Honest answers please

[Jeremy Evans]

How challenging is making a GOOD flavor with DIY, I have been thinking about this for a while and now that I have a couple RBAs that are vaping like smoke machine at concert, I have become more compelled to try it out. Is it truly easy to make decent juice or is it hit or miss and I know it is obviously cheaper, but being cheap and ending up with crappy juice is just being wasteful. Thanks

 

[psycheval]

The honest truth about DIY juice is you get out of it what you put into it.
Read Hoosier's blogs on DIY Juice. That will get you to where you can make vapeable juice. All this stuff you see people talking about is just extra.
It is not complicated. Some of us are doing and/or looking at complicated stuff but that's not necessary to make juice.
Try it. That's the only way you'll find out.

 

[Hoosier]

Some folks jump right in the deep end and swim like Olympic champs.
Some folks enter in the shallow end and struggle to wade.

Most are somewhere in-between.

I mix like a cow on rollerskates dances. Once you edit out the embarrassing parts it looks great. (I dance like a cow on rollerskates too, but that's part of my charm.)

 

[michaelsil1]

How challenging is making a GOOD flavor with DIY, I have been thinking about this for a while and now that I have a couple RBAs that are vaping like smoke machine at concert, I have become more compelled to try it out. Is it truly easy to make decent juice or is it hit or miss and I know it is obviously cheaper, but being cheap and ending up with crappy juice is just being wasteful. Thanks

You can end up paying for crappy juice too.

It's all hit or miss even when buying the so called favorite.


The truth is I'm having more fun making my own eJuice and I'm also making some flavors as well.

 

[Red_Bird]

Anybody that sticks with DIY'ing eliquid will learn to make good juice.

How much effort and research you put in will determine how long it will take.

Most everybody will hit on something good soon, but you will have flub ups too.

Its fun crafting it perfectly to your own taste though....and eventually all u have is bottles of good juices in your house.

 

[amiller36]

I've found that I have spent WAY more than it would have cost to do store bought juice. I also have found that I like my own juices way more than anything I have bought. Maybe someday I will break even, until then, I'll keep vaping yummy custom juices.

-I agree with all previous statements about sticking with it and trying over and over, just thought I'd touch on the financial aspect since it wasn't addressed as of yet.

 

[Jeremy Evans]

Is it easier to start with a premix VG/PG with nic or get all 3 separate and mix accordingly?

 

[patkin]

Simple, one note, juices... pretty easy. Vapability pretty much only depends on the quality of your ingredients. More complex juices, not so much. There's also that weird human trait of something costing more being better... ya know? And even the best cooks admit to enjoying food not cooked by themselves at a restaurant more than what they toiled over. Just saying... even DIYin, I still buy prepared juice.

 

[FACE MEAT]

Is it easier to start with a premix VG/PG with nic or get all 3 separate and mix accordingly?

I''s definitely easier for a beginner to buy your base liquid at whatever nicotine content you prefer. You'll pay a bit more money, but it makes the whole process safer and less daunting. I like Wizard Labs nicotine base.

If you're so inclined, you could save quite a bit of money making your own e-liquid. Your initial investment could amount to a substantial sum, but you'll save money in the long run.

If you're like me and you enjoy tinkering and playing amateur scientist, the money savings aren't the main concern.

Vaping your own first good e-liquid is a rewarding experience. Start simple and replicate some of the recipes in the recipe sub-forum.

 

[psycheval]

I mix like a cow on rollerskates dances. Once you edit out the embarrassing parts it looks great. (I dance like a cow on rollerskates too, but that's part of my charm.)

He don't fib but a little bit either. Read his blogs and make juice. If your into more after you start mixing there is nothing stopping you from trying the complicated stuff. Learn how to make good basic juice before you take a flying leap at the difficult.

I make 250ml for what you pay for about 30ml or so of good custom juice. Generally my 30ml batches cost under $1 a bottle total. Like $0.50.
And it's fun.

