In this brave new world with Temp Control, flashing lights, and endless configurations, sometimes it’s nice to get a setup that is just a quick, easy gas and go setup. No hassles, nothing fancy, just plain simple. I had the luxury of trying out both the Squid Industries PeaceMaker 25mm RTA and their Double Barrel v.3 mod. #IPaidForItMyself, so what I experienced, it what you’ll get.
Squid Double Barrel Mod v.3
FEATURES :
· A new version of Double Barrel box mod
· Dual 18650 batteries with 150W max output
· Spring-load pin with multi-functional firing button
· Connected battery door with multiple protections
· Upgraded flat top OLED display
· Size: 25 x 43 x 92mm
· Variable Wattage: 5-150W
· Battery Type: 2 x 18650 battery (not included)
· Display: 0.47 inch OLED display
· Mode: VV/VW
· Material: Stainless Steel
· Thread: Spring-loaded 510 thread
Minimum Resistance: 0.1Ω
INCLUDES :
· 1 x Double Barrel V3 MOD
· 1 x Spare parts
· 1 x User Manual
Packaging was a great, no-frills affair, in keeping with the simple mantra.
Some protector disks, cert. card, and instruction booklet. The protection disks actually DO help save the finish on the top of the mod as there is NO gap when the tank is installed.
Sexy and simple, including the DUAL use adjustment wheel that doubles as a fire button.
The stainless steel is heavier than you might expect, but is very solid in the hand.
Venting is easily handled by the gap in the battery tubes.
With the redsigned battery door, there were no issues with it staying closed. Nice, secure, and no rattling.
In keeping with the NOT fancy, the 0.47 in. display shows you just what you need, volts, watts, ohms. It is clearly visible, dims after 5 seconds, and eventually shuts off.
Functions are: 3 clicks – Reverse Display, 4 clicks – Lock Power, 5 clicks – Power on/off. Watts max out at 150 watts with the adjustment wheel, but it’s a one way affair, no round robining. Had ZERO issues with this unit during testing. The adj. wheel / fire button worked great, batteries landed snugly and tight, with no rattles. Battery lid was stiff, but never opened unexpectedly, and overall the mod felt REALLY good and solid in the hand.
Squid Peacemaker RTA
Features
- Stainless Steel / Acrylic Plastic or Pyrex Glass Construction
- 4mL/8mL Juice Capacity
- Top-Fill
- Threaded Cap
- Single Clamp Post Build Deck
- Ceramic Clamp
- Top-Mounted Gold-Plated Flathead Screw
- PEEK Insulation
- Fully Adjustable AFC
- Dual Slots Airflow Intake
- Six Bottom-Feed Airhole Output
- Angled Toward Center
- Bare Stainless Steel 510 Threads
- Gold-Plated Positive Pin
- Diameter: 25mm
Includes
-Peacemaker RTA
-Bubble glass
-Spare Parts/tools
The packaging was again, no-nonsense and right to the point.
The 4ml acrylic tank was what I used throughout the testing with the included drip tip, and the two just looked too damned good together. Didn’t even try the included 8ml bubble glass.
Absolutely stunning was the word that came to mind regarding ALL the threads on this RTA. Buttery smooth, and the stoopid simple build deck just added to the wow factor.
Domed for flavor ?? Check.
With 6 air holes hugging the coil, and the slotless coil ceramic top plate, this one was just begging to be built on. Used the included claptions, and as a single, came out to a hair over .30 ohms.
Sucking air from the bottom ?? Yup !!! Hassle free coil loading ?? Yup yup.
Wicking didn’t prove to be much harder than loading the coil. I used the 2.5mm ID clapton coils provided, loaded up my typical Koh Gen Do cotton, trimmed the tails to the bottom of the juice wells, thinned a bit so as not to “pack” the tails, and ready she was.
Saucing the deck.
Were there at LEAST some issues filling the tank ?? Umm, nope, nice big slots, even with my preferred Cosmo bottles, was no issue.
Vape time.
Performance/Flavor/Testing:
Realizing this is a combo review, didn’t want to get too far down in the weeds on either of the two, but needless to say, both performed flawlessly. The mod / tank setup reminded me of simpler days gone past where you just didn’t have to deal with a bunch of crap, settings, flashy lights, setups, configs, blah blah blah. Just plain easy. I didn’t find anything hard whatsoever during the entire testing. With my 2 go to flavors (custard/bakery and fruit) the flavor produced was pretty damned shocking for me, esp. on a single coil. Flavor was spot on and although I would have preferred a little bit more airflow, the flavor proved to be a really good, dense flavor.
With the opposing airflow slots you could set a wide range of airflow, ALL of which were very smooth, and when full open, I sometimes wished I had a bit more, but this did not detract from the vape at all. No knurling on the bottom adj. ring made it not as easy to adjust, but was still usable without issue. With quick wicking and not much hassle, had no leaking issues, no dry hits, which surprised me, as typically I have to learn how to wick for the setup, but no issues here.
When trying hard to find faults with this setup it became obvious that I was not going to be able to. I INTENTIONALLY over-tightened the ceramic top coil plate just to see how sturdy it was, and I was able to snap one in half, but the amount of force far exceeded normal use. I did accidentally drop the mod a few times, and beyond some minor scuffing, it just didn’t seem to matter. I also intentionally unspooled the outer clapton wrap wire, just a smidge, so it would hit the chimney when assembled, and as expected the unit went into short and would not fire. Display, firing button / adj. knob was perfect, building was easy, and vaping this combo was a super simple experience.
Pros:
- Beyond easy to build on and wick
- Sexy as hell as a pair
- Simple operation and navigation
- Buttery smooth threads thoughout
- Snug/secure battery door
- Heavy, solid, feels good in the hand
Cons:
- Heavy
- Doesn’t do TC or advanced features
- Isn’t free
- No onboard USB charging
- No knurling on bottom adj. ring can be harder to adj.
- Ceramic top coil plate can be broken
- Max airflow could be more
Colors:
Conclusion:
If you are in need of a beefy, great looking, simple to use setup, and you don’t crave all the frills, fancy lights, and configurations, this setup might just be for you. It was a joy to build on, setup, and use. Just set it where you want it, and go. Heavy as it might be, it is very solidly built, and fits well in your hand, with the fire button and display right where you want them. I’d read issues with previous versions of the mods wherein the recessed display was holding/leaking juice, gone, battery door issues, gone, finish issues, gone. They really improved on previous issues with the new Double Barrel v.3, and the PeaceMaker 25mm RTA was a perfect, simple match for it. If easy is what you want, get a pair now. 9.5/10. Thanks for reading…