
The MiniNail | High Quality Enail With Incredible Accuracy | Detailed Review
, by Peter Casale, 12 min reading time
, by Peter Casale, 12 min reading time
The MiniNail is one of my most used concentrate systems and it won my 2019 Vape Award for concentrate product of the year, it’s a really straightforward but super well done system. I love the fact that you can just leave it on and it’s ready to go anytime you want to dab, it's so convenient.
Today I want to show you The MiniNail. This has been by far one of my most used concentrate systems and it won my 2019 Vape Award for concentrate product of the year
It’s really straightforward but it’s a super well done system.
An enail is an alternate way to use concentrate compared to using a traditional torch and banger set up. Some people really prefer the ritual of using a torch and a banger
but some people prefer a system that is super consistent and always at the right temperature without any guessing or timers to get there.
One of the best things about a system like this is that they can be left on for long periods of time. My official recommendation is never leave anything hot unattended, but with this system in particular people report leaving theirs on for a year straight with no issues whatsoever. Mine hasn’t been turned off in months, aside from cleaning
You can get these with a number of different options but we carry two different kits so I’m going to discuss our hybrid nail and quartz banger kit
How to assemble hybrid coil
An enail system consists of a controller, a coil, a nail or banger, and then the cabling to make it all work together.
The hybrid nail that I assembled is a hybrid for a couple of reasons. First of all it comes with both a titanium cup as well as a quartz cup, but then you can also use it with a 14 mm female or a 14 mm male water piece.
To assemble it, use whatever cup you want. I’ve used the quartz as I prefer quartz for this setup, and then the heater coil sits right under that.
Below that I put this centre post, and then finally screw on either the 14 mm female or male joint depending on what kind of water piece you are using.
With this set up you want to be careful not to over tighten the screw. As the quartz dish gets hot there is going to be some expansion, so if you screw this down too tight you will crack the dish. I have done it myself, but since I figured this out this has been going strong for months and months with no cracking.
This kit includes a multi tip dabber. It can be used for both for loading up the nail with your dab and then it acts as a carb cap which you’ll use if you are hopefully doing those low temp dabs.
How to Assemble
With a quartz nail kit, it includes this bubble carb cap then this really cool glass dabber which has a built-in scoop. If you have some material that is tough to grab with a traditional dabber, this scoop makes it super easy.
The quartz banger is super easy to set up. You’re simply going to place place the banger into the hybrid coil and it’s gonna fit right inside, and then turn the banger so that the coil arm is supported by a little glass piece that sticks off of the banger. That’s a smart addition as that’s going to alleviate a lot of pressure from the coil.
Once you have your system assembled, you’re going to plug the mini XLR cable that goes from the coil into the back of your controller. Then you want to plug the three-pronged cable into the back of your controller and then plug that into a wall, and you are all set up.
Controller operation
To turn your unit on you’re going to click the switch on the back, and it will automatically start heating up to your last set temperature. If you haven’t used it before the default temperature is set to 600 which isn’t a terrible one to start at.
It takes about 3 minutes to heat up, although I’d go a bit longer to let the banger heat soak.
The system only draws 89w so it’s comparable to a lightbulb or something like that, not at all a concern for your electricity bill if you want to leave it on in between uses.
You are going to see the temperatures start rising until it hits the set temperature, and then the controller will do its best to maintain your set temperature. One of the best parts about the system is the consistency and accuracy. It does a remarkable job of keeping to the temperature that you want to vape at.
To change your temperature you press this either the up or down button to dial-in an exact temperature, or you can hold the button and then the temperature will move much faster, and then you can press the buttons one at a time to dial in your exact temperature.
How to use
One of the main reasons I like the system is because it enables low temperature dabs. If you are a newbie and find dabbing a little intense or a little intimidating, a system like this allows the experience to be a little more approachable and it’s fantastic for smaller dosing.
This system can definitely handle massive dabs if you want to do them; myself, I prefer doing dabs on the smaller side
I tried two different dabs here: the first was in a hybrid quartz nail that I dabbed at 560°F, that’s my normal set temperature for the system and definitely one I would recommend you try.
