iSmoka – Yet another bottom coil tank review

You may have noticed e-cigarette gear runs in cycles. We had stuff like CE2s, then dual coil cartomizers, carto tanks, CE whatever and so on. Now the trend seems to be rebuildables and bottom coil tanks. The iSmoka is an example of the latter featuring a decent capacity bottom coil design. Read the iSmoka review and find out if there’s room in a crowded field for this one.

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	Product name	iSmoka Mega BCC Kit
	Available from	VaporAlley
	Price	$14.99
	Capacity	3.5ml
	Competing products	Kanger ProTank, Vivi Nova, iClear 30
	Who’s it for?	Vapers who are looking for a simple bottom coil tank with decent performance. Someone who may be ok with making minor modifications.

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iSmoka Design

The 1o second elevator description of the iSmoka goes something like this: It’s a cross between a Vivi Nova and the Kanger Protank. To be fair, it’s a little more Protank than Nova.

The tank is a simple straight-sided affair with graduated markings, giving it a sort of Nova feel to it. The top cap includes an interesting flat tip, but can accept most 510 drip tips if you like to change things up. Sadly, this tank uses a plastic tube instead of the Protank’s glass.

The iSmoka’s mechanics resemble more closely Kanger’s gear, but with a few twists of its own.

For starters, the top cap of the tank is fixed. This tank is filled from the bottom by removing the bottom cap. The bottom cap houses the replaceable head. Interestingly, it nestles it in a giant silicone gasket. Instead of screwing in, the head is simply push fitted into the gasket.

Each iSmoka comes with 3 heads in resistances ranging from 1.8 to 2.5Ω which reminds me of the good ol’ nova.

Resembling very closely the Kanger heads, iSmoka’s has a section in which the coil fits covered by a cap with a stem that fits into the fixed air tube inside the tank. A gasket covers the cap to ensure a seal both over the head cover and between the air tube and head when the unit is assembled.

Using the iSmoka

Honestly, I experienced the same initial performance I did with the Kanger tank. That is to say it worked very well below 9 watts, but when I tried to crank the wattage up to 10 or higher, I was often treated to dry hits. Generally, I attribute this to poor wicking.

I tried a few tricks that had varying degrees of success. First, I took the gasket that sits atop the coil cover and flipped it upside down. Wicking was much improved, and I could crank the wattage all the way up, but it had a habit of flooding.

Next I cut the gasket so it didn’t sit on the wicks. The results were much the same as flipping the gasket.

Finally I started to wonder how much like the ProTank the heads inside the iSmoka really were. Turns out they’re very similar.

I popped the atomizer cover off the same way I did with the Kanger to be greeted by a couple extra wicks sitting atop the coil, just like the Pro. I removed one of the wicks and put everything back together.

Sure enough, everything was milk and honey from this point on. More importantly, I did this with a brand new head and the results were instant. The other tank had a bit of break in for me before it really hit its stride.

One thing to note before you tear open your iSmoka as soon as you get it. The wicking issue depends on a couple of factors. If you tend to vape at wattages below 9 or if you use 100% pg e-liquid, you probably won’t need this fix. I like things hot and my typical e-liquid is around 30% VG so it’s a little thicker than straight PG.

Therefore, as I write about the performance, keep in mind that it’s based on a slightly modified version of the head (yes this will make it into the cons section below).

For a fairly minor fix, I got a very good performer. Excellent vapor production and decent flavor running at 11 watts. I didn’t run into any dry patches and the gurgling was minimal. In a word, it’s a good performer if you can rein it in.

I found the flavor reproduction was maybe not quite as good as the ProTank, but it’s also a bit cheaper than that version. Plus you get to use your favorite glowing skull drip tip.

Too Long; Didn’t Read

The iSmoka BCC Mega is yet another entry in the growing category of bottom coil tanks. It boasts a decent capacity, heads of varying resistance and the ability to bring your own drip tip. I found I had to make a small modification to the head before it realized its full potential. Once setup according to my vaping tastes, the performance was top-notch. VaporAlley has these in stock if you’d like to try for yourself.

Pros: