Honest review time: The Vandy Vape Jackaroo Kit

Although it’s already been out for a hot minute, Vandy Vape recently released a mod that looks like it aims to compete with Geekvapes venerable Aegis line, a line of devices that are built for the apocalypse to last. Vandy Vapes entry into the world of tough mods is called the Jackaroo, a nickname given to men working on Australian or New Zealand sheep ranches and a name that’s synonymous with toughness. So far in my time with the Jackaroo I’ve got to say it definitely gives Geekvape reason to pause. I picked mine up from Sourcemore, one of my preferred vape retailers out of China. Here are my honest thoughts on the Vandy Vape Jackaroo kit.

Package contents:

Listed features and specs:

Packaging and contents:

The jackaroo kit comes packed in quite possibly the tallest boxes I’ve ever received with a vape device. On the front it’s got an image of the kit inside, while on the back it lists the contents, features as well as some company information. In the kit you get the Jackaroo mod, a tank, two M coils, a quick charge micro USB cable, an 18650 battery adapter, a bag of spare parts, a spare bubble glass, a warranty card, user manual and a little best practices guide. In the spare parts bag you get a set of o-rings and an Allen key for removing the side panels of the device. A decently stocked kit with everything you need to get started.

The VandyVape Jackaroo:

The Jackaroo is the only other device that I’ve held that would compare to the Aegis series of devices released by Geekvape. I know there are other IP67 rated devices on the market now but this is the first I’ve got my hands on that isn’t an Aegis. It’s a built to last mod made with a combination of materials to give it the same IP67 rating meaning it’s waterproof, shock and dust resistant. The body of the device is coated in a silica gel type material which gives it a nice rubber grippy feel to it but also protects it from almost anything. On either side it’s got inlaid panels which can be removed and replaced using the included Allen key. The side panels come in two flavours either resin or a G10 material which is a form of laminated fiberglass, so even the side panels are durable. It’s available in a number of colours and material combinations with the resin version available in Red Pomegranate, Green Jade, Gold Agate or Blue Porcelain while the G10 versions come in Red Ridge, American Eagle, Obsidian Black, Blue Python, Orange Viper and Green Anaconda. There are also two US-centric options with one celebrating the 4th of July and the other the US flag.

Starting at the top of the Jackaroo it’s got some stainless steel 510 threads that sit under a metal top plate. It’s also got what looks like a gold plated spring loaded 510 pin and so far everything I’ve tried on it has sat nice and flush. Right next to the 510 connection are a series of vent holes which are to relieve pressure should anything go awry with your batteries. I hope they are watertight as anytime some liquid leaks from the tank it ends up in those holes. Of course like most devices these days it’s got all the usual protections in place like short circuit protection, over-heating, low battery, open circuit, over current and a 10 second cutoff. On the very bottom it’s got a flip out threaded battery cap which is gold coloured with nice chunky silver plated threads. The device supports 21700 batteries natively but also includes an 18650 adapter so you can use your smaller batteries with it. It also will support 20700 batteries and all the ones I tried worked fine without any rattle once the cap was secured.

On either side of the device are the g10 or resin panels depending on the version you go with. The panels are textured and grippy and add a nice design element to the device. Much like the Aegis series of devices the rest of the device is coated in that rubbery silicone coating which gives it a really nice grip and feel. Some ergonomic cuts to the back of the device makes it conform all the more to your hand. It’s not a small device by any means and is nearly the same size as the dual battery Aegis Legend but it feels good in the hand and gives you a sense of durability you can’t ignore.

Down the working face of the device are the big round fire button, the big bright full colour display and the +/- adjustment buttons. The screen is well laid out and easy enough to read but with a few extra elements thrown in for flair it makes the screen at first glance a bit busy. Noticeably absent is any kind of USB connection for charging or firmware updates which means you’ll be left charging your batteries externally which to be fair is still the recommended way of maintaining your cells. That also means what you see is what you get and there won’t be any updates down the road if say a bug is found in the firmware.

