Re-wicking OCC Coils, why didn't I do this sooner?????

[RobbieR]

My last OCC coil just crapped out on me and I was too lazy to go buy more so decided to try re-wicking an old one. I watched a couple Youtube videos and gave it a try. It turned out excellent and I actually prefer the vape I am getting from this re-wicked coil. I thought I might have packed the cotton a little too tight so I pushed a pin through the cotton and this coil is wicking like a champ. I don't know why I didn't try this sooner! Now I am kicking myself for throwing out coils when they got gunky. If you have a Subtank give it a try, its simple and only requires tweezers, small scissors, and some Organic Cotton.

 

[RobbieR]

Double post

 

[Huckleberried]

You just saved yourself a bit of money and gave yourself more FLAVOR!

 

[wally]

I started wicking the coils back with the drippers until they came out with the pro-tank style then I wicked them saved a ton of money and much better results. Now I wick everything that is not vertical.

 

[Powerman]

I looked at that but it seemed a bit of a PITA. So I just got a RBA instead. The vape is better. But the RBA has small juice holes and some open them up like me. Which is what Kanger did for the v2 RBA. So get a v2 RBA, and call it good. You won't have to work through a tiny hole.

 

[Zamazam]

I started wicking the coils back with the drippers until they came out with the pro-tank style then I wicked them saved a ton of money and much better results. Now I wick everything that is not vertical.

lol, I wick the vertical coils for my Atlantis....

 

[Zamazam]

I looked at that but it seemed a bit of a PITA. So I just got a RBA instead. The vape is better. But the RBA has small juice holes and some open them up like me. Which is what Kanger did for the v2 RBA. So get a v2 RBA, and call it good. You won't have to work through a tiny hole.

I ended getting pissed off at the low juice flow, so I drilled a couple 2mm holes in the part that screws onto the deck 1/8" above the juice channels when tightened down. Now it wicks max vg quite well.

 

[wally]

I tried to wick vertical a couple times lol I got one to work ok but I felt like throwing the thing out the window. I guess with practice I could eventually get it right.

 

[Powerman]

I ended getting pissed off at the low juice flow, so I drilled a couple 2mm holes in the part that screws onto the deck 1/8" above the juice channels when tightened down. Now it wicks max vg quite well.

Yep, I did the same thing. Then I got a Crown and called it good.

 

[DakotaS]

I started rebuilding my Atlantis coils recently with 24ga Kanthal and Organic Japanese cotton.
I do about 4 or 5 wraps which comes out to .6 ohms which seems perfect...

I'm just venturing out into the rebuilding world and at first it is a big pain in the butt... the wrapping is easy... wicking is tricky. I had read all the "less is more" advice and thought I was listening... I didn't really get it right until I used what I thought for sure was way too little. All I have to do now is adjust the ejuice flow control depending on the VG/PG ratio. Flavor seems so much more vivid as well...

I am thinking of using Rayon in the Atlantis... does anyone know if this is a good or bad idea? Should I just stick with the Organic Japanese cotton?

 

[CorallineAlgae]

Yep, I did the same thing. Then I got a Crown and called it good.

The RBA head on the Crown floods and leaks way WAY easier than the Subtank RBA head. I've gotten it to work a little more than half of the time, but it needs precise wicking and if it isn't just right it will either give dry hits or give your mod a juice bath. Besides, the normal heads aren't re-wickable and that's what this conversation is about.

 

[Powerman]

The RBA head on the Crown floods and leaks way WAY easier than the Subtank RBA head. I've gotten it to work a little more than half of the time, but it needs precise wicking and if it isn't just right it will either give dry hits or give your mod a juice bath. Besides, the normal heads aren't re-wickable and that's what this conversation is about.

Then why are we talking about the Crown RBA?

I liked the Kanger RBA better than the OCC. So I was doing my own coils. But that is a bit of a pain. I knew I could rewick the OCC, but that too seems a bit of a PITA. So sure, it can be done, but that is the reason most tanks come with a RBA to make rolling your own easier. Now, most tanks are getting things figured out to where doing both is unnecessary. The pre mades rock. If most come in SS they will last longer. Finicky wicking is a design flaw. The verticals seem to have some advantages. So when you finally do come across a really good running design, you usually say... "why didn't I do this sooner. That's what I said when I left the Kanger.

 

[CorallineAlgae]

Then why are we talking about the Crown RBA?

Because you brought up the Crown in a conversation about rewicking Subtank coils, and since the Crown prebuilt coils can't be rewicked, the RBA deserved to be mentioned. It's the only rewicking option for the Crown. If you are going to compare the Subtank to the Crown in a thread about rewicking OCC coils, the RBA is the only game the Crown has.

 

[Superjeep]

I didnt even know the crown had a rba for it. Thank you my friend I shall do some research

 

[CorallineAlgae]

I didnt even know the crown had a rba for it. Thank you my friend I shall do some research

Anytime!

