My review of the Hastur MTL RTA by Cthulhu Mod
Hello, r/ECR folks!
https://i.imgur.com/ZSalXGC.jpg
Today I will be reviewing the much-anticipated Hastur MTL RTA.
Overview:
The Hastur MTL RTA is a 24mm, 3.5ml rebuildable atomizer designed by Brian N. (CA, USA) and manufactured by Cthulhu Mod. It features a single-coil two post deck, a unique Bayonet-styled top cap design and 5 swappable airflow restrictor. Currently available in black or stainless steel.
Packaging:
https://i.imgur.com/okWw77l.jpg
It comes in an old-fashioned tweed box, like many of Cthulhu’s products. On the top, we have a round sticker of the Cthulhu Mod’s logo while the sides are glued with a coarse black fabric.
The package includes:
https://i.imgur.com/05gAeyn.jpg
- 1 x Hastur MTL RTA
- 2 x ultem drip tips (dia. 2.0mm, 3.5mm)
- Spare o-rings
- 2 x post screws
- Allen key tool
- 5 x swappable airflow restrictors (dia. 1.0mm, 1.6mm, 2.0mm, 2.5mm, 3.5mm)
- 1 x frosted glass tank
Deck:
Cthulhu Mod is touting the chamber as, “Probably the smallest chimney chamber RTA”. Word of advice from a marketing bro: using the word “probably” in your advertising collaterals is not the best idea.
Semantics aside, I have to give it to them. The chamber is small. Thanks to the enormous size of the positive and negative blocks, it eats up a significant amount of space on the deck, resulting in a reasonably smaller chamber. Now, it's believed that a smaller chamber leads to an increase of flavor. Honestly, I wouldn't be able to tell although this seems to be a common trend in a lot of flavor atties these days.
Surprisingly, even with such a small chamber, the deck manages to accommodate 3mm coils with ease.
Like the Serpent SMM, it has a two post design with two slotted terminals. I'm loving this because you can put the coil in any you want to orient it. No need to think about where to place your coils legs, because you can always flip the coil one way or the other.
The post screws are not the smoothest I’ve come across but it gets the job done and traps your wire securely in place.
There is no way to remove the build deck when there’s liquid inside (unless you want juice to spill out everywhere) because the glass section is held in place when you screw the top cap into the base section. This might be a make or break for you, not an issue for me as I rarely tinker with my build or change my wick. Still, it’s something that needs to be mentioned.
Building/Wicking:
https://i.imgur.com/Fdc58jY.jpg
I’m running a simple SS316 26ga round wire build, wrapped around a 3mm bit. It rounds out to 0.8 ohms.
I had zero issues installing the coil. Honestly, I could have gone up to 3.5mm but I see no reason to as I enjoy the way 3mm vapes.
Building on this is a breeze. Just slide the legs of your coils in, tighten the post screws to secure your leads and centralise your coil with the airflow. Yup, that simple.
Wicking is very easy. I cut the wicks a little longer and place it gently into the wick slots. I’ve found that it’s best to have a little cotton peeking out when you screw on the chamber. No leaking and gurgling whatsoever. Super forgiving.
For the chain vapers, I’m happy to report that the wicking keeps up beautifully. Not a single dry hit in sight.
Top-filling:
The biggest problem with a lot of MTL atomizers is leaking or gurgling. It’s caused by the pressure exerted into the chamber when you screw down the top cap.
To remedy this, Cthulhu Mod’s opted for a bayonet-styled top cap design. To refill, you grab on to the nut affixed right above the top cap, push down gently and turn it clockwise or anti-clockwise. You will feel a satisfying click as the top cap detaches from the chimney.
After you’ve filled your liquid, line up the protruding piece with the indentations on the chimney and turn it clockwise or anti-clockwise to latch it on. Very similar to the Siren v2. It just works brilliantly.
So far, I’ve had no leaking. No gurgling. No juice pooling up in unwanted areas. Kudos to whoever came up with this. I woudn't be surprised to see more MTL atomizers with bayonet-styled top caps in the future.
Performance/Airflow:
The Hastur MTL RTA comes with not one, not two, but FIVE different airflow restrictors.
I’ve tried 4 out of the 5 airflows restrictors. The 1.0mm and 1.6mm being my favorites.
On the 1.0mm airflow restrictor, with 80% of the airflow closed-off, I get a tight mouth-to-lung draw with smooth, saturated flavor, similar to the Berserker MTL RTA by Vandy Vape.
Moving to 1.6mm, it’s a looser MTL draw, but still has dense, excellent flavor.
Wasn’t really a fan of the 2.0mm and 2.5mm restrictors as it started getting too airy for me. Make no mistake though, you can definitely lung hit with this atty.
It’s really cool that Cthulhu included 5 airflow resistors so you can fine-tune your vape experience. They even mentioned they have plans to sell different airflow resistors in the future at a reasonable price! How awesome is that?
Overall, the performance and flavor of the Hastur MTL RTA is top-notch. I own both the Berserker MTL RTA and the Siren v2, and the Hastur MTL RTA definitely holds its own in the flavor department.
Design:
The design of Hastur MTL RTA takes me back to the early days of the Kayfun. Simple by design, stripped back of unnecessary complications. With the help of Brian N., the mastermind behind the popular Gaia RDTA, Cthulhu has created a well-designed, good-looking tank.
The aesthetics, the paint finishing, the wavy line engravings festooning the top cap and base, the laser-etched logo on the chamber, and the conscious decision to go with a darker hue of ultem for the drip tip.
Everything about it looks and feels minimalistic, refined and elegant. It's a breath of fresh air from the surplus of gaudy, over-the-top atomisers coming out of China.
Pros:
- Highly customizable airflow
- Dense saturated flavor
- Good machining
- No leaking
- Easy to install coils
- More airflow restrictors coming
- Bayonet-styled top cap design
Cons:
- 24mm diameter won’t fit on smaller mods
- You can’t remove the build deck when tank is full
Overall:
https://i.imgur.com/5NTiNLg.jpg
Aside from a few minor quirks, Cthulhu Mods have designed a solid MTL device in my books. One that’s worthy of joining the ranks of Siren v2 and Berserker MTL RTA on the upper echelons of the MTL world. It doesn’t necessarily reinvent the wheel in any way. But it doesn’t need to. Cthulhu Mod has stuck to what they know best—borrowing, tweaking and refining—from other amazing atomizers and making something truly great.
The Cthulhu MTL RTA was sent to me by u/cthulhumod for the purposes of this review, and is now available on their site for $34.99
Posted Oct 28, 2017, 9:55 AM UTC · edited