Random DIY mixing and More

[Punk In Drublic]

@Heartsdelight @dc99 – both are very valid reasons and I would like to think if someone had a sensitivity to PG, or a high VG objective, then they would choose their nic base accordingly. But as I mentioned, it seems from my general perception that many use a PG based nic. Still finding my footings with DIY so was just curious if there was any particular reason why.

 

[hittman]

I found this chocolate tobacco recipe on elr while looking for a recipe to try the gold ducat I bought. I think I should have done a sft on the ducat first. It’s only steeped five days but I’m getting almost a sour twang on the exhale. I don’t really taste the chocolate yet. I’m sure it probably needs a longer steep but I’m already thinking of using a different chocolate.

 

[DavidOck]

Coming to the end of my first batch of nicotine which is 100% VG. Will need to order more. I’m leaning toward this shouldn’t matter, but do users have a preference between VG based and PG based? If so, would like to hear why

Here in Canada we are limited by law to 65mg/ml max. But I do have a choice between VG or PG based

I'm in the PG camp, mostly because, after "thawing" from the freezer, it's still easier to pre-agitate before dispensing than VG based.

I pre-mix my entire base. PG,VG and Nic. Add flavors,fill bottle with base and done.

Likewise, makes mixing easier I mix mine to just over my target nic, and just below my target PG. Most flavorings are in PG, so they dilute the nic a tad while raising the PG a tad.

I line up my flavors in the order I will add them in to the right of me. Before I get ready to drip some in the bottle, I look at the label again, shake the bottle and drip it into the bottle. Once I have added the flavor, I put it to the left of me. Helps keep me honest.

Similar, but I pre-shake all the flavors, then line them up in recipe order with the caps off, sitting in front of the bottles. Add the first, set it down and drop the cap on. Don't bother to screw it then, do them all when I'm finished.

Yep, lots of methods, and the more we hear of, the more chances of finding one that fits

If one is able to obtain their VG/PG percentage, curious how would 65mg affect a mix?

Don't see how it would, you'll be diluting the nic (I hope! ) anyway, just have to remember to plug in the right number in the calculator.

 

[Punk In Drublic]

I'm in the PG camp, mostly because, after "thawing" from the freezer, it's still easier to pre-agitate before dispensing than VG based.

Is it safe to assume you just keep a surplus in the freezer with a smaller usable batch in the fridge or cupboard? Just begun by DIY career so only had a small batch of nic to begin with. But I’ve been keeping it in the fridge when not in use.

 

[Zazie]

Coming to the end of my first batch of nicotine which is 100% VG. Will need to order more. I’m leaning toward this shouldn’t matter, but do users have a preference between VG based and PG based? If so, would like to hear why

Here in Canada we are limited by law to 65mg/ml max. But I do have a choice between VG or PG based

VG is supposed to be better for long-term storage.

 

[Zazie]

Hey,not so bad for a very first session. Takes a bit to learn to read label before you squirt...LOL

It was those two Flavorah bottles sitting side by side. I was so sure I grabbed the right one.

 

[Zazie]

Hopefully your first one works out ok.

Edit: Ignore the rest of what I wrote ... its best to keep vg/pg/nic separate .. I didn't factor in the diluents of the nic and flavorings.

I'm okay with anywhere from 6 to 12mgs/ml, so a little extra or less dilution doesn't bother me. I may premix my base next time just to cut down on the fiddliness.

What do you use to transfer your base/VG/PG to the mixing bottle? I used droppers and syringes and, for larger amounts, just poured. No method was much fun.

Mixing turned out to be a surprisingly sticky affair.

 

[Punk In Drublic]

VG is supposed to be better for long-term storage.

That I did not know. See…I learned something today!

 

[AngeNZ]

I just finished my first ever mixing session. It was a four-hour marathon. Don't make the mistake of thinking I have an enormous amount to show for that: I tend to work slowly to begin with, and even then I make a lot of dumb mistakes, no matter how careful I try to be. I also had many struggles getting my flavors open (the way some child-proof caps stymie me, you'd think I was a tenth my actual age, I swear). I also discovered that my equipment is frustratingly inadequate, something I intend to remedy before I mix anything else (I need squeeze bottles for VG and PG and pipettes or some such for transferring nic base into the mixing bottle, at the very least).

