A Month with a Brunhilde MTL

[Falconeer]

A further update - as I was writing the above post I was actually working with my Brunhilde.

I've been working my way down the air inserts and used the second smallest one this time and tried 10 wraps of 28 guage round the 2.5 section of my mandrel - an iStick read this coil as 2.00 Ohms but they always over read. Switching to my Geekvape L200 I got a reading of 1.8 Ohms.

Running this set up at 8 Watts gave me a quality of draw and vape virtually the same as I'd expect from a nautilus Mini so I think I have found my sweet spot.

As a confirmed user of Nautilus coils since 2015 I can say their nominal rated 1.6 coils can come in anywhere between 1.6 to 1.8 Ohms and after about six weeks useage will be nearer 2.0 Ohms.

I believe this is called "Manufacturer's Tolerance" as every coil will not be checked before being packed.

 

[Falconeer]

"By the way ..." ( though not from there I spent much of my life in Lanarkshire, a county, I love dearly, towards the West of Scotland and so many sentences there open and close with By the way ...) if you are relatively new to the Brunhilde and its little ways, having wicked it suceessfully and vaped it for while happily you may suddenly find it's flooding by the way.

You haven't done it wrong and it's not going to die on you - take the cap off and you'll probably find that the wick has risen from the well as the cotton has swollen and paradoxically that's the problem - the solution by the way is simply to use a knife or a small narrow screwdriver to ease it back down and resettle it and that should fix it ( but).

Lanarkshire is kept next door to Glasgow ( "The Second City of the Empire"; aka "The Toon" in Lanarkshire speak ) where sentences end in "but" for emphasis- just cos they do but!

 

[Real-ist]

A further update - as I was writing the above post I was actually working with my Brunhilde.

I've been working my way down the air inserts and used the second smallest one this time and tried 10 wraps of 28 guage round the 2.5 section of my mandrel - an iStick read this coil as 2.00 Ohms but they always over read. Switching to my Geekvape L200 I got a reading of 1.8 Ohms.

Running this set up at 8 Watts gave me a quality of draw and vape virtually the same as I'd expect from a Nautilus Mini so I think I have found my sweet spot.

As a confirmed user of Nautilus coils since 2015 I can say their nominal rated 1.6 coils can come in anywhere between 1.6 to 1.8 Ohms and after about six weeks useage will be nearer 2.0 Ohms.

I believe this is called "Manufacturer's Tolerance" as every coil will not be checked before being packed.

The info you're sharing here, I appreciate it. I'm curious, have you ever tried flat wire? I've never made any coils yet, so I'm wondering if round, or flat is best.

 

[Falconeer]

@Real-ist No - I've only ever used plain round Kanthal - "I am a simple man from the land of palm trees" ( well Cordelines actually, but they look like palms and they do grow here! )

Honestly coil making is or can be really easy, so long as you are careful and mind to switch things off and not having coil legs touch metal bits they shouldn't.

Most folk's first coils look pretty awful so don't worry. take it easy and try again. I'll bet you'll have got it by try three!

 

[Kalyptic]

"By the way ..." ( though not from there I spent much of my life in Lanarkshire, a county, I love dearly, towards the West of Scotland and so many sentences there open and close with By the way ...) if you are relatively new to the Brunhilde and its little ways, having wicked it suceessfully and vaped it for while happily you may suddenly find it's flooding by the way.

You haven't done it wrong and it's not going to die on you - take the cap off and you'll probably find that the wick has risen from the well as the cotton has swollen and paradoxically that's the problem - the solution by the way is simply to use a knife or a small narrow screwdriver to ease it back down and resettle it and that should fix it ( but).

Lanarkshire is kept next door to Glasgow ( "The Second City of the Empire"; aka "The Toon" in Lanarkshire speak ) where sentences end in "but" for emphasis- just cos they do but!

Hey Falconeer, just to add on the wicks lifting, it's from filling and over-filling the tank. E.g if you're using a gorilla bottle and press the nozzle firmly against the fill hole sealing it off and squeeze too hard or the bottle has a lot of air, it will push excess air and pressure along the steel wick through the holes and lift the cotton. Incidentally if you over fill the tank the juice will flood the deck and (Float) the cotton as well.
Only found this out because sometimes I fill with the cap off and witnessed it. Now I just fill gently and take care not to overfill.

