After a half hour of discussing ecigs, a smoker converts... to a Blu >.<

[edyle]

On the other hand, freebase nicotine has always referred to the rapid uptake, or spike of nicotine from smoking.
We don't get that from vaping based on every study I've read.

So what's up with all this then?

if "100% freebase nicotine" is supposed to really translate into informing that the nicotine in eliquids is more easily absorbed then why not say so in plain language ? ie - "the form of nicotine in eliquids is more easily absorbed"

Instead, the description seems to attempt to claim that eliquids:
(a) have a very high concentration of nicotine - "100% ... nicotine"
(b) has something to do with junkies - "freebase"

 

[Ryedan]

Right... freebase means the nicotine isn't bound to salts. The nicotine in tobacco is quite often, mostly bound up to salts in the tobacco and not readily bioavailable- it won't readily cross over skin or other membranes. With e-liquid, every bit of the nicotine is unbound and easily absorbed.

Vaping typical amounts of nic in juice with typical devices, it takes us around an hour of vaping to get our blood nicotine levels up to what it is after one typical cigarette smoked in the typical way. That's from Dr F's research I believe, but if it's someone else please correct me.

I've spilled 10% nic base on my skin and wiped it off after a couple of minutes with no noticeable effect on me. I wouldn't want to get a lot on me and leave it there though.

Drink nic juice or base and you will vomit unless your vomit reflex is inhibited for some reason. No-one has ever died from drinking nic juice. A few people have tried to commit suicide this way and failed.

AFAIK, one person succeeded at suicide by injecting nic.

Nicotine needs to be respected, it can kill you. But so can a lot of other things we have around the house every day. If we eliminated everything from our homes that could harm us, or that could be used to purposely end life, we wouldn't have much left.

 

[AndriaD]

Point being not everyone can jump right into an ego. It is big and heavy (at least it is for a cigarette smoker), has a button for hits, and is held nothing like a cigarette is held, it doesn't feel natural at first. I know you know all this but think about it. Not everyone can make such a drastic switch. it was the similarity to cigarettes that helped me switch via the blu. For some people tricking the mind to think it is still a cigarette helps for a seamless transition. It goes back to that everyone is different. I have met some people that won't even try anything but cigalikes.

I didn't like Blu AT ALL, they taste like pipe tobacco to me, just grossly sweet. So I asked around here, and found the eRoll, the *exact* size of a regular length cigarette (already a big switch from the 120mm Slims!), and it worked very well for me, even with it being a lot fatter than a Slim, and of course heavier. The main problem I found is with an eRoll, the atty is placed so that holding it "like a cigarette" can be a real problem, it gets very hot right there at the point where you would hold it between 2 fingers, so I started holding it quite differently -- and at that point, I knew that the larger, manual style would not be a problem.

Andria

 

[Skorpeyon]

Vaping typical amounts of nic in juice with typical devices, it takes us around an hour of vaping to get our blood nicotine levels up to what it is after one typical cigarette smoked in the typical way. That's from Dr F's research I believe, but if it's someone else please correct me.

I've spilled 10% nic base on my skin and wiped it off after a couple of minutes with no noticeable effect on me. I wouldn't want to get a lot on me and leave it there though.

Drink nic juice or base and you will vomit unless your vomit reflex is inhibited for some reason. No-one has ever died from drinking nic juice. A few people have tried to commit suicide this way and failed.

AFAIK, one person succeeded at suicide by injecting nic.

Nicotine needs to be respected, it can kill you. But so can a lot of other things we have around the house every day. If we eliminated everything from our homes that could harm us, or that could be used to purposely end life, we wouldn't have much left.

My favorite example of this is the fact that chocolate is a poison. The reason it can kill smaller animals (such as dogs and cats) is because in high doses, pure cocoa can be harmful. It contains the alkaloid theobromine. Cocoa beans are approx. 1/2% theobromine. This can cause nausea, vomiting, ........, and increased urination. These can progress to cardiac arrhythmias, epileptic seizures, internal bleeding, heart attacks, and eventually death. You have to eat a LOT of pure cocoa in order for this to occur in a human, but it can happen. No one ever worries about it because no one ever eats that much damned chocolate. Best part is that it's been suggested that theobromine is actually slightly addictive and can explain why people crave chocolate. All of that, and we don't see Hershey bars being pulled off of shelves.

Caffeine is another great example with very similar effects and possible overdoses and, again, not something anyone ever demonizes or worries about. It's well-known it has physical addiction issues and significant withdrawal symptoms, but no one is pushing for it's complete removal from society nor worried when they have a cup of coffee, tea, can of Coke, etc.

