RBA Reviews

Vapefly Jester Rebuildable Pod System 2 in 1 Edition

Following on from our review of the brilliant Vapefly Jester Pod System, Simon tries out the rebuildable 2 in 1 edition.

by Si Davies
Oct 23, 2019

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Bought with my own money review.

Vapefly Jester RBA Edition Main

In a nutshell and Score

The Vapefly Jester Rebuildable Pod System is one of the best things I have bought in 2019, innovative and the flavour! It’s frikkin sublime! Easy to build, wick, power settings are perfect and it beats every other pod I own – ordered another, read on to know why.

Score 9/10 – Masterpiece! I ‘Jest’ you not.

So let’s begin with the usual boring bit, description specs etc.

Official Website:
http://www.vapefly.com/vapefly-jester-pod/

RRP £38.99 / $40 ish but you can find it a lot cheaper, I paid around £25 from Fast Tech.

Vapefly Jester RBA Edition Boxed

Unboxing and contents

I ordered the DIY edition and I was in for a pleasant surprise upon opening the box, not only did I get the RDTA pod there was also a 0.5 Ohm stock coil pod included – Brucey Bonus J

Now I was torn which pattern to order, I nearly went for plain black but on a whim I went for the ‘Jester’ version, unlike me as I don’t like graphic mods but I am glad I did now, it’s quirky and stands out in my vast Pod / AIO collection.

The box is nicely styled to suit the theme and not overly packed out the contents include:

1 x Jester battery
1 x Jester cartridge
1 x Jester dripping cartridge / RDTA
1 x 0.5ohm mesh coil
2 x 1.0ohm prewrapped coils
2 x Firebolt cotton
1 x USB cable
4 x Screws
1 x Screwdriver
1 x User manual

Vapefly Jester RBA Edition Unpacked

Bumf

Size: 33 x 18.2 x 91mm
Battery: 1000mAh built-in Battery
Juice capacity: 2ml
Variable Voltage range: purple light - 3.3V, blue light - 3.8V, green light - 4.8V
One extra mesh coil resistance: 0.5ohm

The user manual is well laid out but I didn’t need to read it as everything is common sense; it’s an impressive little bundle for the money. I popped the battery section on charge and filled up the 0.5 Ohm stock coil pod while I waited, charging is very fast and it didn’t take long before it was charged.

Colour Options

Vapefly Jester RBA Edition Colours

Pod Options

The 2 pods are completely different in the way they open, the stock coil one has a flip open lid for filling and you slide the stock coil in from underneath, the stock coil also has adjustable airflow at the base of the coil whereas the rebuildable pod has no adjustable airflow, surely a con? Nope as it turned out the airflow was just about right for MTL.

Vapefly Jester RBA Edition Pods

Since I tried the stock coil pod while I was building the RDTA (Rebuildable Dripping Tank Atomiser) I will give a brief review of that but a full review of the ‘Mesh Edition’ will be available by another reviewer around the same time.

The flavour from the 0.5 Ohm mesh coil with the airflow wide open quickly impressed me, though a little strong for my liking using nic salts, the choice of a flip cover top cap is a little odd as it catches on the battery so won’t fully open unless you remove the pod which is counter intuitive, filling it up was easier if you remove the complete silicone stopper from both sides so there is no airlock, it was all a bit of a faff if I’m honest.

Thankfully the Rebuildable Pod is another story

Looks & Operation

Vapefly Jester RBA Edition Looks

The shape is nothing new and almost standard for a pod but you can see a lot of thought has gone into the user experience, the pod is retained by 2 clips with push buttons on either side which work very well and hold it secure, the fire button is almost flush and in the centre, the battery section has a rubberised texture to it which is grippy and feels nice in the hand whereas the fire button is smooth so easily found without looking, the micro USB port is on the base.

It has 3 adjustable power settings which can be cycled by clicking the fire button 3 times and round robins:

Variable Voltage range:

Purple light - 3.3V.
Blue light - 3.8V.
Green light - 4.8V

Charging just displays Red lights so you can’t exactly tell how much it’s charged whilst charging, this didn’t bother me in the slightest as it charges the battery very fast.

