Which Drip Tip Should I Choose?

How to choose a drip tip

Many vapers pay very little attention to which drip tip they are using, and this is especially true for beginners to the vaping lifestyle, who are often happy to use whichever drip tip is packaged with their atomiser as long as it doesn’t burn their lips.

However, once you become more experienced with vaping, you will probably be ready to start experimenting and trying out different things that will alter your vaping experience for the better.

One of the things that you might be interested in trying is a range of different drip tips.

There are several different styles available for purchase today, and each will have an impact on your experience.

How Can a Drip Tip Enhance My Vaping Experience?

It may surprise you to learn that different styles of drip tip can impact upon different aspects of your vaping experience.

For example, it can affect the temperature of the vapour produced, the intensity of the e-juice flavour, the way the heat is distributed, the airflow, and the density of the vapour.

Sometimes, changing your drip tip for a different style can even be a fashion statement.

Here are some of the ways in which your choice of drip tip can change your vaping experience:

  • A wider drip tip will produce increased amounts of vapour
  • A narrow drip tip will give you a stronger flavour
  • A long drip tip will make your vapour cooler
  • A short drip tip will make the vapour warmer

Two Sizes of Drip Tips: 510 vs 810

Drip tip 510 vs 810

When it comes to drip tips, there are really only two main sizes: a 510 and an 810.

The general rule is that 810 tips are wider than 510 tips. These tips dictate how the vape is inhaled, usually either via a direct lung inhale or via a mouth-to-lung inhale.

The 510 drip tip was the industry standard for many years, usually being used with vapes that require mouth-to-lung inhalation. Most 510 drip tips have a diameter of around 8.5mm at their base. 

The 810 drip tip has since become the industry standard for cloud-making vape devices. 810 drip tips usually have a diameter of around 12.5mm.

Drip Tip Materials

Plastic Drip Tips

Plastic drip tips

One great upside to a plastic drip tip is its relative affordability.

Due to the inexpensive plastic materials used in manufacturing, these drip tips are often available at a much lower price than a metal or glass drip tip.

This makes plastic drip tips the perfect option for those who want cheap and easy to replace drip tips.

There are, however, several more expensive plastic materials such as Teflon and resin that displace the heat of the vape more effectively, making the experience more comfortable.

Metal Drip Tips

Metal drip tip

Metal is by far the most common material used within vaping devices.

Drip tips are most commonly manufactured from stainless steel or aluminium, both options providing a sturdy yet inexpensive drip tip. 

Unfortunately, despite their affordability and often sleek designs, metal drip tips also retain a great deal of heat, meaning that many vaping devices can get uncomfortably hot during long vaping sessions.

Glass Drip Tips

Glass drip tips

An option for those vape users who prefer a more stylish and unique look to their kit, glass drip tips look phenomenal, but they are not always the most practical material to use in your drip tip.

To being with, glass drip tips are usually prone to breakage simply due to the nature of their material.

Additionally, these breakages are not easily fixed, and rarely replaced at a low cost, meaning that this option may lead to being a very expensive one. 

Stone Drip Tips

Stone drip tips

Stone drip tips are a guaranteed way to make your vaping kit stand out.

Due to their often stylish and unique design, these drip tips ooze with personality.

Combined with this artisan-like design, these drip tips are also often extremely sturdy and durable and often resist heat with great affect. 

Unfortunately, this does mean that stone drip tips tend to be on the more expensive side, especially when compared to metal or plastic alternatives.

Wood Drip Tips

Wood drip tips

Perhaps the least common material used when manufacturing drip tips, wood drip tips have the tendency to look intricate and beautiful whilst also being effective heat resistors.

When purchasing a drip tip made from wood, you must pay particularly close attention to the quality of the wood finish.

This is because a low-quality finish will often lead the wood within the drip tip to be exposed to moisture and heat, bending it out of shape and rendering it useless.

Hybrid Material Drip Tips

Hybrid Material Drip Tips

A practice that is quickly becoming common within the industry is to use a combination of materials to manufacture a drip tip.

A common combination of materials is glass and metal. Utilising this unique combination of materials allows the drip tip to have the inherent heat resistance of glass while also having the sturdiness and reliability of metal.

These drip tips are often of high quality, unfortunately also leading them to be relatively expensive.

Which Styles of Drip Tip are Available to Choose from?

So that you can determine which kind of drip tip would best suit your preferred vaping style, we will look here at the various styles available to buy and the impact that each can have upon your experience.

Wider Drip Tips

Wide drip tips

If you are a cloud chaser, you will want to consider trying a wider drip-tip as these result in an increased airflow which produces considerably more vapour.

One thing to bear in mind, however, when opting for a wide drip tip is that the amount of flavour from your e-liquid that you will experience will be greatly reduced.

Narrower Drip Tips

Narrow drip tips

A narrow drip tip will limit the amount of airflow, and therefore if you are looking for large vapour clouds, this is not the best choice for you.

On the other hand, if you are seeking improved flavour and don’t mind smaller clouds, a narrow, short drip tip is the best option to suit your preferences.

A narrow drip tip suits those who prefer to vape at a lower wattage of around 10-20 watts.

Longer Drip Tips

Long drip tips

A longer drip tip will keep your mouth further from your atomizer, and this may give you a reduced amount of flavour.

However, it does have the advantage of preventing your lips from being burned, especially if your drip tip is made of metal.

A drip tip with extra length will also enable the vapour to be cooled down before it reaches your mouth, so if you prefer a cooler vaping experience, a long drip tip is best for you.

Shorter Drip Tip

Short drip tips

In contrast to the long drip tip which cools the vapour down, a shorter drip tip results in a hotter vapour.

Short drip tips are often found on atomizers that are designed to be used at high wattages because when the vapour travels a shorter distance, it produces increased amounts of flavour.

If you prefer vaping at high wattages but don’t want to run the risk of burning your lips due to a shorter drip tip, you could consider switching to a drip tip that is manufactured from glass, ceramic or Delrin, none of which heat up in the same way as a metal drip tip will.

Making a Fashion Statement

Stylish drip tips

While most of this article has centred around the functionality of your drip tip, one of the reasons that you may want to make some changes is to suit your sense of style.

It is possible to find drip tips that match your device, either with a contrasting colour or with a matching shade.

As many people use their vaping device as a fashion statement, this is just another way to tailor it to suit your preferences.

How Do I Choose the Right Drip Tip for Me?

If you are happy with your vaping experience as it stands without the need to change your drip tip, you need not worry about looking at the different alternatives.

However, if you are hoping to make improvements, this is certainly one of the areas where experimentation is well worth it.

While most atomizers work perfectly well with the drip tip that they were packaged with, you may find that customising your drip tip can enhance your vaping, tailoring it more to suit your individual preferences.