I picked up an ERA RDA clone from sun vapers for $4.80. And I know I'm going to get what I pay for but just for juice testing purposes I think it will be fine.
I want a rebuildable drip atty, but I wouldn't think of using it for flavor testing, due to the 'big' wicks. How do you go about this if testing multiple flavors back to back? Do you use an atty refresher or something to clear out the wicks? I'd be very interested to know.
As for my juice concoctions... I haven't done a whole lot really, but here's where I'm at:
Grape Bubble Gum
This is now on the second version. I haven't been too happy with either.
The first one was a straight 50/50 split of flavor. It was missing a strong grape 'pop' like you get with good grape gum. Also, it lacked two other things; a sweetness and a juiciness. It was vapable, but it did have a dry powdery taste. Which tasted (to me) exactly like the powder you find on pieces of individually twist wrapped bubble gum.
The second batch shifted the flavor ratio to the grape and I added a couple drops of sweetener. I believe it was like a 60/40 spilt, but I'm not sure off top of my head. It too lacked the grape 'punch' I was looking for and it had the powdery taste. I didn't really taste much of a difference regarding the sweetness. It may have been a little bit better, but I'll add more next time, just to test my limits if nothing else.
What I want to do at this point is go backwards. I want to make a very small batch of just the grape and a very small batch of just the bubble gum. Hopefully by testing them both by themselves, I'll have a better feel for what ratio the flavor should be. It will surely tell me if I'll ever get the grape flavor I'm looking for from this flavor (unless someone knows an additive) and it should also tell me if the bubble gum flavor is really just bubble gum hinted gum powder (gum with a 'm').
Mango Mania
This is on its second batch as well. The first one was better then the second.
The first one was pretty good. I had a three way split with mango, peach and papaya. It had one flavor that kept over powering the others and I want to try to contain it, but I honestly don't know what it is. Truth be told, I have never eaten any of these fruits. I have kind of eaten peaches, but only the canned ones (the ones in the delicious syrup... ooohhh, future flavor?) and I love them. However, I've never eaten a ripe peach or a mango or a papaya. I've had a Mistic Mango Mania (what I'm after flavor wise), but that's it. So, I'm at a bit of a loss. Hopefully, its not the mango I'm tasting because its hard to make a flavor based on a flavor you don't like or enjoy. I did taste a mango flavor today that was very good, but I have no idea what was in it, other than mango, so there is hope.
The second version, I tweaked the ratio so that there was more mango, a little less of the peach and a little more less papaya. FYI, Little More Less is a technical term, so sorry for the geek-ness. This mix was further off the mark then the first. I did add 1 drop per ml of sweetner. Didn't notice a real difference, but I haven't vaped much of this batch.
If I was to mix up another batch right now, I would up the peach and reduce the mango so they were more equal and keep the papaya where it is, but I think I'm going to also take a step backwards with this one and test the individual flavors. As a matter of fact, I think that's going to be my game plan from here on out, at least when using new flavors. Seems kind of logical when I think of it now, but it never crossed my mind before.
The Odd Ball (just came up with that name and kind of like it)
This is on its first and only batch. For those who don't remember or didn't read it, this is the accidental mix I made containing 30% of already mixed Hawaiian Tropical Punch and 70% of already mixed Peach, both of which, I believe, were mixed at 20% flavor (again without the notebook, I'm not sure exactly).
I have found myself grabbing for the tank with this flavor in it more than any others lately (vaping on it now). I can't describe the flavor because it doesn't taste like either of the flavors it started out as. Truth be told, I'm afraid the flavor will change in any other tank. I swear I can taste the green apple lingering, maybe the same flavor nuance was created with my mix, but hopefully, its still there if and when I change tanks/heads. Otherwise, I may have to remake this concoction with some fresh green apple flavor (that I would have to buy). I guess I just decided I was going to be remaking this... humm, what can I do to make it better? Those are probably dangerous words.
With these limited experiments I've done, I can't help but wonder about what certain add ons might do to help me out. Would this, make that happen and bring this out, etc. I have to do some studying, but suggestions are welcome.
If you have read to this point, I thank you.
