Sweet Spot Vapors Titanium Wire - question

[Johan]

Have not personally had any issues with Ti. Temco looks like good stuff, and comparatively inexpensive. Have been using Ti from Lightning Vapes (bit pricey), and Unkamen (dirty). Their wires are a little springy, but certainly usable. I'll get some Temco wire, been making coaxial (clapton) wire with stainless steel core and Ti wrap, some 30-32g that is annealed would make that easier. 

[mactavish]

Johan said:

Have not personally had any issues with Ti. Temco looks like good stuff, and comparatively inexpensive. Have been using Ti from Lightning Vapes (bit pricey), and Unkamen (dirty). Their wires are a little springy, but certainly usable. I'll get some Temco wire, been making coaxial (clapton) wire with stainless steel core and Ti wrap, some 30-32g that is annealed would make that easier. 

I didn't find the Unkaman too dirty at all, barely anything wiped off on a vaportowel after a 99% alcohol scrub, but wire can vary from batch to batch. It's sold for jewelry so I assume folks use an ultrasonic cleaner anyways, been meaning to buy one. Main problem is I had to slow pulse anneal it, as is springy. Then I found Rio Grande, another jewelry site that folks recommended, and their 24 gauge was much softer, problem there is they did not sell it in 26,28 gauge. Now that Temco, a trusted vendor is selling annealed titanium in all the gauges I use, it will be a one stop shop. Should get my first batch from them this week, used them before for all my old Kanthal needs.

[Johan]

Will be interested to see how you like it. I emailed with the owner of Unkamen and he said his product will be shiny bright and clean as of his next wholesale order, so perhaps you got the new stuff.

[mactavish]

Johan said:

Will be interested to see how you like it. I emailed with the owner of Unkamen and he said his product will be shiny bright and clean as of his next wholesale order, so perhaps you got the new stuff.

On the Unkaman site they explain that the titanium is "acid washed", that's why the wire is dull, not shiny. Then these jewelry folks tumble their creations SHINY! Does not make a performance difference to us, but some were confused when it was not shiny like some other Ti wire. I don't know how the Temco Ti wire is going to look, they deliver slow for some reason.

[Johan]

The stuff I got was really dirty. Iso alcohol on a paper towel came out black on the first pass. The surface was rough to the touch. Took some scrubbing to get it clean, and I would prefer to not put that kind of exertion into a piece of wire . That's what prompted my communication with the owner. 

[mactavish]

Johan said:

The stuff I got was really dirty. Iso alcohol on a paper towel came out black on the first pass. The surface was rough to the touch. Took some scrubbing to get it clean, and I would prefer to not put that kind of exertion into a piece of wire . That's what prompted my communication with the owner. 

I can be lazy too, but if you don't attempt to do an alcohol wipe at least once on any new batch of wire, you wouldn't know. Even if my first sample seemed clean, I would still take the few minutes to clean every piece before I wrap my coil. Most titanium builds can last for months, with some manual or pulse cleanings and new wicks so you save a lot of time there. I just got a $130 RTA, it did not appear to have anything on it when I cleaned it. Later I wanted to install the included chuff tip, took a q-tip with 99% ISO, and was shocked at the crap that came off from inside. This was some kind of black coated gun metal used on this Stainlees steel Atty. It's just common sense these days to take the time to CLEAN EVERYTHING. IMHO

[Johan]

Oh yeah, I fully agree. All attys get the hot water/dish soap soak and toothbrush treatment before they get used. Domestic or foreign (especially those), authentic or clone . But this Ti wire was on another level, and I'm kinda low on elbow grease 

edit - looked at your post again and did a double take, $130 for an RTA? Squape R? Just got a couple Kayfun clones, 3.1 for $5.99 and Lite Plus V2 for $9.99. I'm thinking you need to touch base with DJaquith and go in on an order of that platinum wire 

[mactavish]

Johan said:

Oh yeah, I fully agree. All attys get the hot water/dish soap soak and toothbrush treatment before they get used. Domestic or foreign (especially those), authentic or clone . But this Ti wire was on another level, and I'm kinda low on elbow grease 

edit - looked at your post again and did a double take, $130 for an RTA? Squape R? Just got a couple Kayfun clones, 3.1 for $5.99 and Lite Plus V2 for $9.99. I'm thinking you need to touch base with DJaquith and go in on an order of that platinum wire 

Actually was an RDA. An original "Stumpy RDA", modified by Catfish Attys, for bottom fed. I already own a clone version of the Stumpy for dripping. Buy originals when I can afford to, and clones to test ones I'm not sure of. My Chalice 3, is a $140 original, most I've ever paid for an Atty. Then you have your $15 Cubis tanks, that offset the occasional pricy purchase, called "cost averaging"!

[Johan]

I got some Temco titanium in 28g. It is very clean, got zero residue from alcohol/paper towel scrub. It is also very soft. Almost like working with nickel as far as wicking goes. Their annealing process will probably be a plus for the heavier gauge wire. Other than that it seems like good stuff, and the price is very reasonable, $5.58 for 25'. The included in the price shipping to the midwest was 5 days.

[blueridgedog]

link to the wire?

[Johan]

http://www.temcoindustrialpower.com/products/Special_Metal_Wire/RW0499.html

[blueridgedog]

Thanks.

[Guest]

This stuff is soft annealed, unkamen's wire is hard annealed. I wonder if there's any differents between the two as far as the profile goes?

[Johan]

On the website they say resistance numbers are coming. Seat of the pants impression is no noticeable difference from the Unkamen on the vape. Using DJaquiths curve for Titan wire Ti that I tweaked a bit, and like it enough to order more in heavier gauges.

