Being the proud owner of several Voopoo Mods and Pods, I thought it was about time I purchased one of these little rebuild-able RBA coils. Where possible and of course if available, I always try to pick up a rebuild-able coil or deck that will fit the particular device I’m using just in case the stock coils further down the line become unavailable.
There is nothing more annoying than finding that your favorite tank or pod kit becomes unusable because you can no longer purchase stock coils for it. The beauty of these rebuild-able RBA coils is they are a direct replacement for the stock coils with the advantage that they are re-usable.
Instead of throwing away the stock coil once it has reached the end of life, you simply unscrew it and replace the coil wire and wick in the RBA coil and you’re good to go again. As long as the RBA coil doesn’t break, you can keep using it over and over.
Of course there is another advantage of using an RBA coil; it’s a lot cheaper than keep buying stock coils as a spool of wire and wick will last you years.
Anyway, onto the review in question…the Voopoo PnP RBA Coil.
Overview
The Voopoo PnP RBA coil is a direct replacement for the stock PnP coils used in the following Voopoo devices.
- Vinci and Vinci 2
- Vinci X and Vinci X2
- Drag S
- Drag X
- Drag Max
- Argus / Argus Pro / Argus GT / Argus Air
I may have missed a few devices BUT, if your mod/pod takes the Voopoo push fit PnP coils then this RBA coil will fit and will work in the device you have.
It’s exactly the same size as the stock PnP coils, fits in exactly the same way, with the advantage that it’s rebuild-able. The top of the RBA coil unscrews to reveal a small post less build deck where you fit your own wire/coil, wick it up and prime. Screw the top back on, insert the RBA coil into your pod, fill it up with e-liquid and away you go.
I will be honest and say it’s small; in fact it’s tiny and fiddly but once you get the hang of building on it you should get the same if not better performance from it as you would with a stock coil.
My disclaimer is if your eyesight it not great or your fingers are like sausages, you will struggle!
Read on and find out just what we thought.
As always this review is completely unbiased and is my honest opinion based on my findings while using the Voopoo PnP RBA Coil. We may receive a small affiliate commission if you click on the buy button but at no extra cost to yourself.
Voopoo PnP RBA Coil Review
Contents
- Overview
- Features and Specifications
- What’s in the Box?
- Voopoo PnP RBA Coil Design and Appearance
- – Build Deck
- Fitting the 0.6 ohm Coil
- Wicking your Coil
- Voopoo PnP RBA Coil Performance
- Voopoo PnP RBA Coil Price
- Voopoo PnP RBA Coil Verdict
- Voopoo PnP RBA Coil Summary
Features and Specifications
- Dimensions: 18.5mm (L) x 11mm (D)
- Weight: 4.38 grams (including coil)
- Construction: Food Grade Stainless Steel
- Build Deck: Two Post-less Terminals
- Coil Configuration: Single Coil
- Coil Fix: Flathead Screw x 2
- Fitting Method: Push Fit
What’s in the box?
- Voopoo PnP RBA Coil
- 0.6 ohm Pre-Built Coil
- Bag of Cotton Wick
- Spare Flathead Deck Screw
- Spare 0-Rings
- Coiling Tool
- Flathead Screwdriver
Voopoo PnP RBA Coil / Design and Appearance
The Voopoo PnP RBA coil is the exact same size as the stock PnP push fit coils. It’s a two part assembly where the top section unscrews to reveal the re-buildable deck. The RBA doesn’t come assembled so you do have to fit the included 0.6 ohm coil and wick it prior to use.
There are two wicking ports on the sides of the RBA body, each one next to the angled entry of the two flat head screws that secure the coil in the deck. These screws are small and it does take a little patience to unscrew then tighten when the coil is fitted.
Two O-rings are fitted to the RBA coil, one in the top of the removable top section and another around the bottom section of the RBA body, both to ensure the e-liquid seal.
The finish of the RBA coil is gold colored with red O-rings and “Voopoo” and “PnP RBA” printed on the removable top section.
With the top section unscrewed and removed, the build deck is then visible giving access to the post less deck. This removable top section is threaded but only takes about 1 full turn to fully unscrew. The threads are small so do be careful not to strip the threads.
