Asking for professional help with DIY..

[graffinfected]

ok , so i have been mixxing for about a month now.. everyday i make about 8 flavors or so in small quantities..

i have a problem.. i cant get my juices to taste like a vendors juice...

why not? what am i doing wrong? why wont my flavors "pop" like others call it...? why cant i make a good enough batch to be proud of?

here is what i do:

i use both pg a vg.. of course, and nicotine.. 100mg from wizard labs.. i use the e-juice calculator.. which is great.. i want good strong flavor so i mix at 20% from TPA all my flavors are from TPA ,(i cant even imagine how someone would mix flavors at 5% its not enough at all for me) the only thing i dont use at all is water.. PEG , i dont use vodka or anything like that.. is that why i cant get it???

i know some flavors need to be stronger than others but i havent found a place that tells me the percentages to use for EACH one of every flavor i have from TPA.. the website has a few but not all of them.. For example... i tried making a 3ml batch of TPA's cotton candy... didnt taste like anything mixing it at 20% not even te lorann cotton candy tastes to me like anything other than very sweet, but not cotton candy.. and yes, i know cotton candy is usually used as a sweetner but thats not the point im trying to make... my point is that i want my strawberry cream to taste like strawberry cream..... what am i doing wrong??

i have a feeling people are going to tell me that it just takes practice and experimenting... but thats why im asking for help, because im going to have to throw away 300ml of juice and 500 dollars away just trying to get it right and im trying to avoid that. lol!!!

please someone help me out...

 

[Shilo]

If you want strawberry & cream maybe you can get Capella's sweet Strawberry next time and use whatever cream you are using and not just stick with just one flavoring company. TPA is only one of many that a vendor could be using to create their juice.

If its a fruit or tobacco concoction some people add a little tart n sour or ACV to make it pop. Also 20% sounds like a high amount of flavoring---maybe you need more sweetener like liquid sucralose and less flavoring. Sometime too much is just too much. Not everyone is a fan of TFA/TPA be sure to check out your other options as the best juice makers find good flavorings from multiple sources. Make sure you are letting it steep a week or two before making final decisions on if a flavor is for you or not.

There are no easy answers --can you make the identical juice to a vendor---possibly not but you can make a juice you'll be happy with. Check the recipe section too for recipes from seasoned DIYers that may be to your liking . I recommend Ecigepxress as a vendor with alot of different flavoring brands under one roof.

We all get frustrated and have been in a similar frame of mind---keep reading keep asking questions. and don't give up yet without trying some other flavors.

 

[Shilo]

Also make the juice without the nicotine until you are sure you like the recipe---otherwise you are wasting the nicotine.

 

[graffinfected]

thank you for your response,

i do use sweetener sometimes.. i have EM also... but i dont always use it.

maybe i just have no idea what im doing. But i have gotten better with time. i just wanna mix like the pro's and im desperate to get there.. also,

things like vanillin.. what is that? i read it doesnt taste like vanilla so what is it? i cant find a good potent chocolate.. where do i find a good vanilla and chocolate ?

What about everclear? is it necessarry for a good juice? what about PEG? and distilled water??

i have made good one flavor juices... but when i start getting creative, all things go out of wack... is there anyway someone might have more advice? i WILL try other flavors from capella.. i hear they are good and FA i hear flavor art is good also.. any other suggestions? i just want strong concentrated flavors with cheap prices and big amounts.. lmao..

 

[Hoosier]

Been there, done that, wrote a blog...

I'll echo Shilo, I usually recommend Capellas for beginners because they skip level 7 which helps with finding out the basics of flavoring levels for yourself. (Level 7 is part of that blog thing.)

If you can make good one flavor mixes, then you're ready for the next step, mixing multiple flavors. I usually have the single flavors I want as primaries made into juice and mix the juices then work the recipe backwards when I find what works. Things get very funky in doing this as some flavors mute others and others boost some flavors and often the oddest seeming combo is the only way to go. And many times they need a few unicorn tears and butterfly farts. (Yep, another term from my blogs.)

Str8 has a fairly detailed blog on mixing mulitiple flavorings that may be helpful too.

And, in all honesty, if you aren't making crap juice, you aren't mixing and trying new things. It happens. It's part of the process of learning. It does get better, but even if you've been doing it for years, like me, you will still create crap juice when trying something new...

 

[graffinfected]

hoosier.. thanks buddy, i appreciate you stepping up to help me out.. im going to check out your blog asap... and i know about str8.. i know he makes good juices, im just trying to get to that level... a vendors level... this is exactly what i needed .. help from the vets.. thanks shilo and thank you hoosier..

please by all means if anyone has anything else they can tell me please do so...

Does EM play a big part in mixing or PGA? noone has told me anything about it.. what makes the vendors juices "pop " is it extra stuff they mix in? some magical liquid? lol im assuming its what hoosier and shilo keep telling me about.. i guess it has everything to do with experience.

 

[vsummer1]

I got lucky when I started DIY, my first two were winners. Then I got all confident and my 3rd was a complete FAIL. It happens.

Keep meticulous notes so you know exactly what you did, and can replicate it each and every time (unless it was that 3rd one, then keep the notes so you know what NOT to do.) Get your flavorings from various (known) vendors so you aren't tied down to just one and can mix to your heart's desire.

Hoosier's blog was instrumental in getting me started, I read and read this forum before my first attempt. I do have a background in science and chemistry though, so cleanliness and mixing things wasn't new to me.

 

[BakuPeg]

I am not certainly an expert. I play around and my husband loves my mixes. 20% flavoring seems a little high to me. Lately I have been messing around with layering flavors. and not all my trials have been sucessful (more than not). It takes time and trials to find out what works where. Play around with adding a little citric acid with fruit flavors. (Some just use a few drops of lemon juice at the end). It helps my fruit flavors really pop.

I have been giving my juices funny names. When he saw a bottle he gave me a sour look, till he tried it. I asked him should I add anything he was NO, Not a thing. don't touch it. Step away from the juice cabinet.

That was just some FW Sweedish fish layered with a little cap sweet strawberry, a drop or 2 of some CS apple and pear, A little tfa pineapple, A bit of FA Oba Oba, and a few drops of 10% EM. + a 4 week steep!

 

[Hoosier]

... + a 4 week steep!

Aw, jeeze, I've got a new recipe I really like that requires a long steep before it is vapable. I always run out before the next bottle is ready...

Sometimes a steep is wasted time and sometimes it's the only thing that makes it worth a darn.

 

[BakuPeg]

My husband has a long list of formulas before he gets to the recent stuff. By the time he gets to it the steep time is about 3-4 weeks

I've been busy

 

[glassmanoak]

I'd recommend that you start DIY with tried and true recipes. There are MANY available and, although they might not be exactly what you want, they are a good start to tweeking.

 

[sportyfortyeight]

Iv been mixing for some time and got a few winners but also have made losers. Hell I took a great juice and tried to make it POP and ruined it completely. Take your time and try with small batches. The bottles I use to try mixes out are glass 15ml bottles. I'm working on a juice that has taken 3 weeks so far and its close but not close I'd that make sense at all. I also love very strong in your face flavor. With that being said at first all my juices had high % of flavors. I learned at times less is more. As for what % for each flavor its hard to have a set number. What I would say is get a bunch of small 10 ml bottles and make a bottle of every single flavor you have by its self and start at 3% for each,then add more flavor to your liking and note that flavor A taste good at 7% and flavor B taste good at 4% and so on. Take lots of notes and label everything.. also let your juices steep. For example iv got a great juice right after mixing but once it steeps it loses a few flavors that gives it the wow factor I love. Said juice has 7 flavors in it...

 

[graffinfected]

Sport forty...

thanks i think thats a great idea.. im going to do that. see what happens.. i have also been mixing with mostly vg.. but i require more of a TH.. so im going to convert to pg to see what happens.. thanks for the advice.. they were all great from everyone..

Bakupeg..

what kind of lemon juice? you mean the type thats sitting in my refrigerator right now?? concentrated lemon juice .. ? tanks for the hint!!

i have been letting my juices steep and i have noticed the flavor go away with some.. and some taste way better.. like my peach is fantastic after a week of steeping. but i cant vape on a peach all day.. for example i loooove the menthol from a a vendor i hae near by.. i vaped on it today which i havent tried in a long time sense i started DIY.. but anyways, i tried it again and i noticed something... i dont think they put any tobacco flavor in it.. which at first when i started vaping, i thought they were.. but this time around i have alot more knowledge in tasting (thanks to you guys and this forum) i was able to let my tastebuds do the peeping. time to start experimenting..

 

[exodus454]

so im going to convert to pg to see what happens..