My first mix was the the Arroz con Leche I hope someday to perfect. It was a fiasco. First, I grabbed FLV Rich Cinnamon instead of Rum & Raisin and blithely started squirting it in. By the time I noticed my mistake, I'd added four times the amount of cinnamon I wanted. This made me decide to quadruple the recipe, which is crazy, since it's a first draft, and who knows what it's going to taste like. After managing not to mess anything else up, I grabbed PG when I meant to be adding VG and slopped in almost twice as much of it as I wanted before I realized what I was doing. The upshot is that what was supposed to be 60VG/40PG is 45VG/55PG. I hope I can vape it without getting the burned tongue/roof of mouth sensation that high PG induces in me.

The rest of the adventure went more smoothly: @FranC's Cheesecake Base #2 (which will first be going into @Fidola13's Fig Cheesecake in a couple of weeks), @FranC's Cheesy Rhubarb Bar, Mango Blossom Macaron, Vaperol Spritz, Xmas Pudding & Devon Cream, Treacle Ginger Pudding & Devon Cream, and SFTs of bilberry and the four black currants.

I am pretty worn out.

Congrats on your first mix - you did awesome

My first time involved half an hour of getting the nozzles off flavouring bottles and then half an hour of trying to suck up in a syringe each flavour. As for trying to suck up the VG into a syringe

My next session was with a scale and took two hours less:
Squirt, hit tare, squirt, hit tare etc

That’s where I will be purchasing from. But was thinking that a PG base might be easier to shake up prior to use - get those nic hot spots out. I also like to keep my nic in the fridge (adds a cool, menthol taste ), again, thinking I might benefit from PG.

But good point on being thicker, easier to control.

I've always used VG based nicotine. I store it in the fridge and only bring it out a few minutes before mixing. It's been no problem to use, even cold and sluggish - I just have to squeeze a bit harder on the bottle

Sluggish nic also helps eliminate the over pouring problem

 

[Zazie]

That I did not know. See…I learned something today!

@Rossum taught me this. I think it was in this thread.

 

[Zazie]

Congrats on your first mix - you did awesome

My first time involved half an hour of getting the nozzles off flavouring bottles and then half an hour of trying to suck up in a syringe each flavour. As for trying to suck up the VG into a syringe

My next session was with a scale and took two hours less:
Squirt, hit tare, squirt, hit tare etc

Just taking off the caps was hell! I ended up having to cut the locking rings off a few flavors and drew blood in the process. Plus all my flavors are new so a bunch of them were tightly encased in plastic. (Tomorrow's project may be to go through everything I haven't used yet and remove all protective wrappings.)

I also had to learn the quirks of my scale. It is slow to arrive at the final weight, so before I figured that out I overshot a few times. Just a hundredth (or two or three) of a percentage here and there. No big deal. I hope.

It's going to be interesting cobbling together mixes from all my single-flavor tests. Some weird, one-of-a-kind witches' brews are in the offing.

 

[AngeNZ]

Just taking off the caps was hell! I ended up having to cut the locking rings off a few flavors and drew blood in the process. Plus all my flavors are new so a bunch of them were tightly encased in plastic. (Tomorrow's project may be to go through everything I haven't used yet and remove all protective wrappings.)

I also had to learn the quirks of my scale. It is slow to arrive at the final weight, so before I figured that out I overshot a few times. Just a hundredth (or two or three) of a percentage here and there. No big deal. I hope.

It's going to be interesting cobbling together mixes from all my single-flavor tests. Some weird, one-of-a-kind witches' brews are in the offing.

Yeah the scale takes some getting used to - but you'll soon be squirting and hitting tare like a pro

 

[TylerA]

I'm okay with anywhere from 6 to 12mgs/ml, so a little extra or less dilution doesn't bother me. I may premix my base next time just to cut down on the fiddliness.

What do you use to transfer your base/VG/PG to the mixing bottle? I used droppers and syringes and, for larger amounts, just poured. No method was much fun.

Mixing turned out to be a surprisingly sticky affair.

So I have 6 mixing bottles. Two are larger bottles that I keep VG/PG in that pour fast but not accurately, the next two are 60ml chubby gorilla's of VG/PG for more accurate pouring, the last two are one big bottle and one chubby gorilla of premixed.

