Concentrate help

So I finally want to take the plunge and have a crack at mixing my own juice, and I think I can actually figure out the maths side of it (yay). But when I look at all the concentrates my head hurts and I don't know what to try mixing with, which brands of concentrate work, which ones taste like bum, what should I avoid like the plague. I want to start off ordering from canada to keep costs down while I figure out what I'm doing.

I've seen Flavour Art, Perfumers Apprentice, Capella drops, i-mix and Lorann (I think I saw Lorann is actually for baking and can crack tanks easier?), are there any others out there I've missed from the local area?

I'm pretty sure I just want to make my house look like a a laboratory. I have had a sift through old posts but I couldn't find exactly what I was after, but help from the mixing gurus would be lovely

 

Hey Bleak.. I've had some success with one rule of thumb.... 2 drops concentrate per 1ml.. the hardest thing is letting it steep.. .comse you're keen to try it and see how it taste.. so.. make some small batches up and try let it steep for a bit. Perfumers Apprentice Concentrates from Juicewhore are the absolute best.. absolute best!

Yasmin

 

I get my concentrates from electroniccigarettelife.com.com. They are not bad @ $4 each, plus flat rate next day delivery which is a bonus

 

ecigmodshops super concentrated flavours. I just bought some this week, and they're really really good, so far. Haven't tried any of their tobacco flavours, just fruit and desserts

 

Just remember BleakOptimism, all concentrates mix at different rates. Even different flavours in the same brand can all differ.

So when you order them, see if they have the info on the site as to how much to use, and use that as a starting point.

I use a lot of LorAnn, and it doesn't crack tanks any more than anything else. Sounds like a rumour put out by a competitor, be.comse all these concentrates are made for the baking industry. It is flavour more than anything else that will crack tanks. I put up a list not too long ago on another thread about what flavours from what brands are suitable for vaping, but basically if you buy it from a ecig vendor it will be suitable for vaping. There is also a chart floating around for which concentrates/flavours may crack tanks.

It's really easy to do, just keep track of what you have put into a particular mix. Nothing worse than not writing it down, and wanting to make more cos it rocks, and you have no idea how to replicate it.

Good luck, it's a lot of fun.

 

Here's a good site with plenty of recipes. The Vape Book
Just be aware that some concentrates are different (ie. There's concentrates and then there's super concentrates). Just start with your percentages small and work up. Take plenty of notes.
Good luck

 

The Tobacco flavours are really good too. Have some VZ concentrates too which are possibly Hangsen? Handy if you happen to get your nic from VZ.

 

Thanks for all the info folks Looks like I'll just try a few of each brand and see how I go, and I have a nice new notebook given to me that I now know exactly what to do with!!! I saw a thread about flavours that crack tanks and it was pretty long, all this advice is very welcome. Once I have money again (come on NEXT payday), I'll grab a bunch and start experimenting, even ordered myself a dripping atty to experiment with. There will no doubt be more questions once I get into things.

 

vapingcobra.com.com have a great range and lots of good info on their site.

I have found the Flavour Apprentice fruit flavours to be very nice.

For tobacco's you can't beat the EcigModShop super concentrates.

Happy mixing, it's great fun especially when you have a win

 

Get yourself the Pheonix clone from vaping cobra, I find that so much easier to use to test out juices than the standard dripping atties which for me are too messy.

 

For tobacco I wouldn't go past this:
Tobacco Extract E-Liquid by Flavor Apprentice

Expensive but good flavour. TFA are also not stocking this for much longer due to a shortage so get on it quick.

 

I can't quite get into tobacco flavours, I seem to be a fruity person, but all recommendations are great, never know if Mr Bleak will want some, I think I might have to cave and place yet another order and get some concentrate to play with.

 

This is a very good guide for anyone starting
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Let's clear up some easy things in DIy mixing, especially for amateur vapers who want to get involved:

1) First of all we produce the base where the flavour is going to be added. It is better if we have this base ready than to mix the same time PG, VG, WFI and flavour. The time needed for homogenization of the content is very long that way.

2)When we produce our base and its nicotine level we have to consider that flavour percentage will dilute further nicotine and the nicotine's concentration will be decreased. So, if our target liquid is 18mg/ml for nicotine and our flavour needs 5% dilution, we have to make the base in 18mg/ml+5% = 18.9mg/ml so after adding the flavour eliquid will be in 18mg/ml. It is much more easier to handle base nicotine level than of the ready-to-vape eliquid (you have to add flavour's percentage together with bases' correction volume).

3) Eliquid is similar to hot chocolate preparation. First we aa the compound we want to dilute and after the solvent (spoons of chocolate and afterwards the hot water). Same way, we add the amount of flavour (in our empty bottle), afterwards the stronger nicotine base and finally the weaker nicotine base. This row be.comse: a) Flavour gets diluted better when we add slowly the solvent (base), b) we add the stronger nicotine base to ensure that measured volume will be added and c) We add weaker base afterwards to have the option of correction if more or less stronger base dropped by mishandling.

