Please Help - Want to start DIY but still overwhelmed

[NHXJer]

Hey All:

I have been reading everything I can on DIY mixing and really want to give it a go.
I think that I have a decent understanding of the process and pretty sure it's something I can handle, the confusion I still have lies in what exactly I need at the barest minimum to get started.

Here's my thoughts on how I want to begin:
1. I vape 6mg Nicotine.
2. I vape at least 75% VG - I can handle some PG but much more than 25% starts to give me sensitivity
problems.
3. I want to mix 10ml batches.
4. I can't be without a good vanilla custard.
5. Same for a good berry/fruit punch.
6. I think I want to get enough supplies to make 1000ml juice.

For 1000ml of juice at 6mg Nic and at 80% VG I would need approximately:
60ml of 100mg/ml Nic base
40ml PG
800ml VG
100ml assorted flavorings - this is assuming around 10% PG-based flavoring as a baseline.
Is my math correct?

I've been reading the GVC Clone thread and saw this recipe:
CAP Vanilla Custard V1 6%
TFA Dulce de Leche 2%
FA Fresh Cream 2%
Is this a good one for a new DIY-er to start with?

I'd appreciate suggestions on a good beginner berry/fruit punch recipe.

The hardware is really where I have questions.
Syringes - what do I need to start?
For the Nic, PG, and Flavorings I'd guess that I would need a syringe that I can easily measure to 0.1ml - is that correct? Would a 1ml syringe do the trick? What guage needle is best?
What size syringe and needle would be best to measure the VG?

Bottles - I like plastic droppers - easy enough to find.

Lastly - is there a one-stop shop for all this or am I going to have to hunt and peck all over the web?

Sorry for all the questions.
Chris

 

[Cullin Kin]

1) Your math is correct! However, you will find that many recipes require much more than 10% flavoring, and some will require much less.

2) The GVC clone recipe is a great place to start, however the VC % seems low to me. Usually it's 12-20%.

3) Search through the threads on here, I even started one for Capella Flavoring recipes that may have a good berry recipe for you.

4) Syringes: Get 10 3mL syringes (for different flavorings, this way you have a syringe for each flavor) and 2 10mL syringes (PG and VG). I prefer 14 gauge needles for VG, otherwise it is a PITA to draw. For flavorings and PG, 18-20 gauge is fine.

5) DIY E-Liquid, Electronic Cigarettes and Wholesale Nicotine & E-Cig Juice | EcigExpress has everything you'll need, but they're site is a bit glitchy. My favorite is Wizard Labs

If I were you, I would just pick up 1L of VG, 250mL Nic (Better deal than 120mL), 250mL PG, and plenty of flavorings. This gives you plenty of room to change around flavoring percentages and whatnot.

Also, I wouldn't immediately begin with 10mL batches otherwise you will waste a lot of juice. Not every recipe will be a hit for you, so I would begin with 3mL batches, 5mL at most. There are these perfect 8mL dram bottles I get at the local vitamin store for test batches.

I'm going to quote Susan, a DIY expert, from another thread for a bunch of DIY recipe threads:

Here are some threads you may like to read through for different flavoring companies. Many of the posts include recipes and comments about a specific flavor.

1. Flavor Arts (FA) - Pure Vapes has 3ml FlavourArt flavorings
2. The Flavor Apprentice (TFA) - The Flavor Apprentice Flavoring Thread
3. Inawera (IW) - Inawera - a few reviews
4. Capella (CAP) - DIY Capella's Recipe Thread v2.0
5. Hangsen (HS) - The Hangsen Thread
6. VapingZone (VZ) - New Super Concentrated Flavors & New Super Concentrated Flavors - Part 2
7. Flavor West (FW) - Flavor West DIY flavor review

Search through those and you're bound to find a berry recipe suited to your tastes. The Capella thread is the one I made and the first post has about 45 recipes to search through.

Finally, last bit of advice I will offer: Before buying any flavor do a google search that looks like this: "Insert Flavor Company Name Here" "Insert Flavor Name Here" "Eliquid" "ECF." This will bring up any threads that have been created for that flavor and whether these people have had success or not. Basically, whether or not it is a good flavor.

Good Vanilla Custard Flavorings: Capellas Vanilla Custard V1 or V2, TFA Vanilla Custard, Flavorah Vanilla Custard

Good luck and enjoy getting into DIY! The amount of money you save is awesome.

 

[NHXJer]

Thanks Cullin!

 

[mattiem]

Hey All:

<snip>

The hardware is really where I have questions.
Syringes - what do I need to start?
For the Nic, PG, and Flavorings I'd guess that I would need a syringe that I can easily measure to 0.1ml - is that correct? Would a 1ml syringe do the trick? What guage needle is best?
What size syringe and needle would be best to measure the VG?

Bottles - I like plastic droppers - easy enough to find.

Lastly - is there a one-stop shop for all this or am I going to have to hunt and peck all over the web?

Sorry for all the questions.
Chris

Hopefully this will help mattiem's blog | E-Cigarette Forum
It is my keep it simple and enjoy, way of mixing

 

[sketchness]

Having recently started diy in the last 5 months I would highly recommend mixing by weight. It is so much easier than all the syringes business and pretty cheap. I started with syringes but putting together a complex recipe like that is SLOW. If you go the syringe route. 14 and 20 gauge are all you need. And if you can get a few of the 12 gauge ones of Amazon for VG that is even better. And I would recommend looking for the 2 inch blunt tip instead of 1.5, the2 inch get to the bottoms of most flavoring a without pulling the drip cap.

12% Capella vc v1
3% hangsen vanilla
2% Capella sweet cream
1% marshmallow
2% vanilla swirl
A drop per 10ml of em and ap

I keep making some variant of this recipe over and over. Always keeping the vc and the vanilla swirl.

Good luck and have fun

 

[musicalchairs]

I try not to use the syringes all that much either & when I do I take the metal tip off. I change the milliliter amounts to ounces & use hair color bottles (they are marked by ounces) to mix up batches. You can easily fill smaller bottles or tanks right from the hair color bottle & they are super cheap.