Build Deck
The PnP RBA coil deck is a post less design and will only facilitate a single coil build. Because of its small deck size you will only be able to fit coils which are approximately 2mm in diameter with around 6-8 wraps.
If you’re intending to build your own coils, I would start at around 28AWG and see how you get on. Coils any bigger than this you will be in danger of the coil hitting the sides of the top section once it’s screwed back into position. If this happens you will short the coil out against the RBA case.
The included 0.6 ohm coil is a good sized gauge for the coils you can build.
Fitting the Supplied 0.6 ohm Coil
The PnP RBA Coil kit comes supplied with a 0.6 ohm pre-built coil. I would suggest trying this coil first to see how you get on with the fitting of it and the performance achieved from the coil. After that you can experiment with different coils and wicking techniques if you want.
Place this coil in the coil tooling jig first to aid the fitting process. Trim the coil legs so once fitted in the deck the coil sits just above the coil deck. Allow a little extra height so you can slightly twist the coil so the two open ends of the coil are nearer to the two wicking ports.
My first attempt of fitting the coil worked but wasn’t ideal, the open ends of the coil were opposed to the wicking ports. Twisting the coil slightly meant that when wicking, the cotton wasn’t at right angles to the wicking ports.
Secure the coil using the supplied screwdriver passed through the angled screw slots. Position the coil so you are happy that it’s sitting correctly and tighten the screws again. DON’T over-tighten the screws in case you strip the threads.
Once you’ve fitted the coil, remove the coil tooling jig and screw the top section in place. Do NOT fit the wick in at this stage. Place the RBA coil in the pod so you can dry burn the coil by pulsing the power to ensure the coil glows evenly.
If there are any hotspots, disassemble the RBA and gentle scrape a non-metallic tool across the windings and then repeat the dry burning process. Once you’re happy that the coil glows evenly, remove the RBA coil and proceed to fit the cotton wick.
Of course building your own coils is the real advantage of using this RBA coil and can produce good results. Experimenting with different coil builds is great fun but can be a bit hit and miss. Do use our Coil Wrap Calculator to help you identify the number of wraps needed to produce a given resistance of coil.
Wicking Your Fitted Coil
The PnP RBA Coil kit comes supplied with a small bag of cotton to get you started. Alternatively you can use your own wicking material if you prefer.
Cut off a small strip of cotton and lightly roll it between your fingers. Compress one end of the cotton so you can pass it through the coil. The cotton should move within the coil with a little resistance; not too tight that it jams and not too loose that it doesn’t touch the coil wire.
Leave approximately 1 inch (20mm) of cotton either side of the coil and cut off the excess. The length of the cotton ends has to be long enough for the cotton to reach inside the wicking ports.
Fluff up the ends of the cotton and gentle push them down into the wicking ports. Don’t compress the cotton too much otherwise your e-liquid won’t be able to freely soak into the cotton.
Drip a few drops of e-liquid onto the cotton and into the wicking ports and re-fit the top section of the RBA coil. This will help saturate the cotton before you’re ready to first use the RBA coil. The process of dripping e-liquid onto the cotton is called “Priming” and is always a good practice to follow.
Lastly, fit the RBA coil into your pod, fill the pod up with your e-liquid and leave to stand for approx. 10-15 minutes before you start to vape.
Voopoo PnP RBA Coil / Performance
I will be blatantly honest and say that my first couple of attempts at positioning the coil and wicking was not great. While it vaped ok, the performance didn’t match that of my stock PnP coils.
Be patient and Do tweak with your build and you Will be happy with the end results.
Once I repositioned the coil off center to the deck terminals, this allowed the cotton to sit easier with less restriction into the wicking ports. Also I found that a little less cotton improved the performance in terms of both flavor and vapor.
While using the RBA coil, I kept with my 50/50 e-liquid mix and maintained a similar power level to that which I use with the stock Voopoo coils. I used the RBA coil in the pods on my Voopoo Vinci X2 and Voopoo Drag X Plus, both of which performed well.
Flavor and vapor improved once the coil and wick had bedded in after about a pod full of e-liquid. I won’t say the RBA coil is any better than the stock coils BUT it is a good alternative when you don’t have any stock coils at hand.