4) Eliquids are not milkshake. Handle gently. Round smooth mixing, better by using a glass stirring rod. Rod is the perfect tool for this action. No bubbles, velvet touch of liquid, easy to use. Do not shake upside down the mix. Air will be in the eliquid and these bubbles prevent good homogenization. Imagine that even if you let the eliquid calm in a dark drawer, aromatic molecules still move in the base. In molecule level, all compounds move continuously. So, even if you do not mix well, leave your eliquid for 2 days somewhere. If you are not tired, leave it for 5-7 days and you will taste a delicious juice.

5) If your amateur in DIY avoid testing very precise percentages of PG-VG. Get a general check if PG suits you and afterwards try 2-3 different maximum percentages. You will see soon that after you find your optimum content, flavours will be your main concern.

6) When you mix 2 or more flavours, do not add the dilution percentages of each. Example: If you want to get MOJITO with VODKA, LIME, MINT do not try to mix 5%+5%+4%=14% total of flavours in your eliquid. You will get a stuffy eliquid where only the strongest flavour will be visible. For MOJITO you will need 6% total of a mix produced by 6 parts of VODKA, 3 parts of LIME and 1 part of MINT. Relative ratio in multiple flavour mixing results after many testings and experience.

to be continued ...
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I strongly suggest that you follow this, your chances of success will triple!

 

Also make sure you're using quality stuff. Example: Atmos Lab, Perfumer's Apprentice, FlavourArt. Don't try using Inawera be.comse of the chemical taste (hoping that people won't jump me be.comse i've dismissed Inawera).

 

I like fruity flavors too & one thing I have discovered is, that not all concentrates are the same!
A flavored concentrate of one brand is quite often very different tasting to the same named concentrate of another brand, even when both are mixed at the optimum dilutions. You may find you hate one brand's banana & love sucking on another brand's banana, while brand A's apple is sweet as pie & brand B's apple is too tart. Sometimes combining 2 diffent concentrates of the same flavor, produces a better overall flavor than either of the 2 alone do.
Vanilla is a prime example of a flavor that varies very widely between brands, with many different vanilla concentrates even within the same brand quite often.

Finding the perfect flavor concentrates for your own tastes can take some time but when you do & you get your DiY mixes perfect, there is no better feeling in vaping, except maybe in rebuilding a genesis wick & coil & getting the perfect vape working for you.

 

OK WTF is WFI?



I ALWAYS shake my juice & keep shaking until I can see microfine bubbles all throughout the juice, the bubbles being air rise to the top & I believe, in the process remove some of the esters you do not want in the juice.
I then let my juice sit until all the bubbles have risen & the juice is bubble free before using, this can take an hour or two, I may or may not test vape in that time but I will retest after the bubbles dissipate too.

Stirring with a glass rod inside a 30ml dripper bottle is madness, in fact stirring with a glass rod at all seems like a complete waste of tedious time to me in any size bottle with a lid.
Shake the hell out of it, get it all mixed in minutes & not in days.

As for mixing up a base & the rest of the process, what I do is, to an empty bottle add my unflavored nic base, add the concentrates(count as PG in the PG/VG ratio), add PG &/or VG to get the proper ratio & nic strength.
This isn't rocket science, you don't need beakers , glass stirring rods, PH testing gear, bunsen burners or anything else , just unflavored nic , concentrate(s), PG &/or VG & an empty bottle & you can make great tasting DiY juice.



I know vapers that love some Inawera concentrates & these vapers have also used other brands you mention.
It all comes down to personal taste, I'm not jumping you for dismissing Inawera, I'm jumping you for coming across as an expert & having only made 2 posts here, yet you know how DiY is done best in Oz be.comse you live in Europe with different laws on how you can obtain nic juice etc.

 

Well i quoted the manufacturer from here. Personally i don't know what WFI is...

If you leave the resulting e-liquid sit for a few days you will notice that the base will start to color from the flavors. Only then it gets better in taste an flavour strength. Tried and tested this myself and it's worth the wait.

Yes the laws are more strict here when it comes to importing / producing e-liquid, that is entirely true. From my personal experience and from the customers we've had over the last year i can say for sure that we've been thanked a lot of times after giving up Inawera and switching to Atmos. "These bases are analyzed every month in Toxicology Laboratories of Medical Schools in University of Thessaly and Crete of Hellas. They do not contain TSNAs and PAHs which are strong carginogen compounds.".

 

I would say WFI is 'water for injection' .. namely distilled water, but medical grade certified stuff suitable for sticking in someones arm..

 

I was just going to use a juice calculator, fiddle a bit until, shake the living crap out of it, set it down and wait a bit, then test.... Thanks for all the input now even if vapemania has left me a little befuddled by science. I've got a few perfumers apprentice flavours on the way so I'll see how I go before I need to consult the juice swami's again

Medical grade injecting water? I might pass.

 

You can't just post something that someone else has written in another forum and put it up here like it is coming from you. At least give the credit to the original.comthor of it, and where it came from. And if you are going to use someone else's words, you better make sure you know what they were on about.



We call that steeping in canada. The speed you mix the juice at doesn't matter, the amount of days you let it sit for after does.

You want to get the stuff mixed, not rock it gently to sleep with a glass rod and sing it lullabies.

And I think you ought to get back to that forum you lifted that from, find out what WFI is, and then come back here and tell us. You owe us that much my vape maniac friend.