Dekang juice, good or bad?

[generic mutant]

I don't think it's necessarily racist to avoid Chinese e-liquid. They do seem to have a disproportionate number of food contamination scares. Penalties are harsh, but enforcement is patchier than in Europe or North America, and they have a serious corruption issue (although it's one they claim to be moving to address).

But I think considering the size of the country (and the possible political and confirmation bias led over-reporting of them) the fear some people have is probably excessive. I wouldn't buy from a small Chinese company whose reputation I wasn't certain about, but I wouldn't buy from a similar European or American company either.

People get richer if they trade internationally - Comparative advantage - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

There isn't really much sense in 'buying local' if the product is identical, unless you're trying to avoid 'food-miles'. Of course Chinese e-liquid isn't identical, but if you like it you like it.

Worth remembering the only big ingredient scare (apart from diketones, which is flavour, rather than location specific) so far I've read about was from Box Elder, an American company...

 

[wv2win]

I don't think it's necessarily racist to avoid Chinese e-liquid. They do seem to have a disproportionate number of food contamination scares. Penalties are harsh, but enforcement is patchier than in Europe or North America, and they have a serious corruption issue (although it's one they claim to be moving to address).

But I think considering the size of the country (and the possible political and confirmation bias led over-reporting of them) the fear some people have is probably excessive. I wouldn't buy from a small Chinese company whose reputation I wasn't certain about, but I wouldn't buy from a similar European or American company either.

People get richer if they trade internationally - Comparative advantage - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

There isn't really much sense in 'buying local' if the product is identical, unless you're trying to avoid 'food-miles'. Of course Chinese e-liquid isn't identical, but if you like it you like it.

Worth remembering the only big ingredient scare (apart from diketones, which is flavour, rather than location specific) so far I've read about was from Box Elder, an American company...

It IS racist when the implication is made that ALL eliquid from a particular country is unsafe. Considering the deaths and illnesses from American processed food, a case could be made that American eliquid could easily be the least safe eliquid in the world.

 

[generic mutant]

If such an implication is made, sure.

All I'm saying is you don't necessarily have to be making such an implication by avoiding Chinese e-liquid. You could just be saying "I dont think their regulation is up to snuff, so I don't want to chance it". As I said, it's not an argument I adhere to - e-liquid in the states is pretty much entirely unregulated isn't it? I don't have a shadow of a doubt that the worst American e-liquids are much worse than the best Chinese. But then mixers hopefully use food grade ingredients, which are certainly better regulated in the States than their Chinese counterparts.

I don't think it's a rational position to take - it's Wild West capitalism, so you simply have to judge by individual firms - but I don't think it's necessarily racist. I was in a hospital briefly in China, and they wanted to give me an injection, and I refused. I wouldn't have refused in a Western European or North American country. I don't think that's racist, just a self-preservation heuristic.

 

[El_tecolote]

I'd really like to believe that this video is an actual e-liquid manufacturing facility, but I see absolutely nothing related to e-liquid whatsoever. I see a guy going into a clean-room lab facility and looking at a few stainless steel tanks.

You'd think that a 'proof' video would at least include some like actual proof that this is an e-liquid facility, but I see nothing (though I have no horse in this race and no reason to doubt its authenticity... it's just pretty weak proof).

I think they are putting together iPads.

 

[Randy C]

Really? Is it necessary for people to jump on the "you're a racist/prejudiced because you don't agree with me" bandwagon?

I think as AMERICANS we can choose where and what we want to purchase for ourselves. I don't see anyone calling the Dekang fans "commies"? It's just not appropriate either way.


:::::stepping off soapbox::::::

I love people of all races, religions, and races.... I don't, however, have a great deal of admiration for many foreign governments; their behavior; their politics....

 

[Julopy]

Dekang's not bad, i use it from time to time. you get your fix anyways.

 

[wv2win]

I love people of all races, religions, and races.... I don't, however, have a great deal of admiration for many foreign governments; their behavior; their politics....

I agree with you on this point. It has nothing really to do with the safety of eliquid produced in any particular country. There will be bad, better and best in any given country.

 

[Patrick O'Brien]

You get what you pay for, at least that has been my experience. I prefer to support the local American Vendors who go that extra mile when they create their liquids. Mtbaker, High Brow Vapors, and Johnson's Creek always get my repeat business.

