Vaptio Wall Crawler Frogman Vape Tank Review

What an absolute surprise this new Vaptio Wall Crawler Kit (Frogman Vape Tank Edition) has turned out to be. After a week and a half of use, I would put this thing up against any Eleaf Pico (reviewed here), and any other single 18650-mini-device like the SMOK AL85 (reviewed here) and so on. The Wall Crawler with theFrogman Sub-Ohm performs so well that I couldn’t wait for the official review time period to end before sitting down to write this review. So, sit back and get ready to hear about a small box mod and 5mL sub-ohm that delivers a great vape at an affordable price.

I’m going to let you in on a little secret that I have used since August 2014, three and a half years ago, since I learned a valuable lesson. The lesson was this:

“If you vape one brand / one flavor more than any other, learn the real flavor profile and use it to test the flavor fidelity and cloud production of every Vape Tank, and every mod. It will be your ‘Constant’”

This little lesson has worked for me in every review I’ve done. While it is certainly a reliable test for Vape Tanks, it has use for every Mod as well.

For the longest time I thought the Mod portion of any Kit mattered little when it came to ‘enjoying’ a good vape. I thought to myself that “wattage is wattage”, and as long as I needed 60W to power whatever Vape Tank I was using, it didn’t matter wherethat 60W came from. That is not true. I’m sure some engineer or scientist could explain it in better terms than I can, but to me, there is “clean, crisp wattage”, and “muddy, weak, and spastic wattage”. (Or maybe I’m imagining it)

Because I am not a fan of Nickel, Titanium or Stainless-Steel, I use nothing but Variable Wattage (Power) mode and Kanthal A1 wire with pure organic cotton wicking. Kanthal and good cotton provide “true” flavor fidelity, but only when used in a properly designed Vape Tank that allows good airflow. This review will focus on the Power Mode (wattage), for two reasons; both prebuilt coils included in the kit are Kanthal, and I dislike using the aforementioned wires

My first order of business while in “review mode” is to load up the Kit’s Frogman Vape Tankwith my “one brand / one flavor” e-juice, prime the Vape Tank, attach it to the mod, calculate the best estimated wattage, and give a taste test.

The result of this taste test will determine the outcome of 50% of the review, the Vape Tank. If the first ‘taste test’ fails to satisfy, I would set aside the Vape Tank overnight and try it again in the morning. If I get the same results, then as far as I’m concerned, the included Vape Tank has failed, so I turn my attention to the Mod, using a Vape Tank I know to be excellent.

Using the new and trusted Vape Tank I would attach it to the Mod I’m reviewing to see how the Tank vapes with this Mod. If the Mod provides clean, crisp 60 to 80 watts, then it passes the first real Mod test and I can move on and conduct other tests with the Mod. The included tank, the vape tank included with the starter kit, is discarded for the remainder of the review.

I scored the Frogman Sub-Ohm Tank as a B+ vape tank. The flavor fidelity and cloud production were first-rate. Excellent! The preinstalled Coil Head is the 30-80-Watt Direct Lung Frogman W2 (Kanthal). The optimal wattage for this coil is an even 60W. There was some play, 55W to 65W, but for me, 60W was the prime setting for my selected ‘review’ e-juice. I recognized every nuance in the complex flavor profile of the special e-liquid I use for reviews, so if nothing else, the Frogman turned out to be a marvelous sub-ohm tank.

At 60 watts the flavor from the Frogman was 98% as good as the Uwell Valyrian or SMOK Prince. Cloud production comes very close to those same vape tanks. With the bottom airflow slots wide open, the Frogman creates a lot of vapor, but it can get a little warmer than I had expected. This lack of heat dissipation is the only reason the Frogman did not score a solid A rating.

The Kit comes with 2x Frogman W2 coils, and after 11 days I’m still using the original preinstalled coil, though I am just now contemplating a switch out. I think users of the Frogman Vape Tank will find the coil life to be exceptional, provided it is primed properly and never accidently or otherwise scorched. Once a Kanthal/Cotton coil is scorched it never recovers. (ceramic coils can)

The Frogman sub-ohm vape tank in this kit is the 5mL capacity model. The tank uses a twist-off release, lift-off top cap fill system. (Twisting the cap releases a latch that keeps the cap secure) Removing the top cap reveals two large fill slots.

These fill slots have a soft plastic flap under them, so that the user will need to push through to fill the tank. I love this idea because as secure as the top cap is, these flaps provide extra protection from leaking e-juice. However, I have to admit that the first time I filled the tank is was nearly dark, and not having read the manual, naturally, I didn’t apply any pressure at the fill slots and the e-juice did not penetrate the slots. Only after this mistake did I notice the flaps, and after that it was all good.

The Frogman sub-ohm tank uses a proprietary drip tip that the user can twist around, but not remove. Or at least I couldn’t remove it.  Vaping heavily at 60W the drip tip stays room temperature. However, while pushing the coils to their maximum range of 80W the drip tip did get a bit warm. Not warm enough to cause a problem or discomfort, and it cooled down quickly, so I don’t have an issue with it.

The glass tank is somewhat thick. I’m certain the glass is not the same glass used in the much more expensive Rig Mod Vaping AMP “The Tanker”, (reviewed here) though the weight of it is only slightly lighter. I mention this only because it indicates a quality glass tube.

The base of the vape tank features dual airflow slots that allow in a lot of air when wide open. Yet, the airflow slots can be completely closed as well, so setting the tightness of the draw will be easy, even to the point of creating an MTL draw, though I don’t see any reason to. If you want to improve, or focus the flavor more you can stop down the airflow for a better flavor focus, but again, I saw no reason to do so other than for testing purposes.