They were pretty hard to find when I ordered my Crown a few weeks back. Hopefully they're easier to track down now. I'm usually a 100% RTA vaper. When I get a coil based tank an RBA is a must have. The Crown RBA is a little hit or miss though. The first time I built on it, it gave me nothing but dry hits. The next wicking leaked half of the ejuice onto the mod. The next try worked but it still leaked a little. I got it set up pretty good the next time but had lost some of my trust in the thing and just ordered a couple of packs of standard heads. It definitely isn't as easy to build on as a true RTA or the Kanger Subtank RBA. I haven't read any post from people raving about how well the RBA works. It can also be difficult to fit longer coils or Clapton coils into the RBA while keeping the ends of the coil even. It's difficult to explain. Maybe I'm doing something wrong, but I have a lot of experience rebuilding heads as well as building on RTAs and RDAs. That doesn't mean I might not be missing something.

 

[Powerman]

I tried every wick trick in the book with the Kanger RBA. Finally drilled holes like the V2 RBA and OCC. Better, but it can flood. I considered reworking OCC but never did it. Thought it might work better to poke the wick in when done. But I never got around to it.

I got a a Crown RBA but haven't used it yet. The instructions are not super detailed... But I found it funny just going by their pictures. They basically leave a lot of wick, put the cover on, then cram it all in after that. Obviously you can try different, but I was going to try that first. It's an art. But with the OCC, and the pre made crowns, for me at least, I just sort of wanted to get away from messing with it. I do understand if others don't mind.

 

[RobbieR]

My success re-wicking an OCC coil was somewhat short lived. On the second day my re-wicked coil gave me a couple NASTY dry hits (Or burnt Hits, I don't know the difference) and I swapped it out for a new one. Does anyone know if dry hits after a day indicate too much cotton or too little cotton?

 

[rchmx]

Because you brought up the Crown in a conversation about rewicking Subtank coils, and since the Crown prebuilt coils can't be rewicked, the RBA deserved to be mentioned. It's the only rewicking option for the Crown. If you are going to compare the Subtank to the Crown in a thread about rewicking OCC coils, the RBA is the only game the Crown has.

What makes you say that the Crown prebuilt coils can't be rewicked? I only just got mine, so obviously haven't given it a go yet, but it seems like they could be rewicked just like any other vertical coil head. Take out the bottom pin and grommet, slowly push from the top the wick and coil, remove the dirty wick and torch the coil, then wrap new wetted wicking around the coil. Slowly slide the coil and wick into place. Replace the grommet, then the pin, and you're good to go. Have I missed something that has been discovered about the Crown prebuilt coils? Why would this approach not work?

 

[CorallineAlgae]

What makes you say that the Crown prebuilt coils can't be rewicked? I only just got mine, so obviously haven't given it a go yet, but it seems like they could be rewicked just like any other vertical coil head. Take out the bottom pin and grommet, slowly push from the top the wick and coil, remove the dirty wick and torch the coil, then wrap new wetted wicking around the coil. Slowly slide the coil and wick into place. Replace the grommet, then the pin, and you're good to go. Have I missed something that has been discovered about the Crown prebuilt coils? Why would this approach not work?

I wasn't aware that people were rewicking these heads. I'll have to give it a shot. Thanks for posting the steps. I can say that the stainless steel wire doesn't seem to break down like kanthal. The wire blackens but not in the same way. It gets coated with black crud but it wipes right off leaving a shiny coil.

 

[rchmx]

I wasn't aware that people were rewicking these heads. I'll have to give it a shot. Thanks for posting the steps. I can say that the stainless steel wire doesn't seem to break down like kanthal. The wire blackens but not in the same way. It gets coated with black crud but it wipes right off leaving a shiny coil.

I haven't played around with SS yet, but that's what I've heard too.

Happy to help regarding the steps. Since these tanks are still pretty new, I haven't seen any rewicking videos pop up for the stock coils (they may be out there, I haven't looked very hard). But you could watch this video one rewicking the vertical Atlantis Aspire coils. In a month or two, when it becomes necessary, I plan to try to rewick the crown coils (as opposed to rebuild them completely), and this video seems to be applicable. It'll give you an idea of how to go about it (where the leads need to be positioned, etc), and should cut down the guess work a bit.

If you do give it a try, hopefully you'll post your experience here. That would be a big help.

 

[CorallineAlgae]

I haven't played around with SS yet, but that's what I've heard too.

Happy to help regarding the steps.

If you do give it a try, hopefully you'll post your experience here. That would be a big help.

It works!

Well, I went ahead and tried to rewick a 0.5 ohm Crown coil earlier today. So far it seems like it's working just like the original head! I only just started vaping on the rewicked head and it seems to be keeping up with the 70VG juice just fine. I followed the video but had to alter a few steps. The cotton sheets were packed in there really tightly so I pushed the coil down a bit, but it was too tight to slide out properly. I pulled out a few pieces of cotton from the top with tweezers and the coil was able to come out of the bottom, instead of the top like the Atlantis head. I can't say how long the new cotton will last but the whole process was really fast. I will definitely be doing this again. I actually forgot to wet the cotton when I added it to the coil. Still worked just fine. Getting the coil back in was really easy.

