Uma

17. Did you hit the right edit button? NO! Dang it! Sorry that messed up. I'll try to fix it later when I get back from the Docs.

<p>TroubleShooting:</p> <p>We've covered this a little bit, but will expand upon it next. I like to do mine in a Check-off list fashion. </p> <p> </p> <p>1. Wick is not touching metal. (top cap, juice tank, etc..) check</p> <p>2. Center tube was dry as a bone when setting it up. check</p> <p>3. Center tube NUT was tightened down nice and firm. check</p> <p>4. Wick was oxidized. check.</p> <p>5. OHMS were steady on the OHMs meter. check</p> <p>6. Top nut is tight. check</p> <p>7. Twisted (spun) wick a bit, in case of a fray. check</p> <p>8. Cut any lose/long frays. check</p> <p>9. Wick is wicking. check. (if flooding, try pinching the top. If dry, stick your paperclip down through it, to reopen any kinks).</p> <p>10. Removed that silly paperclip. CHECK lol</p> <p>11. Using dull battery or lowest VV? Check</p> <p>12. Retorch the wick, in case it needed more oxidizing? Check</p> <p>13. The coils are snug, but not tight, & not loose. Check</p> <p>14. The wick can be removed and inserted easily enough. Check</p> <p>15. The coils are pretty much evenly spaced. Check</p> <p>16. </p> did you click the right edit button lol? Dang it! What a mess this became. Sorry. I'll try to redo.

MSE covered two of the most often used ways of wrapping a coil. I'll toss in a 3rd. Perhaps, you, the new user, will find a 4th! With the smaller sized RBA's, like the Mini DID or Gemini, I like to: Lift the wick off the bottom of the tank a bit, then grab the wick at the base, pull the wick out, and begin wrapping the coil, starting the first coil where my fingers grabbed the wick. Next, I'll insert the wrapped coil into the wickhole, tie off the negative post, and then finally crank down the Positive post (center post). Adjust the coils as needed, then pulsate the mod button, until the coils are settled in nice and happy. When all is well, and with the wick lifted off the bottom of the tank still, I'll next trim off the top of the wick if needed. We want our wick to be the same height or lower, as the center post. If it touches the top cap, it will possibly short out or twist about. The goal, is to keep the wick from touching any of the metal parts, such as tank, wickhole edges, Top Cap Cover, Negative post, Center Post... Hopefully, you've been using your new toy, the OHM meter, and have discovered what a handy toy it is for holding the atty upright while you attach this and attach that, wiggle this, move that. If it were on your mod, the mod would have fallen over 100 times already. And if the handy dandy OHMs Meter was turned on, you undoubtedly had fun watching the OHMs readout go wild. Once you have a solid coil, it will show a solid readout. I don't bother turning the meter on before all is rigged up, UNLESS, I want to know the resistance each length of wire will provide. This can be better explained later. Right now, let's just concentrate on getting a good solid connection. With my Mini, I usually do a 4/3 wrap. When we wrap a coil, there will be 4 strands on the outside of the wick, and 3 coils on the inside. We call it 4/3 wrap. (saves confusion and words, actually, because otherwise we'd always have to say "4 coils on the outside, with 3 coils on the inside). After the atty breaks in nice, I'll sometimes remove a coil. I can adjust my OHMs at any time, by either removing a coil or two, or by replacing the wire and adding more coils. For Mechanical Mods, a 4/3 or even 3/2 wrap is usually nice. The less wraps we have, the LOWER the resistance. For Electronic Mods, a 6/5 wrap or even more, like 8/7, would be better. The more wraps we have, the HIGHER the resistance. Electronic VV Mods don't like LR atties... When the readout is nice and steady, go ahead and mount in on your mod. USE THE LOWEST POWER SETTING of your Provari. You don't want to pop any coils. If you don't have a VV mod, then use your low battery, one that is below 3.8, or better yet, 3.6. This is where dying batteries are our friend. Push the button and hope for the best. The best is: All coils glow red at the same exact time. Sometimes it's perfection the first time around. Most of the time we have to: Pulsate the button to warm the coils, but not to exert them. If the middle coil doesn't light up, then that usually means the bottom coil is choking the current. Make sure the bottom coil is close to the base of the atty, but not touching the base. Scoot it a bit, hit the button. If the top coil is red hot, but not the others, Scoot the middle coil, tighten the nut. Re-nut your top coil. Experiment until it's behaving nice. If all of them are "mostly" glowing, then just leave them be and Pulsate the button, they will usually heal themselves. After you have a nice steady glow on all coils, go ahead and remove the extra wire from the negative post, (wiggling it in circles, or use nail clippers), and then cut the excess from the top nut. I like to leave enough at both ends to use as a handhold for any rewrapping I might do, just make sure that the ends do not touch the base or the cap, etc... You are ready to add juice to your wick. They will not glow red when wet. That is good. Any red ones while wet, means there is a minor short somewhere, and is usually fixed easily enough. Pulsate, scoot, push... whatever needs doing. Pulsating usually heals most minor wounds. Vapor is good, coils are good... now it's time to fill your tank. I recommend vaping at 3.4 for 10 minutes, then at 3.7 for another 10, to set the coils good and solid, to make sure your wick is wicking right, etc. Nothing worse than a dry hit at high Volts as you know. Give the wick some time to fill nice. SAFETY TIP: Be sure to dispose your wire pieces, your cut off's, in the can right away. These things embed in your skin, or in your pet's skin, too easily. They are sharp, tiny, thin, invisible, easy to lose, so get in the habit of tossing them straight into the can right off the bat. (I hope this reads out okay. If not, don't worry! Between different speakers, we'll get the illustrations across. Feel free to ask questions!!).

