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Yet another Mountain… The Last one for a while

I have a couple of new things to review, including some clearance products from Revolver e-cigs, one of the larger companies out there and my experience as a beta tester for an up and coming New Jersey shop called Quantum Vapors. I’ve been struggling with both of them for a while now, for completely opposite reasons… Revolver was good, but not terribly exciting, while Quantum is voluminous. Brevity can be a challenge when talking about a “customization platform” and more than a dozen different flavors of fake smoke juice. In the interest of getting something posted before everyone forgot about my little corner of the Internets, I thought about doing a follow up on my Vapor Zeus and auto Dial-a-Volt, but the A-DaV died unceremoniously, while one of my two Zeuses (Zeese?) also meet an untimely end. Of the three pieces of awesomeness bestowed upon me, only one survives…such a shame.

While looking through my juice box, I realized there was one batch I had yet to pontificate on. The timing is a little unfortunate, as it comes in the midst of my “mountaintop” series on the Vapor Zeus and my review of Mt. Baker Vapor, but it is what it is.

I had seen and heard some great things about Mountain Oak Vapors and their liquids, and when Vapor Joe posted a coupon code, it became a must try. They sell what I would consider “high-end” liquid. It’s a bit more expensive than others, but became fairly reasonable with the discount, and they offered a 3-bottle sampler pack where you can choose the flavors. Unsure of how I’d feel about the Mountain Oak, I elected to go for the smaller of the two sampler options, 3 15ml bottles for $24.99. The larger option, which gives you a trifecta of 30ml bottles, is a better value at $39.99, but with an unknown commodity here (and a fairly large stash already), the small was a more prudent purchase. This is a little pricey, since most places have 30ml bottles for around $10, but this is supposedly premium Tennessee liquid. Of course, I also had a coupon, 25% off in this instance, making my 3-pack a far more palatable $18.75. Based on the above mentioned $10 for 30ml formula, $19 for 45ml is still a little high, but there’s a difference between price and value. Was Mountain Oak a value???

Their “menu” is decent, but not huge, and it covers most of the common categories with a selection of tobaccos, menthols, beverages, fruits and sweets. I deviated somewhat from my comfort zone, but didn’t go nuts.

What did you get, is what few if any of you are wondering. I’m glad you asked (or didn’t…either way). This particular splurge included an RY4 (had to do it), Blue Dot and Heavenly Seven. I’ve tried all three, pretty extensively, and the results are still a little surprising.

With that out of the way, let’s do the one-by-ones, shall we?

RY4:

This was the closest to a sure thing in the bunch, and I figured even if the other two were swill, I was buying a very expensive bottle of my favorite. Thankfully, I didn’t needed to rationalize, but more on that later. Having now tried the Ruyan 4 offerings from Smokeless Image, Alt Smoke, Neon Vapors, Mountain Oak and Vapor 4Life (both varieties), I’d like to think I’ve acquired an understanding of the goal here. They’re all pretty distinct, but most have at least some degree of similarity and it seems the goal is tobacco with a hint of caramel and vanilla. The dominant flavor should be tobacco; it should have a bite, but the caramel and vanilla should soften the bite a little without overwhelming it. Assuming I’m correct in this, Mountain Oak nails it. I’m not saying it’s my favorite of the 6, but it’s what I now think RY4 is supposed to taste like, and to be honest, I’m not as big a fan as I thought I was. It’s really good, and may prompt me to do a side-by-side (by side…) one of these days.

It has a reasonably strong tobacco flavor, but the caramel and vanilla are clearly there with it, in their apparently proper supporting roles. You notice them, but it’s the tobacco base that takes center stage with cara and ‘nilla enhancing it. It’s a slightly sweet tobacco rather than a sweet I’ve cream sundae type thing with a hint of tobacco. I liked it, a lot. It was the first of the three I finished, but (here’s the shocking reveal) my least favorite of the bunch. It’s a great all-day vape, to use the parlance, and I had no trouble doing two or three files in a row of it, which is who it emptied so fast.

Blue Drop:

And now, we venture into the fruity segment of our adventure. I’m still not a huge fan of fruits, but my aversion to them has eased somewhat after sampling the door grapes from Mt. Baker. Mountain Oak has some interesting varieties, and I decided to give one a shot. This is a blueberry lemonade, apparently the “companion” flavor to Red Drop, a raspberry limeade. I was torn, and research didn’t really help as the reviews of both are overwhelmingly positive. For no reason in particular, I went with the blue. I can’t say I’m glad I did, bit only because I don’t know how the red is. This one, though, is outstanding. It’s more of a lemon-blueberry candy rather than the essences of the fruits themselves, but lemonade is basically a 50-30-20 mix of water, lemon juice and sugar, so in that respect I’d say they got what they were after. It’s neither too tart nor too sweet. The blueberry, lemon and “Ade” flavors balance one another pretty well in that you can taste all three, but they blend nicely in that none towers over the rest. This is one of the “tastes like xxx” flavors that’s spot on. This might sound a little strange, but it’s almost refreshing in a way. The vape-related dry mouth still happens, but it’s not as intense as it is with other liquids, but it feels like you just took a sip of something tasty and want more. It’s sweet without being cloying, tart but not puckeringly sour…it’s very good, and gives me another reason to feel good about giving fruit (or fruit-based candy and sweet beverage) flavors a shot. We’re 2-for-2…is there a hat trick, or will we ding one off the post in the last second?

Heavenly 7

And that brings us to our final entry. RY4 was pretty much guaranteed to be good and Blue Drop seemed like a worthwhile gamble given my new-found affinity for fruity candy. Given the likelihood of the first two being solid, I figured I could take a flyer on number 3. There were some interesting options, like coffee and cream, caramel movaccino (coffee, chocolate, caramel and vanilla), cinnamon swirl and double barrel aged vanilla root beer. All compelling to say the least, but I haven’t had much luck with cinnamon and was pretty well stocked in the coffee department, so I put the root beer in the cart. Letting my compulsion get the best of me, I read through everything one last time to ensure the appropriate level of second guessing. Of course, this final re-review led to a difficult decision once I saw Heavenly 7. It was the only 5-star rated flavor in the “dark temptations” section, and the description sounded much more exotic than root beer. Here’s what they say:

Imagine a silk chocolate pie nestled in a thick graham cracker crust with light drizzles of caramel, and topped with little slivers of fresh coconut. Enjoy our version of a 7 Layer Bar. This taste is so complex and delicious, it’ll have you wondering how something that tastes so naughty could be so good! Our customers have said this is a Silk Chocolate Pie first and foremost, with a pleasant taste of coconut & caramel. On the exhale you will notice the delicious and scrumptious graham cracker leaving your taste buds completely satisfied.

I haven’t had a ton of luck with desserts, but I felt good about the first two and figured this was worth a shot. I have mixed feelings about coconut…I always think I shouldn’t like it, but then I have it and realize it’s good. The description portrays it as a subtle coconut flavor, so what the hell.

Of the three, Heavenly 7 was the last bottle I opened, and my hopes were high. I twisted the top, removed the dropper and was immediately overwhelmed by the scent of confectionery coconut. Good Lord, that’s powerful. I didn’t even need to do an upward waft for the requisite sniff test, it was that powerful. I detected neither chocolate nor silk nor graham cracker crust. There was nary a hint of caramel. As a Jew, Passover is one of my least favorite times of year. I can live without the pizza, pasta, rice and bread but I love my sweets. They make kosher for Passover desserts, but calling them an abomination would be the grossest of understatements. They’re not so much an assault on the senses as they are violent sodomy of the taste buds. The only ones I can occasionally stomach are the coconut macaroons, but only during my most desperate moments over those eight agonizing days. When I caught wind of Heavenly 7, I was immediately reminded of a newly-opened can of the Passover “cookies.” My enthusiasm had been severely compromised based on this aroma. I capped it and returned it to the box, figuring I’d try it one day but wasn’t in much of a hurry to do so.

Once day came a lot sooner than expected, thanks in large part to Pensomnia

Wake up Daddy, I’m cute!

After three walks, two coffees and a feeble attempt at dressing myself, I stumbled over to my juice box, grabbed one of the blue glass bottles, too tired to read the label and filled up a cartomizer before heading to the train. I took a puff…it wasn’t RY4 and it sure as hell wasn’t Blue Drop. I took another drag. In my stupor, I had grabbed the Heavenly 7.

Ummmmm…

Great Googly Moogly, BaBaBooey and a Giggity Giggity Goo. The levels of awesomeness this flavor achieves are borderline criminal. Coconut was the most prominent flavor, but it didn’t dominate the taste in the same way it did the smell. I don’t have a sophisticated palette by any means, but this was a revelation. I tasted the sweet coconut, some chocolate (milk, not dark) and a little bit of “crust.” It may or may not have been graham cracker, but whatever it was, it was delicious. The caramel was there too. Not overly strong, but just a hint to cut the sweetness a little. I think I even tasted a little bit of cream in there. I’m struggling to figure out what else to say about this one, other than I want more. It’s that good. Someday, I want to take a week off of work and figure out how to recreate this flavor in food form. As I’ve said before, taste is purely subjective, which is why I’ll never “rate” liquids. No letter grades or stars here, but I can rank them (based on my own personal experiences) without much difficulty. Heavenly 7 is the best dessert-flavored vape I’ve tried yet, by far, and easily in the top five (top three maybe) liquids I’ve tried in the year and change I’ve been doing this.

It’s a matter of when, not if, I order from Mountain Oak again. The only way there won’t be a 30ml of Heavenly 7 in said order is if they start selling larger bottles. It doesn’t really matter how big…I’ll take it.

If you don’t buy one of the samplers and don’t have a coupon code, their prices are a little steep at $9.99 for 15ml and $15.99 for 30ml, but this is some damn fine liquid.

http://www.mountainoakvapors.com/default.asp

2013: 06/26
CATEGORY: e-Cigs
Reviews
Smoking
TAGS: e-cigarettes
Reviews
vaping
1 comment

Mount Baker Vapor – Because I Used All of My Mountain-Related Jokes Talking about Zeus

Now that the legend of Zeus has been told, it’s time to move on with some new vape stuff. As I’ve said before, I love my fake cigarette stuff. It’s become more than just a lesser of two evils replacement for another vice; something that might be bad in place of something definitely horrible…it’s a hobby. Where I used to smoke because I had to (I need a cigarette; I have to leave my desk for a few minutes…let me go outside and smoke), I enjoy vaping. It feeds my addiction while letting me try new things, research and experiment. Where smoking was limited to Marlboro, Camel or Parliament and match vs. lighter, vaping is a game of mad scientist where I get to mix and match my batteries (used to…now it’s just Zeus), vessels and liquids to find the perfect combo. This is shockingly enjoyable given my predisposition for indecision…maybe vaping is supporting that element of self improvement too.

Of course, this can all get out of hand in a hurry and become quite expensive quite quickly. The fact that I’m a cheap bastard (and my wife hates my vaping hobby) means that I have to spend carefully. This required thriftiness means not only constantly looking for deals and discounts, but trying to find vendors that are less expensive from the outset. This desire to try new stuff while maintaining loyalty to my core group of vendors and being fiscally responsible means I can’t just throw money at every new site I find…research must be done (yaaaaaaaaaaaaay).

The latest, Mount Baker Vapor, I learned about from Vapor Joe’s (the best vape deals blog I’ve found). He said it was good, the comments were alarmingly positive, but that wasn’t enough, so I took to the ECF to make sure it would be money well spent. Much like Joe’s, the comments on ECF were glowing. the weren’t just “it’s inexpensive” or “good for the price,” they were singing Baker’s praises, talking about these liquids as glowingly as I discuss Vapor4Life’s everything.

I mention good for the price because these are indeed some inexpensive liquids. 15ml will run you $5, while 30 is just $2.50 more. A typical 30 milliliter bottle is between $12 and $15, so $7.50 is a hell of a deal. They have bigger, but i didn’t want to get too crazy too quickly, especially since not everything had a description.

Of course, inexpensive doesn’t always equate to good value. If it’s crap that’s going to sit in a drawer unused, what’s the point? So, is it good?? In a word, yes. That wouldn’t make for a very compelling read though, so on with the nonsense…

I meant to order four 30ml bottles, but accidentally ordered 4 and a 15. The package came very quickly (a good sign, I hope), with 5 bottles (yay samples). I got 30s of Ankara Tobacco, Buttercream, Caramel Candy and White Chocolate. The “accidental” 15 was brown sugar, and the sample was sour grape.

I’ll just go alphabetically here…

Ankara Tobacco– There’s no description on the MBV website, but the reviews (quite positive) described it as a sweet tobacco. Could this be a substitute for my beloved RY4?? Sadly, no. It’s good, but doesn’t taste strongly of tobacco or sweet. It’s a very unique taste that I can only describe as hippie-ish. This is not something I’m very proud of, but when I first started smoking my freshman year of college, I became very hooked, very fast. Once, during a spirited night of binge drinking with friends, I ran out of cigarettes. I was 17, so the campus store wasn’t an option, and my friends were all too drunk to hook a brother up. They all smoked too, but wouldn’t share. In a moment of unbridled, pathetic desperation, I tried to smoke an incense stick. Obviously, it couldn’t be smoked in the traditional sense, but I lit it, put it in my mouth for a few seconds, let it burn and inhaled. This is not something I recommend, and far from my finest moment, but it served its purpose. The best comparison I can think of to Ankara is that incense smoke. If you like the smell of incense, or have ever tried smoking patchouli, this is your utopia. It wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t for me.

Brown Sugar-Oh how I wish I had ordered 30 of this…it had glowing reviews, and was one I really looked forward to. I wasn’t totally sure what to expect, given that I’ve had occasional issues with stuff that’s supposed to taste like other stuff not tasting like said stuff, but this was spot on. It had a very strong, but very pleasant smell, almost like chocolate chip cookies baking, just without the chocolate. As for the taste, I will again admit to something I’m not overly proud of…when I was a kid, my friend and I would snack on sugar cubes. In a fleeting moment of curiosity, I once took a few spoonfuls of brown sugar, but it wasn’t the same. The flavor I get here is what I think I was hoping for back then…It’s delicious.

Buttercream-I’ve become pretty adept at whipping up my own buttercream frosting, thanks to my dad, and whenever I feed my cupcake addiction, I always pay special attention to the frosting as it can make a mediocre cake awesome, but even the best cake can’t save a weak buttercream. With this one, the scent was more butter than cream, and while the taste can’t compare to my homemade vanilla, it’s very good in its own right. The butter was the dominant flavor, which wasn’t a bad thing and there was a good, but not overpowering sweetness along with a hint of vanilla. It’s very good, and if it was a little sweeter, it would be great. I’ve mixed it with a few other flavors, and the results have been insanely tasty.

Caramel Candy-Those of you who’ve been following my misappropriation of bandwidth may remember my fondness for Caramel Jutsu from Vape Dojo, which has been the standard on which I’ve judged other caramel liquids…not anymore. This is outstanding on another level. It’s like they took the brown sugar liquid and cooked it – a damn-near perfect caramel flavor. I’m on day 3 of this stupid diet, and fiending for candy. While this isn’t quite enough to satisfy my craving for carbs, it is definitely helping. It’s not a Milky Way type caramel though…it’s more complex, like the filling in a piece of Godiva candy. It may just be me trying to compensate for the lack of real sweets, but there are times when I can even taste a hint of salt in it.

White Chocolate-Another winner…proof that these folks excel at the sweet stuff. It reminded me a lot of the white chocolate from Vapor4Life. It was a nice, sweet, creamy flavor that might have had a hint of butter in it, just like a good piece of white chocolate.

Sour Grapes-This was my free sample. My hopes were low, not because of anything specific against Mount Baker, but because I don’t really like fruity flavors at all. In fact, I hadn’t tried any since my initial bad experiences with the pre-filled carts from Smokeless Image and liquids from ECBlends. The low expectations may have helped, but this was outstanding. It smelled like candy, and although it wasn’t too sour, the flavor was great. It reminded me of a cross between a grape Blow Pop and a Jolly Rancher. It was a little tart, a little sweet and had an artificial grape flavor I loved. Objectively, it was very good, but considering what I expected (and its $0.00 cost), it may have been the best of the bunch…at a minimum, a big winner.

Overall, Mount Baker was 4.5 of 6. Brown Sugar, Caramel Candy, Sour Grapes and White Chocolate reeked of awesomeness; Buttercream is solid from time to time, while Ankara just didn’t do it for me.

Looking forward to my next order from MBV. Would like to try the East Coast Tobacco, but would gladly take suggestions from others who’ve tried their stuff.

2013: 05/01
CATEGORY: e-Cigs
Reviews
Smoking
TAGS: e-cigarettes
Reviews
vaping
1 comment

Back to the Mountaintop

Better late than never, I hope. My first look at the Vapor 4 Life Vapor Zeus seemed pretty recent, but it was actually a month and a half ago. At that time, I figured the proper review would come in a week or two, but c’est la vie. The China trip was on, then off, then on again; it was interrupted at Newark Airport thanks to a minor Visa snafu, only to take place 4 days later. I got there just in time for the start of that little North Korean nutjob’s “show of power” and the first stories of H7-N9. Thankfully KJU still hasn’t done anything (thanks, no doubt, to Dennis Rodman), and while there was a a minor bird flu scare, it turned out that it was just something called Beijing cough. Who would’ve thought I could find a place that would make me yearn for the clean, crisp air of New York City…

My sincerest, most heartfelt of apologies go out to the wonderful, generous people at V4L, especially the incomparably awesome Mr. BH, who got me on the review list in the first place.

If there’s a bright side to my inexcusable, sloth-like speed, it’s the fact that I’ve now got a much greater sample-size on which to base my opinions. Not that I ever rush to judgment on these things, good or bad (I’m still using the dial-a-volt, and everything good I said at the beginning is still true). Even better, 2 weeks in China, where cigarettes cost $2 a pack and EVERYBODY smokes (not just all the cool kids…The sportos, the motorheads, geeks, sluts, bloods, wasteoids, dweebies, dickheads – they all think it’s righteous), and I had nary a craving.

My first impressions of Zeus were pretty positive; so positive in fact that I invoked the great Al Bundy at the time. I’m pleased to report that the extended evaluation period has in no way dampened my enthusiasm for the god of thunder. I’d invoke some sort of nonsensical slang like shiznit or shizzle or something, but it would cheapen the moment. While not perfect, Zeus is an absolutely amazing e-cig battery.

With that out of the way, on to the review…

Vapor4Life Vapor Zeus

What is it?
Simply put, Zeus is a 5 volt e-cigarette battery that comes in two varieties – automatic and dual-mode.

The automatic is, as its name implies, an automatic battery. As we’ve discussed before, you inhale and it creates vapor…simple enough.

The dual-mode is a hybrid, meaning that it can function as either a manual or automatic. In manual mode, you press the button and puff; click that button five times and you’re in automatic mode…inhale like a cigarette (cigar maybe) and you’ve got fake smoke. I tend to switch between manual and auto, and this indecision has resulted in having to carry around more than one battery, resulting in lost or misplaced batts more than once. Having both in one seemed like a nice option given my predilection for coming home with fewer than I had on departure.

The button is on the other side…

The green V4L logo is a nice little touch…

They also function as passthrough, with a mini USB port on the end that allows you to charge and vape simultaneously if you are so inclined. It also means you can charge pretty much anywhere without the need for a special charger.

With the Zeus batteries, V4L released special Zeus cartomizers (smileomizers), but both batteries work with any 808 threaded cartomizer, tank or clearomizer. Because it’s a “fat” battery and only has the 808 (like a little nipple), you may need an adapter to use an ego-style clearomizer. I don’t have said adapter so I can’t comment on that side of it, but I have used “regular” clearomizers with Zeus. They work well, but look a little odd.

The Smileomizers in all their glory…

As I said, a little awkward, but not that bad

How much does it cost?
Regular price is $55 for the automatic, while the dual-mode will run $65 for the battery. A kit, including battery, smileomizer, charger and 30 milliliters of liquid will run $90 for the auto and $100 for then dual mode. This may seem like a lot for an e-cig, but trust me…it’s worth every penny and a few more. I would not recommend this to someone just trying out vaping to see if they like it – there are cheaper alternatives available, but if you’re committed to the whole vape thing and want to feel like you’re smoking an old-school again, Zeus is so great on so very many different levels, it’s not even funny.

Now, I got mine for free, so it’s easy to say this is a good value, right? Let’s look at it another way then… A pack of cigarettes will run you, let’s say, $13. I used to smoke 2.5 packs in an average week. If I bought the Zeus starter kit and used nothing else for 3 weeks, he’s paid for himself in cigarettes not smoked, and I can still joyously puff away on him with some new liquid.

How big is it?
Both are about half an inch in diameter, while the auto is 4.25 inches long and the dual-mode about half an inch longer. Much like the auto Dial-a-Volt, Zeus is a little on the heavy side. It definitely doesn’t feel flimsy and would be tough to lose. It’s a little tough to keep in mouth using a small cart, but when using the Zeus cartomizer, it feels much better, almost like a cigar, except that it won’t get all soggy as you drool all over it.

How long does it last?

A day or so…the description says 6-9 hours. I’ve been able to go 2-3 days between charges, which is really nice. It seems to charge pretty quickly (website says 4 hours with USB, which sounds about right), but the nice thing is the passthrough capability, which allows you to charge while using it, so when you have to get up, you can disconnect and go, fully charged. It’s a little tough to say how long a full charge will really last, since I usually end up taking advantage of the passthrough at some point. I snuck many a puff on my 14 hour flight to (13 back) China, never connected and had more than enough juice left once on land.

Plug and play…

How does it perform?
In a word, amazingly. I was a little concerned about the whole 5 volt thing, given that higher voltages tend not to taste as good, but somehow, 5 volts here doesn’t burn the liquid.

Zeus is at his finest with the new-style caromizers, which are outstanding, but he performs admirably with others. When not using the special smileomizer, I tend to use a ce3 clearomizer from another vendor (rest assured, if V4L had them, I’d buy theirs). It works well, but can get hot when subjected to chain vaping, creating a slightly unpleasant taste. Based on my completely nonscientific assessment, 5-10 decent drags in quick succession is the approximate threshold before it needs a few minutes to cool down.

With that said, when just casually vaping (as opposed to performing my exhaustive research), I can’t handle 5-10 decent drags in quick succession without needing a few minutes to cool down. To be honest, my cravings are typically satiated with 3-5 decent drags. This thing produces an absurd amount of vapor. I’ve probably tried between 10 and 15 different types of batteries in my year-plus of vaping, and although a fair bit of time has now passed since my final cancer stick, I remember (quite vividly) the sensation of smoking some tabacky. While I find vaping much more pleasant than smoking, the one aspect I kind of missed was the sensation. Well, I miss it no more. This is as close to the feeling of an “analog” I’ve experienced, and while I’m somewhat hesitant to say this, it’s actually BETTER than a cigarette. You get the sensation and the “smoke” with the ability to pick a yummy flavor and no stench when you’re done.

The Good:

5 volts is a lot of volts, but liquids don’t taste like burning
It feels more like smoking than any e-cig I’ve tried so far
It’s a passthrough…can charge with any one of the 9,257 mini-usb cables lying around my apartment
It’s a passthrough…can vape while charging and charge while vaping
808 threading gives you tons of vessel options
Dual mode is one more mode than most, and one less battery to carry around
It’s big, but looks elegant in its own special way

The not so good:

You may get some weird looks vaping in public
Looks more like a cigar than a cigarette…less than ideal for covert vaping missions
Looks a little silly using a small cartomizer
Some cartomizers get a little warm when chain vaping

The Verdict:
I’d like to say it’s indescribably awesome, but given the amount of space I just used describing it, that wouldn’t make much sense. Although it’s only been a year since I started vaping, this is the best product I’ve used, by far.

Zeus’ awesomeness has, of course, created a bit of a love-hate relationship with V4L. On the one hand, Zeus has further increased my enjoyment of vaping and made me want cigarettes even less. Of course, this has made other batteries just a little less enjoyable for me. When I first got my package, I’d switch between Zeus and some of my others, but as I continued playing with it, I found myself using Zeus more and more. It’s reached the point where I barely use anything else anymore. Getting ready for work used to mean a good 10-15 minutes in my vape drawer figuring out what to bring to get me through the day. Now, the hardest decision I have is whether to start with the auto or hybrid. With that, I say Damn you, Steve, in the best possible way! You’ve outdone yourself and pretty much everyone else in the market.

Even Penny likes Zeus…she prefers Dual-mode

http://www.vapor4life.com/vapor-zeus (The Starter Kits)

http://www.vapor4life.com/vapor-zeus-2 (Just the Batteries)

As a side note, you may notice that the above links include reviews from “top e-cigarette reviewers,” including yours truly (seems they have low standards). Sadly, I’m the only one without a cool nickname…any thoughts?

2013: 04/24
CATEGORY: e-Cigs
Health
Reviews
Smoking
TAGS: e-cigarettes
Penny
Reviews
vaping
4 comments

I have been to the top of the mountain, and it is good

If you’ve come here directly via V4L, be sure to check out my follow-up review of Zeus, available here (or on the homepage, of course).

For those of you who may be uncertain, that’s a Beavis and ButtHead reference.

Growing up in the 80s and 90s left a lot to be desired. Parachute pants, Zubaz, Color Me Badd…

It also had a lot to love. Super Mario Brothers, Ecto Cooler, Pearl Jam…

One of the best parts about that era was the TV. Things just flowed so seamlessly from genre to genre, and it seemed like these flows coincided with my movement from one demographic group to the next. It started with kid shows like Fraggle Rock and Romper Room, then grew into epic cartoons like Voltron and Transformers, into family-friendly sitcoms like Growing Pains and The Cosby Show, and eventually the edgier stuff. These were all good enough, but things really got awesome on a fledgling little network called FOX. Now, they’re on par with the others, but back then they were the upstart. To me though, they were number 1 almost from the start thanks to fine programming like The Simpsons, The Tracey Ullman Show and of course, Married with Children.

At the time, I thought the Bundys were the greatest things to come out of Chicago (a belief that remained until the evening of January 30, 2009), and while they’ve been replaced, I’ll always have a special place in my heart for them. My favorite episodes were the ones with guest stars, and one in particular stands out to me. Season 6, episode 15 (1992 or so) was a Super Bowl themed show, where Al got a role in a sneaker commercial co-starring Ed “too tall” Jones, Steve Carlton and Sugar Ray Leonard. The episode featured a secretary named Miss LeGroin, blue toilet disks and an homage to Steel Magnolias at the end. The shoes were called Zeus, and although I new they didn’t exist, I wanted a pair (haven’t the foggiest idea why. I was 12). The one thing I do know is, much like the Bundys are no longer the greatest people to come out of the Windy City, those shoes are no longer my favorite things named after the God of Thunder.

Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, children ages 18 and up, I give to you, the Vapor Zeus

In all their glory…I’ll post something nicer, I promise

more e-cigarette shit!?!?!?!?! Sorry…yes

This is the newest battery from Vapor4Life. It’s a 5 volt, 900mAh passthrough battery (smoke and charge at the same time) about the size of a small cigar. The V4L folks sent me some pre-release samples to test out, and to call it another battery is really kind of unfair. Well, maybe not…it is an e-cig battery, but referring to it as “just another” e-cig battery is about as blasphemous as telling 1992 me that Al, Peg, Kelly and Bud (and Buck) were “just another” TV family.

I’m not going to go into a ton of detail here, since I want to really give them a full workout before sharing, but the brown one (we’ll call him Bob) is an automatic, while the slightly longer black unit you see before you (Steve?) is a hybrid (officially, it’s a dual-mode, but hybrid does a better job setting up these bad jokes).

Steve gets more miles per gal…wait, that’s a car. He’s part vampire, part lyca…no, that’s the Underworld movies. 6 feet of bubble gum for you, not th…that’s bubble tape, which couldn’t be more wrong. In this case, Steve the hybrid is part manual, part automatic (I should say something like “all awesome” here, but that would be much too lame).

When I did my handy dandy battery primer, I mentioned lacking a strong preference between the manual and automatic, and my tendency to switch from one to the other throughout the day. The hybrid nature of Zeus is what had me most excited, since ADD inflicted capers like me now had the best of both worlds. All I really knew to this point was that Zeus was dual mode, and revolutionary…it was up to me to figure out why. When the package came, I ogled Steve for a few minutes before turning to Bob. What immediately jumped out at me was that Bob didn’t have a button…was this some sort of magical hybrid? A manual without a button? That would be pretty revolutionary. I paused to read the letter that came with my goodies and realized that while Steve was a hybrid, Bob was an automatic. I resisted the urge to start puffing almost long enough to read then press release and I realized that dual mode wasn’t the only distinguished feature this puppy had, and even if you have a definite stance on tastes great (Auto) versus less filling (Manual), the auto-only version has its place and its purpose. I’m going to stop myself before getting too deep into this, otherwise I won’t have anything left for the real review. I’ll leave you (for now) with a quick rundown and a few first impressions…

It’s big, but not cumbersome

I’ll include the measurements in my proper review, but it’s similar in size to the Automatic Dial-A-Volt. Can’t quite figure out why, but it feels a little different though. I’ll get to the bottom of it…

It’s a passthrough

That little nubbin on the end there is a mini-USB port. In other words, you can plug it in to a computer or a USB charger and puff while you’re charging (or charge while you’re puffing…either way).

Special cartomizers…not bullets

To go along with Zeus, they released the Zeus cartomizer. It holds 3.5ml of liquid, which is a lot. I normally don’t like cartomizers, but there’s something about these that kinda works. Not sure what it is, but I’ll figure it out and report back. If cartos aren’t your bag though, rest assured you can use other 808 style vessels and they work just as well.

It’s five volts…that’s like, a lot of volts. Somehow though, this doesn’t burn the liquid like others.

It feels a lot like a regular cigarette…from what I remember at least. I’m tempted to have one just to confirm, but I’ll take my word for it. Tons of fake smoke and a nice warm feeling in the chest and throat. I think this might be what the vape folk mean when they refer to throat hit.

Overall:

I have no idea how much this is going to cost, but if it’s less than some completely arbitrary number…let’s say $250, and you have the disposable income, BUY THIS as soon as it comes out. Don’t wait for my real review. Just trust me…it’s worth it. If you’re still not sure, wait for the real review, ETA later this week?

Until then, here’s the Married with Children episode that inspired this here post…

2013: 03/04
CATEGORY: e-Cigs
Health
Reviews
Smoking
3 comments

VVV with V4L…OMG, LOL, OAA (Other Assorted Acronyms)

Sorry…my titular abilities are severely lacking. Work has been crazed, home has as well, and to top it off, I’ve got a 2-week trip to China coming up in the not-too-distant future. Anyway, if you can find a blog, you probably know the meaning of two of the above mentioned acronyms. I translated a third for you, which leaves two that may require some ‘splaining.

One might be obvious to those of you who’ve been here before…V4L is Vapor4Life, one of my preferred e-cigarette purveyors. They make some of the best batteries in my rotation, their accessories are solid, and their liquids…oh, their liquids. They’re the shizzle, yo. As much as it shames me to admit this, I’m actually salivating a little right now, just thinking about Richmond, RY4 and White Chocolate. The ONLY good thing about my lengthy battle with cancer sticks is that it led me to e-cigs, and long, cylindrical things I sort of enjoy putting in my mouth.

There’s a point here, which brings us to the final acronym in my little puzzle. VVV stands for variable voltage vaping (in my mind, at least). Those who have come along on my adventure in misappropriation of Internet resources may remember I covered the subject of variable voltage following my Vape Dojo order over here. If you don’t, and are too lazy to click the link and come back, VV is basically a style of battery that allows you to change the voltage (usually between 3.x and 4.8). You may also remember that I wasn’t a huge fan as I didn’t notice much difference from one voltage to another. I’ve kept trying, mainly because I like the bigger batteries when I’m at the office, and actually did start to see some subtle changes from one to the next.

Unfortunately, the changes basically took things from OK to OK but a little strong, to “it tastes like burning.” I kept my VV on red or purple and wrote this off as an inexpensive, failed experiment. Recently, the amazingly wonderful BH at V4L offered to send me their latest product to review for all of you. It’s a variable voltage battery, and despite a less than stellar first go-round in the VV realm, I was short on stuff to talk about and free is free. Worst case, I don’t like it, write a middling review and whore myself out for more traffic by giving it away to a lucky reader. It pains me very slightly to inform you that you will Not have a chance to win this product, as Smilin’ Steve and his minions did it again. I’m in a good mood though, and if you stick with me to the end of this post, I shall offer you the chance to win a (possibly) fabulous prize!

With that out of the way, on to the review…

Vapor4Life Dial-A-Volt Automatic

My package arrived Tuesday. Fittingly, someone may or may not have been hit by an F train that evening, interrupting service and leaving me with a 90 minute commute involving 4 trains and a mile-long walk home in the rain. As a geek, it pains me to admit that I’ve never done a proper unboxing, and sadly that won’t change here. This particular piece of vapemail included something else…something secret that I’m not yet ready to share with y’all. I may pack everything back up and pretend to “unveil” when I review this other thing.

Lest anyone think I’m going to sing its praises in a feeble attempt to get more review products, the Dial-A-Volt is not perfect. It does, in fact, have some shortcomings, which will get equal prominence here.

What is it?
I had never seen an automatic VV battery before this. They were all manual, and in some cases, they used the button to adjust the voltage. This one has a dial at the end, which you turn to adjust, moving the voltage from 3.2 to 4.8. The VV dials aren’t new (this isn’t even V4L’s first), but a dial without a button is fresh and exciting.

Similar to Vapor4Life’s ego batteries, the manual version of the Dial is offered in 650, 900 and 1,100 mAh varieties. The automatic version is only available in 1,100. This limitation impacts three factors…price (more expensive than the low-capacity versions), size (bigger than the low-capacity versions) and life (lasts longer between charges than the low-capacity versions). I’ll touch on each of these, and some more important factors, if you keep reading.

How much does it cost?
Regular price is $69.95…this kind of stuff isn’t cheap. By comparison, the 1,100 mAh manual Dial-A-Volt clocks in at $47.95. Right now, they’re selling the auto for $47.95 while the manual is running $37.95. Seventy bucks is a little too rich for my blood, particularly given that I suffer from acute tightwaddedness. Knowing what it is though, and having kicked the tires for a couple of days, it’s a great device for under fifty. Dare I say, a bargain???

How big is it?
4.5″ long, half an inch in diameter. I don’t have a scale, so I’ll guess it weighs around 2 ounces. It’s hefty. Probably too big to dangle from your mouth without risking a wicked lip cramp, but it definitely doesn’t feel flimsy and probably won’t get lost easily.

How long does it last?

A day or so…the description says 8 hours, but it seems like that’s with constant puffing. I’ve been able to go 2-3 days between charges, which is really nice. It also takes a long time to charge though, so be sure to have a backup if it’s low on juice. The specs say 8 hours, but I don’t know. The only time I got it fully charges was when leaving it in overnight…that whole watched pot not boiling thing I suppose.

How does it perform?
I saved the best for last. Yes, it’s expensive. Yes, it’s big. Yes, it takes a look long time to charge. These things are mere trivialities once you see how nice (or, dare I say, fun) to use one of these. This thing reeks…of awesomeness. I mentioned somewhere up there that my experience with the Vape Dojo VV was OK, but not great. Changing voltages is supposed to alter the flavor and vapor production of whatever you’re fake-smoking. I was expecting something more subtle when I first tried the Dojo’s five click, but I didn’t get it. The flavor changed from 3.7 to 4.2 to 4.8, but not in a good way. There really wasn’t a heck of a lot of change in vapor production. Turns out, my expectations weren’t too high. These batteries ARE supposed to do these things. I spent less than $8.00 on each of those. They didn’t take my new habit to new levels, but they’re good enough, they’re a great value and I’d absolutely buy more for the price if I needed them. When I found out I’d be getting a Dial-a-Volt, I immediately wondered what made it so special that they could charge this much for one. Well, I’ve been using it for four days and the answer is a lot.

The dial isn’t a clicking thing that lets you go between a, b and c. It has a fluid motion that takes you from a to z, hitting the other 24 letters on the way. The D-A-V lets you adjust from 3.2 (0.5 volts below a regular battery) to 4.8 (1.1 above a regular battery). These two are marked on the battery, along with 3.7 (a regular battery) and 4.2. The in-betweens take some guessing, but I don’t really care what the number is. It’s much more important how the vapor tastes when the dial is there, or there, or even here. My dial is about half way between 3.7 and 4.2. Is it 3.95? Who gives a rat’s ass? It’s yummy.