Voopoo PnP RBA Coil Price
I purchased the Voopoo RBA Coil kit from Ubervape for £4.99. Other suppliers like Vape Club are a similar price too. Considering the cost is only slightly more than a single stock coil, it really is worth having one or two of these as backups.
Voopoo PnP RBA Coil Verdict
Pros
- Good build quality
- RBA replacement for PnP stock coils
- Performance is pretty good
- Comes with tools and spares
Cons
- It’s TINY
- It’s FIDDLY
Voopoo PnP RBA Coil Summary
The Voopoo PnP RBA Coil is a great little addition to have if you want to build your own coils in your device that takes stock coils. Obviously this RBA will only fit in the specified Voopoo devices to replace the stock Voopoo PnP coils.
The included coil and wick, together with the RBA coil and spare parts, for the price make this worthwhile having even if used as a backup when the stock coils are not available.
While it is re-buildable, I will say it is TINY and can be difficult to fit the coil and wick. A steady hand and good eyesight is needed. I definitely needed a magnifier to see what I was doing.
Performance in terms of flavor and vapor was ok although you do have to persevere with the build and wicking to achieve results similar to the stock coils.
Of course there are dedicated RBA’s and RTA’s out there that will produce better results but at the end of the day, this is a good alternative to use in your Voopoo devices that take the PnP coils if rebuilding is your thing.
Hope you enjoyed this review on the Voopoo PnP RBA Coil and found it useful. If you have any questions or feedback, please feel free to leave us a comment below.
If you do purchase one, please do drop us a comment and let us know how you’re getting on with it.
Comments 27
Nice write-up. It’s good to see people are still vaping and participating in 2023. I just bought 2 of these to save money and in case stock coils became harder to get. I’ll definitely by trying aligning the coil openings to the reservoir holes – built the first stock and the 2nd with fused claptons, both left something to be desired in terms of flavor and airflow. I saw your comment on positioning the coil higher but I was deftly afraid of burning the O-ring as there’s only ~1mm clearance top and bottom when using thicker wire. Happy to have this option but wow it is a challenge to match performance of stock coils.
I’m considering trying to coax the cotton out of the tiny ports and have it inside the actual pod to relieve these 2 issues. Thanks again for the great write-up and leaving comments enabled so we can continue to learn.
Hi Casey, thanks for sharing your views on the PnP RBA Coil and thanks for liking our review on it.
I felt the same as you, I got one as a back up in case the stock coils further down the line become obsolete.
Trying to match the performance of the stock coils is a tall order as they are very good.
I’ve only played around with single wire coils because of the available size of the build deck. I get pretty good flavor but the airflow is restrictive.
Do let us know how you get on with different wicking techniques, it would be good to know if you can improve the airflow.
Thanks again Casey.
Hi Richard
What type of wire,guage,no of wraps and inner diameter you are using ?
Hi Osama, thanks for your question. I use Kanthal A1 single strand round wire. I find anything bigger than 2mm inner diameter gets a bit cramped. 26awg at 5 wraps will give you approx 0.6ohms. 28awg at 5 wraps is approx 0.7ohms. I have wound using 2.5mm inner diameter but it makes the placement of the coil trickier.
Hope this helps.
Hi richard, may i know that pnp rba can use with 30awg size or not?i have kanthal A1 size 30 only
Hi Firdaus, you can use 30awg but this will give you a coil resistance of around 1.5 ohms at 5 wraps. Reducing the inner coil diameter to 2mm will lower the resistance slightly. Alternatively you could twist 2 lengths of 30awg together then wrap to get around 0.6 ohms.
Our Coil Wrap Calculator will show you what you can do to get the resistance you want to achieve with that wire gauge.
Hi Richard
I have succeeded from the first attempt of course following the steps and remarks you have mentioned precisely.
Now I’m vaping e liquid 70/30 vg/pg
6 mg nicotine at 15 watt.
I asking you a favour.
Could u please explan how we can clean the coil wire.
and when it is necessary to change it .
Thank you again . Without your perfect explanation I couldn’t succeed.
Best regards.
Hi Magdy, thank you again for your kind comments, I really appreciate it. Cleaning the coil is not the easiest when it’s used in a pod device unlike when used in a 510 tank. Normally if the coil is used in a 510 base you would remove the wick and dry fire the coil with the top of the tank removed till it glows. As it starts to cool down you lightly scrape the debris from the coil till all of the gunk is removed. Once its clean you then rewick and your good to go again.
