Hi Every One. Unhappy Noob Here.

[Ernst]

Hi

I have been vaping for three weeks now, started with the twisp. My experience with the twisp has been ok. Doing some google research turns out there are better products out there so I decided to take it to the next level, I went to Vapeking and bought myself a Nautilus mini and a vision spinner 2 battery.

The First day of using it was great but the battery died very quickly. I checked the manual and charged it for four hours as recommended. Using it after the charge the battery only lasted about three hours, my twisp batteries last almost the entire day. Did I get a broken battery? I did some googling and it seem there are a few problems with those batteries.

Now for the Nautilus Mini. After a few hours of using it, it started to gurgle and some juice was coming through the drip tip, I tried all the different airflow settings and that did not change much. The only thing that seemed to work (less gurgling) was lowering the wattage on the battery. Doing some googling seemed to reveal that this seems to happen to a lot of the Nautilus Mini's, I did put the spare coil in and it worked great for about an hour and now it feels like I am just sucking juice into my mouth, my airflow is on the biggest as that seems to work a little but the problem is still there. The first coil I soaked last night in vodka (again googling) and I am currently waiting for it to dry.

From google it seems to me that the Nautilus Mini is kind of a hit or miss type of product. I thought getting something better than the Twisp was going to awesome but so far it has just made me feel underwhelmed. I am now using my Twisp again, three weeks, haven't changed the coils or anything, Just have to move it around a bit now and then to make sure the wick is soaked and everything is fine.

So what should I do? I want to back to Vapeking and see if they could help me with my problems. I also want to know if there are any better product out there? Something that just works and is reliable?

I started vaping to stop smoking, I have been three weeks smoke free. I really don't want vaping to be inconvenient, I just want to pick up my device, smoke, relax, have a beer....not fiddle with things and spend hours googling.

Thanks guys, any help or advice will be appreciated.

 

[rogue zombie]

Sorry to hear this.

Especially because my Nautilus Mini and Spinner are my perfect match.

I'm not overly thrilled with the Spinner though. I mean it performs well, but I think it discharges a little fast and takes too long to charge.

I'm personally going to look at the Aspire or iTaste VV batteries next time.

As for the gurgling. It really is all about keeping liquid out the chimney. I blow gently out when it does that on any tank. I only get minimal gurgling with the Mini Nautilus.

I don't know what to suggest, I think the next step up is a RBA and something like an MVP battery.




Sent via a NASA satellite which gathers my thoughts and relays them to the world

 

[WHeunis]

Hi @Ernst
Welcome to our Forum. I hope that we can be of some help to you.

First things I notice, is your last bit.
For absolutely the most work-free worry-free problem-free vape, you can't beat Cartomizer Ecigs.
Also commonly referred to as Cig-a-likes.

Pop on the cartridge, huff and puff until it runs out, replace cartridge.
Some of the cartridges are refillable. Some are not.
Some are very expensive, others are not.

Unfortunately my experience in this particular device and where you can buy it reliably from, pricing, and such - is very limited.
I'm hoping someone else would be able to chime in at this point, if they have more knowledge about those.


Regarding the Nautilus Mini:
Sadly, yes - the Nautilus is a little hit and miss, from everything I have read about it. Haven't used it myself.
Seems like people either love it, or hate it. Very few in the middle (they are out there, just not very many from what I gather).


Regarding the Twisp.
It was my first device too. It was the first for MANY of us here.
And I do promise you, that there are better things out there.
The thing with that is - that these devices are more narrow than you can ever imagine.
I could sing for days about what a wonderful experience I have had with my Kanger Aerotank Mini. Another person would say it was just OK. Another would say it was the worst thing to ever happen to them.

Point is that it might take some time, and experimentation, to find that device (and Juice, and Build, and voltage setting, etc) that fits you just right.

I have been more fortunate than others in that regard.