Nicotine is very similar. It can be poisonous when you take in too much of it. The average amount in the liquids is relatively difficult to harm yourself with short of chugging a 30ml bottle and, as you said, you'll likely vomit before it becomes too serious and if not you'll probably be in a hospital getting your stomach pumped. I've licked off the spare drop or two that's gotten on my hand while rebuilding because I was trying to do something and couldn't get to a towel to get rid of it properly and it didn't have any adverse effects.

 

[Moaufan]

Well at least she's trying it. I've got a close friend that is in terrible health and won't even consider it. She smokes 2+pad, has diabetes, copd, and heart trouble. She's the only one in our close social circle that isn't vaping. Her sister and I can't for the life of us figure out why she's so dead set against it. She doesn't give us any grief over us doing it either. Does anybody have any suggestions to help us get her to try it? We don't think she's scared of it. She hates to spend money, and has 95 cents of every dollar she has ever made. I showed her how much I'd saved in the 4 months I'd been vaping and that didn't phase her. We've given up and don't mention it anymore. We vape she smokes.

 

[AndriaD]

Well at least she's trying it. I've got a close friend that is in terrible health and won't even consider it. She smokes 2+pad, has diabetes, copd, and heart trouble. She's the only one in our close social circle that isn't vaping. Her sister and I can't for the life of us figure out why she's so dead set against it. She doesn't give us any grief over us doing it either. Does anybody have any suggestions to help us get her to try it? We don't think she's scared of it. She hates to spend money, and has 95 cents of every dollar she has ever made. I showed her how much I'd saved in the 4 months I'd been vaping and that didn't phase her. We've given up and don't mention it anymore. We vape she smokes.

If her health is that desperate, with diabetes and copd, maybe she's hoping that the cigarettes will hurry her on out of here. Diabetes is the most horrible disease, so it could well be that she's just not scared of the eventual consequences of smoking.

Andria

 

[beckdg]

XD I think there's some other carcinogens you need to stop smoking my friend just playing. I don't care what kind of personality you have, you could be james bond and that would still terrify any girl dude, I thought it was a joke until you tried justifying it. I DO hear what your saying though, it'd be just as easy to show her this youtube video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZD7B9A_D8bQ

~It has a nice "cigs vs e-cigs" report (where e-cigs OBVIOUSLY win), and perfectly summarizes the situation in HD with facts.

people tend to believe what's reported on the news. refuting that with other source seems to lend an err of bias to the equation in many peoples minds. i get straight to the point. if my ways and tactics scare a person, they'll normally not remain my friends or close acquaintances. though, i find that more often than not (by a great margin), folks that know me tend to lend a great amount of trust in my be they male or female. i tend to drive the point home when there's something at stake. my ways are often unconventional and won't work for many, but when they work, they normally work immediately without a doubt.

if "100% freebase nicotine" is supposed to really translate into informing that the nicotine in eliquids is more easily absorbed then why not say so in plain language ? ie - "the form of nicotine in eliquids is more easily absorbed"

Instead, the description seems to attempt to claim that eliquids:
(a) have a very high concentration of nicotine - "100% ... nicotine"
(b) has something to do with junkies - "freebase"

freebase simply means more bio available. the base is free from salts that would inhibit uptake such as via capillary action through skin pores and requires less bio-actions to enter the bloodstream and be available. the body doesn't have to regulate it via osmosis and other bio-functions to make it available and effective.

the base is free. from salts and contaminants that would make it less effective or take longer to take effective.

 

[TheColdHandedVG]

if "100% freebase nicotine" is supposed to really translate into informing that the nicotine in eliquids is more easily absorbed then why not say so in plain language ? ie - "the form of nicotine in eliquids is more easily absorbed"

Instead, the description seems to attempt to claim that eliquids:
(a) have a very high concentration of nicotine - "100% ... nicotine"
(b) has something to do with junkies - "freebase"

Probably because many people would prefer to know why the e-liquid is more easily absorbed instead of just being told it is more easily absorbed. I bet many people who are told it is more easily absorbed would instantly say "Why?". Well now we know...

 

[Frenchfry1942]

Anything other than a cig is good.

 

[Anubuk]

The only problem with starting with Blue is that they are owned by big tobacco.

I am sure some of us started Blu before Lorillard bought them. I believe I started them just before or during Lorillard's aquisition. At the time I didn't mind because previously I had been using a NicMaxx I bought at a head shop and I was starting to get a bit apprehensive about the e-juice being made in China. I felt Blu would be held more accountable (they were already using Johnson Creek, made in USA) because of their huge presence. Not that you can trust Big Tobacco.

Also at the time despite having a computer and internet connection, I wasn't doing alot of research online about e-cigs. I was still going back and forth between cigs and e-cigs and it wasn't until I was vaping 100% that I started to care about the performance and the taste. Before that it was all about USA made juice and the smallest, lightest battery I could get to simulate a cigarette.