[mactavish]

If it's grade #1, the TCR should be the same as any other TRUE G1. No issues here with my new Temco Titanium G1 builds, using the same TCR on all my devices including DNA200, and Evic Mini's.

[Kresell]

tommrussell said:

so how do you clean the coils?

I remove the cotton run hot water over the coils and use a ss or brass brush takes all the gunk off. I have had coils for months and still use them, do the same for SS coils. 

[Johan]

Unlike Ti, SS can also be pulsed. Had been using a toothbrush and it never occurred to me to use a brass brush, duh , thx for the tip. And I don't think I've ever worn out a coil, most hit the trash can to make way for something different long before there are any signs of metal erosion. 

[shugg1967]

I see that this is a old post ..did u ever try the sweet spot wire ..ive use sweet spot but not on my DNA yet but i just want to say that it work really good on my SMY and tesla mod i also used it on my mech its the best ti ive used to date..this is my opinion  ..other Ti didnt work well on my mods but ofcourse i DID NOT use other Ti wir on
 my mech...

[HugeEgo]

liquid_strat said:

I'm wondering if Sweet Spots Ti is going to be worth the extra money vs. some other vendors Ti Grade 1 wire (those that market to the vape community). 

I have some of the 0.5mm wire and it performs very good. However, there has been discussions stating its not worth the extra money vs regular grade 1. This, as far as I can tell, is based on one or two guys on ECF with "supposed" experience in the wire industry debunking the validity of their product.

One of those guys on ECF with "supposed" experience in the wire industry is a former aerospace engineer who specifically worked with titanium and titanium alloys in aircraft designs.  He has papers published in the scientific literature and is an expert on the metal and its properties. (Drucker is his handle on ECF, iirc).  There was another guy, too, who was an engineer at Corning.  He chimed in and said it's all BS as well.

So, yes, these guys are fully qualified to say that SSV is full of crap (and they are).  Any time you hear marketing terms like "special blend" or "proprietary secret" you know it's BS 99% of the time.

SSV is a vape company -- not a wire extrusion factory.  They are merely buying their wire from some factory somewhere that probably sells it to 1000 other clients in various industries.  They have no secret recipe.  They don't even have engineers or metallurgists.  It's just a couple of guys who own a vape shop making up stuff so they can charge outrageous prices for wire.

Are you going to believe SSV (who have no expertise, no credentials and have a profit motive) or are you going to believe former aerospace engineers who used to study titanium for use on aircraft?

[shugg1967]

my point is that other Ti wire did not perform as well for ME ! i can only speak for myself .Another thing why is SSV telling people they can use SSV wire on mechs when other Ti wire should not be used on Mechs so is there a difference or not I DO NOT KNOW  ..I have a friend that uses SSV he thinks  its more predictable gets the same vape every time ..THE PRICE I think $1 foot equal 2 coils per foot 50cents each that last 4 months or even more is very reasonable to get the same result ..so thats my opinion whats your ????

[KISS V.]

@shugg SSV Titanium is not a off the shelf general graded titanium, not going into the fact that once it is drawn it would need to be regraded. It is a alloy that was developed specifically for vaping. That being said the temperatures needed to create titanium Dioxide (that is the dangerous one, titanium oxide is safe) are in the 1200f area, completely saturated cotton would ignite around 700-800f. So basically it is safe to use on a mech because before bad stuff is created you will get a mouth full of flame, and before that it will be really uncomfortable (painful). 

Per the other negative comments related to SSV Ti or any Ti for that matter. Documents provided by so called engineers are truly unfounded, misrepresented, and misinterpreted. As an engineer myself I know when I am speaking out of turn and choose to shut my mouth when doing so, but here on the internet people can say whatever they choose and drop a few names like Boing, Cornell, BASF, 3M. Who knows what they really do, if the really work there, or what their real credentials are for all we know is that they are a parts fetcher. In emails and over the phone the owner of SSV has provided me too with documents, and based upon my own research and the transparency of SSV, that their claims are true. Also from experience of using SSV for more than a year and half I am very impressed and happy with my experience using their wire.

[shugg1967]

@KISS V. I love Sweet spot wire Its the only ti wire i use i do use it on my mechs too so i was saying how much i trust it nothing negative about your product .i dont understand why people are so nasty.in another post i commented on about the price i dont  think its that high because it last so long ...its the shipping i dont like to pay half of the product price for shipping is a little to much..so if my comment on your product came off wrong im sorry .

[mactavish]

Folks can vape on guitar wire if they like it. Not my concern. KISS V. said it best: "SSV Titanium is not a off the shelf general graded titanium, not going into the fact that once it is drawn it would need to be regraded. It is a alloy that was developed specifically for vaping." It's an ALLOY! The titanium I prefer to buy is G1, NOT an alloy. So if you like it, price aside, then enjoy it, just don't confuse the actual differences. And I also agree with KISS V., people can post all kinds of credentials, but without proper investigation, we are forced to place our faith or not, and that's one of the reasons there is so much misinformation all over the place. I' have read all the posts on ECF concerning titanium wire, and I have made the choice to trust what I've read there, and personally choose my G1 titanium from sources like Unkamen, but more recently Temco, sources I trust. The TCR of their titanium matches my DNA mods perfectly, without the need to download any custom SSV TCR profiles, which are needed as it's an alloy. For those sensitive to other "metals" in their vapor path, you'll have to figure out if any of the alloys could be an issue for you. Seems some may have a horse in the race here?