Hi All
It's been two months since I got my REOs so I thought I'd give a reportback. Not an in-depth review, but just my impressions two months in.
Firstly, here is the team, the "REO trio"
Two Grands and one Mini. All in tumbled, but one of the Grand's doors is Black wrinkle.
All are standard - not low profile - all have standard RM2 toppers.
Ok first off, let me say that in the past two months I have not used any other gear. It's been the REOs all the way. When I have tried some of my other gear (more the recoiled commercial tanks, like mPT2s etc) just to check, it feels like I am sucking air - minimal throat hit and far less flavour.
The REOs, when set up to your liking (which takes a bit of trial and error) do perform marvellously. The flavour is really rich and good and the throat hit with the coils set high is strong. I have not tested all the equipment known to man but I've had my fair share of a wide range of commercial tanks (Nautilus, mpts, evods etc) with both standard and custom coils. I've also have some drippers and the Kayfun (granted, not an original). The closest vape experience I've had to the REO thus far has been a well set up humble IGO-L dripper. I can actually set it up so the vape experience is very similar to the REO. Great for flavour tasting but as a daily workhorse, no way.
The REOs have performed flawlessly - and I mean flawlessly from the first day to today. Not one problem (touch wood). Simple to coil, simple to rewick, simple to change batteries, simple to change juice. No strange behaviour. So far they get a 10 out of 10 for usability and reliability.
I got 3 of them so I could have 3 flavours running simultaneously - so I could use them as my "workhorses". Having different flavours makes for more variety and keeps me interested. I simply reach for whichever of the 3 flavours I feel like at the time. They are set up according to flavour types I like. The Grand with the black door is my "Tobacco REO" with a 0.85 ohm coil. The Grand with the Silver door is my "fruit REO" - with a 1.2 ohmer. The Mini I got as my portable solution - and it happens to be my "VM Choc Mint" REO at 1.3 ohms currently. In fact, this little Mini has never had any other juice in it since the day I got it! @Oupa are you listening?
How portable are the REOs? Well, I got the Mini as my portable solution and it is fantastic. It fits perfectly in my man bag (standing upright) with quite a bit of space to spare. For me it never leaks. The only way it would leak is if I squonk massively and then put it straight in my bag and turn it on its side - but that never happens. The Mini is very pocketable too and doesnt take up much space anywhere I go. It really is a superb portable solution for me. Mind you, the Grand is quite portable too. Its hardly much bigger than the Mini. It too fits in my man bag standing upright, but the drip tip makes it a bit of a tight fit under the zips.
How do I feel about squonking? Short answer, I don't mind. At first it seems like a bit of a mission. Depending on the type of coil and wick you will get 3 to 6 puffs before needing another squonk. A squonk is a press of the plastic juice bottle to get the juice up on the deck to saturate the wick. After I learnt how to do it and with a bit of practice, I can squonk perfectly in about 5 seconds. What I found is that because the REO gives me a stronger vape than other equipment I tend to take a few puffs and then put it down. I don't mindlessly vape on the REO (puff after puff) like I did on the EVODs etc. So the squonking suits the REO for me. One squonk then a few long deep puffs - then I'm very satisfied. I do sometimes long for a "grab and vape" but I am now used to the squonk and punch hard style of the REO. I enjoy it a lot. After all, the REO is a dripper experience with the convenience of a tank - so I'd much rather squonk than pull out the juice bottle, open the cap and drip.
So far, I am enjoying the REOs thoroughly. They perform very well for me flavour and throat hit wise. I am lucky the standard airhole on the RM2 is perfect to my liking. I really could not be happier. After refilling all three REOs (about 13 ml of juice in total) and new batteries, I am good to go for about 3 days if I vape them simultaneously. Then about 15 minutes to rewick, reload and put in fresh batteries. It's very exciting when I change juices - since I have a few days to vape, discover and enjoy them.
Is there anything I don't like? Well, not really. If I were to be a bit picky, yes, being a mechanical, the dropoff in battery voltage does affect the vape slightly, but its not bad at all. And the REOs are designed that if you use good batteries, the dropoff only becomes noticeable when the bottles are nearly finished. At this point you would change batteries anyway. Both on the Grand and the Mini. Otherwise, there is nothing else I feel is worth marking as a negative. It really is plain sailing with the REO.
It was @Andre - my vaping mentor extraordinaire - that guided me on this journey. He had it all sussed out. After the commercial tanks he advised me to get the IGO-L and practice coil building first. I then got diverted, distracted and fascinated with other gear like the Kayfun, Trident, Nemesis etc The journey to the REO took me a while (about 6 months in total) - but I do not regret one minute of it. It has allowed me to appreciate the REO experience much more. @Andre, thank you sir for your "pioneering" work in the "early" days of vaping being one of the first in SA to learn and experience the REO without any local help. And then, thanks for leading me on this path
While I am saying thanks, let me also say thanks to the ModMaster himself, Robert O'Neil. Ordering from REOSmods was a breeze. Rob has created a magical device. Thank you sir.
Is the REO the end of the road? Well judging by my experiences over the past 2 months, I would say definitely yes, it has been the end of the road for me. Since I got the REOs I have not ordered any other hardware. Just juices. I bought some batteries, some Kanthal and some delrin drip tips - but no other vaping device - so for me it has been the end of the road - hardware wise.
Do I think it's the end of the road for ever? I would not be bold enough to say that - and I am sure with vaping advancing at the rate it is - the REO too will be surpassed - and I will want that device when it comes out!
But let's just say that my bar has now been raised pretty high - so when something comes along that appears better - it's going to be extremely good. Bring it on.... but for now I am happy.
It's been two months since I got my REOs so I thought I'd give a reportback. Not an in-depth review, but just my impressions two months in.
Firstly, here is the team, the "REO trio"
Two Grands and one Mini. All in tumbled, but one of the Grand's doors is Black wrinkle.
All are standard - not low profile - all have standard RM2 toppers.
Ok first off, let me say that in the past two months I have not used any other gear. It's been the REOs all the way. When I have tried some of my other gear (more the recoiled commercial tanks, like mPT2s etc) just to check, it feels like I am sucking air - minimal throat hit and far less flavour.
The REOs, when set up to your liking (which takes a bit of trial and error) do perform marvellously. The flavour is really rich and good and the throat hit with the coils set high is strong. I have not tested all the equipment known to man but I've had my fair share of a wide range of commercial tanks (Nautilus, mpts, evods etc) with both standard and custom coils. I've also have some drippers and the Kayfun (granted, not an original). The closest vape experience I've had to the REO thus far has been a well set up humble IGO-L dripper. I can actually set it up so the vape experience is very similar to the REO. Great for flavour tasting but as a daily workhorse, no way.
The REOs have performed flawlessly - and I mean flawlessly from the first day to today. Not one problem (touch wood). Simple to coil, simple to rewick, simple to change batteries, simple to change juice. No strange behaviour. So far they get a 10 out of 10 for usability and reliability.
I got 3 of them so I could have 3 flavours running simultaneously - so I could use them as my "workhorses". Having different flavours makes for more variety and keeps me interested. I simply reach for whichever of the 3 flavours I feel like at the time. They are set up according to flavour types I like. The Grand with the black door is my "Tobacco REO" with a 0.85 ohm coil. The Grand with the Silver door is my "fruit REO" - with a 1.2 ohmer. The Mini I got as my portable solution - and it happens to be my "VM Choc Mint" REO at 1.3 ohms currently. In fact, this little Mini has never had any other juice in it since the day I got it! @Oupa are you listening?
How portable are the REOs? Well, I got the Mini as my portable solution and it is fantastic. It fits perfectly in my man bag (standing upright) with quite a bit of space to spare. For me it never leaks. The only way it would leak is if I squonk massively and then put it straight in my bag and turn it on its side - but that never happens. The Mini is very pocketable too and doesnt take up much space anywhere I go. It really is a superb portable solution for me. Mind you, the Grand is quite portable too. Its hardly much bigger than the Mini. It too fits in my man bag standing upright, but the drip tip makes it a bit of a tight fit under the zips.
How do I feel about squonking? Short answer, I don't mind. At first it seems like a bit of a mission. Depending on the type of coil and wick you will get 3 to 6 puffs before needing another squonk. A squonk is a press of the plastic juice bottle to get the juice up on the deck to saturate the wick. After I learnt how to do it and with a bit of practice, I can squonk perfectly in about 5 seconds. What I found is that because the REO gives me a stronger vape than other equipment I tend to take a few puffs and then put it down. I don't mindlessly vape on the REO (puff after puff) like I did on the EVODs etc. So the squonking suits the REO for me. One squonk then a few long deep puffs - then I'm very satisfied. I do sometimes long for a "grab and vape" but I am now used to the squonk and punch hard style of the REO. I enjoy it a lot. After all, the REO is a dripper experience with the convenience of a tank - so I'd much rather squonk than pull out the juice bottle, open the cap and drip.
So far, I am enjoying the REOs thoroughly. They perform very well for me flavour and throat hit wise. I am lucky the standard airhole on the RM2 is perfect to my liking. I really could not be happier. After refilling all three REOs (about 13 ml of juice in total) and new batteries, I am good to go for about 3 days if I vape them simultaneously. Then about 15 minutes to rewick, reload and put in fresh batteries. It's very exciting when I change juices - since I have a few days to vape, discover and enjoy them.
Is there anything I don't like? Well, not really. If I were to be a bit picky, yes, being a mechanical, the dropoff in battery voltage does affect the vape slightly, but its not bad at all. And the REOs are designed that if you use good batteries, the dropoff only becomes noticeable when the bottles are nearly finished. At this point you would change batteries anyway. Both on the Grand and the Mini. Otherwise, there is nothing else I feel is worth marking as a negative. It really is plain sailing with the REO.
It was @Andre - my vaping mentor extraordinaire - that guided me on this journey. He had it all sussed out. After the commercial tanks he advised me to get the IGO-L and practice coil building first. I then got diverted, distracted and fascinated with other gear like the Kayfun, Trident, Nemesis etc The journey to the REO took me a while (about 6 months in total) - but I do not regret one minute of it. It has allowed me to appreciate the REO experience much more. @Andre, thank you sir for your "pioneering" work in the "early" days of vaping being one of the first in SA to learn and experience the REO without any local help. And then, thanks for leading me on this path
While I am saying thanks, let me also say thanks to the ModMaster himself, Robert O'Neil. Ordering from REOSmods was a breeze. Rob has created a magical device. Thank you sir.
Is the REO the end of the road? Well judging by my experiences over the past 2 months, I would say definitely yes, it has been the end of the road for me. Since I got the REOs I have not ordered any other hardware. Just juices. I bought some batteries, some Kanthal and some delrin drip tips - but no other vaping device - so for me it has been the end of the road - hardware wise.
Do I think it's the end of the road for ever? I would not be bold enough to say that - and I am sure with vaping advancing at the rate it is - the REO too will be surpassed - and I will want that device when it comes out!
But let's just say that my bar has now been raised pretty high - so when something comes along that appears better - it's going to be extremely good. Bring it on.... but for now I am happy.
Last edited:
