Hardware Review: Dead Rabbit v2 RDA from Hellvape
I’ve been a little out of the dual coil RDA game for a while now, and prefer single coil setups with condensed chambers, but every so often I like to get out the big guns, and smash some clouds.
It’s perfect timing that I was sent Hellvape’s latest RDA to check out because I’ve been on a dual coil rampage for the last few weeks and looking at a few RDA’s to add to my collection!
The original Dead Rabbit was a huge hit, it took the vaping world by storm with it’s above post coil position and trailing wick setup. Some still swear by it today, even though the original is getting a little bit old. Well, Hellvape and Heathen are back with not only a new Dead Rabbit RDA, but they’ve taken a good hard look at the original, and improved things ALOT!
Huge thanks to SourceMore for sending this through for me to review.
Specifications and Features
- 24mm
- Single or dual coil deck
- Dual top airflow
- Cyclops or honeycomb style airflow
- Improved rabbit ear style posts
- Barrel lock
- Deeper juice well
- Improved squonk system
- Anti-bacterial drip tip
Product Includes:
- Hellvape Dead Rabbit V2 RDA
- Spare drip tip
- Bottom feed squonk pin
- 510 drip tip
- Accessory bag
- User manual
Photos
The Review
The Dead Rabbit. It’s an icon, sales of the original version went berserk when it first came out, and it’s no surprise, it was an excellent RDA.
But now Heathen and Hellvape have released an even newer, more improved version, every Dead Rabbit owner is sure to love.
The Dead Rabbit v2 RDA, is a 24mm atomizer put together with ease of building and ‘improved’ airflow in mind, and taking a look at the deck, it’s easy to see how those improvements really have made a difference!
From the newly angled posts, to airflow pointing downward, as well as a conductive juice block allowing juice to flow straight to your wicks, and antibacterial drip tip, Hellvape have gone to town on this one!
The Deck and Top Cap
The new Dead Rabbit v2 comes with a 24mm deck, just like the original, in fact it does look quite similar to the original. With only minor differences on the outside.
The top cap is a 2 piece system which allows for the extensive air control that you have with this beauty.
Spinning the top part around (it’s got quite a tight o-ring seal) opens up a huge amount of options. Really any degree of either airflow setting, open cyclops style or more restrictive honeycomb collection of airholes, you’ll be able to hit your sweet spot easily.
The bottom section of the cap has a barrel lock, meaning you spin this section around until it locks, keeping your airflow lined up perfectly with your coils, only small adjustments are then needed to adjust the amount of air coming in. This is a great thing to have on any RDA and I wish many more provided this.
On top of the cap is an 810 anti-bacterial drip tip, which limits lip gunk and stays cleaner than your normal drip tip. You’ll also get a 510 drip tip and adapter in the kit, for all of you wanting to use smaller tips.
The base of the deck has a pretty big juice well, with the posts raised quite a way above it, allowing extra juice to pool and get wicked up your long wicks. On that point, Hellvape have also added squonk holes in the post blocks angled outward in direct line to the wick tails, making sure you get maximum wicking with each squonk.
The posts have been changed from the original version, this time Hellvape have opted for taller and angled posts to enable more airflow, and so that you can get your snips under them in order to cut off the excess of your coil legs easier. No need for a coil leg cutting tool with this RDA, you just install and snip!
Building
Building on this really is a breeze. I installed x2 Fused Claptons @ 0.3ohm each coming to 0.19Ohms between the two. There were no supplied coils unfortunately, which would have been a nice bonus, but no cigar there.
Simply open up the screws in the posts with the flat head screwdriver provided, slot your coils through, tighten them up, snip off excess and position them parallel. There really isn’t more to it, it’s ‘dead’ easy.
I tend to go for longer wick tails, but thinner and shorter wick just reaching the deck also seem to wick just as well, which makes sense since with the Dead Rabbit v2, as you’re relying on the capillary action of the wicking material to get that juice to the top.
Stuffing the juice wells with cotton like I did above works fine too! 😀
The Airflow
The airflow is improved with airflow now angled down onto the coil, raising your coils up, allows you to get that airflow right under your coils for flavour. This helps with not only better flavour, but limits e-liquid coming out of the airflow from over-squonking. (which is not really an issue due to it being top airflow and having a huge juice well, but it’s appreciated)
You’ll also notice the addition of an optional dotted airflow. No longer does the Dead Rabbit have only Cyclops style holes, but a secondary option of dotted or honeycomb inlets for those who like a slightly more restricted airflow. Personally this has been my favourite, due to how noisy the cyclops airflow is. (quite whistly and noisy)
Pros:
- Very easy building
- Great Flavour
- Great build quality
- Plenty of accessories
- Additional airflow options
- New dotted airflow provides a nice smooth vape
Cons:
- Orings are a little tight (make sure you lubricate them with eliquid)
- Wicking relies on capillary action, when squonking you really need to pay attention and hold that squeeze to make sure you’re wicking enough juice.
- Cyclops airflow is noisy with a whistle
- No coils included in the extras
Pricing
You can purchase the Dead Rabbit v2 RDA from SourceMore right now for $34.99 USD which I think is a great price, and gives you good bang for your buck. Of course this is also available from other great vape shops too!
Conclusion
I never thought I’d actually enjoy this type of RDA with the longer wicks and it having to pull juice from so far down below the coils, but this has performed really well. I’ve had minimal dry wicks, (make sure you keep squonking!), and connectivity is on point.
The improvements that Hellvape have made with the v2 are subtle, but welcomed, making sure to improve on the original without introducing any other issues.
What I found extremely helpful are the additional honeycomb airflow slots, as well as making the deck even easier to build on, not that the original was difficult to build on anyway, but this attention to detail is fantastic.
There are a few negatives however. A noisy ‘cyclops’ airflow, and extra tight orings, put a little bit of a dampener on things, but everything considered, those are minor issues for me.
This is a very sound RDA, it ticks all of the boxes, smooth airflow, easy to build on, great connectivity, barrel lock to make sure airflow lines up with coils, and more airflow options.
If you’re in the market for a new RDA, this versatile little beast should fit the bill, being able to handle both single coil and dual coil builds, Hellvape have done a fantastic job on this one!
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