 

[roundrock]

I recently bought Dekang Lichee, and a Chinese tobacco (can't remember spelling- pm if you really want to know) and Champagne. They all taste good to me, especially the Champagne.

Question: what is the PG/VG ratio?

 

[crxess]

You get what you pay for, at least that has been my experience. I prefer to support the local American Vendors who go that extra mile when they create their liquids. Mtbaker, High Brow Vapors, and Johnson's Creek always get my repeat business.

HORSE HOCKEY - I have bought all over the board and Cost has little to do with quality. Some of my most expensive purchases hasve gone right down the drain because their Idea of what something should taste like was NOWHERE NEAR what others, and I would expect it to be.
By the same token I have had some expensive Delicious Vapes and a few extra cheap E-liquids that were perfect replications of their advertised taste.
I'm talking simply Vender to vender, some highly recommended as well as country to country.

 

[zipflint]

How's their Dunhill flavor? I've never had the "real deal" and I'm not wanting or expecting anything
like a cigarette flavor.

Dekang's "Dark Tobacco" or "DK-TAB" is nice. So is Davidoff. And I guess there are several e-juice
makers that have a "Turbosmog" but Dekang's isn't bad.

 

[Hotwire]

None are outstanding. But they provide very clean, light vapes. Let me give you an example. Last night, I chain vaped about 3 ml of my favorite 555 in a bar with a friend. That's a lot of liquid in a short time, and after a few hours I started getting that unpleasant heavy lung feeling, not unlike low-grade asthma. I still needed to vape, and I still needed my nicotine, so I turned to my cheap Dekang juices. The premium US juices all turned me off in that situation -- from experience, I knew they'd only add to the heavy lung feeling. But vaping Dekang Mint mixed with Dekang Blueberry didn't do that -- it's a very light vape.

As an aside, I'm beginning to wonder about the long-term effects of the rather intense flavorings you get in most American e-juices. The PG, VG and nicotine are apparently problem-free, but the thousands of flavorings?

On a similar note I am concerned about the effect of darker juices (which I assume have more flavorings added.) All I know is anything brown makes me cough up pleghm and hurts my throat and lungs.

Then I clean out an atty, put some clear juice in the tank (usually less flavorful, sure I admit) and bingo - no coughing or lung and throat irritation.

That's using Ovale which are expensive juices, even their dark ones make me cough like crazy and I only vape at 6mg.

What is in their that s doing that?

I personally will only ever only stick to clear liquids now.

 

[Funk Dracula]

I got a free 30ml 24mg bottle of their USA MIX with an order once. On it's own, it was a fail. What little taste it did have, was strongly of ash, with an ultra harsh PG throat hit.

I added some FA Dark Vapure, some TFA Black Cherry, a hint of Apple, some VG base to cut the nicotine strength down to my preferred 14-16mg, and let it steep a few days. I don't know exactly what I was thinking in coming up with that combination other than I didn't mind potentially ruining this free bottle of Dekang.

Anyways, it sure was yummy. I smoked it for a week till it was all gone. It was a very subtly sweet pipe/cigar/cigarette combination that somehow even satisfied my appetite for a snack. I actually kind of miss it, and am pretty tempted to give that recipe another go.

I've tried some toots of other Dekang flavors during a tasting party. Their version of fruit flavors is definitely not my cup of tea. Why I was tasting a hint of "onion" in their watermelon was beyond me, but others agreed after I brought it up; "funion onion" flavor was definitely present.


-B

 

[Hotwire]

Just got my four bottles of 10ml 6mg DEKANG juices delivered.

The USA blend smells good, haven't tried it yet.

The chocolate and vanilla are dark so they're going down the toilet - I do not vape dark juices, so can't say how they are.

BUT THE REAL STAR is the 'SUPER STRONG MINT.'

I just added literally only three drops to a 1.1ml ego-c tank of a really dull tobacco free sample I got with my pv and was using it to vape at work as it was so dull - AND NOW IT IS DELICIOUS FRESH, MINTY, MENTHOL-LIKE GOODNESS!

DEKANG, I only ordered 4 10ml bottles as was not sure how you'd perform, but that super strong mint juice is worth the 4 pounds I spent for the whole four. Man I can stretch out all my boring tobacco juices out for months by adding this to it and it's super clear too, so very atty friendly.