I didn't know about any other brands nor was I aware that I could refill them myself with whatever juice I wanted. Once I found out more, I quickly dove in and am very happy with my vaping. I still have my blu and once I come across someone who wants to start vaping and they seem to really want to make a go of it, I plan to give them my blu and unused boge cartos. Probably will give them some juice to start off with too. I do not meet alot of vapers. A few dual users but no one that is as into it as me.

 

[KODIAK (TM)]

Her sister and I can't for the life of us figure out why she's so dead set against it.

Maybe she's just afraid to "fail". Entirely understandable. I smoked 40 years, tried to quit once and failed. Never tried again for that reason.

Tell her it's ok to vape AND smoke. See if she can taper down on the cigarettes though.

 

[Ryedan]

Or maybe she'll end up going this way

 

[Penn]

I'm not a chemist but I could swear I heard the word "base" in "free base" is a reference to ph, as in acids and bases. I guess that means the reference is actually about hydrogen atoms thus one of the earlier links mentioning protons and deprotonated. We have a lot of internet chemistry experts so maybe someone can confirm or refute that.

 

[poconojo]

I respect what your doing brother, in respect to their addiction, I think we all know cig smokes can be inherently STUBBORN when it comes to quitting.

~ However, should I say it?..."Blu-Cigs are SEXY!" (I've now won 2 "cloud competitions", so I'm "far past" cig-alikes, however there's nothing wrong with them, some people have different priorities, and I was definitely one of them.

-Not as in erotic, although a top-of-the-line mechanical mod + a well designed RDA will get me hot and bothered . But imagine: Scarlett Johansson (or Channing Tatum ladies) or whoever you find hot walks up next to you at a bar and sits two stools down from you, you then get into a conversation and start enjoying it, they scooch down another seat to sit next to you and talk. And a few minutes later they pull out a dreadnaught mod with a patina'd copper cap (many including myself would find that pretty hot), but people new to the vape world would most likely gasp and think your pulling out an 80's light-saber replica .

-Now flip the situation and they pull out a Blu-cig, it's a sleek black cig-a-like that doesn't look odd going in your mouth, and would almost be invisible (which is what many people want to be unfortunately) besides the fact that that cool little blue light dims on and off while you vape it. It's much more acceptable to those people that don't really have a clue what vaping is, other than seeing that shania twain commercial.

~I personally did alot of research, and at first, thought that a mech mod with a dripper looked completely goofy (boy has my mind opened up), because I basically didn't know what they were capable of. Maybe you should build a dual sub-ohm coil and blow a competition cloud or two in front of her to show her what she's missing.

My vaping experience: Bought blu's, pretty happy but still smoked, they delivered nicotine fairly well actually (at max strength), was kind of unsatisfied with the lack of vapor, REALLY unsatisfied with the CONSTANTLY changing batteries, I miss vaping them in bed because it's the only device you can tip upside down and hold in your mouth while reading. Gradually researched ways to improve them (and found none), however while vaping and researching I came across ECF and my mind was blown. After an hour or two of knowing what's out there, my heart was pumping at the thought of going to the store and getting a carto-tank. So I did!

-Got an Aspire ET-S (AMAZING FIRST TANK) no leaking whatsoever (only using high VG than 50/50, haven't tried below), still sexy looking on a 1300 spinner battery, vapor that blew my mind compared to the E-cigs, FLAVOR that blew my mind compared to blu-cigs, couldn't be easier to fill and replace atomizer. (TELL HER TO GET THIS ONE AND DON'T TURN ABOVE 3.5 VOLTS, it comes in different colors, it's idiot proof (which I needed), and DOES NOT LEAK, if you buy her a filling syringe with it, I'm 100% positive she'll have an amazing experience with it if she's an iota similar to me. I've tried alot of tanks (kangers, evods etc. etc.) in the past, and this one kicks all of their butts along with the aspire nautilus, however the ET-S does just as good a job as the nautilus oddly enough, just doesn't hold 5ml's.

~Blu-cig's are an excellent way to "dip your toe in the water" because they work great for their size, very comparable to smoking, however it leaves you wanting more vapor, and most end up researching how to improve that, or at least getting longer charge life from their "device".

~I remember when I first started I almost prioritized looks over function, and thought "since blu is so succesful they must be the best", and I'm not exactly mad I bought them, I donated them to a friend who's now vaping and was smoking for a decade, there's something about them .

They are sexy to "noobs".

You are supporting Big Tobacco. If that's your thing, and that is sexy, then that's "Your" thing. Blu Cig is a total ripoff and waste of people's money.