Very nice MSE! It's hard to believe you just recently started your own journey with the Genesis type RBA's. It really doesn't take very long to get the hang of these does it.

My two best buddies Poldiac with Gemini RBA, and Roller with Kick extension and Mini DID

Oh nice! Which pipe are you getting?

Go figure, eh. Have you tried the 500/30 or 500/28 for Boba's yet, at different ohms? A lot of flavors, like tobacco flavors, often taste better in the carto or cart. The Spheroid would be a good RA for BB, I bet. It uses a silica wick which grabs it's juice from a Fluff Stuffed (OMG, I'm using those technical words again! lol). carto. Scott (Igetcha69) has a great review on the Spheroid, and my lack of technical terms will suddenly seem clear.

Thank you MSE! That was very nice. You have a knack for explaining! I'm wishing you had done the oxidizing post. If you don't mind, go ahead and do the next step. You're on a roll! Jeffb, I've only burnt myself once, trying to beat the cooling effect. Like MSE said, it cools quite fast! edited to say: I'm full and sleepy, can't form words right now, so will come back tomorrow (hopefully) to help. Niters all.

LOL, now I'm nervous! Okay, then, I think it only fair if you joined in on this possible sticky tutorial, and help share the technique on Annealing the wire for coiling, while I go cook some dinner. :P

haha, not at all psychic! I read your plea, in a thread, for a tutorial. I just hope this will come out clear, and not confusing. Thanks for the vote of confidence! I'm going to take a break, cook dinner, and when I come back, we'll talk about annealing the coil wire.

Oxidizing: The first step towards setting the RBA up to vape, is to oxidize the Mesh. Some vapers like to first boil the mesh, change the water, boil again, to remove any residue. Others, like me, just like to dive in and get the show started, so let's get started. Torch: One like the Chef's torches work great. The ones with Blue flame. (propane). You don't want a huge torch, or too hot of a torch, just a nice consistent blue flame torch. Gas Stove: If you have a gas stove, use it! It takes less time, and provides the blue flame. Hold the mesh in a set of pliers, and run your torch over the mesh, lingering in each spot until it turns a nice orange. Torch the entire mesh, both sides, and all edges. In your mind, divide the mesh up in a grid pattern, and be sure to torch every grid, on both sides. Notice how the frayed edges really light up lol. Let it cool enough to handle (about 5 seconds if that long). Fold over an edge (an edge of the long side) and crease it tight, like a piece of binder paper. Straighten out a medium sized paper clip and lay that on the non-creased edge. Roll the paperclip towards the creased edge. This makes sure there are no frayed edges at the end of the rolling. Roll it between your fingers, pressing from middle to end, to make a longer skinny noodle. Check for fit. If it's too skinny, just roll it in the opposite direction and it will expand instead of shrink. Once it fits inside the wick hole, not touching the edges of the hole, you are ready to optionally cut the end of the wick that goes inside the juice tank at a 45% angle, to help the juice find it's way up your wick's straw. After cutting, put it back onto the paperclip, and re torch the newly cut end. (frays). Optional next step: Stiffening the wick. With a bowl of distilled (preferably) water nearby, torch the rolled wick and when it's glowing hot, dunk it immediately into the bowl of water. Roll the wet wick onto a paper towel, to wisk out the moisture. Repeat. Do this about 3 times in total. (I do this step all the time, because I live on a very bumpy road and don't like "flex" in my wick). Optional next after next step: Seasoning the wick. With paperclip still inserted, drip your wick with e-juice. Light the wet wick on fire with your old bic lighter. Let the fire die naturally. Repeat for a total of about 3 times. (lucky number 3 eh). This seasoning step helps the juice to enter the inner depths of the wick, which will enhance the wicking, which is helpful if you're a chain vaper. It also helps the vape taste better if you use your preferred flavor. (less time will be spent trying to break in the flavor) The more wicks you oxidize and roll, the more faster it gets. It takes longer time to read about it, than it does to actually get up there and do it. It's also easier to do than it is to try to picture it being done. There are quite a few different video's out there, and they all have their own way. I'm writing the way that works best, so far, for me and for many many others like me. It's really very simple, and doesn't take that long to do. You'll be up and rolling in no time.