 

[Aheadatime]

Yes you can produce outstanding vapes that are tailored to your tastebuds and never get boring. But like everyone before me has stated, that only happens if you put in the time and research. I've found that extracting my own teas and tobaccos makes all of my juices very personal tasting and very fun to work with, but it took trial and error and there have been bad batches. Do your homework, make sure you have quality supplies, and have patience. Ultimately, you'll end up with ridiculously cheap, custom tailored, repeatable recipes that not only taste top notch, but leave you with a sense of pride after every drag.

 

[the_vape_nerd]

There are only 3 vendor juices that I like better than my own stuff. BWB's applewood tobacco, BWB's casablanca and Highbrow's Orange de Sangria.

I've got 7-8 really good go to juice recipes. The other stuff i'll make 5ml at a time to sample and play around with.

It really is all about research and time put into experimentation.

 

[michaelsil1]

I'm another one that loves to make Extracts, I think this is where it's really DIY.

 

[the_vape_nerd]

I'm another one that loves to make Extracts, I think this is where it's really DIY.

How do you guys do this exactly?

 

[SilverCloud]

I got into DIY juice about a month or so ago...

IMO, straight forward single flavors are simple but I still start with small "tasting" batches when acquiring a new flavor I'm not familiar with. It saves me money by not having to trash a bunch of juice you can't stand... I've had to do that a few times in the past with certain vendor's juices that tasted like absolute perfumed frog's ..... I've recently fell in love with organic flavor concentrates, since I'm a simple fruit-vaping kinda guy and kind of leary of some of the chemicals in artificial flavors. But...that's just me.

So far, it costs me about 50-60 cents a day to vape. Not too shabby... Now if I can just stay out of the damn Classified section.

Bri

 

[Aheadatime]

How do you guys do this exactly?

There are a bunch of methods. You can just put some dry material (tea leaves, tobacco) in a jar with some VG or PG and let it sit for a week or two. You could put it in a mug with PG or VG and put that mug in a slow cooker filled with water overnight then let it steep during the day turned off (repeat this process a few times and add new water each night). You could put some VG in a pan on low heat and just throw the material in there for a few minutes. You could even microwave the material in a mug with VG or PG, although this one I'm really not a fan of. The goal is just to get the 'essence' of the material into the PG or VG. All of the methods are simply trying to achieve that same goal.

These methods require very thorough straining (mesh, coffee-filter, cotton ball/syringe, etc) or else your coils will gunk up and your juice will just look plain gross. Take a look at the sub-forum here in DIY called "Tobacco Extractions", and you'll see all of these methods with tutorials, peoples experiences, etc. Its a real treasure trove for the patient and experimental individual.

 

[michaelsil1]

How do you guys do this exactly?

Good question, it depends on what you want to extract some things take longer than others. You can use 100% PG or 100% VG or Vodka for extracting just be sure that whatever your extracting is completely covered.

 

[michaelsil1]

BTW

Aheadatime and myself are extracting different Teas right now, I'm waiting patiently extracting slowly in 100% PG with no heat involved.

 

[Complexed]

Ive been at it about a month now I have created a handful of good liquids on my own. One of which was a complete accident. I have some other bottles around that are not my recipes but I use them. Learning from other people is key. Researching flavors is key and dont forget to have fun.I Just replicated Red_Birds Ecto and its fantastic. Hes held my hand a bit during my diy infancy. Its been invaluable to my limited success. I imagine in a year or so I will be very good at this. I want to get started on tobaccos. I think they will be the hardest by far.

 

[Red_Bird]

Simple, one note, juices... pretty easy. Vapability pretty much only depends on the quality of your ingredients. More complex juices, not so much. There's also that weird human trait of something costing more being better... ya know? And even the best cooks admit to enjoying food not cooked by themselves at a restaurant more than what they toiled over. Just saying... even DIYin, I still buy prepared juice.

I don't....no need, mine is better. Vendor juice 95% is horrid