Qwackers98
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Dovpo Pump Squonker Kit (by Dovpo x Across)
Community Test Review
Ello ello ello, what do we have ere then? Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the community test review for the Dovpo x Across Pump Squonker Kit (here referred to as the pumper for the sake of my fingers!).
This device is a little bit different than your normal squonker so we were all keen to see what was occurring with it, did it hit the spot or was it left floundering? Read on to find out!
Before kicking off proceedings a few shout outs are in order:
Andy (@dovpo_uk) , our fearless leader and mastermind behind the community review, logistical hercules and all round sound bloke (how much of that is truth and how much is myth is up to you to decide). Wouldn't have happened without you so thank you kindly sir!
The test team comprising of (fanfare please!!) :
@Chris K
@hack400
@nwhornet
@Reggiec
@Willo3092
Thank you for the time, effort, thought and banter throughout the test. Couldn't have done it without you!
Oh and not forgetting @RichieRich (who did a massive amount of behind the scenes work and collating info, without him this would have been like climbing Everest in the nuddie with just crampons to climb and a goat for warmth!)
Pump up the jam
Right shall we crack on?
First up, a look at the mod itself, packaging and the bits in the box.
With comments like “everything packaged nicely, box design and logoing is fantastic!”- Qwackers98,
“Premium package feel and look. Cannot fault it.” - Chris K
and “No issues with the packaging. Solid construction and easy to open and remove the contents. The box is slim and heavy enough to hurl into the loft without getting ladders out.” - will03092, looks like the branding side was on the money.
As you can see you get everything you need (and a little more) in the box. The battery wraps are a welcome addition (although with the silver mod they are still black) and the 18650 adaptor is coloured for each different colour option, of which there are 3. There is However only 1 tank. We thought it'd be nice to have a spare but they are available to purchase.
The colours do what they say on the tin and the specifications are as follows:
You may have noticed there's no LCD display, that's because this little puppy is a semi mech if you will. No voltage or wattage control, just ohm's law and a good amount of protection due to the internal chipset. Also you may notice a second button and that's where the magic happens! There's no squeezy bottle here folks, that button activates the pump which pumps liquid up to your cotton, nice right! There's also no charge port which we felt was a sensible decision due to the nature of the device.
Pump it up
All right, all right, so once the testers were chosen we all set about badgering Andy for our new shineys. A private room was set up, and everyone got acquainted with their colleagues.
Rather swiftly everyone had their mods delivered and was busy putting them through their paces,
All except willo3092, who had to put up with crap like this :
Once we all had them it was time to test!
While your feet are stompin'
Now we’ve already mentioned the packaging but what about the manual?
“I'm happy with the information in the manual. Just enough information to not confuse the user.” - willo3092
“good manual, love the exploded view.” - Qwackers98
“Clear, and a bit to the point” - hack400
The included manual has all the basic information on how to operate the device along with a cool exploded view of the device. We felt it to be as good as it needed to be without being over the top or confusing. 5 presses of the fire button turns the mod on and off which disables the pump, 5 presses on the pump button disables the pump, however the mod will still fire.
The mod is very solid. Being made from aluminium alloy, stainless steel and pc.
“The shell is manufactured using high precision CNC lathe machining, the crafted process takes some time but produces an exquisite metal texture. The surface anodizing process highlights the textured finish and the sandblasting process gives a high grade feel to touch” - Official Blurb
So what did we think?
“Looks good, feels good, got some weight to it but not too heavy, smaller form factor than most 21700 mods out there. comfortable to hold” - Qwackers98
“Very nice device to look at and hold. Easy operation using either left or right hand. Button position feels natural”. - Chris K
“Excellent build quality. One of the most comfortable devices I own. Almost perfect.” - hack400
“Feels comfortable in the hand, not overly heavy but feels solid. Knurling on the battery and juice bottle feel good and help with fitting/removal. Build quality looks good, no out of alignment joins & 510 seated flush” - nwhornet
“The Construction is of great quality and finish. Not too heavy and not to0 light, very comfortable in the hand. Me being left handed suits me perfectly.” - Reggiec
“After getting used to it for a couple of days I found it to be easy to use in either hand and a really comfortable shape. In general, excellent build quality but would have preferred a sealed battery compartment and either a different type of battery cap or coarse threads as I managed to cross thread mine.” - willo3092
We all agreed the build quality and feel was great, there were a few issues however. Firstly the 510 is sprung but is very stiff due to the chunky gasket preventing leaks and shorts.
Also if you've got a long thread on your BF atty means it wont seat all the way down.