The only other worthwhile mention regarding the Frogman Sub-Ohm Vape Tank is that it is a moderately thirsty tank. I vaped through 5mL in under 90 minutes. I own tanks that drink e-juice faster, and some that drink e-juice slower (at the same wattage). Your mileage may vary.

In any case, the Frogman Sub-Ohm performance was certainly good enough to continue using it while switching my attention to the Wall Crawler Mod.

I truly like the Frogman Vape Tank, but I definitely got a kick out of the Spiderman-like web design on the black of the Wall Crawler mod. That said, I can’t help but think that if this Mod was made in the US I doubt very much that the courts would allow such close approximation of the Spiderman logo, and perhaps even the name “Wall Crawler”, as an indirect nod toward Spidey.

The shape of the Wall Crawler Mod, and the feel of it in my hand was a better fit than that of the PICO or the SMOK AL85.

The Mod itself has some weight to it, even without the single 18650-cell, but I wouldn’t say it is a heavy mod. The materials are both metal and plastic, yet it feels solid and durable. I’ve dropped it a few times without a single problem.

The display 1.3” display has a nice, full-color screen that is both super crisp and clear. In fact, the fonts and icons are sharper than many bigger name brand screens. The adjust buttons are located under the display and has a nice audible click when you press them. Laid out at an angle that points downward toward each other, I found them to be very responsive and easy to access. They are not flush to the front of the mod, making them easy to find in the dark.

The menu system is also easy to access. Just 3 clicks on the side fire panel will get you to the menu screen, which is laid out in 4 circular icons, Mode, Settings, Theme (there is only 1 theme for now) and a Back icon. This setup with the menu icons just screams to be touchscreen-enabled, but it isn’t. You navigate with the adjustment buttons, then press the fire panel to activate the icon for further options. Every screen has a Home icon, so getting out of the system is easy.

The Mode Icon features 5 options, Wattage (Power Mode), Temp Control, Power Curve, Temp Curve and Bypass mode.

The next menu option is ‘Settings’. From there you can get into; System, Smoke Time, Sleep Time, Inner Resistance and Language. Despite using the Frogman vape tank with its default, preinstalled coil head, the Inner Resistance kept giving me a “Mismatch” warning, showing me Testing Conditions, and Actual Conditions. Nothing I did set this right, even switching out the battery.

Next is the Theme Option, and there is only the one choice. Perhaps at some point there will be a firmware update for this feature that will allow us to make changes to language (only English is available now), colors, and maybe even a background photo. Who knows?

The Back icon is just a way to leave the menu screen and return to the operational screen.

The battery is accessed by unscrewing the cap on the battery chamber next to the Vape Tank, like the PICO and AL85. But, the threading on the Wall Crawler is somewhat smoother than either of the others, but if you have fat fingers it’s still best to remove the Frogman vape tank before unscrewing the cap to exchange the battery.

If you leave the Mod on when exchanging the battery, it comes back on when the new battery is installed. To turn off the Mod it’s a matter of 5 fast clicks to the Fire Panel. The battery can also be charged using the USB port sitting directly under the Fire Panel, and a USB cable is included.

The Wall Crawler and Frogman Vape Tank do their jobs very well, delivering instant clouds, and true flavor.  The menu system is simple, and easily managed. I prefer it over other similar Mods, and the Frogman makes a great partner for the Mod. Note* There is another Wall Crawler Kit that comes with the Vaptio Throne Tank, but we did not receive this model.

Wall Crawler Battery Life

Remember that in a world of dual-cell devices, the Wall Crawler is powered by a single 18650. The battery life isn’t all that wonderful when compared to dual cell Mods, but considering it is pushing a full color display, and coils with a resistance of 0.25ohm, it can’t be expected to last more than 2 hours or so with heavy vaping, or maybe 3-4 hours with moderate vaping. If you keep a few spare batteries around, the battery life becomes a non-issue.

The overall design is modern, tough, and pretty much a “guys” mod.  I particularly like the side fire panel, the front panel adjustment buttons, and the sharp and colorful 1.3” display.

I didn’t expect to like the Wall Crawler, and I had little confidence in the Frogman Sub-Ohm Vape Tank. I think that reveals more about my own bias then it does about Vaptio. I approached this review with trepidation and ended up with a pocket mod I will actually use. (While I did like the Vaptio N1 for its power and design, the N1 was a very heavy Mod)

The Frogman Vape Tank was the real surprise here, and I applaud Vaptio for creating a tank that delivers the goods; great flavor and massive clouds with a healthy 5mL capacity.

The Mod will remind some of the Eleaf PICO, and as we know now, the PICO was and is a huge success. But, for me, I prefer the Wall Crawler because of performance, the rough and tumble design, and again, that awesome screen.

The Wall Crawler Mod is comfortable, easy to hold and use. I also love the instant vape feature. A naturally fast ramp up time is a great feature to have on a mod like this.

Right now, the only trusted source, outside of Vaptio in China, where you can buy the Wall Crawler. I would love to see Vapor Authority, Element Vape, and MyVaporStore (our most trusted vendors) carry Vaptio products, but that’s certainly not up to me.

If you’re intent on ordering straight from the source, here are two links to each of the Wall Crawler Kits:

• Vape Tank size: 23.5*54.9mm
• E-liquid capacity: 2.0ml
• Mod size: 73*50*28.5mm
• Screen: 1.3-inch color screen
• Wattage: 7-80w
• Resistance range: 0.05-2.0 ohm
• Battery form factor: 18650

Wall Crawler and Frogman Kit Includes:

• 1* Frogman Vape Tank – 5mL
• 1* Iron Spider mod
• 1* User manual
• 1* USB cable
• 2* Frogman W2 coil heads, 0.25ohm