Last Updated on February 5, 2016 by
Beyond eCigarettes
An eCigarettes Opinion Piece By guest writer George W Hanson
I recently experienced a weekend of “unsatisfactory” vaping with my ecigarettes. In that I mean none of the eCigarettes that I regularly use were doing what they needed to do. For some reason, not the fault of the eCigs themselves, I was not getting enough vapor, flavor, and especially throat hit. Maybe I was stressed, in fact I’m sure I was, but in any case, I wanted more.
So I began looking toward the bigger eCigarettes. From Apollo eCigarettes line of tank systems like the VTube, to slightly less powerful TGo and ELips, this began to be something I was getting interested in.
Then I happened by the website run by Wendy Bivona, out of Melbourne Florida. (Which is how I wound up here at Spinfuel as a guest writer). Her website is “premium eCigs”, and on the site it lists hundreds of products from the normal eCigarettes I was used to, to the larger products that I had seen on the Apollo site.
I learned a lot from the website, from tips on how to vape, to synopsis on the products themselves. I learned that the larger systems on this website were called “ego” and “eLips”, and these products seemed like they would take me where I wanted to go.
In addition to the larger vaping kits premium eCigarettes sells a large variety of accessories and replacement parts. Whenever you use an eGo or ELips you will need to replace cartridges and atomizers. Premium eCigs stock several different cartridges for each product as well as atomizers and tons of other products for vaping.
Coming away from the site I had purchased an eGo system and some spare carts and atomizers, along with a sample can of e-juices from their “Johnson Creek” line. I prefer to vape American-made juices and Johnson Creek has the best reputation out there. I decided on a sampler can so that I could taste test flavors I wasn’t able to get with the traditional eCigarettes. Flavors like Black Cherry, Spiced Apple, or even (as it turns out, my favorite) The Johnson Creek Domestic Tobacco flavor.
The eGo
The thing about the eGo ecigarettes is that although it is thicker and a bit longer than an eCig “proper”, it still feels comfortable in your hands. No, you can’t let it hang in your mouth like you can a paper cigarette, but you can’t do that with an eCig either, its simply too heavy. But you can vape it like a cigar, which I used to love.
The eGo ecigarettes can handle a few different types of cartridges and atomizers and it depends on your own wants and desires to decide on which works best for you. Instead of trying to make that decision right then and there I ordered a few different “mods” so that I could make up my mind later. As it turned out, I seem to be sticking to 2 types of carts/atomizer. One is the normal atomizer that comes with the device. It is shaped, with the outer piece, for screwing in on one end of the eGo and then tapers down. The clear plastic cartridge fits into the end, which slips into the cartomizer (you have to push it in, puncture a small hole in the flexible plastic/rubber removable tip). You just fill the small cart with your favorite juice and begin vaping.
These carts take about 6-10 drops easily and last for about 3 or 4 hours of vaping. With the eGo ecigarettes device’s manual battery, meaning that you push and hold a small button when you take a drag it saves battery life and so provides a stronger charge to the battery. The process yields a thick and delicious vapor with a great throat hit. Depending on the quality of your juice of course, you’ll be blown away by how much more flavor and vapor you will get over the smaller eCigarette. The first time you use one of these devices you’re shocked that you could get this much vapor, flavor, and satisfaction from flavored water vapor.
Throat Hit
A good throat hit is a must for me. If you vape you know what I mean, and if you don’t I think you deserve a bit of an explanation. First, a throat hit is that feeling at the back of your throat that you get with that first cigarette of the day. For me, and I know this sounds crazy, the throat hit tells me I’m alive. When a bit of nicotine punch, a hit of rich, warm, tobacco flavoring, and vapor you can feel filling your lungs, the vaping experience takes more than a step up.
A good throat hit does not hit too hard. It does not burn your throat or go up to your sinuses. A good throat hit smacks the back of your throat with a bit of mastery, with perhaps a flick if sensation surrounded by rich flavors. It’s why we do what we do.
