Thanks Bill. It makes sense. I had actually thought about that accuracy with syringes thing a few years back (when I was still just thinking about getting into DIY someday but not actually doing it yet) and thought about it the other night when I mixed my wife up another bottle of Snowy Day. ie, the issue of a slight measuring error with a syringe. Being .1ml, or .05ml off on a flavor could be gigantic in how it tastes if you're only mixing up a 10ml bottle (especially with some flavors that you shouldn't use more than 1-2% of anyway) -- but if you're mixing up 100ml, or 500ml of it - being .1ml off is far less critical.
Good argument for making larger bottles of something once you have a good recipe!
Exactly!
Bigger batches are always going to be closer to final measurement than small batches. All the juice makers think in terms of gallons, not 15 ml bottles, for example, for increased accuracy. Smaller batches are going to have a higher margin for error, but using the same measurement devices and units of measure is still going to get you very close.
I have a scale, but I never use it. Instead, I just make larger batches and use ml via syringe. It gets close enough for my purposes, and should be sufficient for the average user. Commercial is a different animal, using gallons and high quality measurement devices, including weight measurement, should really only come in to play with measurements with crystals, powders, etc. For this reason, I don't mix my own EM's, I buy the Cotton Candy, and I like the results I get with it, not to mention, it is far easier and quicker, not that it's difficult, just more convenient. If was mixing crystals, powders, etc., I would use a scale.
Regarding the citric acid, it is used in such a small amount, that special measurement via scales, etc. is not required. In other words, a pinch is all that is required, not precise measurement. Probably the explanation is more complex than what is actually required to be "close enough," in our mixes. Hope this helps all the new vapers trying to determine how to get their juices to be made consistently, and easily. Use a variety of different sized syringes that match the quanitity of juices you are making. For example, don't use a 60 ml syringe to make 15 ml of juice. For 15 mls, use 1 mil and 3 mil syringes, and you should be fine in your everyday mixes. As I mentioned, I use 1, 3, 10, 30, 60 and 100 ml syringes, and that seems to allow me to get close to the mixes regardless of any questions or concerns about viscosity. Viscosity only plays a role when using drops, and not full bottle mixes. Hope this helps!
Edit: By the way you can buy bottles that use the same caps in 1 ounce and 2 ounce, or different caps, just depends on the source. I had a problem because in past order I didn't pay attention to cap sizes, easily remedied depending entirely on what we choose to order. I have 120 ml bottles that use the same caps as 30 ml bottles, for example. Keeps it a little easier to work with. Primarily I use wide mouth reagent bottles for much of my storage of larger quantities, say over 120 mls:
Good luck! I totally agree with the Sarge on both the sufficient accuracy of syringes for your purposes, and the fact that we can SWAG the use of crystals and powders in our mixes. KISS formula works best for me, not laboratory-like accuracy, which is nearly impossible to achieve consistently outside the lab. Just avoid using drops as a unit of measurement, other than in 100DT's, and you'll be fine!
