The Vaping Equipment - Part 2

Following up on the The Ego Mega Atomizer & Cartridge (Type B - Cylinder)...

I've been using these mega attys for a few days now and I could not me more pleased.  There is still the question of longevity.  Back when I was testing the Ego Tank I was also happy, then it broke after five days of use.  But the Ego was something new.  These Mega Attys have been around for months and have already been tested by many.

I've read all complains I've found on the internet about the Mega Attys.  It seems the most common one is leaking.  But only some people have complained about leaks while the vast majority have reported no problems at all.  It might be the case that some people received bad units.  But assuming everybody had perfectly working units, then the leak problems had to be cause by something else that changes between users... it must be the juice.

I bought 4 Mega Attys.  So far I've use 3 of them with the following juices:

* Dekang Strawberry 100% VG (very thick juice)
* Dekang Menthol 50% PG / 50% VG
* Dekang RY4 100% PG (very thin juice)

  The menthol mix worked right away.  It has been my main vape for the last week and I'm very happy with the flavor, the vapor production and the throat hit.  The 100% VG strawberry gave me some trouble.  I had to fill up the cartridge and let it wick for a few minutes before I could get it going.  It makes an insane fog, but throat hit is really weak.  I'm keeping that atty as my back up, and use it for short periods of time when I just get tired of the menthol.

Finally, the 100% PG RY4.  This juice worked well on the standard 510 atty, where it gives me the most intense throat hit I ever gotten from a personal vaporizer.  But on the Mega Atty it just leaks all over the place, floods the atty and it doesn't work.  I've tried multiple times on that atty, cleaning it, drying it, and repeating everything all over.  But the juice is just too thin.

On my next juice order I'm going to get some 100% VG RY4 and try to mix it with the PG one, trying to get a thicker mix.  If the menthol worked well at 50% 50% I suspect the RY4 will as well.  If the test works, that would confirm that the Mega Attys have limitations on the juice thickness they can handle.  It would not be the first atty than can't handle juices that are too thick or too thin (looks at the Ego Tank).  But the increased capacity of the cartridge is so much of an improvement that I would rather fool around with the PG/VG ratio in the juices, rather than going back to the standard 510 attys.

Moving on to the battery, I'm still vaping out my Ego 650mAh passthrough battery.  This battery is a work horse.  And with the built in usb port, I can charge it everywhere and still vape from it while it's charging.  But as much as I love it, it still doesn't get me through the day.  There is a bigger version of this passthrough battery that has 35% more capacity @ 1000mAh.  But if the 650mAh one usually dies during my work shift, I suspect the 1000mAh will die on my commute back home.  I'm looking for something bigger.

Some big battery mods have called my attention.  Specially, the Silver Bullet with its 2600mAh battery.  The Silver Bullet uses standard 18650 rechargeable Lithium Ion batteries which are very cheap and can be bought from a variety of vendors.  One fully charged 18650 battery on a Silver Bullet should last me around 2 days and I could always have spare batteries, fully charged and ready to go.


Another runner up is the Provari mod.  It costs double as much as the Silver Bullet but it gives you the option to adjust the voltage on the go.  It also had some very nice features thanks to a microchip that enables all kinds of wonders.

Spending $100-$200 bucks on a mod that's essentially a big battery holder is not really the priority at this time.  I would rather spend the money in more liquid, trying to stock up before the government tax the hell out of it.  But I have to keep in mind that I only have ONE working battery right now and like all batteries, it WILL DIE.  I don't wanna be caught without a backup when that happens.

The Ego Mega Atomizer & Cartridge (Type B - Cylinder)

There are 2 types of "Ego Mega" atomizers in the market.  The cone, also known as type A, and the cylinder, also known as type b.  The ones I got are the cylinder type.  These use a bigger cartridge that can hold more liquid.

I was happy with the standard 510 atomizers.  They produce good vapor and the flavor comes out very good.  But they need to be refilled way too often.  After 15 minutes of vaping out of a standard 510, you notice a decrease in flavor and vapor production.  You top off the cartridge with 2 or 3 drops and it vapes good again.  But if you are driving a 60 minute commute on the interstate, this constant refilling is gonna be a problem.

With the mega cartridges, it takes me over an hour of heavy chain vaping to notice any decrease in flavor or vapor.  When it happens, topping off the cartridge takes like 10 drops.  Quite an improvement.

I've only been using these mega cartridges for a day.  I've learned that when it comes to vaping equipment, a day of use is not enough to judge.  Some atomizers do great for a week and die suddenly.  At $10 bucks a piece, I expect well over a month out of these.  Time will tell.

Another victory for the PV - Stranded on the road with no cigs

It was early in the morning, I just dropped the kids @ school and went to the store to buy something. I've gotten the habit of taking the PV with me, just like I used to do with cigarettes, in case something happens. I locked all my doors (kids leave them unlocked all the time) and went to the store. Silly me, it's 8:15am and the store doesn't open until 10:30AM. OK, back to the car... reached for the keys... OH NOES! Keys in the ignition.

Oh well... plan A, the backup key in my wallet. Reached for it, not there. I must have left it out last time I got a new wallet. OK, plan B... call road side assistance, fail... cellphone locked inside the car. This is not looking good. I have my PV, with 510 atty and recently topped cart, but the RY4 bottle is also locked inside the car.Quickly engaged plan C, find pay phone.

Some 20 minutes later, payphone found at gas station. RY4 flavor already decreasing. Entered gas station to buy something and get change for the payphone. You can guess what I bought right? A pack of cigarettes and a lighter. Called road assistance, they said 45 minutes, oh my. Walked back to the car, 25 minutes, spacing out the PV usage. Got there, waited, vaped away. The 510 cart already feeling dry, but still giving me some nic.

And finally, locksmith arrived! \0/ yay! The guy opened the door and I rushed to my bottle of juice, refilled cart, puffed away glorious cloud of vapor. I expected the locksmith to ask the usual "what the heck is that", but he didn't. Gave me some paper to sign, took some info, went to his car. I got inside my vehicle, turned on the AC (I'm in Florida, is already pretty hot down here) and looked to the right... lol, locksmith dude inside his car puffing away from what I believe was a Provary, humongous cloud of vapor inside his car.

I came back home, the pack of cigarettes was never opened. And to celebrate the PV's victory over the pack, I took this picture: