Long winded I know, but this is my story.
I started smoking at age 11. By the age of 14. I was a 1 PAD smoker. It was easy in the 60's and 70's for a youngster to smoke. Back then all the bars had small foyers you entered through that had a pay telephone, ashtray and a cigarette machine. You just had to stick your head in and take a look, drop two quarters and leave with a pack of smokes and a book of matches. I remember riding my dirt bike to the 7-Eleven. There I could spend a dollar on a pack of smokes, full tank of gas and a coke. Life was good.
Fast forward 35 years and I was a 1 ½ PAD smoker spending $300 a month between the wife and myself. I was concerned with the money, but I enjoyed smoking. It had been a major part of my life and I was just going to die before I quit. That way of thinking came to a screeching halt on a routine visit to my doctor. She was going through the routine with her stethoscope and asked me to take a deep breath and release. I did it several times and she walked back to her desk. As she sat down she said Yep, you have a rattle. What? She informed me that the lining of my right lung was separating and this was due to smoking. She told me all smokers get it. The nonchalant way she sat down and went back to work had me thinking seriously about my habit for the first time in my life. I went home and started listing the reasons to quit in my head. I was going to be a statistic if I didn't do something. My son-in-law smoked 2+ packs a day. He delivered oxygen setups to patients and couldn't smoke unless he stopped the van and got out. So he bought a convenience store rig and started vaping. The units lasted about a week and died. He was no longer interested. I called my daughter and asked her about them. Did they smell? Did they simulate smoking? She had not used them. She said it looked like smoke and that there was no smell. Hmmm, research time.
I popped 'electronic cigarette into a search engine and started reading. I decided I wanted a rig that looked like a cig in size. I found a site that offered kits and an enormous assortment of cartos. Wow, all different flavors, nicotine ranges. I was hooked. I then tried to read and calculate how many of these cartos I would go through a day. As a smoker I always looked ahead. I bought smokes by the carton so I needed to have the stuff on hand in order to give vaping a fair shot. After making a decision on the nic level needed I placed an order for a deluxe kr-808d kit. They sold variety packs for tobacco so I stocked up on menthol tobaccos. The thought of vaping a candy or fruit flavor was just beyond me. I tracked my order daily and on February 7th at 3pm I received my kit. I finished my last cigarette on the walk back to the house.
I quickly fell into the routine of charging batts and keeping them in rotation. I was running through cartos fast. I had my flavor that would take me off cigs so off to the site and placed an order for more. I started noticing that this was not going to save me much money. I needed to make some changes. I noticed on the site that they sold juice and blank cartos. I had also read of a way to clean the dirty cartos and revive them for multiple fills. I placed an order for juice and went right to cleaning, filling and vaping. Life was good.
By the time March rolled around I had bought 10 or so 808 batts. I was burning them up with my double fisted vaping style. I needed to find something else that would stand up to a young chain vaper. I was also buying juice like no tomorrow. The world opens up when you discover all the flavor choices and vendors available. I had boxes of juice arriving daily. Enter DIY. That would most certainly bring the cost down. So after more late night reading I ordered a DIY kit, some extracts, a small VG and nic juice. I ran to Tractor Supply for a gallon of PG. Since I wanted to be able to use some of my gear and after lots of reading I bought a Riva 901 with 808/901 adapters. A drip tip and I was in a whole different level of nirvana. Now I could mix my own juices and taste them with a few drops on a 901 atty. Life was good.
April comes around and I am starting to get a little irritated with the wife. I swore I would never be one of those ex smokers. What ever anybody does is their business, but as my senses started returning I really couldn't stand the smell. So I bought her a pink 808 kit and some assorted cartos. She used it a little, but still huffed the analogs. She informed me she would quit when she was ready. Okay, I would have to live with that. I am also in a buying frenzy. I am now vaping an e-power and have found ce2's. My whole logic with the ce-2 was more liquid on board means less time filling. I found myself grabbing every one of the latest and greatest carto inventions. I am jumping on every band wagon that comes along. I am a full time ECF lurker and consuming info and opinions at a rapid pace. If this group says this is good or great then I add to cart. Mixing is coming along well. I had a few flavors I could live with. The tobacco was still eluding me as it still does. Lucky for me Dekang USA mix with added menthol was now my all day vape. At night it was USA mix in one hand and a DIY cinnamon red hot in the other. I still am not saving much money but life is good.
By May I had concluded that ce2's suck and Boge 2.0 is the only way to go. I also had stopped reading or watching certain reviews. You know the types. They just received product-x or liquid-z and this is the best thing since sliced bread. Taste is subjective, how true. I quit listening to folks doing juice reviews. I was only interested in opinions from folks who had been using product-x for awhile. Lets hear how devices hold up under pressure. I had purchased a few box mods, a handful of 2 ohm attys and now had 2 box mods, 1 E-power and a Riva sitting around me at all times. Life was good.
At 6 months a nieghbor of mine inquired about e-cigs. She was 67 and had been smoking 40 years. She had started smoking at a friend's insistence. We all had to be talked into it and shown how, right? Using that logic I loaded up the wife's 808 rig and some flavored cartos and went to spend the afternoon with her. She wasn't interested in any flavors except tobacco. She smoked menthol full flavor just like me so this made it easy. I left her with a manual 808, an auto 808, a charger and 10 filled cartos. I went by a few days later and she wasn't liking the 808. The nic was at 24 so it had to be the performance of the batts. I then gave her 2 Riva 510s, a charger and 10 boge lr filled. When I went to check on her she was stoked. She was down to 6 analogs a day and filling the void with the Riva. Now it was time for her to make a purchase. I grabbed her laptop and ordered her a Riva 510 kit.
Boges were doing it all for me except the frequent fills because of chain vaping. I went through the different dual coils and mega cartos. Boge sets the bar pretty high. I discovered the 1.7 ohm Resurrectors and I had found my new best friend. Good performance less frequent fills. Life is good.
Sometime around October I had to go back and see my Doc at the VA. I was looking forward to the visit. I could breathe and just felt better. My Doc did not disappoint. The rattle was gone and my blood pressure was lower. I could come off the blood pressure pills. My A1c glucose levels were also down. I had noticed that I was having better control of my diabetes.
I was getting good life out of the Resurrectors. With a few cleanings before trashing them I was relatively happy. I had been reading up on tanks and was getting the itch. A tank would mean even more juice on board so less fills. I watched a video from a fellow talking about a tank that he found. He had been using it for a month. It was a no fuss, no muss product that just performed. It worked with Resurrectors and was cheap. Hmmm, add to cart.
The two tanks I received have served me well these past 4 months. I noticed that I was getting increased life out of the cartos. I mark the calender with every new carto in a tank. 21 days is the longest time I have recorded. I can live with that. I think I was always searching for a set it and forget it type of vape. In the beginning I would spend time each evening getting my cartos ready for the next day. It now takes me mere moments to head out for the day. E-power, filled tank and a spare battery. I also keep a 510 Riva, charger, 5 volt pass through and filled cartos in the car for emergencies. I have settled on being a simple sort of vaper. The E-power for my tanks. Both my tanks have dedicated flavors. The Riva always has DIY cinnamon red hot and the box mods stand ready for something different.
So today it has been a year. I have a few thoughts to pass to the newbie crowd. Do your research. Don't believe the hype right away. E-cigs are a business and as a business, companies will always tout their products as being the next generation in vaping. Don't be afraid to DIY. The cost savings alone will pay for it in the long run. E-juice is like food. I love filet mignon and New York strip, but I generally can't afford to eat it all the time. I have found a few flavors for my all day vapes with some DIY thrown in for the weekend. This forum is a God send to new vapers. The information here is vast and for the most part knowledgeable. I can't tell you to ask questions being that this is my first post, but it can't hurt. I know it would have saved me a ton of money. Lastly I want to say a huge Thank you to the vaping community. You saved my life and have given me a hobby that is both fun and enjoyable. I just received an email that my new Reo Grand has shipped. We have to reward ourselves, right? My 67 year old neighbor just stopped by to tell me she has not had a real cig in 8 days. Life is good !!
I started smoking at age 11. By the age of 14. I was a 1 PAD smoker. It was easy in the 60's and 70's for a youngster to smoke. Back then all the bars had small foyers you entered through that had a pay telephone, ashtray and a cigarette machine. You just had to stick your head in and take a look, drop two quarters and leave with a pack of smokes and a book of matches. I remember riding my dirt bike to the 7-Eleven. There I could spend a dollar on a pack of smokes, full tank of gas and a coke. Life was good.
Fast forward 35 years and I was a 1 ½ PAD smoker spending $300 a month between the wife and myself. I was concerned with the money, but I enjoyed smoking. It had been a major part of my life and I was just going to die before I quit. That way of thinking came to a screeching halt on a routine visit to my doctor. She was going through the routine with her stethoscope and asked me to take a deep breath and release. I did it several times and she walked back to her desk. As she sat down she said Yep, you have a rattle. What? She informed me that the lining of my right lung was separating and this was due to smoking. She told me all smokers get it. The nonchalant way she sat down and went back to work had me thinking seriously about my habit for the first time in my life. I went home and started listing the reasons to quit in my head. I was going to be a statistic if I didn't do something. My son-in-law smoked 2+ packs a day. He delivered oxygen setups to patients and couldn't smoke unless he stopped the van and got out. So he bought a convenience store rig and started vaping. The units lasted about a week and died. He was no longer interested. I called my daughter and asked her about them. Did they smell? Did they simulate smoking? She had not used them. She said it looked like smoke and that there was no smell. Hmmm, research time.
I popped 'electronic cigarette into a search engine and started reading. I decided I wanted a rig that looked like a cig in size. I found a site that offered kits and an enormous assortment of cartos. Wow, all different flavors, nicotine ranges. I was hooked. I then tried to read and calculate how many of these cartos I would go through a day. As a smoker I always looked ahead. I bought smokes by the carton so I needed to have the stuff on hand in order to give vaping a fair shot. After making a decision on the nic level needed I placed an order for a deluxe kr-808d kit. They sold variety packs for tobacco so I stocked up on menthol tobaccos. The thought of vaping a candy or fruit flavor was just beyond me. I tracked my order daily and on February 7th at 3pm I received my kit. I finished my last cigarette on the walk back to the house.
I quickly fell into the routine of charging batts and keeping them in rotation. I was running through cartos fast. I had my flavor that would take me off cigs so off to the site and placed an order for more. I started noticing that this was not going to save me much money. I needed to make some changes. I noticed on the site that they sold juice and blank cartos. I had also read of a way to clean the dirty cartos and revive them for multiple fills. I placed an order for juice and went right to cleaning, filling and vaping. Life was good.
By the time March rolled around I had bought 10 or so 808 batts. I was burning them up with my double fisted vaping style. I needed to find something else that would stand up to a young chain vaper. I was also buying juice like no tomorrow. The world opens up when you discover all the flavor choices and vendors available. I had boxes of juice arriving daily. Enter DIY. That would most certainly bring the cost down. So after more late night reading I ordered a DIY kit, some extracts, a small VG and nic juice. I ran to Tractor Supply for a gallon of PG. Since I wanted to be able to use some of my gear and after lots of reading I bought a Riva 901 with 808/901 adapters. A drip tip and I was in a whole different level of nirvana. Now I could mix my own juices and taste them with a few drops on a 901 atty. Life was good.
April comes around and I am starting to get a little irritated with the wife. I swore I would never be one of those ex smokers. What ever anybody does is their business, but as my senses started returning I really couldn't stand the smell. So I bought her a pink 808 kit and some assorted cartos. She used it a little, but still huffed the analogs. She informed me she would quit when she was ready. Okay, I would have to live with that. I am also in a buying frenzy. I am now vaping an e-power and have found ce2's. My whole logic with the ce-2 was more liquid on board means less time filling. I found myself grabbing every one of the latest and greatest carto inventions. I am jumping on every band wagon that comes along. I am a full time ECF lurker and consuming info and opinions at a rapid pace. If this group says this is good or great then I add to cart. Mixing is coming along well. I had a few flavors I could live with. The tobacco was still eluding me as it still does. Lucky for me Dekang USA mix with added menthol was now my all day vape. At night it was USA mix in one hand and a DIY cinnamon red hot in the other. I still am not saving much money but life is good.
By May I had concluded that ce2's suck and Boge 2.0 is the only way to go. I also had stopped reading or watching certain reviews. You know the types. They just received product-x or liquid-z and this is the best thing since sliced bread. Taste is subjective, how true. I quit listening to folks doing juice reviews. I was only interested in opinions from folks who had been using product-x for awhile. Lets hear how devices hold up under pressure. I had purchased a few box mods, a handful of 2 ohm attys and now had 2 box mods, 1 E-power and a Riva sitting around me at all times. Life was good.
At 6 months a nieghbor of mine inquired about e-cigs. She was 67 and had been smoking 40 years. She had started smoking at a friend's insistence. We all had to be talked into it and shown how, right? Using that logic I loaded up the wife's 808 rig and some flavored cartos and went to spend the afternoon with her. She wasn't interested in any flavors except tobacco. She smoked menthol full flavor just like me so this made it easy. I left her with a manual 808, an auto 808, a charger and 10 filled cartos. I went by a few days later and she wasn't liking the 808. The nic was at 24 so it had to be the performance of the batts. I then gave her 2 Riva 510s, a charger and 10 boge lr filled. When I went to check on her she was stoked. She was down to 6 analogs a day and filling the void with the Riva. Now it was time for her to make a purchase. I grabbed her laptop and ordered her a Riva 510 kit.
Boges were doing it all for me except the frequent fills because of chain vaping. I went through the different dual coils and mega cartos. Boge sets the bar pretty high. I discovered the 1.7 ohm Resurrectors and I had found my new best friend. Good performance less frequent fills. Life is good.
Sometime around October I had to go back and see my Doc at the VA. I was looking forward to the visit. I could breathe and just felt better. My Doc did not disappoint. The rattle was gone and my blood pressure was lower. I could come off the blood pressure pills. My A1c glucose levels were also down. I had noticed that I was having better control of my diabetes.
I was getting good life out of the Resurrectors. With a few cleanings before trashing them I was relatively happy. I had been reading up on tanks and was getting the itch. A tank would mean even more juice on board so less fills. I watched a video from a fellow talking about a tank that he found. He had been using it for a month. It was a no fuss, no muss product that just performed. It worked with Resurrectors and was cheap. Hmmm, add to cart.
The two tanks I received have served me well these past 4 months. I noticed that I was getting increased life out of the cartos. I mark the calender with every new carto in a tank. 21 days is the longest time I have recorded. I can live with that. I think I was always searching for a set it and forget it type of vape. In the beginning I would spend time each evening getting my cartos ready for the next day. It now takes me mere moments to head out for the day. E-power, filled tank and a spare battery. I also keep a 510 Riva, charger, 5 volt pass through and filled cartos in the car for emergencies. I have settled on being a simple sort of vaper. The E-power for my tanks. Both my tanks have dedicated flavors. The Riva always has DIY cinnamon red hot and the box mods stand ready for something different.
So today it has been a year. I have a few thoughts to pass to the newbie crowd. Do your research. Don't believe the hype right away. E-cigs are a business and as a business, companies will always tout their products as being the next generation in vaping. Don't be afraid to DIY. The cost savings alone will pay for it in the long run. E-juice is like food. I love filet mignon and New York strip, but I generally can't afford to eat it all the time. I have found a few flavors for my all day vapes with some DIY thrown in for the weekend. This forum is a God send to new vapers. The information here is vast and for the most part knowledgeable. I can't tell you to ask questions being that this is my first post, but it can't hurt. I know it would have saved me a ton of money. Lastly I want to say a huge Thank you to the vaping community. You saved my life and have given me a hobby that is both fun and enjoyable. I just received an email that my new Reo Grand has shipped. We have to reward ourselves, right? My 67 year old neighbor just stopped by to tell me she has not had a real cig in 8 days. Life is good !!
