Help necessary for someone who just cannot grasp the DIY thing

[Cyrus Vap]

As above, no reason to waste. You can always mix concentrations and adjust, won't lose a drop. The only time you may dump something is if you try something with one of your batches that includes adding something strange that tastes like crap. Even then, don't dump it, wait a few days and try to fix it!

DO IT TO IT THE OB!

 

[canoeist]

OB - how are you doing?

 

[Uma]

OB??? I've been learning so much and even copying the pages to my pc to read later again and again. Don't stop now!! Come back soon. (don't make me kick your ....)

 

[the ob]

sorry. I forgot to update all of you who have cared so much on my progress.

I am at work, but will email pics with a explanation when I get home.

You will see why I have not emailed. thanks for checking!

 

[ninfreak]

you need to stop by the zenfidel group sometime ob.... we have very talented diy peeps there...myself included

 

[the ob]

you need to stop by the zenfidel group sometime ob.... we have very talented diy peeps there...myself included

I am planning on it. Trust me, you do not want to deal with my idiotic questions over there yet.

I will drive you insane. I literally cannot grasp the most simple concepts. It took me three weeks to break down even the simple steps to just get started. I will visit after I get just a little less annoying. I have been reading and you are all super talented. I am just trying to grasp the very simple basics right now.

right now you are teaching algebra, and I am trying to learn basic addition and subtraction

 

[the ob]

This is what I have been up to.

No tastings yet. I needed to get the bottles first.

Gonna try them today.

 

[the ob]

question.

how would one go ahead and test either cotton candy flavor or lemon juice once the mix is made already?

I mean can you just drip in in the atty or do you have to put it into the mix?

How do I know how much to put in? does it depend on how much juice I made?

I have already been dripping some of the testing juice so I have no idea how much is left in the bottle either.

 

[the ob]

ok.

checking in after trying my juices for the first time. I made four batches of razzberry and two of waffle. I did not get to the waffle as trying to get through the razzberry's was more than enough. trust me.

Here are my comments, and what I learned. or did not learn.

1) I cannot accurately distinguish between 5, 10, 15 20% necessarily. Vendors that people swear they like at 5% I cannot tell the difference between that and 20%.

2) I am trying to recreate a razzberry that I love and maybe I should not do that. I think I am setting myself up for disappointment.

3) maybe I should not make and try so many strengths at once. I got to the point where I thought I would like one brand and hate another just to go back and try and then decide maybe I liked the previous one and hated the other one.

4) I cannot tell what something needs to make it better. I might taste a floral, but do not know how to give it bite or sweetness.

5) speaking of bite and sweetness, how does one add cotton candy or something like lemon juice after the fact when you have no idea how much liquid is in a container? Do you add it to the atty or the bottle?

6) I really need to figure out how to make one bottle and then add flavor instead of making different bottles or 5, 10, 15, 20 each time. I thought it would be easier, and it might just be worse. Too bad I cannot still figure out how to do that.

7) people say flavourart is good at 5%. I swear I liked 20%. that sounds crazy even to me.

8) razzberry specific. Has anyone tried this flavor from Capellas, PA, FA or FW. which do you like?

I am exhausted and quite possibly might be more confused and know less than i did before.

I literally might need someone local to get together with me and show me how to do this.

 

[tmcase]

COVER THE PRINT ON YOUR SYRINGES WITH SCOTCH TAPE so it doesn't come off.

A neat trick I learned was to paint your syringe ml marks with clear nail polish. I've done this and the paint has never come off.

 

[Traver]

I cannot accurately distinguish between 5, 10, 15 20% necessarily. Vendors that people swear they like at 5% I cannot tell the difference between that and 20%.

If you can't tell the difference use the lowest percent.

You may be right. Some flavors will work by themselves others won't. I haven't found a razzberry that I like as a single flavor. All the ones I tried so far need something else.

You may be right. Some flavors will work by themselves others won't. I haven't found a razzberry that I like as a single flavor. All the ones I tried so far need something else.

Peach on the other hand works great. So does orange, prickly pear, watermelon. Maybe other vapors here can tell you the ones they found to work by themselves.

3) Maybe I should not make and try so many strengths at once. I got to the point where I thought I would like one brand and hate another just to go back and try and then decide maybe I liked the previous one and hated the other one.

I agree. Keep it simple.

I am exhausted and quite possibly might be more confused and know less than I did before.

Me too and I have been mixing for over a year. Thats why I try to keep it simple and not do too much at once.

