexia. It's good to know that I'm not the only one with this sort of question    Hope you're enjoying your vaping adventure as much as I am.