That’s the news of the day and it’s spreading far and wide. I’ve already been sent multiple articles by numerous people.
Before I rant, let me say this… I don’t wish this on anyone. It is an absolute tragedy and an unnecessary loss of life. My heart goes out to Tallmadge’s family, friends, and of course to Tallmadge himself.
And now, I will rant. When I saw the initial reports, I assumed that this was a mechanical. Sure enough:
The autopsy noted that the e-cigarette was manufactured by Smok-E Mountain and was a “mod” type device.
A mechanical device is one of the most dangerous types of electronic cigarettes you can buy. With a mechanical, there is NO built in safety. There is no circuitry to monitor what’s going on and to keep you safe. There is nothing that will shut the device down should you have a short circuit condition on your atomizer.
You HAVE to be educated when using a mechanical. You HAVE to understand battery safety and your battery’s capabilities. You HAVE to understand ohms law. You have to build safely. And even with all that, things can go wrong with a simple mistake.
Now, of course, we’ve seen things go wrong with regulated devices as well, but there are far more layers of safety built into a regulated device over a mechanical.
Mechanicals are elegant beautiful devices to be cherished, collected, and used for vaping enjoyment.
Mechanicals are also cloud chasing beasts.
Regardless of if and why you use a mechanical… YOU ARE the safety circuitry when it comes to them which is why it’s so important for you to UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU’RE DOING!
I’m not saying this tragedy was caused by user error, but I am trying to impress on you the importance of being safe when using a mech mod. To all of you who have written me and are concerned about vaping on your regulated devices, the device in this case… was a mechanical.
But now I need to rant about the news stories a bit. Again, this is a tragedy… but…
MAINSTREAM MEDIA = FEAR MONGERING Why?
Look at the terminology they use… “vape pen”. This was no small vape pen, this was a mechanical mod. Way different.
Look at the photos they’re using. Photos of smaller regulated devices and cig-a-likes. Again, not even CLOSE to the device in question.
Look at their use of the quoted “mod”. Do they even understand the use of that word or are they just trying to spread fear?
And where’s the comparison? 440,000 smokers die per year? No one bats an eye. There are over 3000 house fires caused per year by cigarettes… where are the news stories? Where’s the outcry? Where are the headlines?
Always remember the safest way to vape is to not vape at all, but if you must… be educated, be careful, be safe, be aware, and vape happy my friends.
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