As a suggestion aside from the Cartomizer suggestion I made earlier in this reply... You could try a Kanger EVOD. Many retailers here sell it. It is cheap, and highly effective.
Although somewhat limited compared to other devices in the market, it still hits a win with most people.
I have to say that Kanger really does a mighty fine job on their entry-level tanks like the EVOD, EMOW, and Pro-tanks.
It is very rare for someone to say horribly negative things about those.


I hope that any of this helps.
Above all, do not hesitate to come back and ask more questions.
Not one single person here has all the answers for all the different likes/dislikes, but I am sure that together we can make this work for you - just like we did for ourselves.

 

[rogue zombie]

I do highly rate KangerTech tanks, but the coils are not great. They need to hurry up and go ceramic.


Sent via a NASA satellite which gathers my thoughts and relays them to the world

 

[Silver]

Hi @Ernst

Sorry to hear about your trouble with the Nautilus Mini and Spinner 2

As @WHeunis posted, finding the right device(s) for you can take some time and a bit of experimentation.

I think Twisp does a good job at having a fairly simple device that works quite well for a fairly wide range of people. However it does have its flaws just like other devices. The trick is to find something that works well for you.

There are many routes to go from here. More power, more flavour, more throat hit, adjustable airflow, rebuildables, more battery capacity...

Perhaps what would help is if you tell us
1. what kind of vape you are after? Or is it just reliability and simplicity that is more important?
2. Do you like a tight draw (like the Twisp) or a looser draw (like wide open on the Nautilus Mini)
3. Did you like the flavour and satisfaction from the Twisp? Did you prefer the Nautilus when it worked - i.e. Just the vape itself
4. Are you after a more intense vape?

 

[Avikaar Sonlall]

I have the Vision Spinner 2 and aerotank mini, great combo. Setting my vision to 3.8 volts usually gets me around 2 days of vaping, but since I dont vape alot, it should get a regular vaper around one day on that setting.

 

[rogue zombie]

I have the Vision Spinner 2 and aerotank mini, great combo. Setting my vision to 3.8 volts usually gets me around 2 days of vaping, but since I dont vape alot, it should get a regular vaper around one day on that setting.

Really, that's not bad at all.
I'm getting about half a day on my Spinner. I do switch between 3,8 to full, depending on the juice.

Mostly at 4,3 a pretty heavy vaper should get around half a day. I would be totally fine with this if it was like a 2 hour charge.


Sent via a NASA satellite which gathers my thoughts and relays them to the world

 

[bjorncoetsee]

just get a mvp2 with kayfun 3.1
i even like it beter than my reo for some reason

 

[NickT]

just get a mvp2 with kayfun 3.1
i even like it beter than my reo for some reason

Really? You've told a 3 week noob to go from a Nautilus to rebuilding a Kayfun? IMO that seriously isn't the best advice.

 

[bjorncoetsee]

Really? You've told a 3 week noob to go from a Nautilus to rebuilding a Kayfun? IMO that seriously isn't the best advice.

Ive went from a twisp to a mvp with iclear xi in 2 weeks, and then to the kayfun in another week.. kayfun is a very easy rebuildable rba

 

[WHeunis]

just get a mvp2 with kayfun 3.1
i even like it beter than my reo for some reason

Give my wife a Kayfun (or any rebuildable) right out the gate like that (or EVER, even), she wouldve ditched ecigs altogether and gone back to stinkies...

 

[bjorncoetsee]

just giving my opinion
as i also didnt know anything about rebuilding, and googled a few hours, and figured everything out, taste is so much better and also battery life.
when u get used to rba's, u never want to use a clearomizer again

 

[Riddle]

just get a mvp2 with kayfun 3.1
i even like it beter than my reo for some reason

I wouldn't mind taking your reo out of your hands for you. Then you can have an extra Kayfun...

Just my opinion

 

[n0ugh7_zw]

@Ernst I'm also fairly new to this.