I’ve tried a few different flavors already, and every one of them has a sweet spot. Most of them taste alright at the standard 3.7, but it turns out that isn’t the optimal voltage for many (any) liquid.

I started with Richmond Tobacco, one of the bottles included in my care package. I bought my second bottle of Richmond a few weeks ago, but I’m stoked to have more as it’s quickly becoming a favorite. Dial down to 3.2, and it’s OK. Wisps of vapor with a really mild flavor. It tastes the way it’s supposed to, but weaker…up to 3.7 and it’s what I’m familiar with, a nice sweet tobacco with a good amount of puff…4.2 is much stronger, with more vapor, but still good. 4.8 is too much. Plumes of vapor, but heinous taste. Time to experiment in fine-tuning. Let’s call it 3.9…mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.

The automatic nature means you can adjust while puffing. Maybe it was my imagination, but I actually felt a difference as I was dialing. It’s much more sensitive than I expected, but so gratifying when you find that sweet spot with a liquid for the first time.

The Good:

Variable voltage lets you find the right vapor, flavor and temperature
You can dial while puffing and stop when you get your sweet spot
Not all flavors are best at the same voltage. This thing lets you find each liquid’s best
Experimenting is fun
It’s up to the task of “all day” vaping between charges
It’s big and heavy, and could double as a weapon in a pinch
No buttons

The not so good:

Expensive
Size can be a drawback when not using this for self defense
No charge indicator light…you don’t know it’s dead until it’s dead
At higher voltages, this thing consumes liquid like nobody’s business

The Verdict:

This thing is amazeballs. I didn’t think there was any way it could be good enough to justify the price tag, but if I had a little extra cashola, I’d have little problem buying another one of these (unless you’re my wife, in which case I will use the $50 I would have spent on this to buy you presents…love you). Seriously though, it’s awesome…buy one…now…then come back for the contest.

You made it this far…

To reward those of you who made it through almost 1700 words about a fake cigarette, you deserve something. Don’t worry, it won’t be as convoluted as my last contest. This time, all you have to do is leave a comment. It doesn’t have to be deep or insightful. It doesn’t even have to be words…gibberish will suffice. Tuesday night at 9:00EST, I’ll pick a winner via random number generator. The lucky comment gets a code for a free large 1-topping pizza from Papa John’s, good through March 10th. Code will be sent out via email ASAP.

If anyone’s still paying attention, here’s one more picture, possibly with a hint on something that hasn’t been released yet…

Can you see it???

2013: 03/03
CATEGORY: e-Cigs
Reviews
Smoking
TAGS: contest
Photos
Reviews
Shameless
vaping
2 comments

Bloog on the Blog…because I can’t think of anything even remotely clever

And for my next bit of vapey, blogging adventure, I bring you Bloog. I came across them while trolling for deals on http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com (ECF to those comfortable with the vernacular). I saw a post advertising a 4-pack of 78mm white automatic batteries for $19.99. Given that I had lost a few batteries on the honeymoon, I just couldn’t resist. It’s nice to pick colors, customize LEDs and whatnot, but at 5 bucks apiece, I’ll gladly do without the variety. Of course, this begs the question – are they any good?

So far, the answer is a resounding yes. They last a decent amount of time…it’s difficult to count puffs, but they compare favorably to those I’ve tried from Smokeless Image and Vapor4Life. The vapor production is solid and they don’t distort the flavors of liquids like some others do. It’s a good, solid, basic battery at one hell of a price. I don’t know if this is a limited time offer or some sort of perpetual deal with slight variations but if it’s still around when I next need to replenish, I’m all over it. They’ve actually got another 4-pack offer running now, also for $19.99, but with a little more variety. You can’t get the full range, but there are a few different lengths and finishes available. If you’re partial to automatic batteries and don’t mind sacrificing variety for a discount, this is a worthy option. I really wish I could justify another 4-pack purchase right now…

Unfortunately, I didn’t place a huge order so there’s not much else to review, but I also picked up a USB charger and small bottle of their RY4.

The charger was pretty much a standard 808 threaded USB, which is neither good nor bad. I’ve gone through two similar ones with little in the way of satisfaction. The first met its untimely demise at the hands (or teeth) of our beloved Penny. I’m still not sure how, but she managed to yank it from its outlet, unscrew the battery that had been charging at the time, and completely devour it. The replacement I bought died a much less noble death. The way these things work is simple enough…you screw the battery onto the charger and plug it in. However, #2 would almost never screw in securely. It was loose, would keep turning despite being all the way on, and produce various other little annoyances. It was all fine, since it was still charging…until it wasn’t. Eventually, the plastic housing broke, a wire came loose and it stopped working entirely. These things are apparently very fragile creatures. That said, the charger from Bloog seems to be a little sturdier than the others. Maybe it’s just wishful thinking, and only time will tell, but so far, so good. It does its job and it does it well. Even better, it’s lasted longer than a week.

Finally, the liquid…it’s a solid RY4. Nothing overwhelming or out of the ordinary. I’ve tried enough RY4s that I think I know what they’re supposed to taste like, and this hits the mark. Good flavor, good vapor, no excessive throat hit. It’s what it was supposed to be.

Now, where Bloog really stood out – customer service. I placed my order late on a Thursday night (damn insomnia). Got the standard confirmation in short order, and got a call from them midday Friday. They were apparently sold out of the RY4 I ordered, and wanted to see what I’d prefer. Ended up going with a lower strength bottle, as I really wanted the RY. I got a shipping confirmation on Monday. It’s being processed through the USPS sort facility in Brooklyn. Holey krikey…I’m in Brooklyn. Does that mean I’m going to have a surprise when I get home? You silly shit…this is the United States Postal Service we’re talking about here. It sat, processed through the Brooklyn sort facility for a week or so, without movement, until one morning when it had been processed through another sort facility, this one in New Jersey, it seemed my vape mail was going backwards.

I didn’t want to complain, as a few extra days on a shipment really isn’t such a big deal, but for some reason, I saw a great deal of humor in this whole thing, like the NewEgg order I placed over the holidays, with 2-day shipping. It shipped a few hours after the order was placed. It shipped from New Jersey. So far, so good. Until the next morning, when it arrived in Atlanta, and my 2-day ETA had morphed into a much less palatable 8 days. In the case of Bloog, I took to their Facebook wall, posting the shipping status changes and trying to point to the ironic absurdity of the package going from New Jersey to Brooklyn, sitting somewhere for a couple of days before going back to New Jersey. I wasn’t looking for anything from these guys, but hoped that someone else would find this as amusing as I did. I ended up getting an apology, some assistance tracking my shipment (which coincidentally came that night) and an incredibly gracious email from one of their CSRs apologizing for the inconvenience and a discount code for my next order. This was really nice of them, and totally unnecessary (but appreciated). I don’t plan on using it, since I really didn’t deserve it, but I do plan on buying some more vape stuff from the folks at Bloog. Sometimes, a small gesture can go a LONG way to winning a customer, even more than products, prices or selections. Bloog hit it well on all fronts, but the customer service really sealed the deal for me.

As a side note, they’re based in New Jersey. I can only assume that in the absence of any USPS-related nonsense, I could have my stuff pretty quickly. Perhaps that should be the next test. They have a decent catalog with good options, and while they don’t have an overwhelming variety, it’s solid enough (no CE3 clearomizers, unfortunately). The prices are outstanding, and the customer service makes a second order a no-brainer.

www.bloogplanet.com

2013: 02/06
CATEGORY: Deals
e-Cigs
Reviews
Smoking
TAGS: Bloog
e-cigarettes
Reviews
vaping
1 comment

Neon Vapors – the Juice is Loose

This blog is in no way a commercial endeavor. I have no ads, make no money, and everything I’ve posted about has been paid for by me (I’ve gotten very generous gifts from Coastal.com and shave following positive comments about their wares, but my objective wasn’t to get free stuff, and the posts leading to said free stuff were in no way an attempt to be compensated for my words or opinions.

I write this stuff for a few reasons. It’s an outlet for my creativity, sarcasm and cynicism; it’s a bit of an ego boost knowing my nonsensical ramblings are read by tens of people; I like being able to give my honest opinions about things and not having to put on a happy face all the time. Anything I opine about on here has been fully funded by me. I can’t afford to buy things just for the purpose of writing about them, so I buy what I like (or expect to like) and post about the things that give me a strong feeling, good or bad. The reason most of my review-type posts are positive is that I buy things I expect to enjoy. Sadly, I won’t buy something I expect to dislike just because it could give me some entertaining new material. If vendors want to send me samples and whatnot to write about, I’ll gladly accept.

There’s a point here somewhere…oh yeah…in addition to purchasing carefully, I also look for every possible discount, coupon or other means by which to reduce costs. This is apparent in my orders from Vape Dojo, ecblends, my unusual excitement over the Bloog 4-pack, and my entire order history from Vapor4Life. Anyways, while looking to fortify my liquid stocks, I came across a deal that was just too good to pass up.

While deal hunting on the ECF, I found a post from Neon Vapors offering buy 1 get 1 free on all their liquids, along with a 20% off coupon code. After perusing their flavor menu, I realized there was a lot to like…order up.