Yeah so the USA blend smells good but the 'super strong mint' is bloody amazing especially at the price of 80 pence / $1.20 for a bottle!

 

[Hotwire]

Okay my review was more than overly enthusiastic, it was premature.

I'm going back to ovale // janty 50vg/50pg juices. Here is a thorough breakdown of why

I like 50vg/50pg best.

Pg is better for atties and wicks better but is too hot for me.

Vg alone is slow to wick and fouls attys faster and unless it's a clear juice - coats my throat and tongue.

I prefer the coolness and sweet flavor of VG but 100% VG gives me atty hassle so I go with 50/50 and find that good, though only with clear juices, even at that ratio I find the darker juices coat my lungs / throat / tongue.

With pg you can use darker juices and get zero atty fouling and 'coating' but I find the vapor too hot.

In an ideal world I think I'd go with 40vg/60pg just as it would be a bit thinner for wicking.

But 50/50 is decent once you know how to look after your attys. I wish pg vapor was cooler and I'd use it exclusively due to it's lower viscosity - but it's too damn warm.

And DEKANG only do pg, sooooooo bye bye dekang.....

Might keep a batch of the usa blend for stretching out what I'm going back to - Jany / Ovale RY5, Tobacco and Menthol as it is a quarter of the cost and not overpowering.

But yeah, me not pg fan at all, good for atty, bad for hotwire's mouth.

 

[zipflint]

I got a few 30ml bottles for something like $4 each from fasttech a few weeks ago. DK TAB and Dunhill. They're okay. Like others have said, pretty harsh throat hit. I've never been a smoker so for me to even notice throat hit is a little odd. It's not total junk, and I actually like the DK TAB quite a bit. The Dunhill flavor is pretty meh but not offensive.

I also ordered some mystery Hangsen flavors. No idea what they are. The bottles themselves aren't labeled with a name that I can find, but the little boxes they came in have Chinese characters on them. I can tell you that one is almost clear, and smells kinda like dirty socks and isn't so good. The other one is darker and tastes quite good.

If anyone on here can translate I'll post pics of the Chinese characters. I don't know if it's traditional or simplified Chinese.

edit:
what the heck, here's the boxes:

 

[aubergine]

For me it's not about China xenophobia or a political gesture in any way at all. I sometimes get tea straight from China - best tea, best prices if you know where to look. (And Japan, and India). And for me Dekang isn't particularly offensive tasting, or dangerous - just kinda meh/artificial. That's just me.

 

[Hotwire]

One on the left is 'Jade Stream'

'Flower king' on the right.

From my Chinese co-workers in my office in Shanghai

 

[zipflint]

hey that's awesome! thanks!

One on the left is 'Jade Stream'

'Flower king' on the right.

From my Chinese co-workers in my office in Shanghai

 

[crxess]

Okay my review was more than overly enthusiastic, it was premature.

I'm going back to ovale // janty 50vg/50pg juices. Here is a thorough breakdown of why

I like 50vg/50pg best.

Pg is better for atties and wicks better but is too hot for me.

Vg alone is slow to wick and fouls attys faster and unless it's a clear juice - coats my throat and tongue.

I prefer the coolness and sweet flavor of VG but 100% VG gives me atty hassle so I go with 50/50 and find that good, though only with clear juices, even at that ratio I find the darker juices coat my lungs / throat / tongue.

With pg you can use darker juices and get zero atty fouling and 'coating' but I find the vapor too hot.

In an ideal world I think I'd go with 40vg/60pg just as it would be a bit thinner for wicking.

But 50/50 is decent once you know how to look after your attys. I wish pg vapor was cooler and I'd use it exclusively due to it's lower viscosity - but it's too damn warm.

And DEKANG only do pg, sooooooo bye bye dekang.....

Might keep a batch of the usa blend for stretching out what I'm going back to - Jany / Ovale RY5, Tobacco and Menthol as it is a quarter of the cost and not overpowering.

But yeah, me not pg fan at all, good for atty, bad for hotwire's mouth.

Need to Read more and understand better.
PG=thinner so Evaporates easier/faster - Reduce Wattage for cooler vape

Dekang makes several Mixes including 50/50 and All VG - just have to find the suppliers
denkang, hangesn, greensound e-liquid vg 100% - Zainy - Electronic Cigarettes
Dekang samples 10 ml 70%PG30%VG in 6mg - Zainy - Electronic Cigarettes