Thinking of makeing the switch...

[fishguy1123]

Hi all, as a 20+ yr smoker that has gone from off the shelf to RYO a couple years ago, I'm thinking about makeing the switch to vape. I basicaly went from Marlbro lights to a RYO version that is less harsh than that. That said, at least for now, my focus would be on a traditional flavor to mimic what I'm used to. I'd say I typicaly smoke up to 2 pks a day depending.... Currently I spend about $35 per week on RYO stuff. My questions are 1- what "style" of e cig would be a good starting point? 2- Other than the initial cost of the equipment, what's the most cost efficient method?

From what I've read the battery life is a big factor for someone that smokes like I do. Look forward to any advice you all can give. Thanks

[bcartervol98]

If I were to start today knowing what I know now I would get this kit and upgrade to 900mah Spinners and Kanger Pro Tank V2. I do not get much liquid from them anymore as I prefer Fuzion, VapeDudes, and ECBlends. I will say their "Traditional Tobacco" (Sweet-Vapes) is the closest liquid I ever found to an analog. It got me through the initial "I need this to taste like a cigarette" phase. Now tobacco flavors repel me lol.

http://www.sweet-vapes.com/shop?page=shop.product_details&flypage=vmj_color_plus.tpl&product_id=2104&category_id=54

[Bebop]

You'll spend a little over $100 to get fully set up with a satisfying vape.

I recommend 2 vision Spinners (batts), a charger, 3 Kanger T3S's or 3 Evod BCC's or 3 Kanger mini protanks, (they all use the same coils). Couple packs of coils.

Then there is juice which is highly subjective. You'll burn another $50 - 100 finding your juice. If you dont have a local place you can try juices, ask for recommendations in eliquid sub forum. Start at 18mg (nic).

Dont think about it, just do it. You wont regret it. Dont go too cheap on the juice. That's where success is. Good luck!

[Aquatroy]

Agree with the above but if your smoking 40 hand rolls a day,myou need to start at 2.4mg juice to get your needs met, and drop to 1.8mg in a couple months..1.8 now wouldn't get the nic you'll need to be happy, and not burn up those attys and batts...

[bcartervol98]

24mg in a high PG% would be my recommendation. 70-30 or even 80-20 at first.

[Bebop]

Marlboro lights to RYO less harsh than that? Well, 24 wont kill you but you may find it a little strong. You are just going to have to experiment a little. It's all good.

[Tam]

Yes! to all of the above made suggestions. I was a pack a day Marlboro Light smoker for more years than I want to admit to now. When I first started it was with 24 mg of nicotine. That's what got me over the hump and off the analogs. After I put the analogs behind me for a few weeks I dropped it down to 18 and more quickly dropped it down even further to 12, sometimes 6 mg of nicotine. YMMV.

[bcartervol98]

April the 23rd will be my one year and I down to 18mg with no real goal of a further drop. If I do it will be a while. I still keep a tank of 24 mg around. My wife who dropped analogs for the vape the same day still is only 24mg with no thoughts of dropping down. Everyone has a different goal. Mine is not to give up nicotine, I rather like it lol. Mine is to give up tobacco and my wife and I have both been tobacco free for 10 months now!

[jmiller148]

I have been in it just over a week. Once I tried something sweet/fruity the idea of it needing to be analog or coffee flavor went away. It is hard to think you can be satisfied with it, but when you still get the nic it works. Smoke free for a week now and enjoying the flavors.

[fishguy1123]

Thanks everyone for the feed back! I'm curious, what's the purpose of haveing more than on tank? Is it simply to have multiple flavors, or enough juice to get through the day without refilling? I agree, the flavors/juice brand will likely be trial and error. Thanks for the tip on the vg/pg balance. I'm guessing thats to more closely simulate the sensation of analogs.

Bebop- by any chance can you post a link for the tanks you mentioned?

[Tam]

I'm not Bebop, but will I do?

Evod: http://www.theveteranvaper.com/evod-mt-bcc-metal-bottom-coil-changeable/

T3S: http://www.theveteranvaper.com/t3s-bcc-bottom-coil-changeable/

KPT2 mini: http://www.theveteranvaper.com/kanger-mini-protank-ii-bcc/

Replacement coils ($1.65 each): http://www.theveteranvaper.com/t3s-mt3s-replacement-coils/

The reason you want more than one anything is you must have back ups.

And back ups of back ups.

As for more than one battery (we all usually suggest a minimum of two if not more), is that you have something to do for the several hours it takes for a drained battery to charge. Also, what if something happens and your battery breaks? What about something goes wrong with your tank and you have no back up so you have to wait several days for the mail or drive to the B&M that happens to be several hours away?

On the convenience side, it's nice to have more than one battery and one tank filled with different flavors. When I can no longer taste a flavor due to vaping it too long, I just pick up another battery with a different tank and flavor and vape away.

[Bebop]

Thanks Tam! I owe you.

[Tam]

Thanks Tam! I owe you.

Nah, we all want the same thing for new vapers: help them along to a healthier lifestyle just like someone else helped us when we first started. It's all good.

[Bebop]

Yes we do. I totally get a kick out of the new guys succeeding. I dug the help when I first started.

[fishguy1123]

Thanks Tam and Bebop! Thats what I figured. So here's my question then. Would it be better to order the kit with the 900m batts and the tank that comes with it and add more in a few weeks, or to buy a cheeper kit that my local B&M has to start and just get another tank for it. The cheap one is a Lava brand. Not sure on the model sorry.. Like 30 bucks I think for the starter.

[Bebop]

I started with a similar kit. I wouldn't go cheap. That's me, though. 9 times out of 10 going cheap ends up being a waste. Even as it is, you'll get a good vape from this kit, but 2 months from now you'll have experience, you'll have more education and you'll be looking at even more things and this kit will become like your smoking ; a thing of the past.

[bcartervol98]

If you try to skimp, you will 100% spend more in the long run. If it doesnt say JoyeTech or Vision on it and it is an Ego style battery just stay away imo.

[fishguy1123]

So, it would be better to get the kit that bcartervol98 posted? I figure my budget would be around $75, but that depends on how much the liquid would cost and how long it lasts... Typical noob thoughts I know, just want to have a realistic idea of what to expect.

[Tam]

Argh! My post got eaten!

Okay, here's a "realistic idea" for you.

We've all been where you are now.

Seriously. We have.

Some of us thought (just like you do now), that if we save a few bucks and get the cheaper thing that looks nearly identical to the ones that are being recommended, it'll work the same.

It doesn't. Not usually anyway, and you have to be careful of the threads on some of them because you might need an adapter in order to use many of the most popular tanks out there.

So, if you think you're going to save a few bucks? In the long run you'll be served much better by putting out the money on a more "expensive" thing and then not have to buy something else all over again because you got what you paid for in the cheaper thing.

We see this all the time with new people coming on the forum. They ask us for recs. We give them. They buy something else because it's cheaper and looks the same. They get it. They're not happy with its performance, the threads don't work without having to put more money out on an adapter, wait for adapter to get there, hope it works, gets disgusted and either goes back to analogs or winds up buying what many on this forum recommended in the first place and get sad because of the wasted money purchasing the first cheaper thing.

We're not any of us perfect, but we see this ALL. The. TIME.

Of course, YMMV, and this is just my opinion.

[Joshuab3687]

Tam is absolutely correct! I experienced a sub-par starter kit and wound up eating the cost on it when it failed just a matter of days later. I spent upwards of $150 on just the starter kit, without the juices. I could've had QUALITY for half of what I spent. I wish I would've knew about this wonderful forum and AWESOME people BEFORE I started vaping! When Tam, Bebop, and BCarter speak... I listen.

[bcartervol98]

A lot of us got to make the mistakes first and only want to help others from making the same. Not to be conceited but I could buy whatever I want, cost is not really an object so to speak. I have all sorts of Vision Spinners and tanks and stuff. Funny thing is I still use the non VV EgoT 1000mah that came with my starter kit I got nearly a year ago more than my Vamo or my spinners lol.

I too wasted $200 on ******** mall cigar store cig alike kits before finding this forum. Be thankful you found it before you made that same expensive mistake.

[fishguy1123]

Ok, so I'm leaning towards the kit you first suggested. As far as tanks go, some are less than 2mls and at least 1 was over 2. How much aprox in relation to a pack of anologs do the equate to? Also, coils.... how do you pick the correct size to work with the batts etc...? Some are adjustable and others fixed it seems. Thanks again so much for the input and also dealing with what I'm sure is the millionth time these questions have been asked!!!

[bcartervol98]

No way to equate that to a number or packs of analogs. One tank pretty much lasts me all day with the full size Pro Tank 2. I use mainly 2.2ohm coils. Any coil size will work with the batteries.

[Tam]

Ok, so I'm leaning towards the kit you first suggested. As far as tanks go, some are less than 2mls and at least 1 was over 2. How much aprox in relation to a pack of anologs do the equate to? Also, coils.... how do you pick the correct size to work with the batts etc...? Some are adjustable and others fixed it seems. Thanks again so much for the input and also dealing with what I'm sure is the millionth time these questions have been asked!!!

How much juice you'll need for one day will depend on how much you vape, what kind of tank you're using (some go through the juice while others seem to sip it), and all kinds of variables. Only way to tell is what works for you and what you go through. Sorry, but I can't explain it better than that.

Vaping is such a personal experience that it's hard for someone else to tell you what to use because we have no idea what you'll wind up liking. Actually, at this point neither do you.

The coils' ohms and the battery -- this is why we recommend getting the Vision Spinners or the eGo Twist variable voltage battery. If you get a 1.8 ohm (low resistance) coil but you wind up with a juice that wants it hotter, you can turn up the voltage and get a hotter vape. If your coil is at a 2.5 and you have a fruit flavor that needs a cooler temperature you can dial it down to 3.7 or even 3.3 volts. If you were to get a fixed voltage battery, it's stuck at a constant 3.7 volts (aprox.), which goes down a bit as your battery charge goes down. Keep in mind that the higher the resistance of the coil the higher the voltage you're going to need so your battery may not last as long as it would if you were to get a lower ohm coil, the lower ohm coil does tend to get hotter, you get a cooler vape with a higher resistance coil.

Hey, guys? Would you check the paragraph above and correct if I got it backwards? I'm just now on my first cup of coffee and not all cylinders are firing.

We don't mind answering the same questions if it'll help you get off the analogs and on the a healthier, fun lifestyle. Besides, once you get some experience, and if you stick around the forum, you'll be doing this for someone else who is new to vaping someday.

[Bebop]

I wrote a whole long post because I just had my first cup of coffee..... Essentially said :

Jump in, the water's fine!