The authentic Dos Equis box mod is a dual 18650 unregulated mechanical mod made by Mohawk Mods and JD Tech out of the Phillipines. When the authentic Dos Equis box mod was initially released it came with a Manta V2 RDA, and the complete set up cost $250.00 USD. At some point the Dos Equis box mod became available without the inclusion of the Manta V2 RDA, yet there were only 555 pieces each made of the black/brass and black/SS Dos Equis mod. There is also a new full black limited edition Dos Equis mod that is currently on pre-sale with shipping happening later this month.
There are currently at least 4 Chinese manufacturers who are producing a Dos Equis clone, Limwell Industrial, iJoye, Acerig, and Shenzhen Lemaga. The Dos Equis box mod clone featured in this review is made by Shenzhen LeMaga, and was provided by Focalecig.com for the purpose of this product review.
The Dos Equis clone is packaged in a clear plastic clam-shell case and includes the Dos Equis box mod, and a black velvet carrying pouch. The Dos Equis box mod clone retails for $30.75.
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Where to Buy a Dos Equis Clone:
- Buy for $30.75 – Free Shipping from China
- Buy for $27.46 – Free shipping from China
- Buy for $39.95 – Free shipping from USA.
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DOS EQUIS CLONE SPECIFICATIONS:
- Brand: Shenzhen LeMaga
- Type: mechanical box mod
- Materials: Brass and Delrin
- Connection threading: 510 (fixed)
- Battery compatibility: dual 18650
- Diameter: 24mm
- Height: 76.5mm
- Width: 48mm
- Weight: 140 grams
BUILD QUALITY
The Dos Equis box mod clone made by Shenzhen LeMaga is a 1:1 replication of the authentic version. The mod is fully constructed of polished brass and delrin, and features engraved logos on the front and back of the box mod. While this clone is supposed to be a 1:1 copy, it is not serialized like the authentic. Personally, I do not feel that the inclusion of serial numbers add any aesthetic value to the mod, so I have no objection to them being left off.
Out of the box the construction of the mod felt solid even as there were a few superficial scratches on the delrin portion of the mod. The logos are engraved in the delrin body and are nicely done. The edges of the mod are a tiny bit sharp, but there is no risk of cutting yourself or anything.
What is most striking about the Dos Equis box mod is its size, which is amazingly small for an 18650 mod at 77mm. This mod is about the height and width of a regular pack of cigarettes.
The 510 connection is fixed (non-adjustable) like the authentic Dos Equis mod. Due to the large contact surface area of the mods 510 it is highly recommended that you do not use any atomizer with a flush or recessed 510 pin. You must use an atomizer with a protruding, or adjustable 510 pin in order to prevent a hard short, and this is the same with the authentic Dos Equis mod.
The Dos Equis clone made by Limwell Industrial does have a more narrow 510 pin (no pin on authentic), but there have also been a large number of defects reported on the Limwell version.
The feature that had me the most excited about the Dos Equis mod is the flush side mounted switch it uses. I am not a fan of top mounted switches, which so many dual 18650 mechanical box mods have nowadays. The switch feel is firm, yet easy to press. While I have not had any issues with misfires, I have noticed that I have to keep steady pressure on the switch while firing so that the mod doesn’t stop firing mid-toke.
The grated battery door doesn’t exactly slide on and off. To remove the battery door you slide it back slightly and then it pops up/off, and it is the reverse to install it. There are two silver plated copper spring negative contacts on the battery door. I have noticed that once the springs become depressed with batteries installed, that the springs do keep more of a compressed shape. This has not affected connectivity and performance though.
Looking inside the mod you can see the positive contact plate at the top of the mod, to which the other side of the plate acts as the 510 connection point.
The Dos Equis mod houses two 18650 batteries which are wired in parallel, not series, so the nominal voltage is still 3.7v, while the mah capacity is doubled with two batteries in parallel.
The internal battery slots, while cut all the way through, do have some rough and sharp edges along its path. While battery 1 slides easily inside the box, the 2nd battery goes in about half way before there is some resistance, at least with the box mod that I received. I do have to wiggle and cajole the 2nd battery in order to get it fully installed in the box. I found the same to be true when removing the batteries.
Once the batteries are inside the box mod I don’t have any issues with installing the battery door, or with connectivity. With dual 18650 batteries installed the Dos Equis mod clone weighs 228grams, which is solid feeling but not too heavy.
PERFORMANCE
As I mentioned earlier, it is important to use an atomizer with a protruding or adjustable 510 connection being that the positive contact below the 510 connection threads is essentially a plate with a large surface area, and not a pin. I paired the Dos Equis clone with a Tobeco Omerta RDA which does have an adjustable copper pin.
Handling the Dos Equis clone during use is comfortable and easy due to its small, compact size. One the things that I was positively struck by as I began to use the Dos Equis mod is the instant connectivity once the switch is engaged — this baby pops instantly, and in a good way. The side mounted fire button does not have any sort of locking mechanism however, with the switch being flush mounted to the body I don’t feel that the risk of accidental firing while inside of a pocket is very high.
The Dos Equis/Omerta RDA set up made for what seemed like the perfect mechanical set up as these two devices perform perfectly together.
I have been running the Dos Equis mod clone with a .32ohm build since the day that I received it however, recently I have read that JD Tech recommends that you do not run builds lower than .50 ohms with the Dos Equis. That being said, I did not have any issues at all while using a .32 ohm build with this clone.
I did run some voltage drop tests with the Dos Equis clone, and the voltage drop with no load is .10v with a pair of freshly charged Samsung 25-Rs. The voltage drop under a .32 ohm load is .32v, which I would consider as very good for such a low resistance build.
I have also pulled my married batteries after some moderate use to check if both of my batteries were draining equally at the same rate, and they were (last photo on the right)
OVERALL
While I would have much preferred to have the aluminum and delrin version of this mod due to my aesthetic preferences, overall I am pleased with the quality of this Dos Equis box mod clone at this price point. The only aspect of this mod that could be improved in terms of construction are the internal battery slots. While I was able to fit my batteries inside of the mod, I do notice that my battery wrappers come out with several scratches and this is a bit worrying for the long term.
As far as the actual performance of the Dos Equis clone, I do not have any complaints, and I have enjoyed using this set up. There have been several dual 18650 mechanical box mods released within the last few months however, for me the Dos Equis mod has proven to be one of the most desirable of them due to it’s incredibly compact size in combination with that sweet side mounted fire button.
PROS
CONS
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Where to Buy a Dos Equis Clone
- Buy for $30.75 – Free Shipping from China
- Buy for $27.46 – Free shipping from China
- Buy for $39.95 – Free shipping from USA.
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Very interesting review,i have the limwell version and got an hardshort when i used my omerta for the first time :( when i look at the pictures in your review at the 510 plate it looks to be the same so it would be very interesting to see how your 510 plate is made because mine have for isolation only anthin film of clear tape,maybe you can post a picture of yours ?!
Yes, I have heard about the issues with the Limwell version, but the 510 on this version is different from Limwell’s.. I don’t have any plans on taking mine apart for photos, but you can google “Shenzhen Lemaga Dos Equis clone” and you should find their Alibaba page which has photos of the entire box dissembled and you can see the 510 plate. The construction is exactly the same as the authentic, but Limwell’s is not.
I forgot to say that i knew about the danger of an hard short and mounted the omerta with the positive around 1mm-1,5mm beeing out and this was the first time i screwed any atty on this mod…the result was that my springs on the battery door collapsed,the clear thin plastic film melted completly down,positive pin isolation on my rda melted down complete and my batterys where on the point starting venting….