Videos Archives - Page 24 of 43

Vaping Diaries #128: El Kapitan 1.5 Review

The El Kapitan 1.5 is an updated version of a beautiful mechanical mod from the Philippines. Made by Wu Tang House of Mods, the El Kapitan 1.5 features distinct looks and great performance. For those of you not familiar with Wu Tang House of Mods, it’s highly regarded by enthusiast vapers, but isn’t as well known (to American vapers, anyway) as other Filipino vaping companies like Grand Vapor and VapeHead Origins. With products like the El Kapitan 1.5, Wu Tang’s reputation will burgeon. It’s an attractive vaping device that’s among my favorite Filipino mods.

Build Quality and Construction: The El Kapitan 1.5 is available with a stainless steel body with brass caps or a brass body with stainless steel caps. For the last few weeks, I’ve been using the former version. The materials are quality and the craftsmanship is mostly impressive. The stainless steel body is cut well and the threads are totally smooth. While the brass caps screwed on smoothly, you can see burrs on the threads. Some vapers won’t care about this since the caps attach just fine, but it will bother those that enjoy the collectibility aspect of mods.

Ergonomics and Design: Using the El Kapitan 1.5 is just like using other mechanical mods. It comes with 18650 and 18350 tubes, both of which are inline with similarly sized vaping devices. The mod is comfortable to hold and is relatively light. Its 22mm diameter makes it a great match for several Genesis-style and bottom-coil silica atomizers.

One unique feature of the El Kapitan 1.5 is its reverse-telescoping pin. The pin slides up and down, similar to how self-adjusting pins work. However, it also has a smaller section on the top that can be adjusted. For vapers that use different types of atomizers and different brands of batteries, the pin isn’t the simplest solution. It’s not that it’s difficult to use, but it’s not as mindless as floating pins or self-adjusting pins. For anal-retentive vapers that insist on zero battery rattle, a minute or two of pin adjustment is require when changing to a different atomizer or battery.

The firing button on the El Kapitan 1.5 has a short throw and a medium feel. The spring is firm enough that the device can be placed down while unlocked. The throw is short enough that a relatively soft press is needed to fire the mod. Since the firing mechanism uses a somewhat narrow spring, off-center hits can give the mod a clicky feel. Overall, I enjoyed the feel of the El Kapitan 1.5’s firing button; I love that I can place it on a table without having to worry about it firing, while also enjoying a relatively light button press.

Lastly, the design of the El Kapitan 1.5 is just lovely. Several of the more popular Filipino mods have numerous bold lines and/or stylized knurling. The El Kapitan eschews those aggressive designs for something that’s distinctly elegant. It has two engraved swirls going up the body, an anchor logo at the base, and the Wu Tang logo on the firing cap. Put it all together and you have a mod that stands out, but isn’t as hyper-aggressive as some of its competitors. Naturally, looks are subjective. Personally, I think the El Kapitan is one of the most distinctly beautiful mods from the Philippines.

Performance: The contact points on the El Kapitan 1.5 are gold-plated brass. Gold is an excellent electricity conductor that isn’t affected by air, moisture, and most corrosive agents. One thing to keep in mind is that gold is a relatively soft metal, so care should be used when cleaning the contact points. The gold-and-brass combination offers a nice blend of power and relatively low maintenance. The mod’s design combined with its materials help it delivery performance that will satisfy most vapers. Voltage drop isn’t as low as some competing high-end mods, but it’s certainly acceptable.

Verdict: Since Wu Tang House of Mods is a relatively small company, vapers can take advantage of direct sales. Wu Tang, along with some trusted Facebook group-buy runners, routinely makes his products available for a relatively low price. People that follow Wu Tang on Facebook were able to get the El Kapitan 1.5 for around $172 shipped. At retail, I’ve seen it for $220 to $250. For $172, this mod is a sweet deal. Even $220 is a reasonable price for a unique mod with high performance.

The issues I have with the El Kapitan 1.5 are minor ones. The caps thread smoothly, but don’t have the smoothest appearance. The reverse-telescoping pin is mildly annoying to use. Those issues are easy to sweep under the rug when you look at everything else the El Kapitan 1.5 brings to the table. The mod is made from quality materials, the workmanship is impressive, the performance is very strong, and it’s simply a gorgeous device. Whenever I meet up with vapers, the El Kapitan 1.5 gets attention for its looks and keeps attention with its performance. If you want a mod that’s beautiful and hits hard, the El Kapitan 1.5 is a fine choice.