The standard BoGo parameters applied of course – freebie must be of equal or lesser value, but still pretty damn cool. Given that Neon was to be a new addition to my vapertoire, I thought it best not to go nuts with big bottles, so I stuck to the small (6ml) and medium (10ml) in a nice variety.

For the smalls (regularly $5 each), I ordered:
Black Coffee
Cinnamon Coffee Cake
Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup
Vanilla Cupcake

On the mediums (regularly $7.50 each), I stuck with tobacco flavors:
Caranilla “No” bacco
Neon 555
Neon RY4
Owners Choice

Grand total, after a 20% coupon, was $20.00. For 64ml of liquid in 8 different flavors, that’s pretty outstanding. Even better, they offer free shipping for orders over $20, without the “either or” deal other places have, where they make you choose between a discount code or free shipping (resulting in unnecessary mathematical work to determine which option is better).

Inexpensive liquid shipped for free is always a good thing, as long as said liquid arrives within a reasonable timeframe and the product itself doesn’t suck.

I ordered late on a Thursday night (same time as Bloog), and had my vapemail in hand on Tuesday. The first criteria has been satisfied! The liquids were packaged very well, with no leakage during shipment (also important). There was also a nice little handwritten note thanking me for my order and praising the virtues of steeping. Having learned from the ecblends mistake, I opted to heed this advice and put them in my vape drawer for a few days.

Of course, impatience got the best of me, and I squirted a bit into a cartomizer on Wednesday morning. It was OUTSTANDING. Despite this positive first take, I vowed to let the others sit for a few days, and I’m glad I did. There isn’t a true loser in the bunch…

Neon 555 – I’ve tried a handful of 555s, and have not been a fan. Most vendors describer their blends as a slightly sweet tobacco, or sweet tobacco with a hint of hazelnut. Some have other flavors thrown in as well, and it ultimately doesn’t make for a great flavor experience. Looking at the plain 555s, the sweet flavor tends to be missing, and there’s an overpowering nuttiness which, when combined with the tobacco, becomes a little unpleasant. Neon’s 555 is the best of this particular variety I’ve had yet. There’s a decent tobacco flavor, a subtle sweetness and enough of a nut flavor that it doesn’t overpower. It’s still not a favorite, but it’s pretty darn good.

Neon RY4 – The flavor with which I have the most experience, by far. Fundamentally, they’re all the same…a mild tobacco, caramel and vanilla, but it’s truly amazing how widely the flavor varies from vendor to vendor. I have yet to encounter a bad RY4, and the subtle differences from one brand to another makes it a bit of an adventure. Neon’s RY4 was particularly interesting – it had the tobacco, while the caramel and vanilla flavors were less pronounced than others I’ve tried. What really set this one apart though was a sort of “cool” flavor. It’s not a menthol or a minty flavor or anything like that…it’s just a nice, slight cooling sensation in the vapor. It’s different than the other RY4s I’ve tried, but in a good way.

Caranilla “No” Bacco – They advertise this as Neon Vapors’ unique take on the traditional RY4. It’s good, and in my completely unqualified opinion, more of an RY4, or at least what I would expect from one, than their actual RY4. It didn’t have the cool taste that the other one did, but had a pleasant tobacco flavor with caramel and vanilla. All three were pretty well balanced, no single flavor overpowered the other…it was harmonious, and it worked.

Owners Choice – they describe it as a complex blend of natural extracts and man made tobacco flavors. Also contains a touch of vanilla and caramel along with other flavors. Can you detect the theme here? I didn’t taste vanilla or caramel really, and to be honest, I have no idea what I’m tasting, but it’s good. There’s a nice, subtle tobacco flavor, a little sweetness, a little bitterness (coffee, chocolate???). It doesn’t have any real, identifiable flavors to me, but it’s tasty.

Black Coffee – simple enough as far as preconceived notions. When I think black coffee, I think overly bold, somewhat burnt Starbucks shit. Based on that assumption, it failed. When basing it on a different standard though, namely “do I like it,” this one is a much bigger success. It does taste like coffee, and rather distinctively so, but it’s not overpowering at all. I wouldn’t say it’s coffee with milk and sugar or one of those crotchapinno things, but it’s also not a strong burnt coffee flavor. One of the reasons I ordered, despite expecting something too strong, was the thought of mixing this with things like the caramel jutsu, cinnamon roll and vanilla ice cream. I haven’t tried any of those combos yet, because this just tastes good on its own. While this surprise hampered my ability to play mad scientist, it was damn good.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup – this is my second experience with the two great tastes that taste great together. My last one wasn’t a total abomination, but it wasn’t great either. Despite this, I gave it another shot, and this one was a vast improvement over the other. It wasn’t a Reese’s by any means, but it was good. It had distinct but not overpowering chocolate and peanut butter flavors, but it’s very different than the uber-sweet, slightly crunchy taste in the orange and brown wrapper. I’d describe it more as a gourmet peanut butter cup. Instead of the milk chocolate, it’s more of a subtle, dark cocoa taste. In the “middle,” it’s not the peanut butter and sugar combo so many know and love. It’s more like the type of PB you’d overpay for at Whole Foods, with a nice roasted peanut flavor, a little bit of sweetn-
ess and maybe even a hint of salt. While the kids are tearing open the wrappers and throwing the brown papers on the floor after licking the residue off, the parents are in another room, eating “grown up” candy from a fancy box. This version of peanut butter cup came from that grown-up box of chocolates.

Cinnamon Coffee Cake – this was the only one I wasn’t a huge fan of, for the same reason as the cinnamon roll from Vapor4Life. It’s not a bad flavor, but the cinnamon is overpowering and it’s more of a “red hot” than the subtle cinnamon-y baked good its name implies. Again, not bad, but not really my thing.

Vanilla Cupcake -those who follow my adventures in blogdom know that, despite my efforts to get healthy, I love me some junk food, especially baked goods. While I’ve tried my hand at creativity with things like the cake balls and cookie cake (and triple crumb cinnamon coffee cake, which didn’t make it to these pages), sometimes simple is best, and it doesn’t get much more simple than a good vanilla cupcake. This definitely smells like something that would be coming out of my oven. When I opened the bottle, the vanilla, butter and sugar scents were very strong, and quite nice. As for the taste, it’s basically what I expected from the Twinkie-flavored liquid I tried from ecblends – deliciously artificial. There’s a very strong fake vanilla flavor and other stuff. I’d equate it to cake batter ice cream, and that isn’t really a bad thing. It’s not something I’d puff on every day, but it’s nice for an occasional treat.

One other thing I noticed with Neon Vapors is their bottles, especially the small ones, are a bit tighter than others. This isn’t a major thing, but when using a syringe to fill cartomizers, the extra tightness is actually quite nice as it reduces leakage and bubbling in the syringes. Again, not a huge selling point, but a little added bonus. As an aside, it looks like they’re still running a buy one get one free deal, along with a 20% coupon. I don’t really need more liquids right now, but may not be able to resist…

www.neonvapors.com

2013: 02/06
CATEGORY: e-Cigs
Reviews
Smoking
TAGS: Discounts
e-cigarettes
Reviews
vaping
Leave a comment

Vape Dojo – Where Mr. Miyagi Would Buy His E-cig Stuff

Following the batteries, vessels and liquids from Vapor4Life and ECBlends, most of my roundup type commentaries are done. Thankfully, I still have more stuff to talk about. Unfortunately, the orders I’ve placed are on the smaller side, and don’t contain enough items for a compare and contrast. For now, I’m gonna go with vendor-by-vendor discussions of what I ordered, what I liked, what I didn’t, and why I would (or wouldn’t) try them again.

First up, Vape Dojo. I had a few really dumb titles for this post…things like Dojo Arigato Mister Roboto (they actually have a battery called Mr. Roboto) and Everybody Was Kung-Fu Vaping, but I decided to keep it simple. I found them by chance, through an ad on Facebook (pretty sure it’s the first one I’ve ever clicked). They’re based in Elicott City, Maryland. I have a client near there and had been visiting them once a quarter, and thought I might be able to stop over there during one of my future trips. Sadly, that client is no more, so a physical visit won’t be an option. Nonetheless, they had an interesting selection, and the prices were pretty good, so I figured I’d give it a shot.

Products
They have a nice variety of the basics. This isn’t the place for 57 different types of batteries, 30 vessel options and a thousand flavors. I think they’re relatively new, so that may change but for now, they’re not trying to be everything to everyone. They offer some nice options, without being overwhelming, which is a good thing. Their batteries are all the “ego-style” thick ones with the 510 thread. Most of the stuff I have is 808 threaded, but I have a bit of 510 equipment and this would help me get more use out of that.

Their batteries are all manual, so if you have a strong preference for automatics, the Dojo may not be for you. I’m indifferent in that sense, so it’s all good.

They have a few different tanks and clearomizers. They’re a little on the larger side, which may or may not be a good thing.

They have about a dozen different liquids, which they call “jutsu.”

Prices
This made me a little nervous…they’re so cheap. I mentioned at one point way back when that a regular cigarette-style battery would probably run around $10, while the fat-batt types were roughly double. Not here my friends…Vape Dojo batteries, which are all of the ego-style, start at $9.99. The passthrough, with the USB port on it, is $13.99. They do get more expensive, but their base prices are outstanding. They also have the least expensive starter kits I’ve seen. The Katana is $12.99, and includes a battery, charger and clearomizer. It was sold out when I ordered, otherwise I would have been all up in that.