I don't know about you, but I can't stand 100% PG. I've been using 100% VG for all my concoctions and it hasn't been going to plan. Flavors are never strong enough, but clouds of vapor. I switched to a 70/30 (VG/PG) base mixture that I made myself and it's working quite a bit better. The flavors in test batches come out much more quickly and seem more stable, in addition to being more tank and carto compliant.

I will say, making some real high VG flavors recently has made me come to the conclusion that most premade liquids you buy online advertised as 100% VG, really aren't close to that. I made a 95/5 flavor that I had TONS of trouble getting it into anything because it was so thick. I've never had that problem before, and I've always bought "100% VG" eliquids for the past year and a half.

 

[glassmanoak]

I don't know about you, but I can't stand 100% PG. I've been using 100% VG for all my concoctions and it hasn't been going to plan. Flavors are never strong enough, but clouds of vapor. I switched to a 70/30 (VG/PG) base mixture that I made myself and it's working quite a bit better. The flavors in test batches come out much more quickly and seem more stable, in addition to being more tank and carto compliant.

I will say, making some real high VG flavors recently has made me come to the conclusion that most premade liquids you buy online advertised as 100% VG, really aren't close to that. I made a 95/5 flavor that I had TONS of trouble getting it into anything because it was so thick. I've never had that problem before, and I've always bought "100% VG" eliquids for the past year and a half.

Personally. I believe they dilute their 100% juices with distilled water. I'm really not sure how bad this is, but it surely is dishonest!

 

[sportyfortyeight]

I make all my juice at a 60pg/40vg mix. Good amount of vapor and also good flavor. That mix is just on the edge of tank friendly but also might be an issue of bogegate.. edit. Give ya an ideal of different flavors at different %, the new Tpa mint candy is STRONG at 2%. I even speed steeped it two times to see if it would mute some and it didn't.

 

[recidivus]

Getting an exact % is no easy task, not one bit. I started mixing at 20% and ended up having nothing that was vapeable. I was really keen on having BIG flavour country and thought higher %=more better flavour. Now I, personally, don't work with % so much as ratios.

To start I make batches with drops of flavour (small ~1ml for a "right away" tasting) at around 15%. This lets me know the approximate ratio of flavouring. 3 drops bubble gum, 1 drop cherry, 1 drop EM, etc. If it's okay I know 3/1/1 is "close". Next batch I make is 5ml, still using drops since the measurements are very low. Now that I have more wiggle room I can adjust the amounts to favour one more than the others based on round 1. If THOSE are okay after a week I move up to the 30ml and start measuring properly, mix at 10% flavouring at the 5ml ratios (or less %, depends on the 5mls) and leave them alone for 5 business days. My most complicated mix has 4 flavours, EM and Sweet in it: day 1 it was dull, few days later it was rounding out but found 10% wasn't working so bumped it up to 12. Now it's almost exactly how I imagined it when I wrote it on my "to try" list. That extra .5 ml of flavour made all the difference.

Needless to say, DIY is a process of trial and (a lot of) error. What looks great on paper doesn't always translate well to a mix, and sometimes a mix that looks HORRID on paper ends up being quite pleasant. I don't expect to be making mixes on par with vendors, I'm just happy to make something that's good enough to ADV (the final test).

 

[BakuPeg]

Yes lemon juice. either from the big bottle used in cooking, or from the little plastic lemons you buy at the store filled with juice. Some people mix a little vinegar with vtheir juice (I havent tried that though).

TPA mint candy is strong at 2%.. *cringe* I just mixed a little with my FW Extreme ice 10%.. + 5% mint candy + 1% koolata.. Hmm.. Well if it is not vapeable I can always try to dilute it.

I'll have to put that bottle on the "use with caution" shelf....

Oh and BTW, keep notes and listen to other DIYers `cause it can save your juice!

 

[dandellion]

If you care to hear from somebody who still has more errors than hits....
Accept errors as part of learning. Having that in mind, mix small batches. Like, make a bottle of base (50/50 10mg nic for me) with no flavour. Then get your flavours, and make 1 ml of each.

Try different concentrations. I used to make 20% mixes. Then I switched to a different vendor and 20% is so thick that I can't vape three puffs without wanting to puke. Switched down to 10%, then to 7%. Now we're fine.

Let those single flavours steep a bit. Try them, feel them, vape them (1ml won't last long but it's enough). Take notes on each.

Pick your notes, meditate a bit, try mixing something (1ml again, why wasting stuff). Embrace your errors. Celebrate your hits.

Rinse and repeat. Have fun.

 

[graffinfected]

wow, ok... thanks