My method using a gram scale that weighs to the hundredth decimal (not sure how efficient this is):

1. Use funnel to fill two chubby gorilla bottles and two larger bottles with VG and PG separately, amount doesn't matter.
2. Decide on a premix amount, say 500ml, and in a single bottle:
3. a) Measure close to the amount of vg using big bottle
b) Measure remaining amount of vg using chubby gorilla for accuracy
c) Measure close to the amount of pg using big bottle
d) Measure remaining amount of pg using chubby gorilla for accuracy
5. Measure the amount of nicotine

Here are two images I made, hopefully this illustrates it better:

This way, you'll have a few less bottles to worry about when you're mixing recipes at least.

You'll notice in the second image the PG% went down to 17% from 30% due to using PG based nic, and PG based flavorings. So that's something you'll have to account for whether you use PG or VG based nic.

 

[TylerA]

Just taking off the caps was hell! I ended up having to cut the locking rings off a few flavors and drew blood in the process. Plus all my flavors are new so a bunch of them were tightly encased in plastic. (Tomorrow's project may be to go through everything I haven't used yet and remove all protective wrappings.)

I also had to learn the quirks of my scale. It is slow to arrive at the final weight, so before I figured that out I overshot a few times. Just a hundredth (or two or three) of a percentage here and there. No big deal. I hope.

It's going to be interesting cobbling together mixes from all my single-flavor tests. Some weird, one-of-a-kind witches' brews are in the offing.

You might try wrapping the cap in a cloth or dishtowel when trying to unscrew them .. make sure to press the cap down towards the bottle before unscrewing.

 

[Zazie]

It was getting the small amounts of VG, PG, and, especially, nic base needed for 10ml batches into the mixing bottles that I found to be really fussy. I have all three in glass, so I didn't have the luxury of squeezing. I think I'll premix a base at 12mgs/ml 65/35 next time. Then it will just be a matter of squirting from one bottle after weighing the flavors. If flavors account for 10-15%, that'll mean the finished recipe will be close enough to where I want it nic/VG/PG wise.

LDPE is the better plastic for squeezing, right?

 

[Zazie]

You might try wrapping the cap in a cloth or dishtowel when trying to unscrew them .. make sure to press the cap down towards the bottle before unscrewing.

Oh, I tried all the usual tricks. A few flavors just happened to be packaged with an extremely tenacious ring that made me resort to knifework.

 

[DavidOck]

Is it safe to assume you just keep a surplus in the freezer with a smaller usable batch in the fridge or cupboard? Just begun by DIY career so only had a small batch of nic to begin with. But I’ve been keeping it in the fridge when not in use.

Yep.

Lower temps for storage, along with being kept in the dark.

I still mix by volume, using syringes without needles for flavors. Finger tip to close the outlet, and drip the flavors in to the right amount, hold it over a graduated cylinder and let it go. When all the flavors are in, working base to the recipe amount, stir. Pour into final bottle - the cylinders have a pouring spout.

For working base, I also use a cylinder (have several sizes) to measure out the nic, PG and VG, pouring all into a glass container of the right size. Beaker, mason jar, or what's handy.

 

[JCinFLA]

Is it safe to assume you just keep a surplus in the freezer with a smaller usable batch in the fridge or cupboard? Just begun by DIY career so only had a small batch of nic to begin with. But I’ve been keeping it in the fridge when not in use.

When you take stored nic base from the freezer or fridge...you need to let it come to room temperature before doing anything with it (ie. splitting a large freezer bottle into smaller ones or using some for a DIY mixing session). Otherwise, you'll likely get some condensate in it, and water isn't good for nic base. That was 1 thing I remember being mentioned many times when I first started DIY. I haven't seen it posted much at all any more though.

LDPE is the better plastic for squeezing, right?

LDPE and PP bottles are both nice and squeezable.

 

[Zazie]

LDPE and PP bottles are both nice and squeezable.

But HDPE is better, right? And probably still sufficiently squeezable.

What do you think of these?

 

[JCinFLA]

But HDPE is better, right? And probably still sufficiently squeezable.

HDPE is a higher density plastic, which makes it less air permeable than LDPE, but...that also makes it significantly less squeezable. Many HDPE bottles are completely rigid and not squeezable at all (ie. think pill bottles, the white or black jugs that nic base comes in from some vendors, etc.).

Going to take a look at what you linked, then will comment, too.