Kanthal vs. Clapton Coils (Plus A Little Info)

In case you're getting wound up

Here’s something neat about coils. If you don’t want to see them, change them, or even know what they are, you don’t have to. Fuss-free Pod Kits (that literally just require popping an e-liquid pod in) are loved for a reason. Don’t get us started on how popular the XROS 3 Mini is.

For anyone who wants the ultimate vaping experience, a little bit of knowledge can go a long way. The vaping master might be blowing beastly clouds, but the nuclear power comes from somewhere- coils.

Coils are the heart of your vaping device. They heat the e-liquid in your tank, turn it into vapour and boom- you’re there. Coils are another word for atomiser heads.

• Your juice is absorbed by the wicking material in your tank (the cotton part you see inside the metal casing)
• Your battery provides heat for your coil’s wire (the small spiral or mesh you see inside the wicking material)
• You drag on the drip tip, let the vapour travel up your vape’s chimney and you’re all set to inhale

Coils fall into 5 material categories: Kanthal, NiChrome, Stainless Steel, Nickel and Titanium. We’ll be covering the most common. Since we’re rattling on about Variable Wattage and Temperature Control modes.

As to their overall use, you’re looking at two different vaping modes: Wattage Mode and Temperature Control (TC) mode.

An example of how the wires behave differently? A nickel wire can be 0.15-Ohm at room temperature, but the resistance will crank up the minute you fire it. Given the problems that can cause, we don’t recommend it.

Temperature Control vaping is a different deal to pure Wattage vaping. Brainiacs use Temperature Coefficient of Resistance (TCR) of a given wire to regulate a coil’s delivered current. A temperature control mod uses stable increases to determine resistance as the coil heats up. The current is lowered and the coil stays nice and safe, temperature-wise.

A word about size

All coiling wires are measured in gauge- the measurement of a wire’s diameter. Also the way to stretch your earlobes, but you don’t vape through your ears. Single strand Kanthal gauges run between 24-28g.

A larger gauge basically means a thinner wire. Use a large wire and you’ll increase the overall surface area. This produces better flavour, as more e-liquid will be in direct contact with the coiling element. Larger wires also have less total resistance.

Kanthal

Popular, and with good reason. Officially known as Kanthal A1, Kanthal coils are cheap, solid, easy to work with and one of the most commonly found coil types. Kanthal coils are made from iron, chromium and aluminium and can tolerate temperatures of up to 1400 degrees before melting. They’ve become the industry standard for Variable Wattage vaping and continue to get the thumbs-up for clean vaping and minimising addition of flavour profiles to the cloud.

Pros:

• Dirt cheap (but you don’t have to worry about quality)

• Easy to find in vape shops and online (hi)

• Hold shape well and very pliable

• Easy wicking and building makes it a beginner favourite

• Loved by flavour chasers, no infused metal taste

• Variable wattage mode only (except for a few, like the Kanthal 52)

Cons:

• Not appropriate for Temperature Control vaping

• Flavour can be on the dull side for some vapers

• Ramp-up time isn’t as fast as some other wires

With a high-base resistance in the wire, most regulated box mods straight-up won’t recognise a Kanthal A1. Newer types like the Kanthal 52 are specifically designed for TC, but if you’re using A1, keep the mod in Variable Wattage mode.

Clapton

Whether or not these were named after Eric Clapton’s guitars- the verdict’s still out. Anyone who bought an Aspire CF Maxx way back in the day will remember buying Clapton coils. Anyone using an RDA or RTA will be more than familiar with these. Clapton Coils are a small gauge wire wrapped around another larger gauge wire in a perpendicular way. One wire is coiled tightly over the other. You get your thicker coil result by wrapping a 24 or 26 gauge vape wire in a 30 or 32 gauge. Surface area shoots up (and so does flavour production).

Pros:

• Larger surface area means way more vapour

• More diversity than regular micro coils

• Warmer vapour and greater flavour intensity

• Quick vapourisation

• It just looks so cool

Cons:

• Can take a while to heat up and cool down (downer for one-time vaping)

• Heating coils consumes more power (bit of a battery drain)

• Can require more cleaning

• Time-consuming to create (but you can buy them pre-made)

Fused Clapton Wires

No, not a Vietnamese twist on a baguette. Fused Clapton wires take two smaller Kanthal wires as their internal foundation (versus a single large Kanthal wire wrapped around something higher gauge). With fused Clapton wires, you get a larger overall size and gaps between the higher gauge wire wrapping the outside. Most vapers nerd out on that tiny extra bit of surface area hiding between the two thicker wires on the inside. Basically maxing out surface area here, you’re in cloud chasing heaven.

Nickel, mesh and ceramic coils

Nickel

Alongside titanium coils, nickel coils are typically wrapped to a super-low resistance. Basically, never use these in a vape that doesn’t have Temperature Control vaping features. Nickel (or Ni200) coils are made of pure Nickel. They out-do everything else in terms of Highest Temperature Coefficient and are only to be used in TC mode.

Mesh Coils

Mesh coils are simply wire-meshed. They are the most sought after variety of coils. The draw here is the pro wicking ability. The thin strip of mesh wire offers a larger surface area for heating e-liquid. This means better flavour, smoother vaping and longer lasting coils. What's not to like?

Key Features and Benefits:

1. Enhanced Flavour: With the increased surface area, your vape juice is vapourised more efficiently. This means you get more even heating which results in a richer and more nuanced flavour profile.

2. Faster Ramp-Up Time: Mesh coils heat up faster than traditional wire coils. The surface area is broad and thin, meaning you get vapour almost instantly when the device is activated.

3. Longer Lifespan: If you get 5 days out of a standard wire coil, you're doing well. With the latest mesh designs like Elf Bar's QUAQ technology, you can expect anywhere from 10 days to two weeks. This keeps your monthly spend nice and low.

4. Smoother Vapour Production: Rapid and even heating results in a much smoother and more consistent vapour. This is especially important at higher wattages (we're looking at you sub-ohm vapers).

5. Higher Wattage Capabilites: Because mesh coils are efficient and consistent, they can handle high wattage for longer without sacrifcing on performance. This is the reason they are favoured by sub-ohm vapers.

Something to bear in mind..

• E-liquid consumption: Becasue mesh coils vape e-juice so quickly and efficiently, they also use more than traditional coils. The trade off for exquisite flavour and longer lifespan is that you'll go through e-liquid faster as well.

• Power Requirements: Mesh coils need more power to vape effectively. You'll rarely find a mesh coil higher than a 1.0 Ohm resistance. Even MTL kits nowadays that use mesh coils, do so at lower resistances of 0.9 to 0.6 Ohms. This leads to a much looser draw and an airier vape. If restricted, cigarette like vaping is your thing, then you are best off with a traditional 1.2 Ohm coil.

Ceramic

Ceramic coils take the old-fashioned pottery benefits of abrasion resistance and temperature tolerance, then apply them to vaping. These coils have oxidation prevention, longer life, self-cleaning properties, plus avoidance of dry hits. Since the ceramic serves as a wick, no other wick is needed. Kanger’s ceramic SSOCC is a popular one, particularly for anyone wanting to avoid spitback. At the same time, you do go through juice faster and tank options are limited.

Choosing the Right Coil (If You Haven't Got a Clue)

Literally what we pictured in our minds when we designed our new website. Not everyone is a physics swot.

With our new interactive website, we’ve included a ton of intuition- basically, you can zoom into what you need in a few clicks. Hit up our coils section, where you can select resistance, brand and most importantly- which device the coils are compatible with.

We’ve also got handy guides, from nicotine info and how to quit smoking, to troubleshooting. Most importantly, we’ve got the ultimate coil guide in the form of walking, talking experts (trust us, they didn’t get past our interview process without a little coil grilling). You can pop in-store for advice, use our live chat, plus the zillion other ways to reach us.

For anything else or to try out new mods or e-liquids, pop into any of our six stores or get in touch. For exclusive offers, promos and savings, follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.  

www.vapesuperstore.co.uk contains general information about vaping and vapour products. The information provided is not medical advice, and should not be relied upon unless explicity cited. We do not make any warranties surrounding the health benefits, reliability and accuracy of written copy across all pages on our website, including blog content and content posted on social media.

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