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Fodi by Hcigar
Fodi by Hcigar

Fodi by Hcigar

Commercial characteristics

  • Sponsor having loaned the product for the magazine: Evaps
  • Price of the tested product: 39.90 Euros
  • Product category according to its selling price: Mid-range (from 36 to 70 euros)
  • Atomizer type: Classic rebuildable
  • Number of resistances allowed: 2
  • Resistance Type: Classic Reconstructable, Rebuildable Micro Coil, Classic Reconstructible Temperature Control, Rebuildable Micro Coil Temperature Control, Rebuildable Genesys
  • Type of wicks supported: Silica, Cotton, Fiber Freaks Density 1, Fiber Freaks Density 2, Fiber Freaks Cotton Blend, Metal Mesh
  • Quantity in milliliters announced by the manufacturer: 2.5

Reviewer comments on business characteristics

Gone are the days when HCigar officiated as a cloner. Water has passed under the bridges and the Chinese manufacturer has diversified a quality production, both in atomizers and mods, whether mechanical or electro, even going so far as to touch the high-end with its latest interpretation. around the DNA200. 

HCigar offers us here a top-coil atomizer! Suffice to say my personal Holy Grail since I love atomizers in this configuration, half dripper, half tank, which generally know how to perfectly restore flavors with a warm / hot vapor. But hey, before doing my Gauvain before the hour, we are going to scrutinize the Fodi, it's his name, to see what he has in his stomach.

We therefore have a medium-sized atomizer, with a beautiful appearance, which can accommodate one or two coils. A customizable atomizer by drawing to do this in the generous bag of spare parts provided. Finally, an atomizer that can be assembled at will with a fiber capillary, such as cotton or Fiber Freaks or in UWick with mesh to take advantage of maximum capillarity, suitable for conveying the most fatty liquids of creation and to climb with glee in the towers without generating a dry-hit. In summary, here we have a genesis whose plate is modeled on a dripper! Well seen, the program is as attractive as possible.

HCigar Fodi Deck

The price remains in the mid-range. We will see later if it is appropriate.

HCigar Fodi Gazette 1

Physical characteristics and felt quality

  • Width or Diameter of the product in mms: 22
  • Length or height of the product in mms as it is sold, but without its drip tip if it is present, and regardless of the length of the connection: 46.5
  • Weight in grams of the product as sold, with its drip tip if it is present: 52
  • Material composing the product: Pyrex, Stanless Steel lde surgical grade
  • Form Factor Type: Kraken
  • Number of component parts without screws and washers: 12
  • Number of threads: 5
  • Quality of the threads: Good
  • Number of O-rings, Dript-Tip excluded: 5
  • Quality of O-rings present: Good
  • O-ring positions: Drip-Tip Connection, Top Cap - Tank, Bottom Cap - Tank, Other
  • Capacity in milliliters actually usable: 2.5
  • Overall, do you appreciate the quality of manufacture of this product with regard to its price? No

Rating of the vapelier as to feelings quality: 3 / 5 3 5 out of stars

Reviewer's comments on physical characteristics and perceived quality

Once is not customary, we will start with the faults. There are four of them and the first two of them are particularly troublesome:

  1. Who screwed up these screw crap to block the resistive wire in the studs? The question is rather heavily asked and I apologize for this discrepancy in language but I benefit from mitigating circumstances, Your Honor! Indeed, it took no less than six assemblies before I managed to mount ONE coil on this board. Even with a thick Kanthal (0.42, 0.50), this is the guaranteed guillotine for your paws. So, we try to tighten less hard but weary ... the thread travels like a half-soft and almost never ends up below the screw (diameter of the screw too small). By switching to double-coil, I let you imagine my suffering. I lost my dignity, my right testicle and an hour of my life spinning like an idiot. If you are interested in going crazy on an experimental basis, get yourself a Fodi urgently! My advice to overcome this unbearable defect for an ato of this type: change the input screws by others. 
  2. There is, located between the two pads and more precisely below the positive pad, a piece of ceramic which is there, on the paper, to reduce the heat on the plate. In fact, it is mainly there to serve as an insulator for the positive pad instead of the material usually chosen. And then, she is there, really there, to break our feet! Indeed, no way to dismantle and reassemble the ato without breaking it in two! The piece is too thin, made of a material known to be particularly fragile. It really was the perfect place to put it on! I guess the person in charge of this at HCigar is also the screw man, right? Well, the coup has been planned and the manufacturer offers us two spare parts in the bag of accessories ... That is to say enough to hold the next two disassembly. My advice: if you are a handyman, copy this part identically in another insulating material and if you are not, order spare ceramics by whole trucks!
  3. The ato presents particularly well with its possibilities to change the color of the joints, to match it with the color of the rubber tape supplied which serves as a bumper in the event of a fall, a good idea since pyrex is not protected, with its two possible top-cap finishes: polished black or stainless steel. We have royal blue with gray joints or blood red with joints of the same water which gives particularly well on black. What idea in this case to provide a green and white drip-tip?!?!? The color blind person responsible for this crime of lese-aesthetics could simply choose to match the drip tip with the color of the top-cap or the color of the rubber tape, it was not very complex ... Finally, this defect is really trivial and does not in any way affect the qualities that ato accumulates elsewhere.
  4. The finish of the plate is poor, we can see the traces of machining and the passage of the machine. Too bad. Someone might retort that it's not a big deal for an ato of this price. It's true, but some competitors do better for the same price.

