# Advice on choosing first RTA tank



## lanturlu (1/9/17)

Hi, I'm now considering going for an RTA tank and I'm not sure where to begin. I've got a list of "things" an ideal tank must have for me to make it mine, and things that would be nice too, but aren't deal breakers. The tank would go on my Asmodus Minikin V2.

-- Must: 24mm+ diameter, 4ml+ liquid capacity, top airflow, no leaks. Good build quality is more important than cheap price.

-- Would be nice: Top slide to open (like many SMOK), available online in SA, tank that can also take commercial coils when too lazy to make mine.

I found one that seems to fit most of the criteria, the OBS Engine RTA, but one of the review I read about it says, in the conclusion: "if you’re looking for your first RTA, I don’t think this is the right choice."
(from this review: http://vaperanks.com/reviews/obs-engine-rta-review/)

The Wotofo Troll RTA seems almost ok, but it has bottom airflow, and I'm still traumatized by my first leaky tank, I'd rather not risk it! And I like the idea of the OBS V, since it can use commercial coils, but bottom airflow again...

I'm not scared of learning how to do this, I think I understand the theory (I'm a physicist) but I'm not an expert yet in building coils, and I won't have help from local vape stores, and I don't have any tools yet. I'd rather get one that says: perfect RTA for beginners. Having a perfect tank (for me) in mind would greatly help to make this happen so I that I become a builder too. I'll appreciate any tips.

Edits: Forgot to add, I'm not a cloud chaser, I'm more after flavour, and I vape at around 30-40W.

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## r0ckf1re (1/9/17)

I got the Wotofo Troll. Rather get the Ammit dual, is much much better. I like the Ammit a lot for what you pay for it. Easy to build, good air design and most importantly, great flavor.

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## Paul33 (1/9/17)

You can't really go wrong with the serpent smm. 

Super easy to build and even easier to wick. Threaded tip fill instead of the slide that you said would be nice. 

Flavour is spot on in it as well. 

It doesn't take commercial coils but I think you'll be ok with the build deck so I don't reckon you'll have a problem!!

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## Silver (1/9/17)

Welcome to the forum @lanturlu 
Great question you are asking

I am not up to speed with all the latest RTAs so the other guys will probably advise you better.

However, I will say this - you would be doing superbly to find a RTA that suits you perfectly first time.
Its great that you are narrowing it down with your wishlist of things you want in it - but be prepared to try a few until you find a great one that suits you. 

While researching is great and I think will get you to several candidates - too much desktop analysis to find the perfect one can sometimes lead to a disappointment. 

I also think some tanks are better suited for some flavour profiles. That might be something to also keep in mind.

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## RenaldoRheeder (1/9/17)

lanturlu said:


> Hi, I'm now considering going for an RTA tank and I'm not sure where to begin



@lanturlu - you might want to add the single or multi-coil choice in your criteria list as well. Single coil is very popular amongst some Vapers (including myself). I'm currently a Serpent SMM fan, but I'm looking out at others. The SMM should tick your flavor box. By all means, do your research on the internet and via the forums. Also look in the Classifieds forum - there are often reasonable offers available. 

All of the best. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

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## Raindance (1/9/17)

Hi @lanturlu , I admit at being an OBS Engine Nano fan and my perceptions may be biased as a result but from your wishlist I do believe you are describing the OBS Engine in every detail. There is a single and double coil version and my personal preference is the single coil.

Have a look at this for more details.