 

[Falconeer]

Thanks, and I mean it, and I will bear this very much in mind. Your suggestions are much appreciated.

Now that I've got the air inlet, spot on, the Brunhilde could genuinely take over from my beloved Nautilus Minis.

I have a third one one on order from Sourcemore but the tracking gets lost at London; I still have 10 working days til we hit the limit of between 20 -35 working days ... but I'm not hopeful!

 

[Kalyptic]

Haha a third one! What colors do you have already?

 

[Daniel Forsyth]

The info you're sharing here, I appreciate it. I'm curious, have you ever tried flat wire? I've never made any coils yet, so I'm wondering if round, or flat is best.

I started using flat wire a couple of years ago now and never looked back! I've tried many other types of wire since from your simple round wire to more exotic wire but nothing compares to the Rockin' Ribbon wire in my opinion both for flavour and the really fast ramp up and cool down of the coil.
I personally use 0.2mm×0.8mm Ni80 wire that always comes in at roughly 0.54 ohms, here's a bit of Coil Porn just for you Mate

 

[Kalyptic]

I started using flat wire a couple of years ago now and never looked back! I've tried many other types of wire since from your simple round wire to more exotic wire but nothing compares to the Rockin' Ribbon wire in my opinion both for flavour and the really fast ramp up and cool down of the coil.
I personally use 0.2mm×0.8mm Ni80 wire that always comes in at roughly 0.54 ohms, here's a bit of Coil Porn just for you Mate
View attachment 1007786

I have to get me a roll of flat wire I always wanted to try it, I'm just not sure about the sizes, that's pretty alien to me. It looks sick though!

 

[Falconeer]

Haha a third one! What colors do you have already?

I only buy them in stainless steel but as the long drip tips are pretty fragile for me, I've found that the Zlide drip tips work great - so far I have a white one a black one and a red one and I have a blue on on order as the next Geekvape L200 will be blue!, Sadly Vapefly has decided no longer to supply to the UK - so if this last one from Sourcemore in Holland does eventually arrive, it won't be an experiment I'll repeat.

 

[Daniel Forsyth]

I have to get me a roll of flat wire I always wanted to try it, I'm just not sure about the sizes, that's pretty alien to me. It looks sick though!

Have a bit of a play around with Steam Engine to get the best size wire that will suit you, Coil wrapping | Steam Engine | free vaping calculators
I get my wire sent from Zivipf.de in Germany, they ship all over the world and are very reliable with wire at very reasonable prices! NiChrome Flat Wire 0.8x0.2mm / .031*.008" - AWG 25
Definitely worth giving a try! You're first couple of coils will most likely look like you wound them with your feet but you will get the hang of it pretty quickly

 

[Real-ist]

I messed around free handing it, using the shaft of a small screwdriver, with some thin strips of brass to see how difficult it is to make a coil. Doing it that way, is definitely fiddlsome with that material. Too soft.

 

[Falconeer]

Hey Falconeer, just to add on the wicks lifting, it's from filling and over-filling the tank. E.g if you're using a gorilla bottle and press the nozzle firmly against the fill hole sealing it off and squeeze too hard or the bottle has a lot of air, it will push excess air and pressure along the steel wick through the holes and lift the cotton. Incidentally if you over fill the tank the juice will flood the deck and (Float) the cotton as well.
Only found this out because sometimes I fill with the cap off and witnessed it. Now I just fill gently and take care not to overfill.

Many thanks for that tip - what you've said about pressure building up when filling makes perfect sense!

 

[Falconeer]

I started using flat wire a couple of years ago now and never looked back! I've tried many other types of wire since from your simple round wire to more exotic wire but nothing compares to the Rockin' Ribbon wire in my opinion both for flavour and the really fast ramp up and cool down of the coil.
I personally use 0.2mm×0.8mm Ni80 wire that always comes in at roughly 0.54 ohms, here's a bit of Coil Porn just for you Mate
View attachment 1007786

You are the real expert here on Brunhildes and I know you have a lot of experience with them, so why have you settled on flat wire?

Is it better for flavour, do coils last longer, or do you find it easier to handle?

You've got me interested in trying this, hence the questions.

 

[Falconeer]

Eliquid Needle Bottles are every bit as useful as they were in 2012. I use em every day for certain tanks.

I followed your lead and ordered up some of these; they should be here tomorrow. Apart from anything else these'll take up less space than loads of 10ml bottles.

My usual supplier of vape liquid has changed the bottles he uses of late - the new ones have a thicker needle nose which makes filling my Brunhildes more difficult - so thanks for your post.

 

[Real-ist]

I started using flat wire a couple of years ago now and never looked back! I've tried many other types of wire since from your simple round wire to more exotic wire but nothing compares to the Rockin' Ribbon wire in my opinion both for flavour and the really fast ramp up and cool down of the coil.
I personally use 0.2mm×0.8mm Ni80 wire that always comes in at roughly 0.54 ohms, here's a bit of Coil Porn just for you Mate
View attachment 1007786

Nicely done. The more you share here, the more in perspective overall size is becoming. Your sharing the size ribbon wire you're using, dials it in more. Which is good and bad in my reality.

The brass I was using is approx 3.2mm wide. My mention of it being "fiddly" stemmed from my lack of fine motor skills. Reality101 has set in.

Considering the width (0.8) of ribbon you use and how dainty that is in comparison to what I was playing with, I've a very strong feeling that I'm setting myself up to fail miserably, due to that smaller scale. Which brings up the question, are you using a "jig" to make your coils?

 

[UncLeJunkLe]

using a "jig"

For round wire I use both of these types if "jigs" (may not be suitable for flat wire coils if coil is long)

That's just a stepped mandrel. But you can use anything cylindrical for a mandrel that is as wide as you want/need it to be. Like the smooth part of a drill bit. The link isn't a purchase suggestion, I have no idea if that seller is reliable. But there are many others on AliX selling this.

Then there's the coil winding jig (not suitable for flat wire)

This one's a bit on the expensive side but I couldn't find a decent, reasonably priced one in a pinch. The "Pirate" one on AliX appears to me to be a not-so-great design (after a quick look).

 

[Real-ist]

For round wire I use both of these types if "jigs" (may not be suitable for flat wire coils if coil is long)

That's just a stepped mandrel. But you can use anything cylindrical for a mandrel that is as wide as you want/need it to be. Like the smooth part of a drill bit. The link isn't a purchase suggestion, I have no idea if that seller is reliable. But there are many others on AliX selling this.

Then there's the coil winding jig (not suitable for flat wire)

This one's a bit on the expensive side but I couldn't find a decent one anywhere in a pinch.

Them there are pretty fancy.

That coil winding jig is elaborate. I relate to the rods with the nuts, but isn't that itself a fiddly affair to use? Less once set for your coil size. The R/C hobbiest in me is saying hmm.

Definitely something to keep noted. Thanks.

It seems every time I'm browsing AliX, I find things more by accident, than relevant search term. I know why, but in the same, it's irritating!!

 

[UncLeJunkLe]

That coil winding jig is elaborate. I relate to the rods with the nuts, but isn't that itself a fiddly affair to use? Less once set for your coil size. The R/C hobbiest in me is saying hmm.

Not sure I follow what yer sayin'. But here's a quick overview on how a coil winder is used. Nuttin' fancy or elaborate. Preferred by some because it makes nice, even coils quickly...if you don't use too much pressure.

 

[Real-ist]

Not sure I follow what yer sayin'. But here's a quick overview on how a coil winder is used. Nuttin' fancy or elaborate. Preferred by some because it makes nice, even coils quickly...if you don't use too much pressure.

Forget what I mumbled previously. The video showed me why there seemed to be so many pieces. Now I get it.

GD that's a tiny f×××king thing for a coil. My head has still not gotten wrapped around just exactly where I'm heading....making coils. Holy crap.