Wire gauge

[zouzounaki]

I did a quick search and couldn't find much info on what I am going to ask here.

So I've been building my own coils since about the turn of the year. I have tried clapton wire, flat wire and 26 and 28 gauge plain wires.

Recently I've been using the 28 (0.315mm) and have found it's definitely my favourite wire. I have found that with less wraps I get the same resistance and can use less power to get roughly the same amount of vapour. This is good for battery life, and I think more sensible when it comes to safety. It also means the cool ramps up very quickly and there is no sizzle/ramp down when I release the fire button. I just think it's much better than any of the other wires I've used.

So to my question; to me, it seems logical to minimize the amount of power necessary to obtain a specific amount of vapour. So, what's the logic/rationale for using thicker wire and higher power? I understand there must be a reason, and obviously get that some people like the vapour to be hot, but is this the only reason?

I really like this 28g wire, it seems perfect for me. I can get a range between 0.5 and 1.5 Ω easily by adjusting id and wraps. All my tanks are working really well with this stuff. But I was interested in hearing other people's thoughts about wire and the pros and cons of thicker wire.

 

[darroharro]

In a short answer, bigger wire = more surface area and therefore more vapour. Because there's more mass to heat, more power is required. It's not necessarily about getting a hot vape as with the right build for a particular RDA/RTA and airflow adjustment you can tailor the heat to your preference

 

[zouzounaki]

Ok, makes sense, I think. I'm usually at pretty low power, which might explain why I don't really notice a difference in vapour production between 28g at 18w and 26g at maybe 24 then, eh? More of a factor for higher power and folk looking for clouds?

 

[darroharro]

Exactly, you may see some differences but nothing remarkably different. Not necessarily just about clouds either. Totally dependant on your RDA. For example I used to do 6 wraps of 20g Ni80, 2.5mm id on my hadaly on a mech squonker and it was warm but not overly hot and that was masses of flavour and pretty average clouds

 

[zouzounaki]

Ok, so maybe it appeals more to dripping as well? And maybe the big cloud tanks? Over the period since xmas I've drifted towards kayfuns, rose, taifun, those kind of single coilers which are all about flavour and not so much clouds. And I suppose if you're running a big 3 battery table mod, preserving power ain't such a big deal either.

 

[darroharro]

With those sorts of tanks you are going about it the right way I'd say. No need for big coils at all, higher resistance and tighter draw all the way

 

[zouzounaki]

Aye, since I started using the thinner wire almost exclusively, they are all performing the best they have. Really good. The density of the vapour seems a bit different as well, that's why I've been drawn to those kind of tanks, but with these builds it's even better.

 

[tasteslikefire]

I found my power settings gradually crept up when I started using RDA's. Used to be quite happy at 11-12W on a tank but routinely use 35 on a dripper (both on almost identical coils - 26 or 28AWG Kanthal at around .5 or .6) Doesn't really make sense but there it is.

 

[zouzounaki]

That does seem strange. I only have one dripper, which I only use now and again. It takes way more power than my tanks, but then I have dual claptons in it at much lower resistance, about 0.35 Ω. I wonder if something about the physical properties of drippers mean they inherently need more power?

 

[tasteslikefire]

I wonder if something about the physical properties of drippers mean they inherently need more power?

I do think there's something to that. Would be interesting to see if it holds water technically.