HCigar Fodi Deck 2

Be careful, however, not to be mistaken, the Fodi also has certain advantages. Like the quality of the steel used, for example, 316L called “surgical grade steel” or “marine steel”, reputed to be very hard and particularly resistant to oxidation. A good quality external finish that makes you regret that the same has not been applied to the interior. A positive through pin in brass for good conductivity and above all great ease of filling thanks to the excellent idea of ​​having put an orifice, corked with rubber, directly in the negative stud. The outer rubber ring is also welcome even if its resistance to elasticity seems a little weak to last a long time. 

HCigar Fodi Fill

In short, the concept is great throughout and the engineers have done a good job. Too bad that some economies of scale have come to interfere with the final rendering by reducing the quality of the assembly for two screws and a ceramic part ...

Functional features

  • Connection type: 510
  • Adjustable positive plot? No, a flush mount can only be guaranteed through an adjustment of the positive pad of the battery or the mod on which it will be installed
  • Presence of air flow regulation? Yes, and variable
  • Diameter in mms maximum of the air regulation possible: 10
  • Minimum diameter in mms of the air regulation possible: 1
  • Positioning of the air regulation: From below and benefiting the resistances
  • Spray chamber type: Conventional / Wide
  • Heat dissipation of the product: Normal

Reviewer's comments on functional features

In principle, it is extremely simple. On the plate, there are two studs, the negative equipped with its rubber stopper for filling (this one takes fine droppers and needles, a little less large droppers or pipettes with a strong tip) and the stud positive that rests on the ceramic part. 

You can choose to mount a simple coil. In this case, it suffices, a little like the mini Goblin, to insert a piece of rubber which will condemn two plunge holes out of the four as well as the air inlet which is not needed, that of the second coil. We therefore realize our coil, normal or micro coil at your choice, which we tighten the legs in the appropriate cavities on the studs and we tighten everything with the screws (those that you have previously changed ...). Then, we insert its fiber capillary into the coil and we immerse the ends of the fiber in the holes made for on the plate so as to touch the bottom of the tank. And it's done.

HCigar Fodi Montage

Don't laugh at my editing, I swear to you that after an hour of struggling against the screws, we get to this ...

To mount in double coil, remove the rubber part which blocks access to the second half of the board, do the same as for the first and let's go. The only thing preventing these operations from being carried out in record time is the so hated presence of these screw-guillotines that I curse! 

Note: it is possible to mount a UWick with mesh. I dreamed of doing it but the time spent finalizing the fiber assembly dissuaded me from doing it. I did well, I think I should have canceled Christmas… My advice: if you use fiber capillary, prefer density 2 Fiber Freaks which will convey your liquid more quickly to the resistance than cotton. You can largely make coils of 3mm inside diameter, which will fill the three plunge with material (without tamping). 

The aiflow is well thought out because it allows easy adjustment by simply turning the top-cap. Thus, the air hole (s) are more or less closed, which makes it possible to regulate its flow quite finely which ends directly under the resistance, benefiting the flavors and the release of vapor. An excellent point.

Finally, the top-cap is equipped with a “baffle” which ensures that the vapor passes through the perimeter of a disc which blocks its usual path. This is to avoid liquid splashes. It is well thought out and in use, it works and it does not affect the quality of the rendering. 