RDTA Pod review and build guide

To start you need to pop the pod into the battery and simply pull off the top cap which will then expose the build deck.

I chose to use the included 1 ohm Ni80 coil which is 2mm inside diameter, as you cannot mount it on a regulated mod or ohms meter you just have to go with it (though I did test mine with a multimeter and it was just under 1 ohm), it was very easy to fit with the aid of a coil rod, the screws clamped down nicely without springing the wire out and I had it fitted in seconds, I gave it a dry burn on the lowest power setting (Purple 3.7v).

Vapefly Jester RBA Edition Coil

Wicking wise the supplied Firebolt cotton was a bit too thick for the 2mm coil so I peeled a few strands from it, I pre-rolled a little then tightly rolled 5mm of one end small enough to easily slide the cotton though the coil, length wise I took a wild guess which fortunately was spot on, I cut the cotton just a touch longer than the outer edge of the pod (see photo below) then fluffed the ends out slightly.

Vapefly Jester RBA Edition Wicking

There are 2 cotton slots you need to poke the ends of the cotton into making sure you get it all in and not tightly packing it, you should just be able to see the cotton hanging below the slots from the underside of the pod, any longer will affect the capacity, this method means you can almost fully empty the tank while vaping.

Once you have got the cotton in place; juice the coil and cotton then fill up the pod via the rubber tab at the side, this again is easy as there is no airlock, though it is tricky to see without holding it up to the light.

You should end up with something like this:

Vapefly Jester RBA Edition Build

That’s all there is to it, pop the cap back on until you see it flush and it’s ready to enjoy.

Performance

After completing the build which I actually enjoyed it was time to test it out, I used Ohm Brew Rhubarb & Custard 20mg nic salts which I used to test other pods and MTL atty’s: Anyone that uses rebuildable atty’s will know that first draw moment where it’s at its best and I was not disappointed, more to the point I was borderline shocked; just WOW! It’s the first time I have experience this level of flavour from a Pod / AIO, this genuinely brought a grin to my face and knew yet again Vapefly had nailed it with this innovative design.

There are 2 factors that I feel contribute to this overwhelming flavour, firstly the RDTA style means you always get a fully saturated coil and secondly the coil is closer to your mouth with less distance for the vapour to travel.

One of my concerns of it not having adjustable airflow was soon dismissed as they have also nailed the draw to be a proper MTL (Mouth To Lung) to the point that if it had adjustable airflow this is what I would set it too – another pro, Vapefly really understand Mouth To Lung as I have mentioned before on a previous review of the Vapefly Holic.

I had it set on the default lowest power setting, as the coil is Ni80 it already ramps up fast so it seemed spot on to me but tried the other 2 power settings anyway, to cycle through the 3 settings; click the fire button 3 times for the next setting, the second setting gave a much warmer vape and even more flavour though chain vaping it got a bit too warm for my liking, the highest power was intense, no dry hits but definitely too warm, so I settled for the default lowest power, this is also the best for a longer battery life and coil / wick life, the higher settings will fare better on different wires like Kanthal or SS316L but if ‘it aint broke’ and all that.

So it’s also advertised as a dripper which indeed is simple enough as the top cap comes off easily enough but not too easy as to come off by accident, so to drip you simply pop off the top cap, drip e-liquid onto your coil, replace the cap and draw, you could try dripping down into the drip tip hole but I wouldn’t advise it as you will end up with unburnt liquid in your mouth, as a dripper I don’t see the point as the wick and reservoir already gives that dripper performance, though it could come in handy if you want to test a range of flavours.

Comparisons

The only comparison I can directly compare to is the excellent Smoant Pasito with the RBA option which is top of the pods in my collection, so is the Jester any better?

Vapefly Jester RBA Edition Comparisons

The Smoant Pasito (AKA Potato) looks and feels better quality, it also has USB-C charging, the pod is easier to see the juice level and also easier to remove via the magnetic connection, power adjustment range is also better with 5 power levels to fine tune your vape, the RBA deck has a 510 adaptor to test ohms and dry burn, adjustable airflow and the flavour is also very impressive so on paper you would think the Pasito would have the edge?

For me this is not the case as the all-important flavour is better on the Jester, also it is far easier to build on and inspect your coil / wick without having to strip it fully down, it is also smaller, lighter and more pocket friendly, I also prefer the mouthpiece which is more comfortable. Despite it being micro USB charging it also charges it’s 1,000 mAh battery really fast, I haven’t actually stopwatch timed it but I’m often surprised how fast it charges, seems around 20 minutes or so.

The proof of the pudding is which one I reach for as I have 3 Pasitos with different flavours and builds but I always go for the Jester first and using the Pasito while the Jester is charging seems a step down, I’ve been using it for a couple of weeks and hardly put it down.

So is this the ultimate rebuildable pod system?
One thing I have learned, especially this year is there is no such thing as the ‘Ultimate’ pod, aio, atty, mod etc. Just when you think it can’t get better there is always the next innovation, however Vapefly are one to watch, their R&D is clearly innovative and they rarely copy others so I am really hoping they produce another rebuildable pod building on the strengths of the Jester.

It’s not without its flaws, DTL users will likely dismiss it, there is no battery level indicator, no USB-C, you need to remove the cartridge to see your juice level which is still too dark, the graphics won’t appeal to a lot of people though they do plainer versions, also builds will not last as long as stock coils before they need a dry burn and rewick, finally there is no way to test your ohms without a multimeter.

It seems a contradiction for me to say the Jester is better than the Pasito but none of the above flaws bother me enough to be an annoyance, its simplicity and flavour wins for me, this is now my new benchmark for Rebuildable Pod / AIO for flavour and ease of use.

Vapefly Jester RBA Edition Joker

Conclusion

Looks are deceiving, the Jester does not visually stand out in a line-up of the better pod / aio systems on the market, but it’s a Wolf in Sheep’s clothing full of innovation and a pleasure to use and build, and I can’t stress enough the FLAVOUR is phenomenal, it’s not one you will look at as a classy looking device and the graphics options will put some off though they have also released plainer versions (I have ordered another one in Silver).

If you enjoy Mouth To Lung, DIY and pods this will not disappoint, I highly recommend this product and is now No1 in my ‘Top Of The Pods’ knocking the excellent Pasito off its perch.

Pros

FLAVOUR – simply sublime.
Easy build deck.
Accessible build deck without fully stripping.
Simple operation.
Rubberised finish feels great in the hand.
Comfortable mouthpiece.
Free stock coil pod.
Fast charging.
3 variable wattage levels.
Easy firing button tactile feel.
Innovative.
1,000 mAhBattery life is great.
Airflow is great for MTL users.
Oh and Flavour – flavour – flavour!

Cons

No adjustable airflow.
Not one for DTL users.
No 510 connection to test your build.
Shape is fairly standard.
No battery level indicator.
Dark pod makes it difficult to see juice level.
Causing my Pasitos to be neglected.

Final thoughts

None of the above cons are a deal breaker for me as the pros far outweigh the cons, this rebuildable system is a new benchmark for flavour for me and one of my best buys of 2019.

Would I replace it if I lost or broke it? 100% f*@k yeah! In fact I have already ordered a ‘spare’ cough cough.

In a nutshell and Score

Looks: 8/10
Ergonomics: 9/10
Perfomance: 9.5 / 10
Battery Life: 8/10
Value For Money: 9.5 / 10
Ease of use: 9/10

Overall Score 9/10 – Masterpiece! I ‘Jest’ you not.

Si Davies

Reviewer at POTV

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My background is Engineering and Professional Photography. Mostly from POTV users knowledge I learned so much about pretty much all styles of vaping and equipment, Cloud Chasing, Squonking, Mouth To Lung, Direct To Lung, Pods, Mechs, Rebuild-able tanks and atomisers etc, and have experience with many many devices and atomisers, it's become a hobby and enjoy trying out the latest gear. I like to think my reviews are plain speaking and informative without getting too technical, if I have to resort to reading the manual then I don't consider it user friendly!