 

[Hoosier]

ok.

checking in after trying my juices for the first time. I made four batches of razzberry and two of waffle. I did not get to the waffle as trying to get through the razzberry's was more than enough. trust me.

Here are my comments, and what I learned. or did not learn.

1) I cannot accurately distinguish between 5, 10, 15 20% necessarily. Vendors that people swear they like at 5% I cannot tell the difference between that and 20%.

2) I am trying to recreate a razzberry that I love and maybe I should not do that. I think I am setting myself up for disappointment.

3) maybe I should not make and try so many strengths at once. I got to the point where I thought I would like one brand and hate another just to go back and try and then decide maybe I liked the previous one and hated the other one.

4) I cannot tell what something needs to make it better. I might taste a floral, but do not know how to give it bite or sweetness.

5) speaking of bite and sweetness, how does one add cotton candy or something like lemon juice after the fact when you have no idea how much liquid is in a container? Do you add it to the atty or the bottle?

6) I really need to figure out how to make one bottle and then add flavor instead of making different bottles or 5, 10, 15, 20 each time. I thought it would be easier, and it might just be worse. Too bad I cannot still figure out how to do that.

7) people say flavourart is good at 5%. I swear I liked 20%. that sounds crazy even to me.

8) razzberry specific. Has anyone tried this flavor from Capellas, PA, FA or FW. which do you like?

I am exhausted and quite possibly might be more confused and know less than i did before.

I literally might need someone local to get together with me and show me how to do this.

1-Bull Pucky
2-Never tried to recreate anything other than Halo T-56 which I did and got bored with it.
3-That is part of it. The reason notes are taken, etc. There is not quantifiable way to judge so it is all subjective.
4-That comes with experience and can only come after you are comfortable with the whole process.
5-Guess. The recipe is going to require tweaking when you scale up anyway.
6-You already figured out how to add flavoring, you add it then make a note, then taste it. It does not really matter at this point if the starting is only 4.95ml instead of 5ml. You are looking to get close the first time. This is not the national championships at Camp Perry for rifle marksmen and even there you get practice rounds before going for score.
7-There are very few, can only think of one, FA flavoring I like as low as 5%. Quit listening to people who do not have your nose and tastebuds and go with what works for you.
8-Depends on the exact Raspberry taste you are going for. I can get the flavor of those odd bumpy candies my grandmother put out every Christmas from TPA/TFA's flavoring. I can get a smoother and nice generic raspberry candy from Capellas.

If you are exhausted, sleep. If you are confused, read your notes and re-write them.

I know a place downtown where the friendly ladys on the sidewalk will show you how to do it for a small fee... ;7

 

[vicsan]

ob, I have Capella's Raspberry and like it a LOT. It tastes just like Raspberry. If you liked the 20% Razz...mix your juice at 20%. People think I'm insane mixing my tobacco flavors at 15%-20%, but that's what tastes best to me. Do what YOU like. You'll be happier with your mixes.

I'm a big flavor person, so I tend to mix my flavors accordingly.

What IF...I mix up a batch of Raspberry juice and tweak it until I think it's good and then PM you the recipe and tell you EXACTLY what to do? Would that work?

Describe the Raspberry juice that you love. Is it sweet? Tart? Full of flavor? Light on flavor? Describe it for me.

 

[the ob]

I think I am a person that needs to have a exact recipe to follow. Ill send a PM.

ob, I have Capella's Raspberry and like it a LOT. It tastes just like Raspberry. If you liked the 20% Razz...mix your juice at 20%. People think I'm insane mixing my tobacco flavors at 15%-20%, but that's what tastes best to me. Do what YOU like. You'll be happier with your mixes.

I'm a big flavor person, so I tend to mix my flavors accordingly.

that would be great!



What IF...I mix up a batch of Raspberry juice and tweak it until I think it's good and then PM you the recipe and tell you EXACTLY what to do? Would that work?

Describe the Raspberry juice that you love. Is it sweet? Tart? Full of flavor? Light on flavor? Describe it for me.

 

[bonniegirl]

@ob
I don't know if this will help. but I have a friend who was diagnosed as a kinesthetic learner meaning she had to touch it and do it to understand it. I taught her using my money method. If this helps, great, if not, maybe someone else will be helped. IDK. Here it is

The money method of DIY
What you need
Nic
PG
VG
peg (everclear, vodka),EM, sweetener, cotton candy, any other additive you desire
usual syringes and droppers (whatever feels comfy)
3.00 in small change, pennies too, at least 20 pennies.
index cards or post it notes
pencil and note pad

decide what percentage of pg/vg you want
write PG on one post it and VG on another and place on the table.