I have the bigger original nautilus. but the principles should be the same with the mini. depending on the e-juice you're using, you'll need to use the air holes to control the flow rate of juice into the head. (smaller hole = more vacuum) which means the tighter the draw, the higher the likely hood of flooding (gurgling). In the event of that kind of gurgle, I'd advise blowing thrown the drip tip and having a paper towel ready to mop up the juice that with shoot out of the AFC hole.

Much more common than the head getting flooded, is condensation building up in the chimney and on the underside of the drip tip (thanks @WHeunis). Easiest way i've seen to sort this out, is to get an ear bud, and pull a small amount of cotton off of it, to slim it down, and then wipe the inside of the chimney, then blowing out the drip tip.

I don't own a nautilus mini, and i've not actually even seen one in real life yet. So i don't know if this next part will be of any help. With my regular nautilus, i've found it performs better all round, when I install the head into the chimney (and screw it all the way into the chimney) then install the base afterwards (in other words, do the exact opposite of what Aspire tells you to do). Since i've started doing that, i've not had a single flooding incident. (aside from the condensation build up, but i suspect, thats going to be an issue, no matter what)

As far as the battery thing, from what i've read, the vision spinner 2, needs a higher charge current than regular EVOD/eGo style batteries (450Ma vs 400-420Ma), I think this may be questionable. I'm running a Smok Aro 1500mah battery, and i'm using a stock kangertech charger on it, (the light blinks green and then red very slowly while charging, something to do with bigger cells?) in any case, the thing takes about 3-4 hours to fully charge, and then it lasts me about 3/4 of a day (I vape... a lot)

For more information on my plight with the Nautilus check out my thread

 

[zadiac]

I went from greensmoke ecigs straight to nemesis mech and kayfun lite. No problem. Watched a few tutorials on youtube and started building my own coils right away. It's easy and fun. Don't see why he can't go from what he has now to an mvp or even a mech with a kayfun

 

[WHeunis]

I went from greensmoke ecigs straight to nemesis mech and kayfun lite. No problem. Watched a few tutorials on youtube and started building my own coils right away. It's easy and fun. Don't see why he can't go from what he has now to an mvp or even a mech with a kayfun

Remember that it's not always a matter of "why can't" as much as it could be a matter of "doesn't want".

Just based on the wording of the last part of his post, he doesn't seem the type to be too keen on making his own coils etc (fiddling in general).

What's easy and fun to me and you, might just be another person's "**** this im going back to stinkies".

 

[Ernst]

Wow, lots of great replies. Thanks everyone for all the information. It looks like I will have to try out a few products but that has to wait till the end of next month.

I was out today and decided to use the Nautilus and it seemed to be working ok, still not 100% and the battery seems to be holding up although I did lower the voltage to 4.3v, if I go any lower the hit feels very weak (if thats the right way to explain it?) I think the twisp batteries are 3.3v? and they seem ok, still a bit weak but not as noticeable as putting the spinner 2 on the 3.3v setting.

The air flow hole on the Nautilus is on the biggest setting, if I put it any lower the gurgling will start, no matter if I pull slowly or hard. I am getting used to the bigger airflow.

I will still research other brands although I prefer to shop at a retail shop and Vapeking is the closest to me, I want to see the product before I buy, its' a bit scary ordering online if I have never seen the product.

Thanks again for all the replies and I will check out all the products that have been suggested even this rebuildable thing, who knows maybe I will like it or maybe the fiddling will put me off

I will continue vaping, it is the only thing that has helped me quite smoking cigarettes, been a pack a day (more when drinking) smoker for 22 years and really happy to have discovered vaping.

Thanks.

edit: the coil I soaked in vodka for the night seems to be completely dead, so not sure about that "trick".

 

[n0ugh7_zw]

@Ernst did you flush the head with hot water after leaving it to soak in the vodka? also i find it best to blow the head from the top bit that goes in the chimney. then leave it on a heater for 30-45min. Then make sure to prime it with some juice when you're putting back in the tank, i find 2-3 drops is sufficient.