The vessels and ;iquids aren’t as heavily discounted, but still a few dollars cheaper than other places.

What did I buy?

2 five-click, variable voltage batteries – $12.99 each / $7.79 on sale (other places sell for $25)
1 Dojo Nova rebuild able clearomizer (their version of the popular Vivi Nova) – $7.99 (around $12 most places)
1 bottle of caramel jutsu (small) – $4.99 (typically $7 – $9)

I didn’t buy a charger, because I had a 510 USB charger from that Victory starter set I bought before Christmas…probably the best thing to come out of that ill-advised purchase.

2 Batteries and a Dojo Nova

How was it?
Battery: This was my first time trying a variable voltage battery, and I wasn’t sure what to expect. While a regular e-cig battery is 3.7 volts, you can change these between 3.2, 3.7 and 4.2 volts. To move from one to the next, just click the button five times. The voltage is indicated by the color of the light. 3.2 is red, 3.7 purple, 4.2 blue…simple enough. Basically, by varying the voltage of your battery and the resistance of your atomizer, you can have more control over the amount of vapor and flavor the e-cig produces. There are charts and whatnot showing what resistances work with each voltage, which is cool if you want to move away from the beginner stuff.

I’ve been putting them through the motions, and they’ve held up well so far. I haven’t had any vapor production issues as far as the post being misaligned or anything, they take a while to charge, but last a long time. I’ve mainly been using it at 3.2. On the higher voltage settings, I find that the throat hit is a little too strong for me (some people like that though) and some of the liquids can taste a little burnt. If you like tinkering and playing mix & match with your batteries and vessels, these could be a lot of fun.

The empty Nova

Dojo Nova: I mentioned in the vessels thread that I preferred the smaller units like the Nano and CE3 style, but I didn’t have much in the way of 510 threaded stuff, so I figured I’d try one of these. The nicest part is that it’s completely rebuildable, which makes cleaning much easier. It comes with three atomizer heads, each with a different resistance. The heads can be purchased for around $2 each, which beats the hell out of replacing the whole shmear. The tank holds around 3.5ml of liquid, and produces some pretty outstanding vapor clouds. They don’t really distort the flavor (other than on higher-voltage), and the size means you can go a LONG time without having to worry about a refill. Of course, that is both blessing and curse. If you have what they call an “all day vape” (or in my case, a multi-day vape), 3.5 ml of a single liquid is great, but for those with vape-related attention deficit disorder like me, it’s a bit much. I’ve been filling it with my favorite flavors, puffing for a while then switching to another vessel for a bit. I tend to get a few days out of each fill, which is nice. When you’re done, you can completely disassemble them, making it really easy to clean. I liked it, but it’s a little too big for me. They make a smaller version that holds 2ml of liquid. When my vaping fund has been replenished, I may have to try one or two of these.

The Jutsu is Loose?

Caramel Jutsu: I find it impossible to buy from a new place without at least sampling one of their liquids. According to the vast knowledge of Google, “Jutsu” is a mystical skill a ninja uses in battle. All I could think when I heard the name was “putzu,” which is a pet name my lovely wife came up with for me when she was just the girlfriend. It’s either Yiddish, or something she just made up, and probably means something derogatory or inappropriate, but I’m too lazy to look into it any further.

Anyway, back to the Jutsu. They have some interesting flavors, like black cherry tobacco, blueberry, vanilla and chocolate hazelnut. I hadn’t tried a “pure” caramel anywhere yet, and it seemed safe so I gave it a shot. After a couple of puffs, I’m convinced that this is some sort of mystical art. I’ve tried a bunch of liquids that are supposed to taste like things, and while some come close, they’re all just a little off to me. It’s either an artificial version of the thing it wants to be, or the thing it wants to be with something extra or something missing. Flavor-wise, this is the closest to the name on the bottle of any liquid I’ve tried so far (and I’ve tried a lot). A few years ago, there was some sort of mass love for dulce de leche – that Mexican caramel stuff. You couldn’t go anywhere without seeing products soaked in brownish goo. It took a while, but I eventually gave in and bought a jar, and it was outstanding. I’d dip cookies and pretzels in it, spoon it over ice cream, even had one or two dulce de leche sandwiches (not my proudest moment, but DAMN good). This vapor reminded me of that. It’s not an overwhelming caramel, nor is it overly fake. It’s just right. I suspect I’ll be ordering from the Dojo again at some point, and the most pressing question is whether to order more caramel or try one of their other flavors…hmmmmmmmmm.

Shipping was $4.99, which isn’t bad, and it came pretty quickly. I’m looking for something bad to say here, but really, I got nothin’ other than the somewhat limited selection, but even that isn’t a deal-breaker. I guess you could say they don’t offer as many coupon codes as other places, but the base prices are already pretty low, so that doesn’t work either. If manual 510 fat-batts are your thing, you could do a hell of a lot worse.

http://www.vapedojo.com/

2013: 01/27
CATEGORY: e-Cigs
Reviews
Smoking
TAGS: e-cigarettes
Reviews
vaping
5 comments

When Victory is Less Appealing than Defeat…

A few weeks ago, I posted a couple of deals that I thought were pretty good, particularly around the holidays. I’m happy to say I received my MOGA controller and may eventually share my thoughts on here. Another of the deals I shared made for a slightly less happy experience, and since I’m on a vaping kick anyway, I may as well talk about Victory e-cigarettes and why they suck.

As mentioned here, they were “giving away” a million e-cig starter kits for a penny each (charged for age verification purposes, since you apparently have to be 18 to get a credit card nowadays.

Looking over their site, I noticed that they operate a subscription model, giving you the kit for free, and auto-shipping you 15 pre-filled carts every 30 days. I never would have signed up for that, but even the fine print on this deal said there were no strings attached. They obviously wanted people to sign up for the monthly deliveries, but according to the promotion page, they were giving away these kits as a way to get people to try a new smoking alternative. Based on what I had seen on blogs, forums and whatnot, it seemed that this offer had been scrutinized pretty heavily, and appeared to be what it said it was so I decided it was worth a shot. Being the skeptic that I am, I ordered using a virtual credit card (a temporary number with a set limit, generated through an online account) just in case they tried to get sneaky.

I placed the order in late November, and waited. And waited. I didn’t really care, as I used the virtual card for this exact reason. Worst case, I was out a penny; best case, I had some new, inexpensive vape gear. The $0.01 charge was showing on my account as pending, which seemed to indicate that they’d charge once it shipped (hopefully before that virtual card expired).

About a month later, the package came. I was surprised, but underwhelmed. It was well worth the price I paid, but not much more and certainly not the $60 they claimed to charge. The kit included a cigarette-style automatic battery (510 threaded), a usb charger, cigarette lighter and wall outlet USB plugs, and a 5-pack of cartomizers.

The battery works well enough and is a capable spare.
Most of my other equipment is 808 threaded, so there’s not a ton of compatibility, although I ordered a few 510 batteries and a vivi nova from Vape Dojo around the same time, and it works well with that stuff (probably the best part of the whole thing)
The cartomizers weren’t bad, but were nothing spectacular either. I ordered the plain tobacco, and found the taste to be similar to the disposable e-cigarettes you get at convenience stores. Not repulsive, but far from ideal.

So, for my make a wish donation, I got a battery that doesn’t suck, a decent charger for my two (much better) Vape Dojo batteries, and five carts that could be cleaned and refilled with a tastier liquid (like any of the ones I just talked about from Vapor4Life). A pretty decent value for my hundredth of a buck, and all was well…until yesterday.

When checking my email to track another vape-related purchase (which shipped a week ago from New Jersey and still hasn’t arrived), there was an email from Victory , the purveyors of my super cheap starter kit, saying that my credit card had been rejected. I looked at my statement, and the penny had gone through a few weeks ago, but these #@$%#^s were trying to charge (the now-expired virtual card) another $30 for a set of their cartomizers.

~~Looking forward to their response…if anyone else got in on this when I posted, keep an eye on your credit card statements.~~

2013: 01/16
CATEGORY: e-Cigs
Smoking
TAGS: e-cig
review
rip off
vaping
3 comments

Insert lame title about juice here.

After several thousand words about batteries and vessels, we come to the final piece of the vaping puzzle (unless you’re using pre-filled carts, in which case you’re done), the liquid.

It has many names, many many flavors and is available through tons of different vendors. The basics are relatively similar across the board…it’s a mix of propylene glycol, vegetable glycerine, nicotine and flavoring. Some have a bit of food-grade alcohol in them too, which I believe is just to thin it out. That’s it though…4, maybe 5 ingredients. No ammonia, no tar, no cyanide, no ingredients that I can neither pronounce nor spell.

I once read somewhere that cigarette smoke has something like 4,000 different chemicals in it. I’m sure e-cigarette vapor won’t provide any direct health benefits, unless someone makes a liquid with vitamin C in it or something, but I have to assume I’m a lot better off with 3,996 fewer chemicals being sucked into my lungs 10 or so times a day.