If you are quite familiar with the eCig products & know them like the back of your hand, & if you have a nice stock pile of plug and play attys or cartos on hand already, then read on. This might be for you. These Rebuildables are NOT, and I repeat, are NOT for the beginner. This statement should have been set in stone in the opening post. My bad. (edit! Sweet! It let me edit it into the opening post). Which leads me to my next statement... I am a poster who doesn't notice typo's and the such, until AFTER I've posted. So, be sure to read further down the line and double check for corrections and whatnot. I hope somebody else takes over. I really do. Just to spare YOU, the poor reader with all these new Learning Curves ahead of you. My apologies, in advance, for any backtracking that's sure to follow.

Genesis Attys. The genny (for short), uses a Stainless Steel (SS for short) woven mesh wire. It's important to use either the Food grade or the Kitchen grade type of wire, called #304 or #316. The sizes we use mostly, to date, are #325, #400, #500. The higher the number, the more strands of wire there are in each square inch. The more strands of wire there is, the better wicking there is... to a degree. Some vapers have had success with #600, but most of us seem happy in the 400 range. The type of juice you use, of course, as well as how you yourself roll the mesh, comes into play as to what your preference will be. Many retailers will include a sample of 325 and a 400 in your atomizer order, and many do not. Some Vendors will sell the mesh and wire separately. When you get them, you can tell which one is which, by holding it up to the light (like your monitor). The more light that shines through, the lower the count of threads there is. Just like a sheets or towels. McMaster and Carr and The Mesh Companies are two popular mesh stores. I bought mine here: http://themeshcompany.com/acatalog/25-micron-super-fine-mesh.html There are other places too, of course. The ones I bought were large sheets, which will last me for forever. A wick will last over 6 months, and we use so little of it to make our wicks. (2mm x 3mm more or less, depending on your style, and on the size of your atomizer's wick hole) You will "oxidize" your mesh after it arrives. This will be covered later. The wire you will need is A1 grade, Kanthal. (Nichochrome is okay, too, but I am not familiar with it, so I leave it for others to write about). The popular gauges are #32, #30, and #28. The lower the number, the thicker the wire. The most popular to start with, is #32. The #32 gauge is the gauge that most often comes with the atomizer, if the atomizer comes with wire. The Resistance changes with the size (gauge) of the wire. Save the #30 and the #28 for when you are more comfortable and experienced, and have more research under your belt. You will "anneal" your wire, after it arrives and you're ready to wrap your coil. This will be covered later. As soon as your Atomizer arrives, wash it in hot soapy water, to remove any production machine oils. Rinse thoroughly, and dry even more thoroughly. Dry it over night. Make sure the "center post's TUBE" is completely dry too Take a hair dryer to it if you have to. After it's setup and you've been using it, a nice rinse with EverClear (vodka), will clean it just fine, with occasional hot baths as needed. Everclear dries fast, evaporates nicely, and is also a germ killer.