Regards

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## Lingogrey (1/9/17)

I second @Raindance on the OBS Engine Nano. It only offers the single coil option (whilst for instance the Serpent Mini 25 mm gives you both single and dual coil decks, but the latter is bottom airflow. Of course, the 'normal' Engine mentioned by @Raindance offers the double coil option {only}, but I mean that each of the versions limit you to one option). It seems that, besides the 'original' review by @daniel craig and some of the responses there, the flavour of this tank has not been highly rated on this forum. Personally, I think that the flavour is superb (3.5 mm+ diameter 'fancy' coils, such as any of the assortments of Claptons - I use the Flatwire UK SS 316 L Flapton 24/32 myself - seem to bring out the best in it). It is very easy to build and wick, and is completely leakproof (and holds 5 mm of juice; 5.3 according to specifications - but in reality 5)

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## TheOracle (1/9/17)

lanturlu said:


> Hi, I'm now considering going for an RTA tank and I'm not sure where to begin. I've got a list of "things" an ideal tank must have for me to make it mine, and things that would be nice too, but aren't deal breakers. The tank would go on my Asmodus Minikin V2.
> 
> -- Must: 24mm+ diameter, 4ml+ liquid capacity, top airflow, no leaks. Good build quality is more important than cheap price.
> 
> ...


The Limitless classic kit meets all the criteria
Postless deck, Two post deck, Prebuilt coil options, 6 ml tank, and base to use with any of the decks supplied as well as 5 other decks to add on to original kit.
R550 for the full kit and has decent top airflow.

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## kev mac (1/9/17)

lanturlu said:


> Hi, I'm now considering going for an RTA tank and I'm not sure where to begin. I've got a list of "things" an ideal tank must have for me to make it mine, and things that would be nice too, but aren't deal breakers. The tank would go on my Asmodus Minikin V2.
> 
> -- Must: 24mm+ diameter, 4ml+ liquid capacity, top airflow, no leaks. Good build quality is more important than cheap price.
> 
> ...


I would not hesitate on recommending the Engine as a first RTA. It is super easy to build on,virtually leak proof and delivers good flavor.It has been a go to tank since day one.Plus it is cheaply priced.I own at least 25 rtas and a few sub tanks and I like the engine so much I bought all three models. I won't say it's the best I own but for the money it's a damn good one.I wish it was around when I was looking for my first one.

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## daniel craig (1/9/17)

@Ianturlu That reviewer had issues wicking it which resulted in spit back. This always happen if you wick the engine incorrectly. That said, wicking the engine is quite easy. If you ever need help, just ask and I could do a step by step guide. 

What makes the engine or engine nano a great first RTA is the fact that it doesn't leak and provides great flavor. The fact that it doesn't have bottom airflow means that over saturation of the wicks would result in spit back. If a top airflow RTA is what you're looking for, then this would be ideal.

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## Kalashnikov (2/9/17)

Obs engine I rate is probably the best all round beginners tank . it is ideal as a all day carry tank especially cause it's easy to wick and cant leak . I sold mine . and am already thinking of getting it again

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## SAVaper (2/9/17)

On the OBS engine nano, remeber to use less cotton.
I had some dry hits in the beginning because I used 2 much.

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## lanturlu (2/9/17)

Thanks for all the answers, it will help me in making my choice. Seems the most popular recommendation so far is the OBS Engine Nano, the single coil version of the first one I thought would suit me (dual). To be honest, I hadn't even considered the difference it would make, double or single, and I'm not sure what I need or would prefer, but maybe starting with single will be simpler, less things can go wrong this way! I've looked around some online stores and none seem to have stock of it in SA. Many don't carry it at all, and those that do seem to be out of stock. I've asked to be notified when they get back to stock. No rush though, I'll keep doing more research on this.

Although this product isn't out yet in SA (as far as I can tell), the new SMOK X-Baby (with top airflow) will have an optional RBA base apparently. I will most likely have to try that one too, as the design seems perfect for my needs. (https://www.smoktech.com/atomizer/tfv8-x-baby). Anyone knows when / if this will be sold locally, and by whom?

