Thanks out to @ally from Thunderhead Creations for sending this out for review.
Use discount code: Sessiondrummer for and extra 20% OFF !!!
It’s no secret that Thunderhead has been really knocking it out of the park lately, and when ally hit me up about reviewing this RDA, it looked TO interesting not to. While I don’t RDA as much as I RTA, this seemed like a great time to get into one with this 30mm slammer.
Main Features:
- Innovative 3D Vortex Airflow
- 30mm Diameter Big Size
- Heat Management System
- 84 Holes Top Air Intake Cup
- 10.5mm Juice Well
- Bottom Juice Filling
- Easy To Build
Physical Parameter:
- Size: Diameter30x29.5mm
- Material: SS
- Capacity: 2.5ml
- Drip Tip: 810
- Deck: Dual Coil
- Fill Type: Top & Bottom
-Weight: 180g - Package Size: 98x68x44mm (WLH)
- Color: SS / Black / Sliver Black / Gun / Gold / Purple
Packaging Contents:
1-TAUREN RDA VORTEX 30
1-Coil Leg Trimmer
2-3 Core Fused Clapton Coil
1-BF Pin
2-Allen Key
From Thunderhead …
Let’s get into this Ground Pounder !!!
Boxed up …
Open …
PLENTY of extras including Curved Coil Cutting Guide (more on this later), Coils, (2) Allen Keys, Squonk Pin, O-rings, Spare screws, Warranty Card, and User’s Guide …
Thoughtfully they included both flat head, and allen screws …
The coil cutting guide was actually CURVED (which none of my existing ones are), and it kept the coil “wobble” to a minimum when trimming. Also they dropped an “arrow” on the 6mm cutting height …
The Ground Pounder !!!
Nice aggressive styling on the top cap, beefy 810 chuff tip, that was ribbed for a very solid seal …
42 individual air inlets per side, for a total of 84 !!!
On the inside of the cap, the air channels were actually offset from the outside inlets by roughly 90 degrees through an internal channeling system inside the cap. This allowed for the advertised leak free drip/squonking.
Cap alignment couldn’t be easier, with the alignment of the risers, and indents. Just spin it until it drops …
Shot of the incredibly beefy build deck, and 10.5mm juice wells …
Another shot of the deep juice wells, recessed screw ports, side air inlets, and single under coil air inlet …
A closeup of the deck dual o-rings, screws, side, and below coil air inlets …
The bottom cap with logo, serial number, and gold plated pin, AND, the “Don’t throw this one away” warning …
The stock and included squonk pins had good extension for solid contact …
Thunderhead did include some nice 3mm I.D. Ni80 triple core claptons …
The coil leg ports were very spacious, and the included allen key worked perfectly …
As mentioned above, I loved the fact that the coil trimming guide was curved, as it made trimming a “wobble” free experience at the recommended 6mm …
Loading the coils …
Where’s the beef ??? Right here !!!
Setup the Hadron for 85 watts soft, for pulsing, and strumming the coils. The coils read about 0.1 ohms …
Strummed, pulsed, and blued …
Even with the huge juice wells, I decided to trim the cotton a little longer than the outside of the deck, which left PLENTY of room, with NO NEED for thinning, or side-cutting the tails at all …
Wicks loaded …
Saucing the deck …
Wicks sauced …
A closeup of the airflow half opened. For testing I ran it wide open with NO regrets …
Coil check, … check …
And FINALLY, it’s Game Time !!!
Testing/Usage:
I have to say, the FIRST thought I had about this one, was it was built like a Brick Shithouse !!! Literally, it screamed “Business” from top to bottom. Hell, if you dropped this on a lesser built mod, you might BREAK the MOD !!! Yes, it is THAT solid. When removing from the packaging everything was VERY snug, and I had to work to get the drip tip, and top cap off, but after lubing up with some VG it was easy peasy. Everything was very well machined and fit very snugly. The deck was very beefy with super deep juice wells, and PLENTY of room for large(r) coils, and wicks. Airflow adjusted smoothly, and stopped at Full Open and Full Closed. The included coils required only minor strumming and ohm’d out close to spec. No cotton was included, but hehe, I had plenty. For the majority of my tests, I ran it on the Hadron at 100 watts, and wide open airflow.
Pros:
- Nice aggressive styling.
- Super deep 10.5mm juice wells, leak free, easy wicking.
- Incredible amount of vapor and flavor production.
- Included coils worked very well, and in spec.
- Full stop on airflow adjustment at open and close positions.
- Top (drip), and bottom (squonk) filling.
- Overall, VERY stoutly built.
Cons:
- Out of package parts very tight, after lubing up however they loosened up.
- No shoelace wicks included.
- Heavy (con ??).
Conclusion:
After really putting the Tauren RDA Vortex 30 through the ringer, it really excelled. The amount of vapor and flavor that this one chucked was impressive to say the least. For my testing, I did settle in on 100 watts, wide open airflow, and it just wouldn’t quit, until the batteries died LOL. EXTREMELY solid build deck, and I wasn’t kidding earlier, that if you had this on a lesser mod and dropped it, the mod would break before this thing would. Once the o-rings were lubed up, it was easy to get the cap on/off, and adjust the airflow. The in cap airflow channeling worked perfectly, and channeled air not only to the sides of the coils, but also under the coils as well. Having tested numerous top airflow setups wherein the flavor was compromised, this was NOT the case here, as the air did pull directly from the side, and lower coils. The complete stops on full open/close on the cap were also a nice touch. After replacing the installed stock pin with the included squonk pin, I ran some tests using the Hadron Backpack, and squonking proved to be just as easy as dripping. A few times I though I had over-squonked the deck, BUT, as advertised, no leaks !!!
All in, this one is, and was a very impressively built RDA, built like a brick shithouse, and performed just as solidly, with little to no complaints or issues. The very spacious build deck could accommodate even larger coils, and wicking was completely painless, with no need to fuss with the tails. Again, not being a regular RDA’r, this one had me second guessing that stance, as it did EXACTLY what it was supposed to do, and it did it all day long.
Very impressive.
Thanks out again to @ally from Thunderhead for sending this one out for review, and also out to @OldGoat for helping fine tune the review. 
Use discount code: Sessiondrummer for and extra 20% OFF !!!
As always, if you had made it ALL the way down here, I salute you. Thanks for spending some of your free time checking out this review. Bonus shots for the worthy !!!
Bonus:
S.D.