These Rebuildables are NOT, and I repeat, are NOT for the beginner. If you're interested in building your own atomizers, the first thing you'll need is an OHM meter. I got mine at Madvapes, but COV and other places carry them too. These are handy for cartomiszers, atomizers, and RBA's alike. It will not be a waste of money if you later decide RBA's aren't for you at this time. Here is a direct link to the one I have. http://www.madvapes.com/cartomizer-and-atomizer-ohm-meter.html These will help prevent mod mishaps. It would be a shame to short out your expensive to you mod, when it could have been avoided with a 20 dollar bill. It's money well spent. Even the storebought plug and play cartos and attys sometimes arrive DOA or DyingOA, or the wrong OHMS marked, and worse yet, a faulty coil causing a short... being able to check your ohms before mounting onto the mod will spare many springs and mods both. Now that you're convinced you need an OHMs meter, and you are, in fact, checking out your cart, we can now get down to some basic RBA tutorial stuff. I am not a whiz, or a pro, but I do have a tad bit of experience, and am more than happy to try to share my journey with you., until a Pro does come along and hopefully takes over. (please!).

JC just posted his AGA-T and AGA-T+ comparison video. I can't watch it until after the 1st when this month's bandwidth overages are paid. I hope he has some helpful tips for you AGA-T+ers. Oh! and here is a review by A.G. on the Ribbon wire that helps to solve hot spots. http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=4m8SAZaA-SM

Hang in there, I feel you'll probably work it out, if it's work-out-able. If it's not, then hopefully they'll do a recall. I should have bought one too, so I'd know first hand what you're dealing with. (not that I'm a pro, but it helps to "know" the product when lending tidbits of advice). Make sure the nuts are tight. Make sure there is no moisture in the center tube Make sure the coil isn't digging into the wick. It might have tightened while trying to pull the wick over to the center post. Pulsate the coil and see if it heals itself. (really iffy fix when it's the top coil though. But it works great with the other coils). Make sure the mod is set at 3.0 or lowest setting, or that your battery is 1/2 empty or less. (dying batts are our friend for these!) Remove the top nut, does it make a difference? Twist the wire right around the post itself, instead of using the nuts. Any difference? Loosen the top nut. Any difference? Tighten the top nut. Any difference? (usually this is the fix). Tighten the base nut, maybe it's loose? Is your wick off the bottom of the tank? Is your wick cut level with or lower than the center post? (if it touches the top cap, it will short) Is your wick small enough to not come in contact with the sides of the wick hole? Try twisting your wick around a notch, maybe a fray is shorting somewhere on the coil? Re-torch your wick, especially the ends. Pour your favorite liquor into a nice hot cup of cocoa and relax a spell. It'll work out.

Welcome to VaporTalk, Pat! Congrats on your decision to switch over from those nasty T-cigs. I started with an eGo 3 years ago and never regretted a day with it. Today I use the eGo Twist and the Vision Spinner and lots of big battery mods that I won't confuse you with. But, even with the fancy mods, the eGo's still have a place in my vaping arsenal. The Volt by smokelessimage is a nice cigarette size one. I use mine for hands free Xboxing. There are a lot of them out there, but those two are great for just diving in and getting started. Shoot, as you can see, they're even good for when you've been vaping for awhile like me. Good luck to ya!

You're in luck! There are a lot of them on youtube. Here's a few to get you brains wet. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pUswRhVyu0g https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jI5xJ89jjFE and of course Scott! (igetcha69) has tons of tutorials. RBA's are a lot alike, so even if they're showing how to do it on one, it will more than likely also work with another. I'll do a written step by step for you, too. Hang in there!

Well Kerrrrappp. I just read that on another forum, how the wickhole is too far away from the center post. They are not all they were promised/touted to be., but they are SS, so at least that improved. Save yourself a big headache, and go pickup the AGA-T ... and then switch out the Center Tube posts. That way you'll have this T+ for parts, and the AGA-T with a screw cap lid for use. (first ask DiscountVapers if the two are compatible). When you get your AGA-T, you'll probably need to wet sand the cap a notch, so the airhole will line up with the wick. Just set the sandpaper on the table, then set your cap on top of it, and then move the cap around. Check for fit after each full circle or 1/2 or whatever. (unless you thrive on monster TH and less vapor lol). Another thing you can try, is finding that Ribbon coil wire everyone is trying now. They're saying it works great for hot spot attys. I'm so bummed you're being bummed out. I wish I had a fix it idear for you, but we're limited when they stupidly put the wickhole too far from the center post. grrrrr. Who knows, maybe the Gremlins will be nice to you.

