how can i still be a newb? More questions on flavours and carts and dripping

[telemole73]

hey gang!

I got my EGO and my 510 is retired. I got a few new flavours and starting mixing up small batches of 5-8mg juice.

I found that some of the flavours just don't come through at all - i have tried the same juice in a cartomizer, and direct dripping... so weak.. and i have sensitive tastebuds! How much flavouring are people finding (by percentage ) they need to add to get the taste through?

i finally got one banana flavour going well, really mild but pleasant, no burning taste etc... with a cartomizer (i love the convenience, dripping is a PITA).

Drip tips - i have a stainless drip tip for my new ego, but i still find it tricky to get those drops not to hit the inside of the tip on thier way in... should I be popping the tip off every time? i find that a few drops gets me a burnt taste pretty quickly, and the cartomizer keeps things smooth - but until i find some juice I can live with on a real long term basis, i dont want to put 2mls into a cartomizer to find out I hate it

Thanks for any and all tips, you folks have been awesome!

telemole

 

[FreeFlow]

only tip i have to offer is when dripping sometimes you need to lightly blow the juice down into the atty when it gets stuck. a light flick or 2 at the drip tip also helps.

the more you drip the easier it gets.

 

[VAPOINSANO]

hi telemole73,

1st off congrats on jumpin back in the game!

all ive heard is 10%-15% , (and some higher extremes too!),
is average and each vendors different ?
hope this helps a little,
they'll b more peeps soon tho!

 

[lickwid]

Probably just wait for RachelCoffe to tear this thread apart with her epic DIY knowledge.

But for the dripping, depends on the atty, if you're using an LR306, I put 3 drops in, and it's easy to hit the atty cos it's so close to the mouth piece. With a 510 you want to do 2 drops, and as FreeFlow said, blow into it just to get it down there. If everything tastes burnt all the time, your atty is probably toast, get out a new one and make sure you keep it wet, as soon as it starts to lose flavor, put 2 more drops in it.

 

[rachelcoffe]

Hi Telemole!

Don't worry hon, you'll get the hang of things before long! OK, so looking at your post I can see there are a couple of things that need clearing up. No worries, we're all here to help each other out.

1) On second read-through, I don't think you're doing the following...but just so there's no confusion, a drip-tip is not meant for use with a cartomizer. Cartomizers are meant to be filled & used; drip tips are meant for use with a separate atty only...for dripping.

---

2) In my opinion (and opinion on this varies widely amongst the vaping community), dripping with a separate atty is not the best method for vaping. Mainly because it's inconvenient (2 or 3 drops at a time, yoy), & you end up having to deal with the commonly experienced 'burnt' atty taste & all that jazz.

That said...if you really prefer dripping, then you'll need to clean your atomizers on a relatively regular basis. There are people here who can describe these cleaning methods in more detail (rinsing, alcohol, etc), better than I. However, as a friend of mine discovered yesterday...standard cleaning is not always enough. She had cleaned her attys quite properly & was still getting that awful burnt taste within only moments of dripping. If that happens (after cleaning the atty the usual way) you should try doing a dry burn.

Take the battery (manual battery), & screw the atomizer on. No cart, no drip tip, nothing. Just the batt & the atty. Then press the button & hold it down. You may need to press it numerous times, as even manuals seem to have a cutoff. Keep pressing the button & holding it until the atomizer coil visibly glows red hot. It may take a minute or two before it reaches this heat. Once you've reached it, press & hold the button for about 10 to 15 seconds - then wait a few seconds - then repeat, three or four times. Then wait at least 15 to 20 minutes for your atomizer to cool off, lol.

Don't be alarmed if you see what looks like wispy smoking arising from the coil. This dry burn method should burn off any accumulated gunk that your standard cleaning methods weren't taking care of. Mind you, effectiveness varies. You may need to clean it again & do an even longer dry burn, if you still end up with the burnt taste. The inconvenience & taste issues are just two reasons why I will never drip.

