Getting Ready to Take the Plunge

[DingerCPA]

My PG and VG arrived today, along with a boatload of 3ml pipettes. Realized the gradations weren't going to be fine enough (looking more at .1mL increments) so I ordered up a cruisliner load of 1ml pipettes. My first batch of LorAnn flavors are en route, and I already have a bunch of empty bottles from purchased juice into which I'll be mixing.

I intend on mixing 0 nic, as I have some pre-made 36mg 50/50 that I use when I want a little "zhoosh" in my tanks (my S.O. vapes only 0, and I find that juices pre-made with nic discolor more quickly than 0 nic juices.)

I've been playing with calculators, and I'm toying with the idea of just mixing up a bigger batch of 0 nic 50/50 (o.k. some of my calculations are more like 43PG/57VG) and adding the flavors. I realize that will throw off my PG/VG ratio ever so slightly, but I don't know that's going to ruin my day (or that I'll even notice.)

Anyone have any thoughts on that philosophy?

Also, I've been seeing that a lot of the LorAnn flavors seem to be more concentrated (i.e. I may not even need 5% for a single flavor). I do have some FA and CAP flavors on their way as well. FA also appears to be able to be used in lower amounts, but CAP might be around 10% or so. I'm intending on starting with lower flavor percentages, because I can always add more (or if I screw up, I dump into a bigger bottle and add more PG/VG )

Open to recommendations, opinions, etc. Please and thanks.

 

[dannyv45]

Loranne flavorings are all over the place percentage wise. Some are very concentrated and only need 3 - 5% others are weak and need 25 - 35% so you need to do your homework and find out what the recommended percents are for each flavor and start with the lowest recommended percent. It's easier to add more then to try to dilute it if you added to much flavor. Hangsen flavorings are pretty consistant at 5 - 7% and inawera flavoring is pretty consistant at 6 drops per 10 ml. So using a good flavor makes mixing easier and result in faster success.

I would use 1, 3, and 10 ml syringes for measuring. Pipettes are very inaccurate unless your using a pipette pump.

If your just starting out I would make small test batches of 5 - 10 ml each so you don't waste your supplies. Have lots of small bottles on hand.

Here is some recommended reading

Read my blogs before getting started

E-Cigarette Forum - dannyv45 - Blogs

then read hoosier's blogs.

E-Cigarette Forum - Hoosier - Blogs

then read the stickies at the top of the page.

this will explain a lot of the how's and why's.

 

[Heabob]

Just from my experiences so far:
10% is a good starting point for TFA, CAP, and FW, (for most of the flavors anyway).
And 2-5% for FA, INW, and VZ (SC), usually.
Haven't tried LA yet, except for the Cream Cheese Icing.

My PG/VG ratio has been all over the place from 80/20VG to 50/50VG, and to me the difference is "not too much".
More vapor at 50/50 and maybe a little bit sweeter so...
Lately I've only been mixing at 70/30 but can't really determine why, lol.
Sometimes I do tobaccos at 80/20 for less sweetness tho.

 

[DingerCPA]

Thanks Danny and Heabob. Danny, I have briefly skimmed your goodies - good stuff

I figured I'd start the LA and FA around 3% (give or take a tiny bit) and the CAP around 10%. I'm going to start with single flavors, until I get the hang of things.

I'm expecting the LA flavors tomorrow or Thursday at the latest. The FA and CAP flavors haven't made it out the door yet....

Getting stoked

 

[Hoosier]

And if you ever want to get out of the corn 'n cows, there are a few mixers that gather at the Silver Bullet in Beech Grove every third Saturday of the month.

 

[DingerCPA]

And if you ever want to get out of the corn 'n cows, there are a few mixers that gather at the Silver Bullet in Beech Grove every third Saturday of the month.

Thanks Hoosier Grew up in Indy, and my Dad used to bowl at the lanes right there off 465. Silver Bullet very far from there? Living in the Fort now. Don't get down that way much anymore, but it's tempting for a road-trip

Just tracked my LA flavors - they left Indy earlier today. Should be landing here tomorrow. The FA/CAPs have left the West Coast - hoping to see them before the weekend. I'm like a kid at Christmastime

Any yea's or nay's on pre-mixing the PG/VG and then adding flavors? I don't know how sensitive my taster is, and I'm not sure if I'd notice the difference. I'm just looking for rich flavor and decently-thick clouds. I get sufficient production from my EVOD tanks on any one of my batteries. I guess this is all part of the experimentation process, eh?

Thanks again all

 

[Hoosier]

Thanks Hoosier Grew up in Indy, and my Dad used to bowl at the lanes right there off 465. Silver Bullet very far from there? Living in the Fort now. Don't get down that way much anymore, but it's tempting for a road-trip

Up there with Cravin' Vapes, yeah, it would be a trip down I-69 to 465 South then just after it turns west, get off on Emerson and head north and you'll come across Main St. in Beech Grove in a few stop lights. The Silver Bullet is a few blocks from there on Main. I won't be there for the August one, but will be there for the September one.