The DID series is the most affordable out of the best available, plus it's usually in stock. Until you are ready for a "forever" atty, pick up a clone, like MSE suggested! (good suggestion MSE!!). Try the AGA-T (get 2 if you can, so you can have spare parts in case you lose a nut or scratch the center tube). It's a good one to learn the ropes with. Here is a tutorial for DIY changing out the center tube if it gets scratched, until the vendors start carrying real SS center tube parts for them. http://ukvapers.org/Thread-AGA-T-SS-Center-Post Discount Vapers http://www.discountvapers.com/aga-tiamat-rebuildable-atomizer/ I think just about everybody carries the AGA-T now, they've become a hot item! (even if they do need improvement). My apologies for taking so long to get back to you, I've been away from the internet all day, due to rain. Now I'm visiting the kids, and can talk away.

The AGA-T series is a good cheap one to start with. (they have their faults, but they're a far step up from it's predecessor clones, the griffen/duds/chids). Some stores will include the mesh/coils/allen wrench thingie, etc... and some don't. For a genuine one, I always recommend the genuine DID series from MMVapors.com, because they're reasonably priced, expertly designed and well crafted, oh, and usually always in stock. They come with everything you need to get set up,mesh, wire, 0-rings, even the drip tip. He also carries all the extra goodies for them, like the Center Posts, caps, nuts, o-rings,... never without a part!!! MMVapors.com The DID20 is easiest for first timers, because it's large. The wick hole is large 3.5 too, which makes it fun for experimenting with wicks and coils. Soon there will be a DID22 (22mm) The Mini DID is 14mm I believe. It's a lot smaller, but man what a nice warm vape!! This is my fave. The Gemini is the Mini DID, but with a larger ml Tank. The Temon is 16mm in size, and is a huge success too. He is soon releasing 2 HY kits... (1 turns our Poldiac's into a real Hybrid, and the other lends a hybrid look for aesthetics). (but don't quote me, I'm still clear as mud on that). He likes his products to be compatible with each other, which is a huge bonus. Can always part out one to fix another. Yep, I'm a fan girl, but he deserves all the fans he has. All of that probably sounds over the head right now, but in a few weeks, you'll notice how cool the compatible and future features these are. Oh! and pick up a Cartomiser/Atomizer OHM reader if you don't have a Provari. (actually, they're handy even if you do own a Provari). Madvapes and COV carry them, and I'm sure others do too. (pardon if this is incoherent, it's raining and I have to hustle to turn off the power before the solar batteries drain too far).

Congrats!!!! and Happy Annivapesary!!!!!

For a true 3ml tank, the DID20 is nice too. I didn't realize I didn't mention it before, sorry. It has a cooler vape, is smoother than the others, and has it's place in the vaping routine. I like mine the best in the mornings, and evenings. The DID20 has lots of room, is easy to wrap a coil. The biggest plus about it, though, is the wick hole is 3.5mm which means it's tons of fun for experimenting different wick wraps and stuff. Just thought I'd shoot that out there while it's on my mind. I own and use: DiD20, Mini DID, and Gemini. I hope to own the Temon soon. Has it (AGA-T+) arrived yet/?? What's it like?

LOL Nana!! Glad you're feeling better MSE! Fortunately, many flavors taste better at lower mg, so it's a win win all the way around. I love my genesis. Rixter! I highly recommend the genesis style to any vaper who has been vaping long enough to have the ecig basics down pat and a stockpile of plug and play in their arsenal. You are more than ready my friend. Go for it!!

Every time you open the jar, you will be exposing it to air and light, which will subtly hasten it's expiration date. I recently asked the same questions as you are asking and I'll share the helpful tips that were generously shared with me by the wonderful posters I talked with. Purchase 20 50ml amber colored bottles. Divide the nic juice into them. (500ml). Cap and freeze 19 of them. Take the 20th bottle and divide it up into smaller bottles, say 10ml bottles. Freeze all of those. Now, whenever you go to make a batch of juice, you will be safeguarding your larger bottles, and exposing only one tiny bottle to air and light until that bottle is used up. Sweet eh? The bottles purchased were from here: http://www.specialtybottle.com/ambereuroglassbottle50mlwdroppercapblk.aspx I bought 22 at 50ml, and at least 5 each of all ml's on down the line. That's about all I know so far. Good luck to ya!