IF your flavors are all PG based as you add them place the amount added in cents on the post it that says PG

Here is an example of a simple recipe
Say you want to make vanilla custard 3 ml sample, use 3.00 worth of change
step one: taste the vanilla custard in whipped cream, do you like it? Is it sweet enough alone in whipped cream?
If you do not like it at all, find another flavor to start, if yes, begin

step 2.:Add a start amount of flavor to the bottle based on your amount desired....if you added 10% and it is PG based put a dime for every ML on the PG post it . You have used 30 cents worth of your total

step 3: Add VG at the percentage you want, if it is a 50/50 ratio and nothing else will have VG add $1.50 on the post it that says VG and add 1.5ml VG to the flavor.

Step 4 Add PG to reach the amount subtracted by .30 (for flavor adjustment) and your nicotine amount. If you have 36mg/ml strength nic and want 12 mg end point, subtract the 1 ml nic and put it in a syringe dedicated to nic and place it on a paper towel near the PG post it. Add the 1.00 worth of cents to the PG post it note

note: thus far you have spent your VG allowance and used .30 cents on flavor, reserved 1.00 for nic and have used 1.50 on VG, so your total is now 2.75. You have a .25 cent balance. Supposing you never want to go above 20% flavor we are about to add PG up to allowing only 15 cents left.

step 5. Add the amount of PG allowed using the above note, the amount would be .15ml of PG.Place the money equivalent on the post it that says PG.

step 6: cap the bottle and shake, taste at this point as it will possibly need sweetener,Em or more flavor and if so add a few drops at a time and when you do add drops write those down as incidentals on your note pad, take note if you reach your drops/ml as you will need to place a penny on the PG side. If the taste test shows promise, add your nic last and swirl and shake,

step 7: steep overnight, taste test the next day. Is the flavor prominent? Is it sweet enough to your liking? You still have 10 cents worth to work with. If the mixture is good add .10 PG (which you see is quite incidental in the scheme of things. If the results are weak add drops (know your droppers ml/drops ratio) add money if you reach a pennys' worth. Notate if it is under a pennys worth until you have added EM, sweetener, flavor etc,

IF the mix is one you like multiply the money in each pile labelled by the amount you want. If you want an once multiply this 3ml by 10. You now have 30.00 worth of ingredients to add.

MOST IMPORTANT! Take notes of everything you do.Make a note if the recipe fails and what you think was wrong, taste etc. The number one error is too much flavor IMO. Err on the side of too little........save your money in my illustration.

This MAY or may not help. It has helped some and has not helped others. I will double check my math on the fly but I think you get the PICTURE of what I am trying to do. Always leave 10 cents to play with in a 3ml sample or more if your sample is larger. If 5ml sample and it is good multiply by 6 for an once or 3 for 15 mls. I personally like 5 ml samples as they are easier for me.

I hope this helps you visualize how this works.
Never give up, we are all here to help. One way or another, one of us will hit the ah-ha moment for you.

I admire your perseverance and if I can be of any help, LMK.

 

[the ob]

@ob
I don't know if this will help. but I have a friend who was diagnosed as a kinesthetic learner meaning she had to touch it and do it to understand it. I taught her using my money method. If this helps, great, if not, maybe someone else will be helped. IDK. Here it is

The money method of DIY
What you need
Nic
PG
VG
peg (everclear, vodka),EM, sweetener, cotton candy, any other additive you desire
usual syringes and droppers (whatever feels comfy)
3.00 in small change, pennies too, at least 20 pennies.
index cards or post it notes
pencil and note pad

decide what percentage of pg/vg you want
write PG on one post it and VG on another and place on the table.

IF your flavors are all PG based as you add them place the amount added in cents on the post it that says PG

Here is an example of a simple recipe
Say you want to make vanilla custard 3 ml sample, use 3.00 worth of change
step one: taste the vanilla custard in whipped cream, do you like it? Is it sweet enough alone in whipped cream?
If you do not like it at all, find another flavor to start, if yes, begin

step 2.:Add a start amount of flavor to the bottle based on your amount desired....if you added 10% and it is PG based put a dime for every ML on the PG post it . You have used 30 cents worth of your total

step 3: Add VG at the percentage you want, if it is a 50/50 ratio and nothing else will have VG add $1.50 on the post it that says VG and add 1.5ml VG to the flavor.