The device is powered by an upgraded Vandy Vape chip with a max output of 100W. It supports several modes which include Power, Bypass, Voltage, TC-Ni, TC-SS and TC-Ti but it also does something a bit different from most other mods out there. You can power it on and off using the usual five clicks and clicking the button three times highlights the mode it’s currently in and lets you switch among them. However the one thing that sets it apart is the modes have to be enabled in the system menu. To enter the system menu you press and hold both adjustment buttons which gives you options for Settings, DIY 1-5 which are basically mem slots you can set to your preference, Brightness, Screen timeout, Puff reset, Version and ID which shows the serial of the device. If you select the Settings option you can then chose which modes are toggled on or off which include V(Voltage mode), TC(Temp control), BP(Bypass) but it also lets you change C(System colour), ARR(Auto resistor renew), FIR(Fire button mode; ON: Power on when locked; OFF Power off when locked) and RST(Factory reset). It can be a bit confusing for folks who are used to a more traditional menu but if you’ve ever customized a DNA device you might think having these toggles is a handy function. I myself am mainly a VW vaper so I toggled off the other options I’ll likely never use.

The tank:

The tank that comes with the kit is fairly nondescript, in fact when I tried to look it up I couldn’t even figure out the name of the tank. It’s essentially a slightly older 2018/19 style subohm tank with an easy off top fill cap, mesh coils and bottom adjustable airflow. It’s made of stainless steel, has a diameter of 26mm, stands roughly 45mm tall including the tip and holds either 3.5(straight) or 5ml(bubble) of liquid depending on the glass you are using.

At the top it comes equipped with a resin 510 drip with that should match the colour of the kit you got. It also comes equipped with the 3.5ml straight glass but you can easily swap it out for the 5ml bubble glass. One thing to note is if you’re using the straight glass, Vandy Vape has added a little rim around the tank which should prevent the glass breaking when it falls on a flat surface. It won’t help if it falls on some rocks or whatever but the average table flop shouldn’t break the tank anymore. I personally prefer the look of straight glass so I’ve stuck with it myself. Just below the drip tip is the twist to open top cap, basically you turn the cap 90 degrees and it opens up the top fill cap. A medium sized kidney shaped hole lets you top up the tank and so far I haven’t had any issues with filling.

The tank itself can break down into three pieces for cleaning or swapping coils. Because it doesn’t use plug and play coils or have a long chimney you do need to drain the tank about two thirds of the way before you can swap coils or it will leak out the mouthpiece. The tank uses Vandy Vapes M coils which are easily threaded into the base once the lid is off. Airflow to the tank comes from the base via two mid sized cyclops style slots. You can adjust the airflow by turning the outer airflow control ring or afc which has stops at either end. With the amount of airflow this thing supports it’s mainly going to be for the direct lung crowd and considering it ships with two fairly beefy mesh coils I think mouth to lung vapers may want to pass on this, at least the tank anyway.

Coils and Performance:

The two coils that come with the kit are a 0.15ohm Mesh 80 Coil rated from 50-90W and a 0.3ohm Mesh 50 Coil rated from 40-60W. The kit comes with the 0.15ohm M80 coil installed which I found the sweet spot for was around 70-75W. It’s a bit high for me but it produces nice thick vapour and some very respectable flavour. You can still run it at the lower end of the recommended range but I felt it wasn’t quite firing to it’s full potential. Above 80W it started to get a bit too hot for my personal tastes but others may appreciate the warmer output.

Switching to the 0.3ohm M50 coil I found it was much more my speed and the sweet spot for me was also considerably lower at just 45W. Nice slightly warm thick clouds and again some very respectable flavour. I’d put these coils on par with a lot of the mesh BB style coils on the market today. Thought they lack the convenience of plug and play coils they’ve been all around decent performers. I do however have to mention that on at least a couple of occasions when left sitting for a period I have experienced some leaking. I don’t know if it’s a QC issue with these particular coils or if it’s a common issue for VandyVape jackaroo coils but it does need to be mentioned.

Overall:

The vandyvape Jackaroo is an absolutely solid mod and I definitely plan to keep using it. Also though I’m not exactly blown away by the included tank it does perform decently and comes with some decent albeit it slightly leaky mesh coils so it’s not like a deal breaker or anything. I personally would have loved to see this kit ship with one of their more notable RTAs like the Kylin v2 or the newer Widowmaker instead of a subohm tank but as it stands it’s a working kit that should do well by a lot of folks. This one will likely be more for the direct lung crowd and especially folks who like mesh coils and big durable mods.