You can clean and rewick as many times as you want as long as the coil is still functioning.
When used in a pod, you can’t fire the coil while having access to the top of the coil. You would have to gently scrape the coil while it’s cool to clean the gunk away to get it as clean as you can before you rewick. Hope this helps.
Kindly advise.
How long the legs of the wire. Before fitting it in their slots in mms.
and the clearance of coil wire and the deck.
Hi Magdy, thanks for your question. The leg length is a little ambiguous as it does depend how much of a twist you put on the coil to get the open ends of the coil to align with the wicking channels. In general I cut my coil legs to leave 5mm from the bottom of the coil which gives me a clearance of about 1mm-2mm from the base of the deck when fitted. Hope that helps.
Many thanks for your clarification and advices.
Best regards
Hi Magdy, you’re very welcome. Good luck with building on the PnP RBA coil. My first couple of attempts was a bit hit and miss but thereafter it worked fine. Because the deck is pretty small, I found using a magnifier worked wonders.
Got one and the rba is a lot less airflow than expected, anyway to increase it?
Hi Dallas, the airflow is more restricted than when using a stock coil. Try fluffing up your cotton so it’s not compacted or reducing the amount of cotton you use. Too much cotton will reduce the airflow but it is a fine line as too little cotton will cause leaking.
Does anyone know the size of the screws? I lost on of them and a M3 hex screw is too big
Hi Grant, thanks for your question.
The small flathead deck screws are M1.5. They are 3mm in length by 1.5mm in diameter. The RBA Coil kit does have a spare screw in the included spares pack.
is it compatible to Vinci II? if yes, do I have to change the pod?
Hi Chris, thanks for your question.
Yes its compatible with the Vinci II and fits in the existing pod. I did mention the devices that accept the PnP RBA coil in my review. The RBA coil will fit in the Voopoo pods that accept the stock PnP coils.
Is it compatible with Voopo Argus
Hi Ahmed,
You’ve not specified what Argus you have. The PnP RBA coil replaces the stock coils in the devices that use the PNP coils. Its compatible with several of the Vinci series, Drag series and Argus series but not all of them. If your Argus uses the PNP series of coils then this RBA coil will fit. Hope this helps.
Thanks for posting this. While it was a long read, I only skimmed it for now but till read the whole thing in the future, probably after I buy a PNP RBA. I have built on RDA’S in the past, so this seems like a good fun investment. I just got a voopoo max and love the magnetic and push on design vs threading.
Hi Casemods, thanks for your comment.
Some of my reviews, well a lot of them actually, do tend to be rather long but I do like to cover as much as I can in them.
The PnP RBA coil is pretty good BUT it is fiddly to build on. Well worth it though as a replacement for stock coils. As you’ve built on RTAs before you should have no problems other than it all being miniaturized.
Hi
Although I pretty sure I’ve followed the above instruction perfectly, the end results are not completely satisfying. In fact, the air flow is tight enough not to give a pleasant vaping’s experience. I build and rebuild it several times trying different wire positions and cotton thickness and length to solve the airflow issue but not chance.
Any advice?
Hi Imad,
The majority of my builds do end up being more restrictive in terms of airflow than you get from the stock coils.
I always angle the coil legs to enable the wicking to flow unrestricted from the coil into the small wick channels. I also try not to have the coil too close to the base to allow the maximum airflow possible. Also don’t over-pack the cotton, I’ve found less is better.
Unfortunately because the RBA is so small and damm fiddly even the slightest of change to the placement of the coil can have quite an effect.
Good luck and I hope you can improve the airflow to achieve a better vape.
Hi Richard,
Thanks for your quick answer!
I have tried exactly what you have advised above except the less cotton thing. I am gonna give it a shot and see.
By the way, well done for the very good illustration about building such coil.
Hi Imad,
Thanks for your nice comments, I appreciate it.
Hope less cotton works for you. I still use the PnP RBA but also do at times prefer the stock coils as it is hard to beat the performance from them. Good luck.
Hi Richard,
Thanks for your quick answer!
I have tried exactly what you have advised above except the less cotton thing. I am gonna give it a shot and see.
By the way, well done for the very good illustration about building such coil.