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Atom Vapes gClapton Coil Heads vs DIY Clapton Coils
J.C. Martin III
My Rating: 5 of 5 Stars
NOTE* The Official Spinfuel Product Review For the Atom Vapes gClapton Coil heads are here. This article addresses some very interesting emails we’ve received from readers immediately after the massive Atom Vapes gClapton Coilhead Giveaway began. Many readers wished to know how well these prebuilt Clapton coil heads stood up to a Clapton Coil made by a good coil builder. J.C. Martin, a talented coil builder, spent a few days comparing his Clapton’s against the Atom Vapes gClapton coil heads. The results are very interesting…
Introduction
Many vapers who build their own coils know about a certain ‘build’ known as the ‘Clapton’. Its fans are legion. The basic Clapton coil is 30 gauge Kanthal wrapped around a single strand of 28 gauge Kanthal. This coil build produces flavor-filled vapor with dense vapor production as well. The advantage of a Clapton Coil is that the wire, when it’s saturated with e-liquid, has ‘channels’ that the e-liquids seeps into, thus providing an exceptional, extraordinary flavor and vapor experience. There are now several variations of the original Clapton coil, and some of the photos I’ve seen of them are mind-blowing. Check out Pinterest for some photos that are truly impressive, and inspiring to other builders.
As of last week these special gClapton coils are available in prebuilt coil heads for many popular sub-ohm tanks by Atom Vapes. The Atom Vapes and Spinfuel Giveaway (now concluded) that gave 20 winners a chance to try these new coil heads was a huge success, and the buzz about them has been non-stop. With good reason. UPDATE* – Since receiving the gClapton Coils, many of the winners of this giveaway emailed us to say how much they were enjoying these terrific coil heads.
Atom Vapes gClapton coils are amazing. They appear to be the best coil heads I’ve used to date. I’ve used them for a several days now, and they are far-and-away a fantastic new product from one of the most innovative manufacturers in our industry. UPDATE: See our review on the ceramic coils by Atom Vapes, called, naturally, the gCeramic Coil Heads. The ‘g’ stands for ‘Gold’, because both the gClapton and gCeramic coils from AV are 24k Gold-plated for extreme conductivity and durability.
Clapton’s For All
Atom Vapes offers the gClapton coil heads for the Kanger Subtank lines, Horizon Arctic, the Herakles, and the Aspire sub-ohm tanks. They are offered in Kanthal and Nickel, at various ohms, including 0.5, 0.3, and 0.15 ohms.
Coil builders, like myself, have been enjoying the Clapton ‘build’ long before Atom Vapes found a way to put a quality Clapton Coil inside a prebuilt coil head, so it begs the question; “Is there really any comparison between Atom Vapes Clapton Coil atomizer heads and Clapton Coils built for RDA’s?” The answer? “Well, it depends on a few things.”
First of all, the coil builder’s skill level matters. Second of all, time can separate the two options for many vapers. Any sub-ohm tank takes far less maintenance and saves e-juice more so than a rebuildable atomizer. With a sub-ohm tank users can easily vape consistently with similar vapor production, and flavor, of an RDA.
Is it hard to tell the difference in the size of the clouds produced, especially if you are not a cotton wicking master. In order for a DIY coil build to outdo a sub-ohm tank equipped with an Atom Vapes Gold Plated OVC (organic vertical gClapton ) Sub-Ohm TC Ni200 atomizer head, for instance, the builder would have to make something like a Dual Clapton chimney coil hollow-wick build. This style of wicking cotton simply wraps the cotton around the vertical coils, highly mimicking what is inside of a sub-ohm atomizer. If you compare the sub-ohm gClapton coil atomizer heads with DIY Clapton coils, chances 
are you will prefer your sub-ohm tank with the Atom Vapes gClapton Coil more than your DIY Clapton RDA. RDAs can be a hassle, so, for daily use and prolonged continued vaping for those with busy schedules, the atomizer heads will win the competition every time. And I say this as someone that loves to build my own coils!
