The Vandy Vape Govad RDA is by new brand, Vandy Vape, who were founded in early 2017 by one of the main designers who worked for Digiflavor.
So I’m sure like myself you will see some similarities to Digiflavor products, particularly the Pharaoh Drip Tank of which I did a review for a while back.
The Govad RDA is being billed by some of the top video reviewers as the RDA of 2017!
I can’t say that it is or it isn’t as we are only just at the half way point of the year.
There are a couple of points to the Govad RDA that I love and hate, but before we get into my personal likes and dislikes let me introduce you to the Govad RDA itself.
If you would prefer to watch my video review of the Govad then keep on scrolling, it’s just down below!
In The Box
- 1 X Govad RDA by Vandy Vape
- 1 X 17.5mm Wide Bore Delrin Drip Tip
- 1 X 16mm Wide Bore Delrin Drip Tip
- 1 X 14mm Wide Bore Delrin Drip Tip
- 1 X 510 Drip Tip Adapter
- Spare Parts baggy, O rings, Screwdriver, Spare Screws
- Instruction booklet
Main Specs/Features
- Includes 3 Different Drip Tips (Delrin)
- Compatible with Goon Sized Drip Tips
- Deep Juice Well
- Material: Stainless Steel
- 37mm (Height)
- 24mm (Diameter)
- Thread Size: 510 (Gold Plated Pin)
- E-Juice Capacity: 1.3ml
- Bottom and side Airflow (Both Adjustable)
- Available in SS and Black
Design and Build Quality
A good looking 24mm RDA, the Govad is made from Stainless Steel, I received the black version.
The Govad has 24K gold block posts and clamps that are spring loaded plus a suitable, single large coil, and a black goon style Delrin drip tip to top the RDA off.
The design of the airflow is unique having both side and bottom airflow creating a cross airflow, this RDA was definitely built for clouds in mind!
The internal bottom airflow is handled by a single raised air tube, the RDA comes clean of any machine oils and I would say that the Govad is extremely well built and of good quality.
However, the bottom airflow ring is incredibly tight and does take work to separate it from the build deck.
A quick guide to Coiling and Dripping
First time coiling:
- Completely disassemble the Govad RDA, taking off the top and bottom airflow rings.
- Unscrew the spring loaded clamps on the block posts with a Philips screw driver
- Insert your coil legs, screw down and wick with cotton
- Cut and tuck the remainder of your cotton into the juice well, dampen with e-liquid being careful not to get liquid into the bottom airflow tube!
- Reassemble the RDA and away you go
To refill or re drip, take off the side airflow ring/top cap, paint your coil and reassemble – repeat as needed.
Tip: smear e-liquid around the O rings that hold the bottom airflow ring in place or you will have problems turning the airflow and taking the ring off as needed!
How Does The Vandy Vape Govad RDA Perform?
The Govad RDA from Vandy Vape disassembles into 4 parts
- Delrin drip tip
- Side airflow ring/ top cap
- Bottom airflow ring
- Build deck
The Build Deck On the bottom of the deck you have a gold plated connection pin, Govad and serial number laser printed along with the signature of the designer and the normal CE marks.
On the side of the deck you have your 2 external bottom airflow (Kennedy like but much smaller), two O rings to keep your bottom airflow ring in place.
Inside the deck you have two 24K gold spring loaded clamp style block posts for your wire, the positive post sits on an insulator block which has Vandy Vape printed on it.
The blocks house the side airflow 2 holes per block, looking down between the block posts you will see the internal raised bottom airflow feed tube
The build deck is fairly roomy and allows for 1.3ml of e-liquid along with your cotton.
Bottom and side airflow rings
The bottom airflow ring slides over the build deck and features 2 airflow slots that match up to the 2 on the deck.
They are adjustable so you can close off or open as you wish. On the top part of the ring are the 6 side airflow slots and an O ring to hold the top cap in place.
The side airflow ring/ top cap has 4 airflow holes to match up to the 6 on the bottom airflow ring.
The inside of top cap is bevelled so that any splash back will drop back to your cotton. This bevelling also helps with flavour production.
Delrin Drip-tips
Vandy Vape have included 3 drip-tips for your convenience; they are of the Goon style so Goon drip-tips will fit on the Govad with no problem!
They have also supplied a 510 drip-tip adaptor.
In the last few weeks of owning the Govad I have used loads of different builds in it.
For this example I used 20ga Kanthal wrapped on a 3.5mm bit 7wraps, I used a King of Clouds liquid called Blue Slush 3mg 70/30. King of Clouds is a Horsham West Sussex based company selling hardware and E-Liquids.
Firing the Govad on my DNA RX200 starting at 40w with the top airflow closed, the flavour and vapour was very good, almost exceptional.
I was able to get a restricted DTL hit and a passable MTL hit opening up the top airflow the flavour fell right off but the vapour increased but at this wattage it felt as though it needed more power.
So I turned the mod up to 80w, this was about right, however, within a few puffs the RDA got very hot as did the vapour.
In the end I settled for 68w this giving me the best balance of heat to vapour ratio.
Want to see the Vandy Vape Govad In Action? Check Out My Video Review
What I Like
This is one good looking RDA, it is customizable to your style of vaping, I do like the spring loaded block posts and there are no sharp edges to the Govad
The extras pack is excellent it includes a little blue screw driver (something I have not seen for ages) 510 adaptor, O rings and spare screws, the flavour with the side airflow close was close to exceptional.
What I Didn’t Like
The bottom sleeve when I received the Vandy Vape Govad was incredibly difficult to remove at first, to a point where I thought it wasn’t even supposed to come off!
But with hot water and persistence I was able to remove it; the ring might be confusing to those new to RDA’s they might think it does not come off.
The O rings do a very good job really! Although, I personally think they are too thick!
While I can see the attraction of blowing huge clouds, for me, having the side airflow open in conjunction with the bottom is too much airflow and kills the flavour of the e-juice dead!
Final Review Verdict
Well what can I say? I have a love hate relationship with the Vandy Vape Govad RDA.
Close the side airflow off and just like the Kennedy, I love the flavour and vapour.
Open both side and bottom airflow’s up and the RDA loses flavour hand over fist but produces an incredible amount of vapour.
Would I call the Govad the RDA of the year? No, personal opinion – I get a better performance and flavour from the Grimm Green X OHM Boy Recoil RDA and Vgod Pro Drip.
Would I buy the Vandy Vape Govad should I loose or have this one stolen? No
Have you used the Govad RDA? Let us know you thoughts in the comments below!
Pros
- Good looking RDA
- Flavour is exceptionally good with side airflow closed
- With both airflow open excellent vapour production
- Bonus 3 driptips included
- It a long time since I saw the little blue screw driver included with any RDA
Cons
- Excessive airflow unless you are looking for clouds only and no flavour
- Bottom airflow ring might confuse those new to RDA’s
- The O rings on the Bottom airflow ring are too thick
- RDA get very hot after chain vaping