Step 4 Add PG to reach the amount subtracted by .30 (for flavor adjustment) and your nicotine amount. If you have 36mg/ml strength nic and want 12 mg end point, subtract the 1 ml nic and put it in a syringe dedicated to nic and place it on a paper towel near the PG post it. Add the 1.00 worth of cents to the PG post it note

note: thus far you have spent your VG allowance and used .30 cents on flavor, reserved 1.00 for nic and have used 1.50 on VG, so your total is now 2.75. You have a .25 cent balance. Supposing you never want to go above 20% flavor we are about to add PG up to allowing only 15 cents left.

step 5. Add the amount of PG allowed using the above note, the amount would be .15ml of PG.Place the money equivalent on the post it that says PG.

step 6: cap the bottle and shake, taste at this point as it will possibly need sweetener,Em or more flavor and if so add a few drops at a time and when you do add drops write those down as incidentals on your note pad, take note if you reach your drops/ml as you will need to place a penny on the PG side. If the taste test shows promise, add your nic last and swirl and shake,

step 7: steep overnight, taste test the next day. Is the flavor prominent? Is it sweet enough to your liking? You still have 10 cents worth to work with. If the mixture is good add .10 PG (which you see is quite incidental in the scheme of things. If the results are weak add drops (know your droppers ml/drops ratio) add money if you reach a pennys' worth. Notate if it is under a pennys worth until you have added EM, sweetener, flavor etc,

IF the mix is one you like multiply the money in each pile labelled by the amount you want. If you want an once multiply this 3ml by 10. You now have 30.00 worth of ingredients to add.

MOST IMPORTANT! Take notes of everything you do.Make a note if the recipe fails and what you think was wrong, taste etc. The number one error is too much flavor IMO. Err on the side of too little........save your money in my illustration.

This MAY or may not help. It has helped some and has not helped others. I will double check my math on the fly but I think you get the PICTURE of what I am trying to do. Always leave 10 cents to play with in a 3ml sample or more if your sample is larger. If 5ml sample and it is good multiply by 6 for an once or 3 for 15 mls. I personally like 5 ml samples as they are easier for me.

I hope this helps you visualize how this works.
Never give up, we are all here to help. One way or another, one of us will hit the ah-ha moment for you.

I admire your perseverance and if I can be of any help, LMK.

Thank you very much for your post.

I actually think this method could help a lot if I could see you do it. Reading and reading things with numbers and percentages is one of my big issues.

The funny thing is that I have to deal with retail math on a daily basis and have somehow figured it out but it took years to get a grasp of it.

Reading this is very confusing. When I am not so tired, I am going to sit down with this method and see if I can figure it out.

One thing, I use mostly 70/30 pg vg. So what would that be in the change denominations?

Also is there a specific breakdown of change I need to start with?

 

[bonniegirl]

@ob
Say you want to make 5mls of a sample
get 5.00 worth of change and for every dollar, .70 cents goes on the side with PG and .30 goes on the side with VG
so the math is .70 x 5 = 3.50 on PG side and remainder on VG side
every ml is equal to 1.00 in money
in my dropper ..........30 drops = 1ml, so you can use pennies or nickles to equal less than a ml or drops.
IF you add 5 drops of sweetener or EM, place the nickle on the PG side, they are PG based.

I hope that makes it clear. With a 5ml sample you may not need all change as you know you will add a ml of something, so a dollar bill would work. The point of this is to visualize the process. Once you visualize, it may just click. It did for my friend. She is a genius but learns differently. She has to touch to understand, IDK if this will help you, is worth a try, though.
Good luck in your endeavors and keep asking questions..........there are no dumb questions, just dumb people that don't ask. Ask until you understand. It is no reflection of your intelligence or competence. Everyone learns differently and we have many audio/visual means on ECF but no kinesthetic ways that I know of. You can do it, you have the want to and the drive. We are all cheering you on.

 

[the ob]

OK.

It has been a while. My original batch is still seeping believe it or not. I finally decided I needed to take serious action. Here is what I finally did.

I made a 5ml batch of capellas lemon meringue pie at my correct percentage with flavoring. I am gonna let it steep for a bit and just try it.

making the ones without the nic seemed incomplete. I just made one at the average percentage people like to use and I will go from there.

 

[sachavaca]

boy am i glad to find this thread, reading all those diy threads just confuse the heck out of me. looks like a good place to get started.

 

[the ob]

Welcome sachavaca.

I hope to continue it and get help for others at the same time.