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## Lingogrey (2/9/17)

lanturlu said:


> Thanks for all the answers, it will help me in making my choice. Seems the most popular recommendation so far is the OBS Engine Nano, the single coil version of the first one I thought would suit me (dual). To be honest, I hadn't even considered the difference it would make, double or single, and I'm not sure what I need or would prefer, but maybe starting with single will be simpler, less things can go wrong this way! I've looked around some online stores and none seem to have stock of it in SA. Many don't carry it at all, and those that do seem to be out of stock. I've asked to be notified when they get back to stock. No rush though, I'll keep doing more research on this.
> 
> Although this product isn't out yet in SA (as far as I can tell), the new SMOK X-Baby (with top airflow) will have an optional RBA base apparently. I will most likely have to try that one too, as the design seems perfect for my needs. (https://www.smoktech.com/atomizer/tfv8-x-baby). Anyone knows when / if this will be sold locally, and by whom?



@lanturlu - Vape Club has the Engine Nano in stock in gold (Generally I do not like blingy gold very much, but this seems to be quite an attractive matte rose gold): https://www.vapeclub.co.za/products/obs-engine-nano-rta

It seems that Vapedecadence has one more left in stock of the silver / stainless steel version as well: http://www.vapedecadence.co.za/product/obs-engine-nano/

You can find the TFV 8 - X Baby here, but I can't find the RBA base locally (according to that Smok link it doesn't seem available at all yet, so I'm quite sure some vendors will have it as soon as available): http://www.vapepulse.co.za/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=1017&search=smok&page=4

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## lanturlu (2/9/17)

Lingogrey said:


> @lanturlu - Vape Club has the Engine Nano in stock in gold (Generally I do not like blingy gold very much, but this seems to be quite an attractive matte rose gold): https://www.vapeclub.co.za/products/obs-engine-nano-rta
> 
> It seems that Vapedecadence has one more left in stock of the silver / stainless steel version as well: http://www.vapedecadence.co.za/product/obs-engine-nano/
> 
> You can find the TFV 8 - X Baby here, but I can't find the RBA base locally (according to that Smok link it doesn't seem available at all yet, so I'm quite sure some vendors will have it as soon as available): http://www.vapepulse.co.za/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=1017&search=smok&page=4



That was fast! I looked at so many sites and couldn't find it, but I guess there are just too many of them to look at, for every item one is curious about. On top of that, I've purchased from vapepulse before, but I guess I just missed it in my search. I really appreciate the links though.

So for a tank like the X-Baby (or any other tank with optional RBA base), are there any downsides for also being able to use premade coils? If the tank is good, and it has an RBA base of the style you want, like dual, single, etc, is it just like any RBA/RTA tank out there or was there any design compromises made to make it a more versatile one?

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## lanturlu (2/9/17)

TheOracle said:


> The Limitless classic kit meets all the criteria
> Postless deck, Two post deck, Prebuilt coil options, 6 ml tank, and base to use with any of the decks supplied as well as 5 other decks to add on to original kit.
> R550 for the full kit and has decent top airflow.



Is it the model you are talking about? IJOY LIMITLESS RDTA Classic Edition? I'll have to read up a bit more on RDTA!
(http://www.ijoycig.com/product/item-323.html)

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## Lingogrey (2/9/17)

lanturlu said:


> That was fast! I looked at so many sites and couldn't find it, but I guess there are just too many of them to look at, for every item one is curious about. On top of that, I've purchased from vapepulse before, but I guess I just missed it in my search. I really appreciate the links though.
> 
> So for a tank like the X-Baby (or any other tank with optional RBA base), are there any downsides for also being able to use premade coils? If the tank is good, and it has an RBA base of the style you want, like dual, single, etc, is it just like any RBA/RTA tank out there or was there any design compromises made to make it a more versatile one?


I don't have much experience with commercial coil tanks that offers an optional RBA section, but as a broad generalisation - the RBA sections will not offer as good a vaping or building experience as a dedicated RTA. There are some notable exceptions, such as the Kanger Subtank Mini where the RBA section offers a superior vape to that of the commercial coils (and it is a breeze to build and wick), but often it would be a case of 'Jack of all trades; master of none'

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## TheOracle (2/9/17)

lanturlu said:


> Is it the model you are talking about? IJOY LIMITLESS RDTA Classic Edition? I'll have to read up a bit more on RDTA!
> (http://www.ijoycig.com/product/item-323.html)


Correct

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