rba giving me burnt hits

[Davidl41]

Using Kanthal wire i pulsed the coil and there was a few dead spots. How do I fix this? Does doing this remove any metal taste off the wire

More importantly my wire after I pulsed it looks charcoal grey. Is that normal.I held down the fire button for 3 seconds(trying to get even heat distribution). Turned off my device and noticed the coil has moved because of the heat. Touched the coil with a screwdriver and it was split. Coil was a .42 running at somewhere around 40 watts no cotton just heating up the coil. Is this the norm or is my device running too Hot.

My cotton also has singed a little too. Should it be packed loosely or tight?

 

[State O' Flux]

Kanthal wire is comprised of iron, chromium and aluminum.
Using genuine Sandvik Kanthal A-1 wire (I can't account for other wire sold as "Kanthal")... pulsing the coil a few times will generate an aluminum oxide (alumina) outer layer. This layer is both electrically resistant, in that it "shields" each wrap from the next, as well as providing an anti-corrosive barrier... and thermally conductive, in that it aids in even, radiant heat promotion.

A shiny to semi-shiny silver to a medium grey (a bluish silver is not uncommon as well) is normal for a new coil. Colorations approaching black in a newly made coil leads me to believe that it's not genuine Kanthal, or you have an issue with conductivity to your atty and/or mod.
40 watts is actually the Ohm's law correct value for a 0.42Ω net resistance at 4.1V... and that would be spot on if you were using a unregulated mod, At present, too much wattage is not an issue.

Coils that distort dramatically when pulsed for the first time is an indication that no consistant tension was applied during the wrapping process... however, as this is quite common, one simply needs to use both the build mandrel and a pair of tweezers to return it to it's pristine, as built shape.
On the latter tool... this is why ceramic, non-conductive tweezers have become so popular, so that coils can be reshaped / re-compressed during the pulse process... without fear of shorting.

Out of curiosity... where did you get your Kanthal wire, and what specifically is it? By that I mean version, dimension (there are both round and ribbon Kanthal variations) and gauge. A link to the exact vendor may be helpful in sorting your issues.

 

[Davidl41]

Its un named kanthal .4mm from canvape in toronto. Is there a standard for kanthal wires?

I figured out my issue. I was rolling my wicks to shape it round, compacting the fibers. Also was 2mm short in width

For something like 2mm diameter coil you wouldn't put cotton between the coil but under it? How about above it too so it doesnt burn so hot? I only have one coil but fill the entire base cotton and liquid. Will the liquid farther from the coil reach or is there no point

My last question is how many hits should I expect from a dripper before u need to drip some liquid on. I get about 4 to 6. I usually stop at 4 so I don't cough out a lung on a dry hit.

 

[UncleMike]

the wick should be tight enough to give some resistance when pulling it through the inside of the coil , not too tight or it will clog (bottleneck) the wicking action but also not too loose as this sometimes causes spitting and gurgling. Also make sure you don't tuck your wicks underneath of the coil, it needs an air space to cool the coil or you'll end up getting dry hits. You can use enough wick to fill most of the bottom of the deck but I usually don't. As long as the coil is touching the deck with a few mm to spare you should be good to go. The wick will absorb any juice laying in the deck as it does it's wicking action. Sometime when you're bored try building a coil in the 2.5 - 3mm ID range, I find these work the best and help a lot with wicking issues. Good luck and happy vaping

 

[Davidl41]

Perfect thank you mike.

 

[BoomStick]

You're getting good advice. Here's how mine looks with 2.7mm coils and wicking that works well and allows for good airflow. Basically what Mike said.