Vaping Diaries #127: Vapor Stands Max-E Review

The Vapor Stands Max-E is the latest handmade product from the excellent people at Vapor Stands. In the past, I reviewed Vapor Stands’ Pie Slice and Trek-E v2 products, both of which I loved. Those two stands are finely crafted (made in the USA!) products that blend beauty and functionality. The Vapor Stands Max-E is cut from the same cloth, but is the company’s largest product yet. It has 27 felt-covered holes that hold a variety of products — large mods, eGo-style e-cigs, 30ml juice bottles, atomizers, clearomizers, and drip tips.

Like the company’s other products, the Vapor Stands Max-E features impressive workmanship. It’s made from oak and walnut that’s sanded to a silky smooth finish. The wood is then covered with three layers of polyurethane for a glossy appearance and to protect the wood. The Vapor Stands Max-E looks great on your office desk, in your living room, in the den, etc.

As far as functionality goes, I was mostly happy with the Vapor Stands Max-E, but had one criticism. It held a variety of my gear just fine — 22mm mechanical mods, various eGo devices, rebuildable dripping atomizers, bottom-coil silica atomizers, clearomizers, and 30ml plastic juice bottles. Unfortunately, the holes for the juice bottles are too small for 30ml glass bottles. Several of my favorite juice vendors (Ahlusion, Five Pawns, Indigo Vapor, etc.) use glass bottles and it’s a bummer that they can’t be cradled by the Vapor Stands Max-E.

That issue aside, I was pleased by everything else the Vapor Stands Max-E brought offered. Like its sister products, it’s superbly crafted and looks marvelous. It’s a great choice for vaping enthusiasts that have a lot of gear. It’s currently priced at $60, which is absolutely fair for a quality made-in-the-USA product that featured topnotch workmanship. If you’re looking for a handsome stand that holds a lot of vaping gear then you should definitely consider the Vapor Stands Max-E.

Plastic Piranha Jason Brice Talks Rekoil

Watch Plastic Piranha president & CEO Jason Brice talk about his upcoming game Rekoil. This first-person shooter for Windows PC and Xbox 360 emphasizes skill and balanced gameplay. In the interview, Brice talks about Rekoil’s various modes and different weapons, as well as what makes the game stand out from the competition. While I enjoyed several deathmatch rounds of the game, one of the things that charmed me about Rekoil was the little details. For example, it has a capture-the-briefcase mode instead of a capture-the-flag mode and it has black barrels that explode instead of those deadly red ones we all fear. Those flourishes aside, a lot of hardcore shooter fans have been high on Rekoil. While Brice agrees that it’s a “pure shooter,” he also explains why it’s great for casual fans of first-person shooters.

For more information on Rekoil be sure to check out this excellent preview on PaulSemel.com.

Plastic Piranha Jason Brice Interview

Here’s a short interview with Plastic Piranha president and CEO Jason Brice. For those of you not familiar with the company, it’s the developer of the upcoming first-person shooter Rekoil. Going from movie marketing to creating a hardcore first-person shooter sounds like an odd career path, but that’s the one Jason Brice has followed. Listen to him talk about his coworkers recreating a Call of Duty level in the office to creating CoD maps to creating Battlefield 2142 maps to starting his own development studio. Due to his atypical and unique background, Jason Brice is particularly passionate about giving gamers powerful and robust mod tools for Rekoil.

Vaping Diaries #126: Innokin iTaste VTR Preview

Arguably the most-wanted Innokin product of 2013, the iTaste VTR is a box mod positioned as a premium product. Out of the box, I was surprised by its heft. The iTaste VTR is a weighty vaping device that looks bolder and feels more luxurious than its sister product, the iTaste MVP 2. My initial impression is that a strong argument can be made that this is the best product Innokin has released, but some vapers will be put off by its weight. However, I definitely need to spend more time with the iTaste VTR before passing judgement.

The iTaste VTR comes in a decorative box, just like the iTaste 134. The kit includes the mod, an Innokin iClear 30s clearomizer, and an adapter tube. The unit was made with the iClear 30 and iClear 30s in mind. However, it can hold any clearomizer with similar dimensions (diameter less than 19mm, height around 78mm). For atomizers that won’t fit into the clearomizer cutout, the include adapter ensures that any 510-threaded part will work with the iTaste VTR.