Despite my love of building coils, and my skill level, which I rate as fairly high, after some extensive testing with various e-liquids, various mods, and various DIY Clapton’s and the various gClapton Coils form Atom Vapes, I have to admit that when all is said and done, the edge goes to the prebuilt gClapton coils, when measured in flavor and vapor production. Clearly RDA’s have their advantages, and the comparison between the gClapton coils and my own Clapton builds were neck and neck, and not everyone who had tried both agreed with me, but the majority had to admit that whatever Atom Vapes was doing with their prebuilt gold-plated gClapton coils, they performed somewhat better. That was hard to swallow at first, but I’m confident enough in myself and my skills to admit when I’ve been beaten.
Atom Vapes gClapton SUBXERΩ 0.32Ω OVC Atomizer Heads:
- 4 x OVC ( Organic Vertical Clapton ) Coils In Box
- 24ct Gold Plated for Reliable Voltage Flow
- Ohms Resistance Label on Atomizer Head
- 30% Longer Life Than Other Coils
- 3 Ohms Resistance
- Large Wicking Openings
- Recommended for 25w/45w
- For Devices Able to Use Low Resistance Coils
- Compatible for Specified Sub-Ohm Tank
- Available for Kanger Subtank Mini, Subtank Plus, and Subtank Nano
- Available for Aspire, Herakles, and Arctic Sub-Ohm Tanks
- 100% Pure Organic Cotton Wicking
- Professionally Hand Built Coils
- 2 Separate Wire Gauges
- Recommend Utilization 30 watts
- Included Atomizer Head Priming Instructions
- Designed in Holland
- Engineered in the United Kingdom
Atom Vapes gClapton SUBXERΩ 0.15Ω Ni200 TC OVC Atomizer Heads:
- 4 x OVC Coils In Box
- TC ( Temperature Control )
- For Use with TC Mods Only
- Ohms Resistance Labeled on Atomizer Head
- 24ct Gold Plated for Reliable Voltage Flow
- 30% Longer Life Than Other Coils
- 15 Ohms Resistance
- For Devices Able to Use Low Resistance Coils Only
- Large Wicking Openings
- Compatible for Specified Sub-Ohm Tank
- Available for Kanger Subtank Mini, Subtank Plus, and Subtank Nano
- Available for Aspire, Herakles, and Arctic Sub-Ohm Tanks
- 100% Pure Organic Cotton Wicking
- Professionally Hand Built Coils
- 2 Separate Wire Gauges
- Packaging Weight 58g
- Recommended for 25 – 50 watts
- Atomizer Head Dimensions 22mm x 12mm
- Included Atomizer Head Priming Instructions
- Made by Vape Heads for Vape Rockstars
- Designed in Holland
- Engineered in the United Kingdom
Using Atomizer Heads Correctly
Installing and using an atomizer head properly can mean the difference between enormous cloud production and a device not even working at all.
To get the best performance from any prebuilt coil head, and especially these excellent Atom Vapes gClapton coil heads you must prime the atomizer head properly, or your regulated VV/VW/TC mod may not even work, and priming the coil takes more skill with the TC (temperature control) version. If the coil head is not primed properly the fresh cotton can scorch, and over-priming the coil can give you a ‘Check Atomizer‘ message on your mod’s display, and can even cause ‘spit-back’, that nasty bit of hot e-liquid smacking into the tip of your tongue.
Avoiding Disasters in TC Mode?
I bend the rules a little here in order to avoid nasty disasters when working with any coil head. I install the coil into an empty tank, sans e-juice, and adjust the settings for the Temperature Control as I would normally. Then, with just one quick click of the firing button, I test the ohm’s reading of the atomizer head. Upon seeing no message on the display screen, I proceed to prime the coil as per the instructions. This means to take the tank apart in order to fill it 1/2 full with e-juice and prime the atomizer head with only a drop or two of eliquid. I reassemble the sub-ohm tank and set it aside. This way, the organic cotton can fully saturate, allowing the tank to perform extremely well. It’s a little extra work, but worth it, trust me.
