Sigelei SOBRA 198W TC Starter Kit Review

In this review we will look into the Sigelei Sobra 198W TC Starter Kit.  The Sobra is offered in three (3) different ‘snake’ patterns as well as a gold and a light-rainbow glossy finish. The snake patterns, along with the two narrow slit “eyes” that light up when the user takes a hit from the Moonshot Sub-Ohm Tank, definitely give off a Cobra snake feel, and as a marketing ploy it’s a good one. That said, looks only get you so far and what really counts is the performance of the mod and its accompanying tank.

The Sigelei Sobra is a Dual-18650 battery mod with dimensions of 88.9mm by 55.35mm by 39.5mm and capable of firing up to 198W. It comes the now standard temperature control suite, plus a colorful 1.3″ TFT (thin film transistor) LCD that displays a wide array of information. Unlike many newer mods of 2018, the Sigelei Sobra navigates using the two adjustment buttons. It is a 5-click on/off, 3-click-to-the-menu mod, and navigating is performed simply, but is somewhat limited in what it can do.

The GUI is straightforward. 3 clicks get you to the main navigation screen. From there you are presented with Mode, Screen, Set and Exit. Use the plus or minus button to choose which feature you want to adjust. Although the TFT screen is colorful, the user cannot change the colors to suit the mood. In most ways the Sigelei Sobra is standard fare and most users will be fine with its capabilities. However, while the chipset is decent, it doesn’t offer much in the way of customization.

The Sigelei Sobra chassis is constructed with a lightweight zinc alloy and brass accents. Even with 2x 18650 batteries, it is lighter than I expected.

The two ‘orange’ colored LED illuminated eyes that create the “snake eye” effect lies above the screen, but only light up when the fire button is depressed. That being the case, any ‘cool’ effect is seen by anyone looking at the user, since the user can’t really see them because the mod sits below the sight-line of the user.

For this review I used two 18650 cells from a company called “Juiced”. While there are various cells produced by Juiced I used 2x 2500mAh, 25A cells that worked well. Battery life was as expected with 2500mAh, and because the TFT display show two battery indicators I kept my eye on how the batteries drained during use. I was happy to see that both cells drained evenly, and offered up more than 4 hours of moderate to heavy vaping before I had to switch them out.

The batteries are secure in the battery compartment, and the Sobra uses a hinged door at the bottom of the mod. I experienced no battery rattle, nor did I have any problem with the door itself.

The Sigelei Sobra mod fires up to 198W with full temperature control suite. In addition to being capable of using Stainless-Steel, Titanium, and Ni200 Nickel heating elements, the Sobra features TCR adjustments.

The Sigelei Sobra 198W TC Starter Kit includes the excellent high-performance Sigelei Moonshot 120 Sub-ohm Tank. (currently available only with the Sobra Starter Kit)The included replacement coils provide outstanding flavor fidelity, and plenty of vapor production, though certainly not a cloud chaser.

The Moonshot Sub-Ohm has a slightly knurled dual adjustable bottom airflow ring that moves smoothly and easily, it’s designed to use the Sigelei MS Coil System, has a 5mL maximum juice capacity and a simple but effective threaded top fill system. The top fill system is a threaded Delrin top cap (users cannot remove the drip tip). Despite not being able to change out the drip tip, the Delrin top cap keeps the tank room temperature no matter how high the wattage or how long the vape.

To assist in preventing leaks there is a silicon cover over the fill slot and the user will need to push through the silicon in order to fill the tank.

The Moonshot Sub-Ohm Tank’s dual airflow slots that measure 7mm by 2mm. These slots allow the airflow to come in from the bottom of the tank and into the enlarged center of the MS Coil System and is responsible for providing the exceptional flavor. Don’t get me wrong, the cloud production is more than enough to satisfy 99.99% of users, and only the fiercest cloud chasers would find reason to complain.

Like most modern sub-ohm tanks, the Moonshot can be a thirsty sucker. With 5mL of capacity you’ll get decent mileage before needing to refill.

Sigelei has created two replacement coils for the Moonshot Tank, the MS and MS-H. While both coils provide better than expected performance, each gives a slightly different vape experience. Both coils are Kanthal coils.

MS Coil – Definitely best for flavor chasers

Coil Resistance: 0.25Ω

Wattage range is 40-80W

MS-H Coil – High Wattage users, produces thicker clouds

Coil Resistance: 0.2Ω

Wattage range is 60-120W

Aesthetics has always been an important factor when deciding to buy a mod, tank, or starter kit. I can’t imagine the Gold or Rainbow colors of the Sobra will do well, but the snake skin patterns are pretty cool. My favorite is the Serpentine Black, which has a very familiar SMOK Cobra pattern on the entire mod and the Moonshot tank. Unfortunately, I was late to the party and the only one left for me was the light, and ugly, rainbow finish. Only one mod this year did Rainbow right, and it was the SMOK Majesty Luxe (reviewed here) Rainbow… a darkly colored rainbow finish that ALL mod makers should try to emulate. (See photo) I should also mention that the Sobra has a center-mounted 510-connector which adds to aesthetics of the mod.

Ramp up times are poor to fair, as are the various misfires. More often that I like I would press the fire button and nothing would happen. In the beginning of the review period this happened far too often, but as the review period extended out several days the misfires seemed much less. That said, I’m not sure if the Sobra or Moonshot needed to be broken in, or if I subconsciously adapted my trigger finger to press the fire button harder. Either way, if you pick up a Sigelei Sobra Kit just be aware that the misfires can be less worrisome

with a firm press on the fire button.

I guess I’m a sucker for cool looking mods because I do plan on purchasing one of the Serpentine Black Sobra’s. I like this mod, and I really like the Moonshot Tank. There are a few e-liquids I buy strictly for flavor, not their ability to create huge clouds, and during the review period I vaped my way through two 60mL bottles of Pachamama – Peach Papaya Coconut Cream, one of the best flavors I’ve vaped this year. I have vaped this juice in several sub-ohms and know the blend like the back of my hand. When vaped in the Moonshot tank with the 0.25-ohm MS Coil I was able to detect each of the flavors like never before.

If, while looking at the different snake patterns, you decide you like what you see, then the higher-than-I-expected price tag is worth it. The Sobra mod offers plenty to the average Vaper, while the Moonshot Sub-Ohm is pretty wonderful. So, yeah, if you like what you see you’ll like what you get.

Score: A