A Clapton coil consists of a small (narrower) gauge wire wound around another large (wider) wire at a right angle.
This type of coil is much talked about in the vaping world and it’s no wonder: the Clapton coil can improve the vaper experience, enhancing the vaporization and flavour of the juice.
However, this little device we call a Clapton coil is quite complex.
Whether it’s for novices wanting to try something new, or veteran vapers looking to rev up their vape, knowing the Clapton coil is essential.
Ready to learn everything there is about this coil, its characteristics, advantages and how to make a Clapton coil? So read on!
What are Clapton resistors?
The Clapton coil is a type of vape resistor, made up of two wires: a narrower one tightly wound, at a right angle, over a wider one. It’s a mod for vapes.
Its relationship with the practice of vaping has to do with the efficiency that the Clapton coil adds to the device. In the beginning, the coils were almost all made with a single metal wire, something simple and narrow.
The Clapton coil is an innovation, as it provides a larger surface to the coil, which takes a little longer to heat up.
The principle here is simple: the larger the surface, quantity and gauge of the wires, the more juice will be heated, but at a slightly slower speed.
Thus, the Clapton coil is able to improve the vaporization experience, delivering better flavours and also cloud production.
The name “Clapton” is a term used to refer to coils with this configuration (smaller wire wound into larger wire) , also called a “fancy coil” (or “adorned coils”).
Today, you can find different types of Clapton coils: alien coils, fused Clapton coils, staple coils, tiger coils, among many others.
All of these present different degrees (and successively better) of the vaping experience, due to the configuration of the wires.
What are the advantages of this type of resistance?
Of course, there are several advantages related to using the Clapton coil — it is an innovation over conventional coils.
That’s why, when entering the world of fancy coils, vapers usually start with the Clapton coil, using them in their RTA or RDA.
Among its benefits for the vaporization experience, we can mention:
Resistant
The principle is simple to understand: the more wire you use, the greater the resistance.
You might ask yourself: ” Ok, if it generates more resistance, why use the Clapton coil? “. Well, let’s go:
The thicker, lower-resistance wire makes up the core and carries most of the current. It keeps the resistance low.
The thinner wire, which is wrapped around the outer surface, consumes less current, but still heats up quickly. This is because the narrow wire is in direct contact with the already hot inner core.
This creates an appropriate action for vaping, allowing you to create larger clouds of steam — and of course, which consumes more juice than with conventional coils.
High voltage
Due to its characteristics, surface and wires, the Clapton coil will require a high voltage setting from your e-cigarette.
This is also a point of attention since the Clapton coil will consume much more from your battery than conventional coils.
What types of Clapton?
As we told you before, there is not just one type of Clapton coil. In fact, there are several coils that use the same configuration, but with some special touch. We have separated 2 types for you to know, check it out:
Fused Clapton Resistance
The Fused Clapton coil follows the same pattern as the regular Clapton coil but is made with at least two thicker wires as the core. The goal is to improve the triggering of the device, making the vaporization experience more complete.
Resistência Staggered Fused Clapton
The Staggered Fused is an improved version of Fused Clapton. It is made with an even smaller gauge wire wrapped around two or larger gauge wires.
This increases the surface area and provides a better texture. With that, you get a reduction in acceleration time, but better flavour delivery.
How to make a Clapton Coil?
Today, you can buy fancy coils at speciality stores or from artisans who make them by hand. Still, its production is entirely manual, which allows anyone to make their own Clapton coil.
You will need two pieces of wire (we recommend choosing the kanthal type), 24 gauges for the core and 32 gauges for winding (or 26 for the core and 34 gauges for winding) and a drill.
We’ve separated a simplified step by step so you know what you need:
1# Cut a piece of about 15 cm from the larger gauge wire and try to straighten it as much as possible. You can do this with the drill.
2# Take the smaller gauge wire (you can keep it on the spool), we recommend the kanthal. Then, wrap your bridge along with the end that is inside the drill.
The configuration you want to have is the following: the thick gauge wire straight out from the front of the drill (like a drill, for example). And the smaller gauge wire should come out sideways, at a 45-degree angle to the larger wire.
3# The next step is to turn on the drill and gently pull the smaller gauge wire, which will automatically be wound on the larger gauge, thanks to the movement of the drill. You just have to keep it stable and ensure there are no crossings between laps.
The surface of the Clapton coil must be uniform and the wound wire must be firmly “gripped” to the core.