 

[360twin]

Hi @Ernst Herewith my opinion and some suggestions. Firstly, I don't own a Twisp, but my brother has been using his for 9 months now, and I have tried it on occasion. I have also sampled one or two others, and I find them to work acceptably. Being top-coil devices the flavour is very good, stronger than bottom-coil devices in general.

... turns out there are better products out there so I decided to take it to the next level, ...

What were you expecting when you say this? More flavour? More vapour? The draw-backs of a Twisp relate to some idiosyncrasies of the design, not how they work. The top coil means that you must always ensure the wicks are kept wet, the plastic drip-tip can become a bit loose after a while if you're not careful with it, and they can leak. They also tend to cost more, but that's the price of the convenience of having stores in major centres. I've also noticed that the prices have come down - a new clearo was R250 in January, now they are R150 (the batteries are still over-priced though)

In essence, apart from the above 'faults', I think that they are great devices.

... I went to Vapeking and bought myself a Nautilus mini and a vision spinner 2 battery.

The First day of using it was great but the battery died very quickly. I checked the manual and charged it for four hours as recommended. Using it after the charge the battery only lasted about three hours, my twisp batteries last almost the entire day. ...

A peculiarity with these batteries is that you must leave them on charge until the light on the battery goes out, not for a certain length of time or when the light on the charger goes green. If it is not fully charged then it won't last as it should. My Spinner (1300mAh) takes nearly 4 hours to fully charge, the Spinner 2 (1650mAh) should reasonably take longer than this.

If it only lasted 3 hours then it couldn't have been full. The other question is, on what voltage did you set it? The standard Twisp coil is 2 ohms, so on a standard 3.7V battery you have been vaping at around 6.8 Watts - try setting it to a similar wattage for the Nautilus. Also, how much juice did you go through in the 3 hours?

I like to match tank size to battery - my devices in my sig are what I take to work each day, and for each of them the battery will last at least a full tank. The PT3 has a capacity of 3ml and my Spinner will last long enough to drain it, yours should last more than 2 tanks (1.5ml) before it's drained at a reasonable voltage - I use 3.6V for a 1.6 ohm coil to give around 8 watts.

Also, don't just turn the voltage way up thinking that this will produce clouds of vapour and amazing taste - it won't. You will shorten the battery's life, may damage the coil and perhaps make the juice taste funny - some juices work better at lower power settings anyway. I generally use 8W on my mPT3 and PT3, and 8.5W on my AM/SVD. If you want more vapour try re-wicking one of your coils with cotton - I find this works great.

... Did I get a broken battery? I did some googling and it seem there are a few problems with those batteries. ...

You may have, although I think this is unlikely. Most of the problems you read about probably relate to non-genuine batteries - there are rather prolific. Vape King would have sold you a genuine one, and will replace it if is faulty.

... Now for the Nautilus Mini. ... The only thing that seemed to work (less gurgling) was lowering the wattage on the battery. ...

I tend to think that your voltage was set too high - see above.

I don't use Vodka to clean my coils as I don't find that it works particularly well. I flush my coils with boiling water every time I fill my tanks, using the mPT3 base for all of them and pour water from the kettle into the inverted base while holding it with some tweezers. The original coil in one of my mPT3's is nearly 3 months old and is still working fine. I have re-wicked my others with cotton, and this method works just as well for them.

After rinsing this way I dab them with some paper towel and re-assemble - it takes a couple of drags before the juice replaces the bit of water left in the wick. Doing this with 4 tanks, including cleaning and refilling, takes about 15 minutes.

... I really don't want vaping to be inconvenient, I just want to pick up my device, smoke, relax, have a beer....not fiddle with things and spend hours googling. ...

I hear you! Unfortunately, this is what vaping entails - at least once a day for me (well the fiddling, not the Googling). Once they are filled though, then this applies. Probably the most least-hassle device you have is the Twisp - take the top off, pour in juice, replace the top.

A mate has the exact set-up you have, and also had hassles similar to you at first. I think his original coil was a bit dodgy, but now he loves the device. He has a mPT3 as well, and prefers the Nautilus. I would suggest trying some of the above because they are good tanks.

You can also use your Twisp clearo on the Spinner - start at around 3.7V and adjust it up from there slowly and see what effect it has. While you are at it, try the Nautilus on the Twisp battery and see what result you get.

If you really don't like your new purchase you can always sell them on this forum - someone will take them off your hands. Good luck!

 

[Jan]

Hi Ernst
Welcome to the freedom of vaping.
A few things, the better equipment you purchase the more temperamental they become.
Don’t despair and don’t give up. Oh and you don’t have to go and buy new equipment there will be plenty of time for that in your vaping journey
Here are a few pointers.
1) The vision spinners have a charging problem; unless you have an original vision charger you won’t get a perfect charge by just plugging them into the charger. You will notice within the first give or take 15-30mins after you plug it into the charger the charger will show the green (fully charged light) unplug the charger and put it back in again and you will notice it will start to charge again, now you will get a full charge. I usually emptied a twisp battery in 2 hours and with my spinner I get about 6 hours. A full charge should take about 4-5 hours
2) On my Nautilus big, if it starts to gurgle hold it upside down and blow through the tip, make sure you cover the air hole with some toilet paper. This normally solve my gurgle problems
3) If it still gurgles put your spinner on a higher voltage for a few draws.

If all else fails the twisp clearomizers fit and work on the spinner

Hope this helps

 

[capetocuba]

I've had a Nautilus Mini for a month now. I have not had a single issue with it and the taste is amazing for a factory made coil. First coil lasted 3 weeks. I use it on my cana (a VV/VW device) Sweet spot for me is between 13 - 15W. Bear in mind I use 4 devices at the same time

 

[Ernst]

@Jan I did the the original charger, the battery has been working ok for today, it has been going for the whole day, only now the lights going yellow, so it seems to be working.

the Nautilus has also been working ok today, it is still making a bit of a burning noise but not gurgling and the hit feels fine.

I will be buying more equipment seeing as I am saving some cash from not smoking, my health is worth the money I figure if I can at least try some other products I can get a much better feel for the performance, right now the only thing I can compare to are twisp products, which seem remarkably reliable compared to what I hear about them on the internet.

It seems like everyone else here, I will eventually find that perfect product that works for me.

 

[Ernst]

Hi @Ernst Herewith my opinion and some suggestions. Firstly, I don't own a Twisp, but my brother has been using his for 9 months now, and I have tried it on occasion. I have also sampled one or two others, and I find them to work acceptably. Being top-coil devices the flavour is very good, stronger than bottom-coil devices in general.



What were you expecting when you say this? More flavour? More vapour? The draw-backs of a Twisp relate to some idiosyncrasies of the design, not how they work. The top coil means that you must always ensure the wicks are kept wet, the plastic drip-tip can become a bit loose after a while if you're not careful with it, and they can leak. They also tend to cost more, but that's the price of the convenience of having stores in major centres. I've also noticed that the prices have come down - a new clearo was R250 in January, now they are R150 (the batteries are still over-priced though)

In essence, apart from the above 'faults', I think that they are great devices.



A peculiarity with these batteries is that you must leave them on charge until the light on the battery goes out, not for a certain length of time or when the light on the charger goes green. If it is not fully charged then it won't last as it should. My Spinner (1300mAh) takes nearly 4 hours to fully charge, the Spinner 2 (1650mAh) should reasonably take longer than this.

If it only lasted 3 hours then it couldn't have been full. The other question is, on what voltage did you set it? The standard Twisp coil is 2 ohms, so on a standard 3.7V battery you have been vaping at around 6.8 Watts - try setting it to a similar wattage for the Nautilus. Also, how much juice did you go through in the 3 hours?