HCigar Fodi Topcap

Drip-Tip Features

  • Drip tip type: 510 Only
  • Presence of a Drip-Tip? Yes, the vaper can immediately use the product
  • Length and type of drip-tip present: Short
  • Quality of the present drip-tip: Good

Reviewer's comments on the Drip-Tip

The quality of the drip-tip is not in question. Its pairing with the ato leaves skeptical about a probable color blindness of the person in charge ... 

Evaluation of the packaging

  • Presence of a box accompanying the product: Yes
  • Would you say that the packaging is up to the price of the product? Yes
  • Presence of a user manual? Yes
  • Is the manual understandable for a non-English speaker? Yes
  • Does the manual explain ALL features? Yes

Vapelier's note on packaging: 5 / 5 5 5 out of stars

Reviewer's comments on conditioning

The packaging is complete. Replacement gasket sets, a spare pyrex, two plunge hole plugging parts, a spare tank cap, two shock tapes, cotton, two prepared coils. Spare screws that I would have done well without, I would have preferred that the four screws provided turned into two good ones. The accessory bag is au gratin and very complete. The box is effective and surrounded by a strip of shiny paper representing the atomizer and there is a notice in English quite easy to understand, even for an allergic French, because the diagrams abound and are easy to read.

HCigar Fodi Pack 2

Appreciations in use

  • Transport facilities with the mod of the test configuration: Ok for an external jacket pocket (no deformations)
  • Disassembly and cleaning facilities: Easy, even standing in the street, with a simple tissue paper
  • Filling facilities: Super simple, even blind in the dark!
  • Easy to change resistances: Difficult, requires various manipulations
  • Is it possible to use this product throughout the day with several vials of EJuice? Yes perfectly
  • Was there leak after one day of use? No
  • In the event of leaks during tests, descriptions of the situations in which they occur

Vapelier's note on ease of use: 3.7 / 5 3.7 5 out of stars

Reviewer's comments on the use of the product

Once you've got a consistent edit, the ato is perfect to use. It has everything one is entitled to expect from a top-coil, both in terms of flavors and in terms of the temperature of the vapor. The air flow was however sufficiently dimensioned to reach the direct inhalation and to be able to cool the coil and the vapor even at high powers. With a liquid in 50/50 and in double coil, we push widely up to 40 / 50W without encountering capillarity problems.

As often but this is personal to me, I preferred to vape it in a single coil for a greater sharpness of the flavors. But in both cases, it behaves very well. The chamber is nevertheless relatively wide and high, but that does not prevent a sufficient concentration of aromas for a real pleasure of taste. And if we add to that a good propensity to make steam, we have here a beautiful hybrid machine whose rendering is as interesting in reality as in the concept. 

HCigar Fodi Pack 1

  • Recommendations for use

  • With which type of mod is it advisable to use this product? Electronics AND Mechanics
  • Which mod model is it recommended to use this product with? An electro mod between 30 and 60W
  • With which type of EJuice is it advisable to use this product? All liquids without problem
  • Description of the test configuration used: Reulnumx Reulnumx, Vaporshark rDNA200
  • Description of the ideal configuration with this product: Electro mod between 30 and 70W

was the product liked by the reviewer: Yes

Overall average of the Vapelier for this product: 3.9 / 5 3.9 5 out of stars

Link to a video review or blog maintained by the reviewer author of the review

The mood ticket of the reviewer

The Fodi could have been the atomizer of this end of the year. Its operating principle, its practical find for filling, the materials used, the thickness of the pyrex ... and above all a particularly interesting rendering, in single or double coil, everything was there for a vaping party and the automatic filling of your shoes Christmas by the people who love you. 

The fact of having quibbled on tenths of a cent by putting unsuitable screws and of having totally planted the presence of the ceramic piece, to say the least, mean that in the balance sheet, we remain disappointed with this waste of intelligence parasitized by savings of scraps of candle.

You will therefore allow me to recommend this atomizer for confirmed vapers who like tuning and to advise against it absolutely for beginners in reconstructable.

I love this ato. I hate this ato!

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(c) Copyright Le Vapelier SAS 2014 - Only full reproduction of this article is authorized - Any modification of any kind is totally prohibited and infringes the rights of this copyright.

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About the Author

59 years old, 32 years of cigarettes, 12 years of vaping and happier than ever! I live in Gironde, I have four children of whom I am gaga and I like roast chicken, Pessac-Léognan, good e-liquids and I am a vape geek who takes responsibility!