Sailing A7 and A7 Mini
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Sailing A7 and A7 Mini
On the heels of our less-than-stellar review of the Sailing A8 come a couple more from Sailing: the A7 and A7 Mini.
A7 (bottom) and A7 Mini (top)
The A7′s are dripping atomizers, meaning there is no tank; juice is dripped in to soak the wick, that juice is vaped, and then more drops go in. While drippers may not typically be great for situations where frequent refilling is necessary (like while driving, for instance), if having to drip juice into a tiny hole every couple of minutes is something you’re willing to do, many will tell you that the flavor when dripping is about as good as it gets.
The Big Dripper and the Little Dripper
The major difference between these two A7 models isn’t the length: as you can see in the photo of the two side-by-side, there’s really very little difference there. However, the A7 has a noticeable larger diameter. While this doesn’t seem to present any noticeable functional or performance differences, it does make the full-sized Sailing A7 a little bit easier to set up than its “Mini” counterpart.
Top-Down: The A7 (left) and A7 Mini (right)
This setup involves a fairly standard configuration for a dripping atomizer. Two posts are attached to the base; a coil is strung between these two posts, in this coil wraps a wick which absorbs juice, and feeds it to the coil. Both our A7 and A7 Mini came pre-wicked and coiled, but both Sailing A7 atomizers are relatively easy to rebuild. A wire is wrapper around the wick, and the two ends of the wire ed through the pierced posts, and a small Phillips-head screw tightened down to hold the coil in place. Both atomizers were shipped with a small precision screwdriver for this purpose. As you’ll notice from our top-down photo, the setup of both atomizers is nearly identical, with the only significant difference being the amount of space between the posts. Both vaped very well, with excellent vapor production and flavor.
Both the Sailing A7 and the A7 Mini are shipped in a tin containing the atomizer, a precision screwdriver, and spare wick and coil materials. The full-sized A7 also comes with a plastic needle-tipped juice bottle. Both also include a drip tip: in the case of the A7, a longer delrin plastic tip, with the Mini including a chromed “shorty” style tip. Both atomizers have a standard 510 drip tip socket if you’d rather use your own tips.
The Scores
Build Quality:
A7: 8/10, A7 Mini: 8/10
Both the Sailing A7 and the A7 Mini are built quite well. Threading on the connector and cap was acceptably smooth, if not impressively so. We’ve actually had a couple A7′s around here for months now which get used almost daily, and have had no issues with breakage, leaks, or other build problems. They’re tough, solid little drippers.
Looks:
A7: 8/10, A7 Mini 7/10
The Sailing A7 and A7 Mini may not be stunning, but they’re far from ugly. We realize this is subjective, but we find the A7, with its engraved rings, the better-looking of the two.
Flexibility:
A7: 8/10, A7 Mini: 7/10
As with most rebuildable drippers, the limits of these atomizers are mostly going to be defined by how you choose to build the wick and coil, though you obviously also have the option of using the built-in set for as long as it lasts. We’re going to give a slight edge to the A7 over the Mini on this one, as the extra space between posts really does make a difference in the ease of setup, and there’s not enough of a size difference otherwise to make the smaller diameter of the Mini a major attraction for us.
Performance:
A7: 8/10, A7 Mini: 8/10
Both atomizers vaped very well, producing lots of vapor. Flavor was also very good, though predictably better with our own silica wicks than with the ones included.
Price:
A7: 6/10, A7 Mini: 6/10
Both versions of the A7 are available from retailers for around $20. While this is significantly more than comparable drippers like the Youde IGO-L, some may consider the extras, such as the screwdriver, the drip tip, and, in the case of the full-sized A7, the juice bottle, to offset the difference somewhat. However, if you’re thinking of buying more than one, there are just so many of those things you’re going to consider useful.
Overall Scores:
A7: 7.6, A7 Mini: 7.2