Mad Dog Mech Kit Review! An RDTA + Mech Combo - Darksun Reviews

Review

Good day fellow vapers, today I’m going to be reviewing the Mad Dog RDTA Mech Kit by Desire. Disclaimer: I was provided this product for the purpose of this review by Heaven Gifts.

INTRO

Before I get started, I need to state that this is NOT a device for vapers who do not understand ohm’s law and proper battery safety. Also users must know what your batteries are accurately rated at, since a lot of manufacturers provide inaccurate information. Check out Mooch’s bench-testing results for trustworthy data.

I was very intrigued when I saw a mech kit with a custom RDTA to go with it. I’m a huge fan of RDTAs, as I feel that they get the best of both worlds from an RDA and an RTA. Not to mention that I favor mechanical devices over most regulated ones for their overall reliability and durability. Needless to say, when the two are combined it hits my vape “sweet spot”. The bar is set high already, and I hope this kit can meet up to my expectations.

The Mad Dog RDTA Mech Kit is a single 18650 hybrid mech mod, with a custom designed RDTA to work with the kit or another regulated device.

SPECIFICATIONS

Size: 24mm x 132mm
Capacity: 4.5ml (7ml stated!)
Material: 304 stainless steel with gold plating, “aeronautical material shell” (not entirely sure what it exactly is), pyrex tank
Cell: single 18650
Colors: Black, Red (slightly pinkish), and Purple

PACKAGING

Mad Dog Mech + Mad Dog RDTA
Conversion base for RDTA
Spare parts – 2x pyrex glass tanks, o-rings, flathead screws
L-shaped hex tool and Single coil ultem plug
Instruction manual

OVERVIEW

This kit is presented nicely from the magnetic box to the overall design and layout. It reminds me of the level of detail that Cthulhu Mod uses in their packaging. Not only is it appealing to the eye but also gives a sense of quality to the product.

Mad Dog Mech

The Mad Dog mech is ergonomically designed and very comfortable to use. I did not notice any roughness in the shell and overall feels good in the hand when I utilized the grip. One other thing I noticed was how freakishly light the tube is due to the aeronautical shell. Depending on the user, this could be a pro or a con. It is a hybrid mechanical, so be sure to always use attys with extended 510 pins.

Safety

The first thing I always look for in a mechanical mod is how safe it is. No one likes the vape with, what could be, a pipe bomb. First thing I noticed was the locking of the fire button on the switch, which is a huge pro for safety. There are also vent holes in the switch that goes through the spring-loaded delrin ring and out of the switch when the fire button unlocked. Due to this, the 18650 battery should be placed positive down to utilize the vents. I’ve already mentioned the delrin ring but this will also reduce battery rattle. Last thing that I noticed was the liner along the inside of the tube and on the inside of the top. This is to help prevent shorts from damaged battery wraps. Desire did a great job designing this mech with safety in mind.

Switch

Besides the venting and the delrin ring, the switch is well constructed and gold plated. The threading is smooth going into the tube and there is no wiggle once fully on. It switch is magnetic but has a very weak throw. It isn’t so weak that setting it down without the firing button locked will cause it to fire but, in my opinion, it feels like it should. That’s how soft the throw feels.

Mad Dog RDTA

The deck is gold plated and is very appealing to look at. The RDTA utilizes bottom/side airflow from upward ramps on the side of the deck. There is an ultem plug that came with it to allow the use of a single coil build. However, the pug fails to also block the airflow on the corresponding side and the top cap doesn’t have the capability of just closing off one airflow. Upon further inspection, there are two vent holes in the deck (more on this later) and, while not much, there is a very small well around the entire deck to allow light dripping. The top cap does not use any o-rings to keep it in place. Instead the bottom of the cap has an additional wrap to help grip the deck and fully seal the refill hole. When using as a kit, the RDTA does not have a base and has a nicely protruding 510 pin. The top of the hybrid connection acts as the base and the tube has a cut out section to seal the glass tank. Desire also provides a conversion base, for when the RDTA is used on another device. However, the conversion base’s 510 pin is not extended enough to be safely used with another hybrid mechanical mod.

Building

It feels like there is not much to work with on this deck, but it is deceiving. The posts in this RDTA are horizontal and utilize durable hex screws. The maximum inner diameter from my builds was 3mm and I would recommend using smaller gauge exotics (such as 28g + 36g claptons) or plain 24g wire. I endorse this for two reasons: 1) Less mass/simple builds work best in mechanicals due to less time needed to heat up, and 2) it will allow the user to effectively only utilize the center two posts.

I did use several builds with all 4 posts, and it can work, but there is a bit of bending and twisting that is needed to be done so that the wick can easily enter the holes in the deck without interference and/or kinking up. In either case, the fewer obstacles for the wick will result in better absorption and juice flow.

Finally, the coils need to be lined up correctly above the airflow so that the coils get ample bottom airflow. Note that with some of the beefier exotics; I had to build with about 0.5mm overhanging above airflow channel. Just make sure to not overextend or you’ll run into issues with the coils touching the top cap.

Wicking

Wicking, like with any RDTA, is a little bit more challenging for some but is very straightforward. Do to the vent holes in the deck, there isn’t too much need to make sure the wicks are not too tight in the channel. With other RDTAs (like my Avocado 24) that do not have small vent holes, when I wick them I have to leave a small gap between the wick and the side of the channel to allow air to escape. By leaving gaps or having vent holes, will allow the wicks to absorb juice better and result in less dry hits. This vent idea has been done before in other RDTAs, like the Gaia, and it is a simple yet brilliant improvement.

Once the wicks are in the channels, I always like to inspect under the deck. This is the best angle in my option to notice if the wicks are too tight or if I need to make any adjustments (pulling them down more or trimming off excess). The wicks inside the tank should not extend too far into it, about 2-3mm total, since the main way they get juice is by tilting the tank horizontally while vaping. Finally, I always give the ends a last minute fluff before I fill up the tank.

Refilling

Refilling is easy as the opening is large enough for a dripper. Filling it while it is tilted horizontally will give the maximum amount of juice which is a little under 5ml. When the top cap in put on a seal is created and will prevent the tank from leaking. When it is time to refill, I noticed that it is best to do so when I can see the actual amount of juice left in the tank. This is because it is very hard to remember which side of the cap the fill hole is located. When the juice line is visible, there is no worry of accidental juice spillage.

CONCLUSION

As a whole, the Mad Dog Mech Kit does a good job. The way that the RDTA is designed helps reduce voltage drop and allows it to hit fairly hard. When using a different atty, the mech still performs well but is nothing mind-blowing. Plus the safety features make it a perfect mechanical mod for novice mech users. The ergonomic grip feels fine even with not using it in the proper way it was designed. This is good because an RDTA wicks juice when it is tilted horizontally when vaping, and when it tank is low it is good to rotate it so that the juice can get to all the wick ends. However, I did not like the soft throw and how lightweight the kit is. This is more due to my years with mech mods and my personal preference.

The RDTA by itself, with the base, on a regulated mod (not recommended using on a hybrid mech due to short 510 pin) is has solid flavor. Not at the Gaia RDTAs level but still very good. The grub screws are durable and it has a decent 4.5ml capacity, but I just have no idea how Desire can state that it holds 7ml. One downside is the amount of bending needed when using larger exotic builds, due to having to utilize all 4 posts. It is a bit of a pain but is still very doable even with triple fused claptons. The final issue I had with the RDTA was the single coil option that was provided. It is great to get the ultem plug but it doesn’t block the airflow in any way. Additionally, the cap doesn’t have a setting for single coil either. While a single coil build can work, the amount of airflow is too much and really negatively affects the flavor.

PROS

Great safety rated mechanical mod
As a kit, it hits pretty hard
Good flavor overall
Durable hex screws
810 drip tip compatible
No leaking
Spare parts included
Ergonomic grip
Minor- Great presentation and aesthetics

CONS

Very poor single coil option
Extremely misleading max capacity
Subjective - Soft throw on the switch
Subjective - Too lightweight for my tastes

WOULD I RECOMMEND?

With half of the cons being subjective, I would definitely recommend this to a novice mechanical user who likes RDTAs. Personally, I would not recommend the “red” as it has a good bit of pink hue to it (unless you want pink, then go for it!). Overall, I give this kit a thumb up for its safety and custom designed RDTA to work well with the mech. The flavor, while not amazingly-fantastic, is very good and the mech tube (with the RDTA) hits fairly hard. While it can’t compete with my $120-200USD mechs (VCM, Broadside, VAMP), at $55USD it is worth it in my book.

Make sure to follow me on Facebook or Twitter for upcoming reviews and more! Also check out my last review on the DPRO RDA if you missed it!

Let me know if there is additional information that you would like to see and/or your thoughts on the product and the review. Thanks for reading!

Posted Jul 31, 2017, 2:51 PM UTC

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