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3) Now as to 510 cartomizers (the better method for vaping, I feel)...they generally hold about 1mL of e-juice. Sometimes a bit less, sometimes a fair bit more. In any event, there's no need for you to hesitate to fill one up. Find a juice that you're reasonably sure you'll like...& go for it.

Have you found any juices yet (premixed or DIY) that you know you like?

If yes, then yay. If not...I would advise just taking your best guess. I've only ever vaped with 510 cartomizers & while 1mL or so for testing purposes is a bit more than 2 or 3 drops via dripping...understand that the same juice will often taste different in a separate atty than it does in a cartomizer. For example...in a nice wet cartomizer, it won't taste burnt!



So if you really want to see what the juice is going to be like in a cartomizer, you've just got to take the plunge. Worst case scenario, if you don't like it you can always clean out that cartomizer (much more easily than atty cleaning, too) for re-use later, & you've only lost a few pennies worth of juice.

I'll PM you re: cartomizer filling & cartomizer cleaning so you can have a few tips on hand & know how to do both easily.

 

[inkedcanadian]

Cartomizers are meant to be filled & used; drip tips are meant for use with a separate atty only...for dripping.

Correct that cartomizers are to be filled and used but I put drip tips on all my cartos when I go out so I can easily re-fill without needing some sort of pick to get the rubber top off. Plus it moves your lips higher up from the heat.

 

[ella]

Correct that cartomizers are to be filled and used but I put drip tips on all my cartos when I go out so I can easily re-fill without needing some sort of pick to get the rubber top off. Plus it moves your lips higher up from the heat.

I'm with you Inked. At home I drip on an atty but when out I put a drip tip on a previously filled cartomizer and just drip now and then. And I also agree with heat bit.

 

[rachelcoffe]

P.S. Forgot to address the juices!!

What flavours have you ordered, made by whom, & from where? You're not using grocery store stuff are you?

V.I. is correct: with most DIY juices, 10 to 15% flavouring is the common range. If a flavour is really crazy strong, 5% might be indicated. If a flavour is fairly weak (for example, Watermelon from Perfumer's Apprentice - an all natural & therefore weaker flavour), you might notch it up to 20%. Most of my juices are at 10% flavour, & a few of them I go with 15%.

Here's an example recipe that I use quite often to DIY my Cola (Tri) juice, a favourite vape:

I used the free e-juice calculator at the following address (& highly recommend it):

todmuller.com/ejuice/ejuice.php

As you can see, it's very simple.

- 26 drops of flavourless PG w/nic (28mg nic strength) (65%)
- 10 drops of plain VG (25%)
- 4 drops of Cola (Tri) flavouring (10%)

= 40 drops of Cola (Tri) e-juice (i.e. 2mL, at 18mg nic strength)

At 10%, this particular flavour comes through strong & really shines. Tastes exactly like cola too: I can even taste the bubbles!

(By the way, the regular Cola from PA is absolutely terrible. It doesn't even taste like cola, but more like some chemical-tasting Mountain Dew variant. I wrote to Linda about this & she said yes, the triacetin version turned out much, much better. Jack doesn't carry Cola (Tri) yet but you can get it directly from Perfumer's Apprentice:

Perfumers Apprentice - Cola (Tri)

I recommend the 15mL at least; I went through my first 4mL faster than any other flavour before, because it was so good. Was torture waiting to get more!)

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The other thing is you're mixing really low-nic juices (5mg to 8mg strength). That's fine if that's what you want. But don't expect much (if any) throat hit from a juice that low in nic.

What is the initial nic strength of your flavourless PG w/nic base? And are you diluting your juices down to between 5mg & 8mg with plain PG, plain VG, or both? Asking this because while some VG is preferable (it increases vapour production considerably), VG is not as good a flavour carrier as PG, & is thicker too. So if you're using a lot of plain VG with only a little bit of PG w/nic...this could explain a reduction in flavour.

Flavour can also be affected by how long you allow the juice to sit after mixing it up. Some juices are ready to go right away; some are much better, & much tastier, after they've been left to sit for anywhere from a few hours to overnight.

Make sure that when you leave some juice to sit, that it's in a relatively cool, dark place (a dark cupboard that isn't near your stove is a good idea). Air, heat & even light are things you want your juice to avoid when you're not using it.

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Hope some of that helps. Off to send you that PM!!

 

[rachelcoffe]

Probably just wait for RachelCoffe to tear this thread apart with her epic DIY knowledge.

You know me well, lickwid!

To inked & ella: You're right that under certain circumstances a drip tip can be used with a cartomizer. The reason I was advising against this was in case a newbie got the wrong idea - took a dry cartomizer, popped a drip tip on, put 3 drops in there, and wonders why they immediately have a burned, ruined carto.



As long as the cartomizer has actually been filled first, then a drip tip should be OK for topping-off dripping into it, albeit on a limited basis.

 

[kanadiankat]

...as a mere footnote to the great diy info above - DRIP AND DROP - it's a great way to discover what you like - I use it all the time.

DRIP - without a drip tip - put a couple drops right on the atty and take a couple puffs - let it enter your nose. You'll know immediately if the flavor is right or not.

DROP - more flavoring in - by small drops and repeat above until you have a liquid that'll keep you happy.

 

[inkedcanadian]

Yep I knew that's what you were getting at. Just wanted to add that bit.

 

[Switched]

hey gang!

I got my EGO and my 510 is retired. I got a few new flavours and starting mixing up small batches of 5-8mg juice.

I found that some of the flavours just don't come through at all - i have tried the same juice in a cartomizer, and direct dripping... so weak.. and i have sensitive tastebuds! How much flavouring are people finding (by percentage ) they need to add to get the taste through?

i finally got one banana flavour going well, really mild but pleasant, no burning taste etc... with a cartomizer (i love the convenience, dripping is a PITA).

*SNIP

Welcome back. The Ego is a fine machine to get you started once again.

The Canadian sub does not get the exposure some of the distinct one do, so the information provided may be limited. I recommend asking all you questions wrt DIY here: DIY e-liquid , a wealth of knowledgeable folks can be found there daily.

 

[telemole73]

hey gang - thank you all SO much - especially rachelcoffee! Holy you got some time on your hands sister! I do greatly appreciate the help

I am posting a reply right now because I successfully did the following tonight :

- dripped ! without ...-taste!
- dripped and dropped until i got 2 mixes (almost 3 working on that one) that I love! (one I call 'flapjack' which is my own creation with some nice maple... mmm maple... We could market this as a Canadian exclusive
- filled my carto and successfully vaped it MOST of the DAY.. i love this ego...
- filled a regular cart with a tasty juice that is going strong as i type
- dripped on to my LR atty - what a difference! (not for everyday vaping for me though )
- slapped a cart on the LR to keep it juicy and it's going well too...

You guys rock and I'm vaping like a champ - maybe i should slow down and have some water - I might be feverish
lol

Thanks so much guys - hoping to make it to that meetup in Markham - hope I'll be able to meet some of you there!

Cheers,
telemole

 

[BlitzkriegTim]

thank you all SO much - especially rachelcoffee!

I can't believe I've missed that for so long, it's Rachel Coffee! I often myself mispell coffee as coffe too but I never even thought of that. I always read it it my head as Rachel Caugh and couldn't figure out what coffe stood for... However if it's supposed to be coffe I apologize. and will remain to be confused

 

[rachelcoffe]

I can't believe I've missed that for so long, it's Rachel Coffee! I often myself mispell coffee as coffe too but I never even thought of that. I always read it it my head as Rachel Caugh and couldn't figure out what coffe stood for... However if it's supposed to be coffe I apologize. and will remain to be confused

 

[annap]

RachelCoffe what a great source for diy info. I have learned sooo much from your post Thanks

 

[rachelcoffe]

RachelCoffe what a great source for diy info. I have learned sooo much from your post Thanks

You're very welcome, Anna

- and thank you for your sweet post of appreciation! Made me feel all fuzzy inside. Glad to know my post helped you.