Comparing it to my Lotus. When I get my lotus going, I can white-wall my D020 with no problem. I can't even get half as much vapor produced by the Nano in the same glass with the same load of herb without chugging like a freight train.
Like I said, I find it odd that when I pull HARDER the vapor production increases. Unlike both other vapes I use (Ascent and Lotus), which the harder you pull the less vapor they produce (because you're dropping the temperature too fast). But the Nano is a different story.
I'm not ready to declare it defective yet, I'm going to keep playing around tonight changing 1 variable at a time to see what happens to the performance. (much to my wife's chagrin, I'm sure)
I agree with
@EveryDayAmnesiac that the solid, constant heat output of the nano is why harder pulls produce more vapor (instead of less as with many vapes). Seems like temp can keep up with much more airflow. Haven't used another vape that can do that as well - except maybe the cloud. And have only had the opportunity to try one a few times over about an hour, so not much experience there. But, IME no way the EQ, DBV, solo and least of all the MFLB can stay up to temp while hitting it hard.
If you were combusting at 10, sounds like the heater is up to temp. Know you said you've been trying everything, but have you tried pushing the heat up some? Go to like 8, 8 1/2?
Also... clouds mean different things to different people. When you're getting clouds out of the Lotus, are you on the verge of combustion? I've never used one, but have seen more than a few vids where it looks like people are using it a lot hotter than I would. IMO, thick vapor (that evaporates to nothing within seconds of exhale) is better than nearly smoke. Not all agree. For me, if I want smoke on occasion - I just smoke. Not saying you do this Ratchett, but seems many on here push their vapes up to just about combusting. To each their own and all that happy shit - but, that's not really my thing. When I vape I want vapor - and for me that's not even close to smoke. So a nice vapor cloud in my D020 (or W) is certainly visible in the glass, but you can easily see the downpiece that goes down the center through the vapor. On the glass I smoke through (like the D020's), when I put a flame to it there's no way you could see anything inside - least of all the downpiece in the center.
So... maybe you just need some more heat to get up to temp to produce the clouds you're looking for - and extract more of the components you're trying to squeeze out. I'd try using very small loads (2 hit size) and bumping it up 1/2 dial notch on each new one.
And definitely get that cotton out of there - at least until you get used to the nano. The learning curve isn't nearly as much as most vapes, but still takes a little practice to get her to behave as you like on demand. You also may want to try hitting it straight from the GonG (super short stem - or Vitolo method) or running it through glass with no water until you get a feel for getting her to produce as you like. It's a shame your stem didn't make the box, though I'm sure Andy will make it right. I find it's a lot easier to get a feel for things when going dry, whether from the nano or anything else.