A good throat hit depends on a couple of factors, all equally important. A good quality juice, nicotine, and a strong battery that vaporizes the juice in a split second, and with totality combine just right to give you a throat hit with each drag. Without these things it can be like inhaling steam.
With a device like the eGo ecigarettes getting a nice throat hit is an easier, the battery power is a lot better than the thin and tiny eCig batteries. That said, if you vape with cheaply made juice you’re going to get the wrong type of throat hit, that harsh punch at the back of your throat that turns into a burning sensation that travels up the nose and into your sinus cavity. That’s not one of the “feel good” moments. The axiom, you get what you pay for, applies to just about every thing you buy for the hobby of vaping.
Back to Premium eCigs
Which leads me to the end of this article. Vaping, to me anyway, is a hobby. A hobby I love, and a hobby I enjoy spending money on. But when I spend my money I want to make sure I’m getting a great value. Premium eCigs is a great place to shop and buy because not only are the prices terrific for your “disposable income” you’ll spend on your hobby, but because Wendy will take the time to answer your questions, and if you are in the brick and mortar store she’ll even let you try different products to make sure you know what you want and you’ll enjoy what you buy.
While I haven’t traveled to Florida to buy from Premium eCigs I hope I am able to some day. Wendy sounds like a great woman who has spent years learning the in’s and out’s of every type of vaping. She worked with me on choosing the right device, directed me to Johnson Creek (American made too!) and taught me how to fill a cartridge, work with an atomizer, and more. She even made me a short video and sent it to me through email. That, my fellow vapers, is customer service.
As my hobby grows I’ll move in different directions, seek out new juices, new devices, new mods. Because a hobby is all about exploration, discovery, learning, and fun, I know that Wendy and Premium eCigs will be there for me. I get much in return for my investment into vaping and a big part of that has to be all the trail and error I avoided by finding Premium eCigs and Wendy Bivona.
Wendy and Spinfuel
Okay, so I told you in the beginning that I would explain how I got to this point, how I was a guest writer for Spinfuel. Here it is.
I scout around for eCig websites quite a bit and about a month ago I discovered Spinfuel Magazine. The reviews here are almost too truthful, and they are written in a way I’d never seen before. The reviews are more like diary entries, especially the early ones. I felt at home here because of that. So I stop by all the time.
Around the first of the month I stopped in, anxious to see the new cover to be honest, and I noticed that Spinfuel had added a new section and a new contributor. So I clicked on the menu and visited Wendy Bivona’s pages. Her Q&A page is awesome, and I think that very soon she is going to be flooded with questions, and her page with videos and other things was a lot of fun. I also saw her links to her store, so I went there with a click.
Basically what I did was visit Spinfuel, click over to Wendy’s page, then to her store. I ordered the eGo and other stuff, tried them out, and loved the outcome. So I wrote John Manzione and told him all about it. He wrote back and asked if I would be interested in writing about the experience, with the “hook” being my own desire to move into something “more” than what the eCigarette was offering. I accepted. I wrote this article. John did some editing, sent it back. I signed off, and here it is. Simple, no?
Closing
In closing, I want to make sure that I leave my readers with something. If you are happy with your current eCigarette and you don’t have those desires for something more, something bigger, than by all means stay with what you love. But if you ARE looking for more, a larger experience in your vaping, then looking into the eGo, or TGo, ELips, and even the lavatubes and VTube, then check out as many websites as you want to, but leave Premium eCigs for last. Get to know Wendy here on Spinfuel, and on her own website. Check her prices, her selections, and most of all her knowledge about vaping and her willingness to share that knowledge. I’m betting that when you are ready for something more you’ll buy from Wendy’s Premium eCigs, and you’ll become a regular at Spinfuel, where Wendy shares her knowledge.
Thank you for reading all the way to the end, I hope I gave you some insight into my vaping experience. If you want to, I’d love to hear about yours in the comments below.
GWH
(George W Hanson)