As I mentioned, there are loads of liquid vendors out there, not to mention a large DIY subculture. The aspiring chef in me wants to try making his own liquid, but isn’t ready for the advanced classes. I’ve tried a bunch of different liquids from different vendors. Rather than spending 6 months writing one post, I’m going to break these up by vendor.

The hardcore vaping aficionados will talk about VG \ PG ratio, measure vapor production in cubic millimeters, wax poetic about throat hit and countless other topics, almost like they’re discussing a bottle of wine. There’s nothing wrong with this, and I’m not knocking these people at all, but for me, the evaluation is much more simple…do I like it or not, and why?

First up, Vapor4Life. I start with them because I’ve tried more of their liquids than anyone else’s. It all started with that Facebook contest. When I won, I decided to order some stuff so BH didn’t have to send my prize without getting a little business. Wasn’t sure what to expect, but it was one of the best decisions I’ve made since the decision to start vaping. In a word, V4L’s liquids are amazeballs. I’ve tried a bunch, and have yet to find one I didn’t like. Some, of course, are better than others, and I plan on giving my honest opinions of every one of them.

Now, this is all completely subjective, and what appeals to me might be awful to you. You may notice a trend starting here…there are no fruit flavors to be found. The reason is pretty simple. I don’t like them, so I don’t buy them. The liquids I’ve tried include a mix of tobacco, coffee, candy and baked goods. These are listed in no particular order, but again, these are my opinions and my opinions only.

Borrowed from their site (hopefully they won’t mind). It’s after midnight, and if the wife woke up to me trying to photograph my vape stuff, she might hurt me…

Colonel Caramel: a caramel flavored tobacco. My only experience with tobacco before vaping came from combustion in a cigarette. This tastes different than a cigarette, as it’s pretty tough to replicate the flavor of “burning,” but this isn’t bad. It has the pleasant, burnt flavor of caramelized sugar, with a little bit of a kick (I’m assuming that’s the tobacco). For a while, I was chain smoking this one, and while I’ve backed off a bit, it’s still highly enjoyable.

Richmond Tobacco: Very mellow, with a slight sweetness (not nearly as pronounced as the Colonel), maybe some nuttiness…I don’t really know, but it’s good.

Kamel: I didn’t like this one the first time I tried it. I put it away for a while, and ended up trying it again after a cigarette relapse and realized why I didn’t react favorably at first taste…it’s about as close as you’re going to get to cigarette flavor, but less unpleasant. It was a pretty strong taste that burned a little (also known as throat hit) and was a good, less disgusting version of a cigarette. While Kamel is not a part of my regular rotation, I use it whenever I have a craving for a real cigarette and it does the trick. If you’re trying to closely replicate the smoking experience with an e-cig, flavor and all, Kamel is a great choice.

Parliament: Another tobacco flavor that mimics a popular brand of cigarettes. If this is what a cigarette is supposed to taste like, those tobacco people got it all wrong. This is much more pleasant than the brand for which it is named. Even better, you don’t stink afterwards.

RY4: This is a pretty popular variety, and most companies have at least one variation. It’s usuall a tobacco flavor with vanilla and caramel, but some companies put their own spin on it. From one vendor to the next, the taste and feeling can vary tremendously, despite being the same. V4L’s version of this vaping classic is my favorite so far. It has a clean tobacco taste, the vanilla adds a nice sweetness, while the caramel balances the two very nicely. One thing I’ve noticed with liquids is that the flavor can change from one “vessel” to another, and even if you switch a cartomizer from one battery to another. This can take something delicious and turn it unpleasant very quickly. I’ve noticed this with RY4 more than other flavors, but V4Ls offering is the most consistent of the bunch.

French Vanilla: I expected something subtle, and while this wasn’t it, it was good. I’ve tried a few other vanillas, and this is #1. The best way to describe it is to compare an inexpensive vanilla ice cream (or frozen dairy dessert) to a pint of the ultra-premium stuff. The cheap one is vanilla-nothing else, no doubt about it. You compare that to the high-end stuff that has hints and notes and a flavor profile that changes. It’s obvious why one can be had for the change between the couch cushions and the other costs half of a paycheck, but both are good for what they are. The French vanilla liquid isn’t going to be a journey for the taste buds or anything like that. It’s a good, straightforward vanilla. It can be a little overpowering, so I generally mix with another flavor and it works brilliantly.

Hazelnut Coffee: Just like vanilla. It tastes like its name, although the hazelnut is stronger than the coffee. It’s not a bad thing by any means, especially if you like hazelnut, but if you want coffee with a hint of flavor, it might be too strong. V4L makes some plain coffee flavors too, which mix well with this one.

Cafe Mocha: Not a plain coffee flavor, but much more mellow than the hazelnut. Both the coffee and chocolate flavors come through nicely and combine for a good flavor. It’s good on its own, but also mixes well with hazelnut coffee and French vanilla.

Champagne: I bought this because it was on sale. It was my first “tastes like xxxx” flavor, and while I wasn’t expecting much, I was pleasantly surprised. It’s not evaporated Dom Perignon or anything, but was much nicer than most sparkling wines I’ve consumed over the years. It would be perfect if it gave you a buzz.

DJ Black: When I was in school, desperately trying to fit in, cigarettes weren’t the only dumb things I used in my quest for acceptance. Every once in a while, I’d become a hipster asshole (before we knew what to call them) and buy a pack of cloves. For those unfamiliar, cloves are cigarettes made with tobacco and cloves. It’s a cigarette with a nice spicy taste to it, and some sort of sweetener on the filter that made you want to lick your lips after having one. They were generally stronger than regular cigarettes, but tasted much better. They’re not sold everywhere, but when I saw them, I tended to pick them over regular cigs, despite the fact that they always gave me a sore throat. DJ black replicates the nice taste perfectly, without the burning feeling. My first taste brought back memories of jamming to Dave Matthews in the dorms with a ton of booze and a few packs of Djarums, right down to the tingly feeling in the tongue that a real clove gives you. While it was the nicest part of the clove without the nastiness, it was also strong. I liked the taste, but could only take a few puffs before having to switch to something more mellow. I’d break it out every now and again, and enjoyed it, but much like a regular clove, it wasn’t something I could handle regularly. I filled a nano with some over the weekend, and the flavor had weakened a bit. It was no longer overpowering. It had basically become everything a clove should have been. If there’s a way to replicate the “sweet lips” taste, I’d buy this by the gallon.

Cinnamon Roll: Very good, but one of the few that doesn’t taste like its namesake. It’s a good, strong cinnamon flavor, but more of a cinnamon candy flavor. This isn’t bad, but I was expecting Cinnabon and got atomic fireball. I was never a fan of the candies, but this is a tasty liquid. At the suggestion of BH, I mixed it to try and get more of a cinnamon roll flavor, and found it with both pancake and waffle. It also mixed nicely with French vanilla, mocha and parliament. A little overpowering on its own, but makes a great mixer.

Pancake and Waffle: I’m putting these two together because they’re pretty similar and pretty odd…let’s be honest. If you’re looking to quit smoking, you probably wouldn’t expect to do it by inhaling pancake flavored vapor. Given how different a pancake or waffle can taste from one batch to the next, it’s tough to say how close these come to the originals, but on the basis of a completely generic yummy breakfast, both do a good job. Both are combinations of butter and maple syrup, and both are good. I may be totally off, but I think the waffle is more syrupy while pancake has a stronger butter flavor. Both are good solo, and mix well with flavors like cinnamon roll, vanilla amend hazelnut coffee. They’re a little “out there” as far as I’m concerned, and while they’re enjoyable, they’re best in small doses.

White Chocolate: I try to be objective…I really do, but it’s hard with a flavor like this. I’ve always liked white chocolate, and (in my completely unqualified opinion), you basically have good and bad, without much middle ground. With regular chocolate, there are hundreds of varieties, with tons of variables impacting taste and overall experience, but with white chocolate, it’s really just good or not good, and V4L’s white chocolate liquid is damn good. It’s got a slight, but noticeable sweetness, and somehow manages to give off a creaminess with it, despite being vaporized nicotine.

I’ve barely scratched the surface of Vapor4Life’s liquids, but have yet to find a dud. They have a bunch of “themed” sampler packs, which are nice for variety, but for single flavors, you’re limited to 30ml bottles. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, given the overall quality of their liquids, but it’s a bit of a gamble if you’re trying an unfamiliar flavor.

The liquids average $12.50 a bottle, which is pretty reasonable. They’ve almost always got a promo of some sort running, which can get you a potentially significant discount on top of it. Check them out at www.vapor4life.com.

2013: 01/16
CATEGORY: e-Cigs
Health
Reviews
Smoking
TAGS: e-cigarettes
smoking
vaping
2 comments

Diet, grooming, deals and other assorted randomness as I get ready to get married

Yet another Mountain… The Last one for a while

Mount Baker Vapor – Because I Used All of My Mountain-Related Jokes Talking about Zeus

Back to the Mountaintop

I have been to the top of the mountain, and it is good

VVV with V4L…OMG, LOL, OAA (Other Assorted Acronyms)

Bloog on the Blog…because I can’t think of anything even remotely clever

Neon Vapors – the Juice is Loose

Vape Dojo – Where Mr. Miyagi Would Buy His E-cig Stuff

When Victory is Less Appealing than Defeat…

Insert lame title about juice here.

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