I put a small amount on my dabber, and then I placed it towards the bottom of the bowl so it melts down in there, and then I turn my dabber upside down to make it a carb cap and that really started the vaporization process.
In general if you put your dab in there and you see immediate huge vapour coming up, that’s letting you know that you’re doing it too hot so try a lower temperature.
For the second dab I used a quartz banger. I used a nice low temperature dab, all the way down to 500°F.
I find when you lower the temperature on your dab the effects aren’t quite as immediate and intense, as it’s a little more of a mellow uptake and the flavour is absolutely incredible for good concentrate.
I loaded my dab in with a little tool, and then used the bubble cap to really start the vaporization process. You can also put your finger off and on the tip of this bubble cap to act as a carb.
Cleaning
Your goal with your dab size should be to consume the whole dab and not have a bunch of extra that sits on your nail when you are done your hit. If you have a bunch of extra on there, you’re going to get build up way faster.
With my quartz hybrid nail here, I never swab it out or anything like that after. The majority of my dab gets consumed, and it’s tricky to get a Q-tip in there
With the quartz banger, though, especially if you are doing low temperature dabs, you can get a Q-tip in there to swab out any of the remaining material, and this will really help to keep it clean.
After a while you are going to get some build up, regardless, so you will need to clean your coil, and with this system it is super easy.
Turn your controller up to 1100°. Don't worry about getting the exact temperature but you don’t want to go much higher than that. Once you set it to that temperature, set your timer for 15 minutes , and do not let it go for longer than that, as it creates a ton of heat so you don’t want to accidentally forget this.
Once it gets to temperature, which will take about five minutes, you can use a dabber to gently scrape off any build up that has not already burned off, and you can get the surface nice and clean using this method. You can also throw it into some ISO when it’s cooled down to help maintain it as well
Love
So what do I love about The MiniNail? Well the first thing is the convenience. This is designed to be a 'set it and forget it' sort of a system. Pick what temperature you want, turn it on, leave it somewhere safe, and it's ready to dab whenever you are.
I really like the build quality of this device. I have used some significantly less expensive enails before, but the performance was significantly worse, and I definitely would not feel safe leaving them on for a month at a time. This is one of those things that is expensive, but it’s of a higher quality.
Finally, it is the consistency that the system offers. If you like doing really low temperature dabs, then you can set it up like that and it will never be too hot or too cold. If you want to do massive dabs just turn it up and you can rip the huge snakes. Once you dial into your favourite dab, you are going to have that exact same experience over and over again.
Gripes
It doesn’t seem like they have Celsius as an option, as it only measures in Fahrenheit. Not a huge deal for many people, but I don’t know why they don’t have a simple option to switch it over as many people prefer Celsius.
While it is awesome that the controller box is so small, it is also super light. You may find that you have to spend a little time getting it just where you want it as the cords themselves can cause it to stand up or try to move around due to the cord placement. I would recommend using the little slab pad that they include to keep your controller on.
It’s definitely not a cheap system. You can find an enail for a fraction of this price, but I do think this one is a significant step above in terms of both quality and function compared to any of the cheap ones that I have used
Final thoughts
The MiniNail has been my most used method of consuming concentrate since I got it. I love the convenience of the system, the fact that you can just turn it on and it’s ready to go anytime you want to dab. It is amazingly convenient
The build quality and the function are a huge step ahead of the less expensive systems that I have used. I personally wouldn’t trust any of the other enails that I have used to leave them on for a long period of time, and that reduces the convenience of the system drastically.
The consistency of each hit makes it much easier to dial-in your ideal temperature and then replicate that over and over. You will never have a burnt dab, or a dab that barely cooks. They are going to be repeatable and identical so dial it in to your preference and away you go.
If you are looking for a super convenient and effective way to use your concentrate, I would definitely consider looking at one of these. It's found a starting position in my lineup and you might want to add one to your roster as well
You can find The MiniNail on both www.vapenorth.ca and www.sneakypetestore.com, as well as all of the other products that you see me go over in my review videos.
I hope you enjoyed this look at The MiniNail!
KIG KIS