I Have A Confession...

[Blueser]

I'm still smoking about HAP of cigs a day. It's a lot better than the 1 1/2 - 2 packs a day for 40 years. I just started vaping about 6 months ago and never had any luck buying/finding store bought juice that I could vape. Most everything I bought was absolutely horrendously sickening, that's why I decided to start making my own, figured no way it could be any worse than what I was wasting money buying.

I've only been diy'ing for about a month and just trying to find my way. I've been trying to make juice that both my wife and I could agree on as being vapeable...she's done a great job quitting the cigs...me not so well. I keep needing to get my nicotine fix from the analogs....but!...I may have finally stumbled upon my fix. I made a 5ml straight tobacco blend a few ago. Woke up this morning thinking about running to the store and buying a pack of cigs but instead decided to try my little sample first and dang if it hasn't given me hope that I could lay the cigs down.

I've been following the HS thread pretty closely but have only tried a few of their different tobacco's...at the moment I only have their RY1, USA Mix and have RY4 being delivered today. The little sample I made was RY1 7% and USA Mix 3% W/ 2dps marshmallow/1dp Smooth in 5 mls. I don't know enough yet to determine if it's good as it stands or if I can make it even better. I'm sitting here contemplating upping the USA Mix to 4% and maybe the Nic from 18% - 24%...everything I've made so far has been @ 18% nic and I'm still smoking to get my nic fix...so I'm thinking that maybe upping my Nic to 24% for now just might do the trick.

 

[HeadInClouds]

When I starting vaping I was quitting a HDP cig habit, and those were lights. But at first, vaping anything less than 24mg just didn't satisfy me. Once I had cigs out of my system, I was able to step that down without a problem. But if not for those initial 24 mg mixes I'd have continued smoking, too. I also get satisfaction from constant variety, so I use many different flavors each day.

 

[dannyv45]

If you are still smoking then up your NIC to 24mg. Stay away from the sweeter additives for now and stay with the tobacco tasting flavors. Don't force yourself to quit, it's ok to have a cigarette once in a while during the quitting phase. When you feel a craving coming on reach for the vape first and not the cigarette. If after vaping a while and the cravings are not satisfied then a cigarette will have to do. Set a goal for yourself when you get up in the morning (I'm not going to smoke more then 10 cigarettes today) then each day cut it down by one cigarette. Go into it with the mentality that "This goal is not permission to have cigarettes" but a crutch to fall back on if vaping is not working. If you don't smoke as much as your set goal pat yourself on the back because that is a job well done.

The flavors I used when quitting were the reds (ashey taste) the highway, T5, 555 (Nutty) with no added sweetener. If you find the tobacco taste is not satisfying find some tobacco absolute to add to those mixes. tobacco absolute is a tobacco essence additive similure to what HS puts in there tobacco flavoring. Use it at 1 - 3%. It will add more tobacco flavor to the mix.

http://www.azurevaping.com/1-5-ml-vial-tobacco-absolute-w-ethyl-alcohol.html

This will need to be diluted to 1 TA to 9 parts PG then used as a concentrate at 1 - 3%

I'm an ex 45 year smoker of hard core reds and it worked for me. I've been cigarette free for 9 months now. My vape is now 12 - 18mg.

Don't feel bad about having slip up's we'll help you through it. Just stay focused....... Good luck.

 

[Valanda]

Congrats on trying to give up the analogs! It can be done!
I vaped for over a year before I finally was able to put the analogs away. That's why my signature only says 60 days. I discovered I had three problems.

1)I wasn't vaping right -- I was trying to do it exactly like I did cigs -- not very effective (at least for me).
2)My equipment sucked! Well, it actually has a bit of a following here, but I was using a cig-a-like (KR808D-1 auto). Just not what I needed to quit.
3)I was trying to quit with 24mg nic -- I really needed 36mg at the time, but the highest I could find locally was 24mg (and then my choices were tobacco or menthol).

I don't know if you have any of these problems or not, but the need for higher nic juice with a decent taste is what got me into DIY. I am now down to 24mg, but it took a few weeks. I kept an emergency bottle of 36mg with me for those trying times after I decreased the nic.

Again, good luck in quitting the stinkies! Even if it takes a year or more, it can be done!