Using the iTaste VTR is relatively easy. While it’s not quite as simple as using the iTaste MVP 2’s various functions, it’s still relatively straightforward. There’s a power button, a function button, and a scroll wheel. The power button turns the device on or off and fires the device. The function button pulls up atomizer resistance, voltage, wattage, and battery life. Voltage and wattage are adjusted using the scroll wheel. The voltage range is 3.0 to 6.0 volts adjustable in 0.1-volt increments, while the wattage range is 3.0 to 15.0 volts adjustable in 0.5-watt increments

So far I’ve used the iTaste VTR with an iClear 30 clearomizer and a Vapage dripping atomizer. The output has been consistent, but I haven’t tried many different settings yet. Most of the Innokin devices I’ve used have consistent output and I expect the same from the iTaste VTR.

Check out the video preview above to see different looks of the iTaste VTR, the iClear 30s, and the optional holster accessory. I’m going to use the device for at least 10 days before reviewing it. Stay tuned for the full review in the near future.

Vaping Diaries #122: Grand Vapor Gab Villapana Interview

As a Filipino-American, I was thrilled that Grand Vapor owner Gabriel “Gab” Villapana came all the way from the Philippines to attend ECC 2013. I’m a big fan of Grand Vapor mods and atomizers (currently rocking a red Sentinel 3.5 and a gold-plated Trident). Gab had several goods on display at the show — the Prometheus Genesis-style atomizer, the Trident 2 dripping atomizer (ECC debut!), the limited edition gold-plated Sentinel, the limited edition sand-blasted Sentinel, the Sentinel v4, and more. Gab talks about the products he had on display, upcoming products, and the hot-button topic of Chinese clones in this ECC 2013 video interview.

Vaping Diaries #121: Five Pawns Rodney Jerabek Interview

Out of all the booths at ECC 2013, Five Pawns had the most impressive setup. The company’s booth was made from reclaimed prune crates and the employees were decked out in black vests. It made the booth feel like a saloon from Old West. Five Pawns had several things going on at ECC 2013. The successful Castle Long Reserve e-liquid got a second release and the upcoming Mixology line was teased. Five Pawns president and founder Rodney Jerabek talks about all the booth, the second release of Castle Long Reserve, what to expect from the Mixology line, and more in the video interview above.

Vaping Diaries #124: Space Jam ECC 2013 Interview

Space Jam is a Southern California e-liquid company that makes some creative juices and uses a fun sci-fi theme. At ECC 2013, I met up with Space Jam co-founders Aaron Pederson and Mike Crawford to learn more about the company. Being a nerd, I love the branding and names that Space Jam uses. Several of its juices feature the type of complexity that I love in e-liquids. For example, Omega is a mix of spiced peaches and cream that uses real California peaches. Aaron and Mike talk about how the company started in Aaron’s garage, how the “Flavor Bible” is used to make Space Jam juices, why a sci-fi theme was chosen for these products, and the timeless battles between Star Wars and Star Trek.

Vaping Ape Los Angeles Chi You Raffle Drawing

Here’s a fun video I hosted for the excellent people at Vaping Ape Los Angeles. The store held a raffle for a stainless steel Chi You mod by Style of Mojo. I was at Vaping Ape Los Angeles to host the raffle drawing. Customer Guillermo Cabrera won the raffle and gets a free Chi You. If you’re not familiar with the Chi You, it’s a hard-to-get mechanical mod from Korea. If you’re a vaper living in the Los Angeles area, be sure to drop by Vaping Ape Los Angeles or hit up the store’s web site for future raffles.

Please note that I’m available for store openings and hosting your daughter’s 18th birthday party.

Also, I couldn’t help but think of this while I was filming the video:

Vaping Diaries #120: Juice By Numbers Eric Silverman Interview

Juice By Numbers is a Southern California e-liquid company that eschews fancy names for numbered juices. The company’s first five products are #1, #2, #3, #4, and #5. Guess what the company’s next product will be called? If you said #6 then you’re a genius! In this ECC 2013 video, Juice By Numbers co-owner Eric Silverman talks about how a pair of friends started the company, his thoughts on crafting e-liquids, and his lineup of flavors.

Juice by numbers e-liquids are available at Vape Revolution, but I’ve noticed a handful of SoCal vape shops carrying the juices. Check out the video above to learn more about the company, its juices, and its upcoming flavors.