Question about rebuilding kangertech V1 protank (single) coils

[Mr Gerbik]

Greetings,

Looking for some help from people that tolerate beginners!

I buy 5 packs of these coils and rebuild them. In practice I end up rebuilding each about 3 times because the rubber grommets break and I collect a heap of metal!

I use 32 gauge kanthal with a 5/4 wrap, probably 2mm diameter.

I bought a very cheap multimeter to check resistance and apparently I'm consistently getting 0.8 ohms. I touch the + / - probes together first to get the internal resistance of the meter which is 0.4. Then I test my rebuilt head which gives 1.2 ohms, and I subtract the 0.4, for 0.8 ohms.

Am I doing this right? I've found a few guides / vids that seem to think this will give me around 1.8 ohms. That said my rebuilds are a FAR better vape than the original 1.8 / silica - I use organic cotton. The coil runs a little warmer but I get nice clouds and a much better taste, however it will only last a few refills before it goes a bit mucky which I believe is normal with cotton. It also vapes nicely on my lowest VV setting of 3.3v.

So my question is, does 0.8 sound about right for what I'm doing?


Thanks in advance for any advice / tips!

 

[danb]

Here's an amazing website, input your coil specifications and it will calculate the resistance you should get:

http://www.steam-engine.org/wirewiz.asp

4/5 wraps of 32g (0.20 mm - this is very thin, are you sure it's 32g?) kanthal with ID 2 mm should be ~1.8 Ohm, so 0.8 Ohm doesn't sound right.

However, I suspect your wire is 0.32 mm (28g), in which case 0.8 Ohm is bang on the theoretical resistance.

 

[oldhippydude]

Have you tested the resistance of a shop bought coil head to check that your meter is reading resistance correctly?
Your method of using the meter is correct, but meters get less accurate if the battery is on the way out.
When I used to rebuild PT heads I used nr-r-nr wires of fixed resistance, the non resistance tails ensure you do not burn the rubber grommets,

If the meter is accurate then the theory that your wire is not what you think it is would be reasonable.

Oh, and welcome to the planet.
Enjoy.

 

[danb]

Have you tested the resistance of a shop bought coil head to check that your meter is reading resistance correctly?

Back when I used the early protanks, I found the resistance of the shop-bought heads was not very consistent, maybe +/- 0.2 Ohm, so that's probably not going to give a good indication of whether the meter is working properly. They might have gotten better though, this was 3 years ago.

 

[tobywonkanobi]

Not really quite on topic, but maybe pick up some resistance/no-resistance wire (I think stealth vape still do it). This means not burning the grommet, meaning only having to recoil each standard coil head once, from there on, just a quick dry burn.

 

[oldhippydude]

Another thought,
If you are managing to rebuild your Protank heads, you may want to consider buying a rebuildable tank, they are even easier to build.

 

[Mr Gerbik]

However, I suspect your wire is 0.32 mm (28g), in which case 0.8 Ohm is bang on the theoretical resistance.

I think you're quite right and I'm confusing gauge with mm!

I definitely prefer lower ohms (and cotton) but will likely adjust my wire to bump things up to an ohm or a bit more and apply a little more voltage. It's a bit poppy the way I have it now.

Have you tested the resistance of a shop bought coil head to check that your meter is reading resistance correctly?
Your method of using the meter is correct, but meters get less accurate if the battery is on the way out.
When I used to rebuild PT heads I used nr-r-nr wires of fixed resistance, the non resistance tails ensure you do not burn the rubber grommets

I've tested a couple of the shop bought ones and they come out around 1.5 ish - have also heard they can vary a bit.

I've seen those wires in vids - guessing they come out a bit more expensive than a big ol' reel of kanthal. It's not really that they get burnt for me, but the heat won't help. They just end up ripping when pulled out after a few rebuilds.


Thanks very much for diagnosing the mistake!

 

[Mr Gerbik]

Another thought,
If you are managing to rebuild your Protank heads, you may want to consider buying a rebuildable tank, they are even easier to build.

And yes - seems this is just around the corner Need to check out the market - I'm a n00b. But definitely want a rebuildable soon!

 

[oldhippydude]

http://www.stealthvape.co.uk/wire/pre-made-joined-resistance-no-resistance-wires

 

[Ment]

Alternately, you could have a look at FT where they have 5 coils with organic cotton for around £3.

The lowest resistance is only 1.5 though:

https://www.fasttech.com/products/3007/10014415/2705100