Once, upon receiving a new sub-ohm tank with Ni200 (Pure Nickel) TC coil head, I dropped a massive amount of e-liquid onto the atomizer head and filled the tank up over 85% of the way. This drowned out the atomizer head, and the display read and the dreaded “Check Atomizer” error. After removing the atomizer head and letting the e-juice seep out, I reassembled the sub-ohm tank. It still did not work. I eventually got the tank to work properly days later. These reasons are more than enough to remember to prime the atomizer head without drowning it out. A quick dry-cotton activation will not burn the cotton, and as long as you do not over prime the atomizer head, a sub-ohm tank will surpass most of other vaping methods. Some Temperature Control devices utilize a primary ohms level reading or test for their temperature control limits. The dry-cotton quick-test method increases your chances of a Ni200 Sub-Ohm atomizer working properly with various devices.
Is there any real difference between Atom Vapes gClapton SUBXERΩ Gold Plated atomizer heads and other sub-ohm atomizer heads?
Absolutely.
While you may think at first that a standard coil head and a Clapton Coil head will produce the same quality vape, they do not. The Clapton sub-ohm atomizer heads do allow for increased vapor production 
and flavor fidelity, and they also re-saturate in less time. There is actually a notable difference. The Clapton coils retain a small amount of e-juice, too, so they nearly eliminate the process of setting aside the device to let the organic cotton re-saturate.
Although it’s possible to do get a dry hit with a gClapton Coil head, it’s pretty difficult. Even after a quick succession of hits from the tank, the chances of getting a dry hit is small. Of course, there is little reason to vape that way on purpose, usually, but during my testing of the Atom Vapes gClapton Coils I can take 7 large hits in a row and still find the gClapton coil atomizer head to be saturated enough for the next nice cloud of vapor.
To Atom Vapes, I have to say that you have thoroughly impressed me; I have not yet encountered any other sub-ohm atomizer head of this caliber. Thank you for your innovative ideas and products. Despite my penchant for building my own coils I will definitely keep a healthy number of your Clapton Coilheads in stock for all the tanks you supply them for.
Warranty
Atom Vapes has an extensive description of their warranty policy on their website, in case their products are defective, a rare occurrence. As they are some of the nicest products on the planet, it is doubtful that they would make something available flawed. The Quality Control system they use catches virtually every bad unit coming off the line. However, the customer needs to register the new product or products within 14 days for the 90-day warranty policy to be valid. Of course, damage caused by misuse is not covered under their warranty, or anyone else’s.
About Atom Vapes
Atom Vapes has a progressive view in regards to the vaping market. On their website, they mention people being able to work for them near Shenzhen China. Atom Vapes believes in listening to customers’ likes and dislikes, designing the best products, and making them available to those who enjoy them. They are easy to contact, and their products are gaining in popularity every day. That is not an easy thing to do with established competition already in place. But Atom Vapes is an innovative company, always striving to produce unique and superb quality products Vapers actually want to use. To learn more, check out the “Meet the Team” page on their gorgeous website.
Conclusion
In conclusion, I thoroughly enjoyed testing out the gClapton SUBXERΩ OVC atomizer heads from Atom Vapes. They are excellent coil heads and promote some of the most massive cloud production I have seen in prebuilt coil heads. The gClapton coils produce vapor and flavor as much as my personal dual Clapton coil builds, and surely with much less hassle.
I love to build coils, and many more vapers prefer utilizing the gClapton OVCs over DIY RDA vaping, I am sure. If I knew someone with an Arctic Sub-Ohm Tank (or any tank these gClapton Coils are compatible with) in need of a new atomizer head, I would highly suggest the gold-plated gClapton OVC atomizer heads as replacement coils. This is the reason I gave the gClapton Coil heads 5 of 5 stars: I can think of no drawback in choosing gClapton OVCs over anything else currently on the market. Thank you for reading and vape on.
Rating: 5 of 5 Stars
J.C. Martin III