Any yea's or nay's on pre-mixing the PG/VG and then adding flavors?

Sure, why not? I have 4 base bottles at my mixing table. 3 are various PG/VG blends and the fourth is 100mg/ml nicotine. When experimenting I throw a base mix in a bottle and start adding flavoring, shaking, dripping, vaping and keep repeating until I get close to what I think the flavor should be like...

 

[misswish1]

Take a lot of notes, on every mix you put together. Label everything, no you won't remember. Read everything you can, look at recipes in your flavor areas. Have lots of fun!

 

[DingerCPA]

Up there with Cravin' Vapes, yeah, it would be a trip down I-69 to 465 South then just after it turns west, get off on Emerson and head north and you'll come across Main St. in Beech Grove in a few stop lights. The Silver Bullet is a few blocks from there on Main. I won't be there for the August one, but will be there for the September one.

Emerson - that's the street name I was trying to think of. 465 was in my backyard growing up, and I'd often go with my Dad when he bowled - right there at those alleys off 465/Emerson.

It was a reference to Cravin' Vapes that I saw in the forums back in February (had just rekindled my vaping attempts, but still hadn't dropped the real thing, and was blown away by the fact that the Fort had VAPE SHOPS - OMG!!!!) I found the store and picked up a couple of mods and juices, and it's been the road to enlightenment ever since. They opened a location just around the corner from my house, and now I feel like Norm from Cheers whenever I walk in

Misswish - I've been reading a lot, and playing with a couple different calculators. I'm almost cross-eyed (and starting to blur everything together!) I do have a ton of labels with which I intend to mark my attempts. I figure I'll start with 5-10ml batches - I can do the math better at 10mL, but if something *REALLY SUCKS*, I wouldn't feel as bad about making 5mL go away

My LA flavors should be here before lunch! Heck, I might even whip up a couple of small bottles on my lunch break!

 

[Hoosier]

There is a vape meet being hosted by Kokomo Pure Vapor coming up on 8/9 that goes from 1-7 too.

I know I'll be there for a bit, if not longer, mostly because it is the closest shop to me.

We try to keep up with all the vape events in the club website. (Sometimes we're not told of an event until it has passed but those are usually in the far north-west and far south-west. Why those folks won't send the club a message so we can help promote it is a mystery.). So if you are looking for a road trip, keep the events tab of the club's site handy as sometimes the notice we do get is of the short variety.
Sent by big fingers on a tiny phone via Tapatalk

 

[DingerCPA]

Update: LA flavors arrived today

Did a "quick 'n' dirty" mix while at the office (like a kid at Christmas...) Didn't measure super-closely, but about 5% Mint Chocolate Chip topped off with 50/50-ish. The flavor is a little light, but I'm not disappointed. Will let it set (if I can keep my hands off it ) to see if it develops at that percentage.

At home:
1) Blueberry/Bavarian Cream (4% Blue/3% Bavarian Cream) REALLY NICE. Creamy blueberry that I was hoping for.
2) Pralines & Cream (5%) I get a creamy note and a tiny bit of Pecan. Almost tastes like a pancake syrup.
3) Keoke/Vanilla Butternut (4% Keoke/3% Vanilla) Heavy hit of coffee and a tiny bit of Vanilla at the start.

I figure the latter two will need to sit for awhile. Lids off until I go to bed tonight, then sit for a couple days to test again.

All 10mL and flavors topped with 50/50.

 

[misswish1]

Alright, you are on your way! Have fun playing, and eventually you will be saving money. Takes awhile to get all the flavors that sound so good!

 

[DingerCPA]

FA and CAP flavors arrived today. Mixed up 4 more bottles - Forest Berries and Cool Mint, straight Chocolate Coconut Almond, Wild Cherry and Catalan Cream, and some gnarly concoction that was supposed to get me to a "maple nut goodie". Too much peanut butter and not enough maple. I'll let it sit for a couple days and re-evaluate. Probably need to add more maple, but I want to give the current flavors a chance to mingle.

Mixing not any where near as hard as I originally thought it could be. I have a couple different types of pipettes, but surprisingly, all my flavors that came today already had dripper tips on them. Now I don't know if my drops are the same as my pipettes (which are graduated, so I at least know how many drops/mL) Oh well, I am just marking #drops (presuming based on same delivery device from mix to mix)

Eh, it's all the part of experimentation. Nothing unvapable yet....

 

[RonJS]

Now I don't know if my drops are the same as my pipettes (which are graduated, so I at least know how many drops/mL) Oh well, I am just marking #drops (presuming based on same delivery device from mix to mix)

Eh, it's all the part of experimentation. Nothing unvapable yet....

I was talking to one of my friends yesterday. Not only does he enjoy my DIY juice, but is a master tool & die maker with a long history in plastic injection molding. I asked him about the accuracy of the plastic tips that are used on many of our flavoring bottles. He told me they are consistently accurate and the tooling used in manufacturing seldom requires sharpening or adjustment.

To me, this means consistency "on same delivery device from mix to mix" from the same flavor supplier. (as long as the supplier does not change their source of tips)

Ron