I like to match tank size to battery - my devices in my sig are what I take to work each day, and for each of them the battery will last at least a full tank. The PT3 has a capacity of 3ml and my Spinner will last long enough to drain it, yours should last more than 2 tanks (1.5ml) before it's drained at a reasonable voltage - I use 3.6V for a 1.6 ohm coil to give around 8 watts.

Also, don't just turn the voltage way up thinking that this will produce clouds of vapour and amazing taste - it won't. You will shorten the battery's life, may damage the coil and perhaps make the juice taste funny - some juices work better at lower power settings anyway. I generally use 8W on my mPT3 and PT3, and 8.5W on my AM/SVD. If you want more vapour try re-wicking one of your coils with cotton - I find this works great.



You may have, although I think this is unlikely. Most of the problems you read about probably relate to non-genuine batteries - there are rather prolific. Vape King would have sold you a genuine one, and will replace it if is faulty.



I tend to think that your voltage was set too high - see above.

I don't use Vodka to clean my coils as I don't find that it works particularly well. I flush my coils with boiling water every time I fill my tanks, using the mPT3 base for all of them and pour water from the kettle into the inverted base while holding it with some tweezers. The original coil in one of my mPT3's is nearly 3 months old and is still working fine. I have re-wicked my others with cotton, and this method works just as well for them.

After rinsing this way I dab them with some paper towel and re-assemble - it takes a couple of drags before the juice replaces the bit of water left in the wick. Doing this with 4 tanks, including cleaning and refilling, takes about 15 minutes.



I hear you! Unfortunately, this is what vaping entails - at least once a day for me (well the fiddling, not the Googling). Once they are filled though, then this applies. Probably the most least-hassle device you have is the Twisp - take the top off, pour in juice, replace the top.

A mate has the exact set-up you have, and also had hassles similar to you at first. I think his original coil was a bit dodgy, but now he loves the device. He has a mPT3 as well, and prefers the Nautilus. I would suggest trying some of the above because they are good tanks.

You can also use your Twisp clearo on the Spinner - start at around 3.7V and adjust it up from there slowly and see what effect it has. While you are at it, try the Nautilus on the Twisp battery and see what result you get.

If you really don't like your new purchase you can always sell them on this forum - someone will take them off your hands. Good luck!

Thanks for all the great information! I don't know why I didn't see your post yesterday?
I am using the second coil that came with the Nautilus and so far it is working ok. It did start gurgling last night but the battery was very flat, this morning everything is normal again, although it is still a little noisy, you can hear the juice vapourizing in the coil.

"What were you expecting when you say this? More flavour? More vapour?" I am not sure really what I expected, I guess as a noob when one reads reviews on products and comments like "this is the best device ever for flavour and vapour" one kind of expects a different or better experience than the twisp, but it looks like it is mostly suggestive and everyone has their own view on what is the best setup.
The flavour with the Nautilus is better than the twisp though.

The more I am using the Nautilus and spinner, the less problems I seem to have. I wonder if the battery just needed a few good charges for it work well? if that's a real thing? I have a RC car and I found that after a few charges the performance was better, nothing scientific or factual here, just what I have noticed.

Thanks again for everyones replies. This looks like a great community and in the last few days I have learned a lot of new things.

 

[Rob Fisher]

Don't give up on the Nautilus Mini just yet... it is one of the best commercial tanks around and I still have one as back up along with my Russian 91%... yes I prefer the REO's but the Nautilus has converted many of my friends and they love them to bits! You may find the first coil you used may have been a dud,,, also the Vision Spinner is a good battery and while I can't really speak for how long it lasts because I very rarely ever use it my converts are all happy.

Yuur next step from here is a RBA like a Kayfun or a Russian on a mod that uses 18650 batteries.

 

[Ernst]

Thanks @Rob Fisher Looks like the first coils was a bit of a dud, the second one is working a bit better. It still seems to gurgle sometimes but I find it is only happening when the battery is low.