The Crown coils have a thin sheet of cotton, right up against the feed holes that is separated from the coil cotton by an inner piece of metal. Just like the Atlantis heads. It didn't come out when I removed the coil so didn't mess with it. That outer cotton sheet looked perfectly clean, even after vaping on this head for the last 10 days.

I think that this might be a better way to go than using the RBA head. That thing can be a bitch to wick properly (gives dry hits with too much cotton or leaks with too little).

 

[Powerman]

Wow, that's really cool. I won't be tossing mine. Might have to give it a try.

So how do you do the cotton? Like how much?

 

[CorallineAlgae]

Wow, that's really cool. I won't be tossing mine. Might have to give it a try.

So how do you do the cotton? Like how much?

I did it very similar to the guy in the video above, except the KGD cotton strip I used was thicker. The Crown head seems to have a little more internal space than the Atlantis head. I cut a strip of KGD cotton that was the same width as the original cotton (I used a piece of the original cotton as a guide). Then I pulled the cotton in half so there were two strips, each with a shiny side and a fluffy side. I used one piece to wrap the cotton tightly around the coil. I didn't need the full strip so I cut a little piece off of the end to make it a bit shorter (to get an even number of cotton wraps).

Then it was just a matter of putting the coil back into the head from the top (using the bottom of a drill bit as a rod) and positioning the leads for the grommet and the plug. It was so much easier than the Atlantis head video made it seem, but it's definitely worth watching the video.

 

[rchmx]

It works!

Awesome! That was quick man, thanks for posting your experience!

It's great to know that these heads are too bad to rewick, as that was my hope when picking up this tank. I also read a couple people's posts, saying that the rba head has poorer airflow than the stock coils. Not sure if you experienced that as well.

Anyways, good to hear. I've got enough Japanese OC to last a lifetime!

 

[Powerman]

I did it very similar to the guy in the video above, except the KGD cotton strip I used was thicker. The Crown head seems to have a little more internal space than the Atlantis head. I cut a strip of KGD cotton that was the same width as the original cotton (I used a piece of the original cotton as a guide). Then I pulled the cotton in half so there were two strips, each with a shiny side and a fluffy side. I used one piece to wrap the cotton tightly around the coil. I didn't need the full strip so I cut a little piece off of the end to make it a bit shorter (to get an even number of cotton wraps).

Then it was just a matter of putting the coil back into the head from the top (using the bottom of a drill bit as a rod) and positioning the leads for the grommet and the plug. It was so much easier than the Atlantis head video made it seem, but it's definitely worth watching the video.

That's really cool. Thanks. I'll watch it and give it a shot. I use the same cotton so I'll try like you said.

 

[OneBadWolf]

lol, I wick the vertical coils for my Atlantis....

Respect!!

I've done it . Both with the horizontal and vertical coil methods and although some turned out ok, I found it REALLY frustrating trying to get it right. A few insisted on shorting no matter how carefully I tried to put the bottom into the grommett, and others seemed wonderous, until they spontaneously purged all my juice out the airholes of my Atlantis V2 while in my pocket. Bad words were uttered....

 

[CorallineAlgae]

Awesome! That was quick man, thanks for posting your experience!

It's great to know that these heads are too bad to rewick, as that was my hope when picking up this tank. I also read a couple people's posts, saying that the rba head has poorer airflow than the stock coils. Not sure if you experienced that as well.

Anyways, good to hear. I've got enough Japanese OC to last a lifetime!

I didn't notice any meaningful reduced airflow with the RBA with 2.5mm coils. Maybe large 3mm coils would block more air but the three 2.5mm coils I tried all had a ton of air. That wasn't an issue at all for me, even with a Clapton coil. My issues are with the screws and the wicking. The screws are both centered, like most RDA sections, but for some reason the spacing seems incredibly tight. You can't easily fit anything more than a few wraps or the leads will need to be bent inward to get to the connection. It makes installing spaced coils or 6+ wrapped coils very tricky. I'm sure it works fine for .5 onm or lower coils. I just prefer to build closer to 1 ohm. It's not terrible easy with this RBA unless you use thin wire.

To be honest, I can definitely live with that. You can still fit some good coils in the RBA. It's the wicking that made me move on to buying boxes of heads. The normal heads have never leaked and never given me a dry hit. Even the one I rewicked today is vaping just like new. The RBA has leaked quite a bit and it has given me dry hits. I have gotten it to work well, but it's not a guaranteed thing like my other tank RBAs or my RTAs.

 

[rchmx]

Just tried a full rebuild of the included NI200 head, using Kanthal, since I won't be moving to TC anytime soon. A bit tricky but got it on the first try, after a little fiddling. I'll say that I used twice the cotton in that Aspire rebuild video, but there seems to be room for 33% more (ie one more equal strip). We'll see if it does ok for wicking, or if the bit of empty space in there creates issues. I did wet the cotton with PG when I wrapped the new coil, so maybe it'll expand a bit once dry. Previous to rebuilding this coil I had just popped in the .5 stock coil, using that right now, so I'll have to make another juice before trying out this rebuilt coil, though will probably test it out sooner than later due to curiosity.