Secondly the threading. On the battery cap, it's as smooth as you like until there's a battery in there, once a battery is in place the final few turns are a bit crunchy. Secondly the threading on both battery cap and tank are quite fine and it's possible to cross thread.
Talking of the tank its a healthy 9ml capacity. You refill by unscrewing it, filling it and screwing it back on. Its wide and will accommodate pretty much any juice bottle you have (unless you're filling it using a 5 litre pop bottle!). Also as mentioned before this isn't a squeezy bottle, its polycarbonate and there's only 1 in the box. This means all you fans of tank cracker juices better buy a few spares!
Another good point is there were no leaks, the odd accidental pumping into their jeans (ooer missus!), but no leaks from the tank.
We did notice that if you fill the tank to the brim, over time pressure builds up in the tank and semi air locks the pump, this was characterised by less liquid being pumped through to the deck. Removing and refitting the bottle sorts it out. Alternatively leave a little gap and dont ram as much juice into the tank as possible then it doesn't air lock.
“Very happy with it. Excellent 9ml capacity and very easy to clean and refill.” - willo3092
“Decent 9 ml capacity, threads could be a weak point if cross threaded. Steady hands are needed when putting the bottle back on. Feeder pipe can drip juice so place mod on tissues when filling.” - nwhornet
“Device has not leaked at all and has been dry during every use. Would have liked to have seen slightly more as some squonks I use have 10ml capacity. It's good enough though and a tank will comfortably last me 5/6 hours of heavy use. Have noticed a build up of pressure in the tank that appears to make the pump occasionally struggle, removing the bottle creates a noticeable hiss and can be a little more stiff.” - Chris K
And the jam is pumpin’
So as mentioned before it has a pump instead of a bottle to squeeze. There's no pull back facility so what you pump into your atty stays there. you’d be forgiven for thinking that this is gonna mean over squonking hell, the reality is you get used to it so quickly you may over do it once but after that its all good. We initially had some chat around the drain on the battery using a mechanical pump and were concerned that it may drain the battery quickly. However after some use those fears were quickly put to bed. The pump isn't silent mind you, however most felt it wasn't too noisy (comparing it to the sound of a draw from an rda for instance) and the amount of liquid pumped is sufficient. We tested with most ratios of pg and vg and it handled them all.
Speaking of battery utilisation the cut off was indeed 3.2v which to be honest by that point you'd have changed the battery anyway. With a fully charged 4.2v it doesn't hit as hard as a full mech. We found that most builds (mesh included) gave a relaxed vape. Slightly cooler than what you would expect. That's not to say it wasn't being enjoyed, just brought a new experience to the table.
“Fires quickly, but there seems to be a question of just how much power is making it to the coil. The device works perfectly fine for me, but I suspect that a mech user might find it weak.” - hack400
“No issues - As a MTL user the battery lasts for a couple days before starting to sag and it is gradual rather than a sudden loss of power.” - willo3092
“The power output is/appears to be throttled, especially using low resistance build. Feels like 10- 15w lower power than a full/mosfet mech mod. This is more noticable the lower the build. Ironically it does make vaping mesh less of a gamble as it was a fair bit cooler than the same build on a mech, Profile RDA with 0.15ohm SS mesh and 0.15ohm Clapton mesh tested.” - nwhornet
So is it easy to use? The simple answer is yes. No functions to speak of other than the on and off and locking/unlocking the pump, 2 buttons - fire and pump and some built in protections.
Look ahead, the crowd is jumpin'
So after all was said and done, what did we think?
“Overall a very good, user friendly device with high build quality. Few small issues but I'm yet to find a device that doesn't. Would be ideal for a newer mech user wanting to get into squonking as safety features are high for a mech. I'd consider it more a semi-regulated as opposed to a mech just due to the battery throttling” - Chris K
“There's a lot more to this mod than it initially seems and dovpo have done a great job with it.” - Qwackers98
“This has become my favourite device.” - hack400
“Power limiting means experienced mech/squonk users will be disappointed. For less experienced users this is a decent, safe option” - nwhornet
Overall this is a great little mod, maybe not great for veteran mech users however if you want a squonker that's single battery AND will fit in your jeans pocket without pulling them down then it's worth a look. A well built, good looking, clean mod. Great for relaxed builds, mtl or someone wanting to try out a mech with some protection to gain experience and it's great with mesh.
There are some downers like the pump noise, power throttling and fine threads on the tank and battery door but all in all no one disliked it and no one wanted to part with it…..in fact some testers purchased additional units for their collection. If that isn't an endorsement I don't know what is!
So here we have it, the final scorecard showing each testers total and the overall.
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